Punsand
Bay is a beautiful area in the northernmost Cape York.
It is the bay that
stretches
roughly
between Peak Point in the west and the Tip
of Australia in
the east
(even though there are
smaller bays such as Cable and Muddy Bay within it).
There is less history
than in
Somerset and Lockerbie,
... but the beautiful nature and four wheel drive tracks make well up
for it.
Punsand
Bay Resort If you
take the
straightest way up to this bay from Bamaga and via Lockerbie junction,
you will come straight to the Resort, which is towards the
western end of the bay.
It has a
beautiful beach (where we have seen
crocodiles).
The Main
Road Up The main
road up is just a gravel road, it goes past a Second World War fuel
dump and a side track up the hill to the old Ginger Dick's
mine.
The
track is very overgrown and at times hard to find. Ginger Dick was the
owner of the old Lockerbie homestead and station.
The Eastern Backtrack East of
the Punsand Bay
Resort there is a track that you can take to the tip
of Australia,
without having to go back to Lockerbie. It is
the so-called
Roma
Flats shortcut track, which is a narrower track (as opposed to the
corrugated gravel roads), with soft
sandy sections, and sometimes impassable early after the wet season.
Track
to Crocodile Creek
Off the Roma Flats shortcut track, goes another side track north
to the beach, if you have some extra time, you may want to
discover.
There is
not a lot there except a beach and a creek mouth with
mangroves, but happens to be a spectacular one, on a beautiful sunny
day you can get nice photos.
The Western Backtrack The
western backtrack from
Lockerbie to Punsand Bay goes west (yeah, right!) of the main road to
the resort.
It starts
south of Lockerbie, and first goes to Larradinya
Creek, and you can do a side track to its mouth. North of the creek it
continues towards Punsand Bay, and comes out just south of it.
Cable
Bay and Peak Point
Just
west of the Punsand Bay
Resort, Cable Bay is a beautiful spot, and there
is also a
historical Old
Telegraph Line
junction box, which is at the very northern end of the line.
Towards
Peak
Point, there are tracks to more nice spots and beaches.
Track
to
Roonga Point
West of Cable Bay and
Peak Point, the track continues to Roonga Point - on
the other side of the Peak Point headland - with more beaches and
beautiful views over
bright blue waters.
From here you
also have some great views on Roko
and
Possession Islands.
It has shade, it has a swimming pool, and even an on-site restaurant.
And more than anything it is on a beautiful beach with great views that
is long enough for walking.
The
Main Road Up and Ginger Dick's Mine
If you
take the main road north, there is a side track to Ginger Dick's mine.
It is another old site with rusty equipment sitting around, like many
on the peninsula.
The track is overgrown and hard to find in some places.
The
Eastern Back
Track
East of
the Punsand Bay resort you can take a shortcut track to the main road
to the Tip of Australia.
The Roma
Flats Track is a fun four wheel drive track and the northernmost
one on the mainland Australia.
Track
to Crocodile
Creek
Not far
from the eastern end of the so-called Roma Flats shortcut track, the track
to Crocodile Creek is a little sandy.
Once in the end, on a beautiful day, you can get nice photos like these.
The
Western Back
Track
The
western backtrack from Lockerbie to Punsand Bay starts a little south
of Lockerbie.
Get
this 50 pages
guide totally for FREE.
It
contains information that helps you getting started with planning of your trip.
You get to make early-stages desicions such as when to go, how long time you
should take, how to get
there and get
around, where
to stay (general info), what
will it cost..
and a short insight to what is there to see and do in Cape York.
This complete 300 pages
travel guide is all you need before and during your trip. Besides the
background chapters on the peninsula's history and wildlife; and the comprehensive detail about all
the places (down to prices, opening hours and full contact
detail), it has invaluable information on at least 10 four wheel drive tracks,
at least 30 guaranteed FREE
camping spots on the Cape (and at least 150 on your way to
the Cape), at least 40 best
swimming holes, all mapped; as well as practical things -
from fuel, roads, wireless internet and mobile phone reception,
how to deal with the national
parks booking rules; and Aboriginal land entrance and camping permits
and alcohol restrictions - to vehicle preparation and accessories and necessary recovery
gear by my vehicle-recovery-guy partner).
Not to mention locals'
tips on how to spot that croc and palm cockatoo ;-)
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This site uses British
English, which is the English we use in
Australia.
Disclaimer:
Although
best efforts have been made to ensure that all the information on this
website is correct, this site is not to be blamed should there be a
mistake.
This is the ORIGINAL Cape York Travel Guide run Locally on the Peninsula.