Day 35 Thursday July 10th 2014 Port Douglas

What a joy it is to sit outside and have breakfast. The bush hens scratch around us, it is warm and birds are squawking. Pete and Di pack up and head off to Cape York with their entourage of two other vans. After they leave the management drag away a palm tree that Pete has felled in his efforts to create the perfect camp site. Heaven help the bush.

The town is much quieter now as school holidays are over. Even the presence of a cruise ship anchored just off the point has barely swelled the numbers. It is about 27 degrees and the beach is the main attraction.

We’ve been invaded by the Europeans. On one side we have a bunch of young Frenchmen in a whiz bang and a tent. (Whiz bang: a small campervan so named for the noise it makes when the door is opened in the middle of the night). Hearing French just outside the window is a treat to the ears. On the other side we have a family from London who are struggling to come to terms with this motor home caper. Thankfully none are taking to their campsites with machetes.

As we cook dinner outside hundreds of bats from the nearby forest take to the sky for their evening’s work.