Cape York without the crowds?

Thanks for the advice Alan, much appreciated.

I took a look at the loyalty beach web site, I think I'll put that on our list of places to stay. They say they have 11 acres of bush camping. Should be able to find a spot in there somewhere.

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We were fortunate to have a camp spot right on the beachfront.........


And Loyalty Beach has a great little restaurant for drinks and an indulgent meal.

That looks fabulous Allan, thanks again.

Just be careful at Loyalty Beach as heaps of wild horses roam and gallop through the areas. Had them actually knock down guy ropes and get into the campers annex area. I wasn,t the only one. I would not recommend this place in school holidays...worse than a Saturday morning in Melbourne's Bourke Street. Drive sensibly (you,ll be one of the few who do) and it is only a dirt road that can be corrugated or nice and smooth, depending on the road crews and graders. The later you leave it the less the crowds. October would probably be too uncomfortable for you as the build up begins. Mid September is bearable and more crowd friendly. Enjoy.

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Bigfish, I did not know about wild horses. Do you have a recommendation better than Loyalty Beach?
I would not go to the Cape during school holidays. My visit was in May and several years ago. It is reportedly much busier up there now.

I didnt bother going to Punsand Bay but believe its not bad. To be perfectly honest I didnt find the cape especially attractive. I,ve been to many better scenic and adventurous regions. Unfortunately with the huge demand for caravans and campers combined with a lot more holidaying at home , popular destinations are going to be overcrowded and less pleasant. I prefer to go more remote now or even stay on cattle stations that have a river/swamp/creeks.

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I took a look at Punsand Bay as I went past but was not attracted. It looked too cramped and structured for me.
But I have no actual experience of it. Maybe some who stayed there might comment.

Thanks everyone.

@Bigfish, August is in the middle of Term 3 for all the eastern states, should it be OK at that time?

We've camped with wild horses once near Cameron Corner. Sitting around the fire in the dark, we hear a rumble, it gets closer & closer. Couldn't see a thing, could only hear them. Quite unsettling.

As I said mate school holidays are as crowded as . Mid term would be quieter for sure. Late August even quieter. . Travel there with an open mind and dont expect it to be a world shattering experience. It is best travelled with plenty of time and not rushing around or having to commit to a certain place at a certain time. Relaxed mode is the answer. You will enjoy it.

Another vote for Loyalty Beach.

Great spot to base yourself with lots of room. We were there for a week and no problems at all.

Others may advise Punsand Bay........if you like being jammed in like sardines

We stayed at punsand in july August 2016 ? Its a very nice spot , our camp was at the far end beach front .Not crammed in by any means imo 4?,few shady trees .Beautiful beach & views nice bar area for evening drinks etc . It was fully booked out & they were turning a lot of people away .
My view

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Good to hear that Nick. I did only view without entering so maybe got the wrong opinion.
I have heard others praise Punsand too.

We stayed at Punsand Bay a couple of years ago. It was very crowded, although the spot we were given at the far end of the camp ground had plenty of room, and we were not right next to anyone else. Our spot was set back from the beach, but was very shady.

If going again, I would stay at Loyalty Beach instead. Less crowded, with similar facilities. We were there in late Sept.





Macca.

Yep, it's those not well visited places I'm looking for.

I admit I'm a bit over loaded with info on what to look at, and most of it are places that everyone visits because they are places listed in all the guide books.

If anyone would like to list some out of the way, less visited places, I'd be very keen to find out about them.

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Just be aware that some of those wondrous places can be of difficult access requiring appropriate vehicle and skills. Which is why they are "not well visited".

Very true, we went out to Somerset which was on a nice gravel road, then took the 5 beaches track. This track needed a high ground clearance 4X4. Very scenic and a great drive. Very nice beaches to camp at, although very windy as it’s on the East Coast.

Also took a track between Punsand Bay and Loyalty Beach. This was also a good drive, but should only be taken with a 4X4.

Plenary of other places to see as well.

Macca.

A couple we had on our own to get the juices running.

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome

That all looks perfect Peter, that's exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks for posting the photos.

I very much understand the question posed & share Siringo's concerns. I also share Jim S1's sentiments.
We too will be experiencing the Cape this year, and as far as possible avoiding the crowds....... and still don't really have an idea as to how easy this will be.

Our 'plan' if you can call it that is to spend at least the full dry season, & very possibly over the next wet season too up here.

Our hope is to make what connections we can with people culture & country - a very different outlook to many guided by the glossy & often macho 4wd magazines etc.

The fallback position is that if we can't manage to see the Cape as we would like to, we may leave it earlier than planned & go elsewhere. To do that would be disappointing, but less disappointing than feeling we were at the unpaved end of the Gold Coast.

Currently we have been caretaking at Portland Roads since mid February & expect to be here at least until the end of April, possibly mid May. Experiencing the area, Chilli Beach in particular without anyone around, & without the wind which comes later in the year is fantastic. It's so hard to imagine the place with wall to wall tourists rushing to get the Cape 'done'.

We are also endeavouring to build what contacts we can with folk who live on the Cape withplaces we can stay when we drive back up later in the year, tourist free private properties. Places that 99.9 % of tourists would never know existed. Currently we have a station with beautiful camping by waterholes we can visit for as long as we like , mid Cape (have already camped there for a couple of weeks last year) a possibility of a 'base' (flexible house sit) up near Seisia, & a couple of other places. Just today we got to speak to someone again who we met briefly once a few weeks ago & were later told, by others, of the idyllic nature of he & his family's home & property on the mouth of the Pascoe River. Remote by Cape standards, accessed mostly by air or by boat via the coast, but also accessible by by what sounds like a fairly tough 4wd track off the PDR. Lovely bloke. We asked about visiting to camp for a bit - (Them that don't ask dont get!) I'm expecting a map to be emailed to me soon, apparently essential as "there are around a 100kms of tracks in & around our property & very easy to get lost". Even if we only get to spend a few days in places like this I hope the experience will be at least enough to to provide the wilderness experience we want balanced in contrast to the crowded holiday park version of the Cape that many get. And it does look like the Cape will be extra busy this year.

So the plan is 'time' plus 'keeping our fingers crossed'. :)

I took your prompt (unintended or otherwise Jim) and splashed out and am now a paid up member.

It'll be nice to contact others back channel instead of in public view.

This year will be a bonanza. Caravan dealers cant keep up with supply. 4wd vehicles (as are most vehicles) are 20-40% overpriced due to covid holdup. People cannot holiday overseas. Vast majority of caravan parks on East Coast already booked out for months. ...The cape will cop a flogging this year for sure.

Got onto Youtube last night and found a few out of the way spots, which looked great.

Had on my list, Ussher Point, then removed it after what I read in a Hema guide. Then watched a vid on it last night and re-added it. Looked perfect.

Also found out last night I may be able to add an additional 2 weeks to the trip which is very exciting.

That sounds great Rob, I'll add it to the list, thank for posting.