Cooktown Memories - 2013 -DAY 32 - Normanton to Croydon, Georgetown, Mt Surprise,Innot Hot Springs

DAY 32

We left Normanton after our enjoyable trip on the Gulflander, but not before going back to retrieve our step stool from the caravan park.  It's not the first time we have left without this little step, but we have been lucky to have found it where we left it.  It's not expensive but it really makes my life better if I don't have to step up so far into the caravan.  We arrived in Croydon, about 155 km, and set up in the little caravan park there.  We joined in the Happy Hour and met some fellow travellers and enjoyed the stories of their travels.  Next morning we had a drive around this small town which is full of history.  There was an old General Store which we had fun looking around and buying a few supplies.  It was as though time had passed it by and nothing had changed in a long, long time.

The store claimed to be the oldest store in Australia

We then found a sign post to Belmore Dam and decided to go and have a look as we weren't expecting to find a dam in this area.

Belmore Dam

Croydon from the Lookout

We hit the road again and headed to Georgetown,137 km, another outback town that we had no idea what to expect but found the Ted Elliott Mineral Collection in a very impressive building and thought we should go in to have a look, and again we were so surprised at the huge collection of rocks, minerals etc.  Even though we are not collectors, it was a magnificent display and we were pleased that we were able to see it.  In 2011 the population of Georgetown was 203 people, a very small outback town.

The road to Georgetown

A bustard crossing the road

One of the exhibits at The Ted Elliot Collection

The Red Elliot Mineral Collection building

We had lunch in a park in Georgetown and then headed off to Mt Surprise and booked into the Bedrock Caravan Park.

On the road to Mt Surprise

Bedrock CP at Mt Surprise

We had booked in to see the Undarra Lava Tubes which were not far out of Mt Surprise.

I dosed myself up with painkillers as I knew I would have a lot of stairs to climb and I was determined to make the most of this trip to the Lava tubes.

The lava tubes are thought to be 190,000 years old and formed from the flow of lava from volcanic activity.  This tour was one of the highlights of our trip and was absolutely amazing.

The Visitor Centre

The Lava Tubes

Underground in the cave

Ron having a drink in the Visitor Centre

The photos do not really show the size of the underground tubes and my camera wasn't on the right setting so my photos are a bit dark.  The Visitor Centre was a great outdoor area with a good cafe.  We didn't stay in the caravan park at the Centre as we wanted to get further along to the Innot Hot Springs.

Innot Hot Springs

Innot Hot Springs

We had a dip in the Hot Springs in the caravan park but it was too hot for us and the cooler one was too cool,  a bit like Goldilocks and the Three Bears!

The distance travelled from Normanton to Innot Hot Springs was 533 km.