Day 29, Saturday 30th August – Cooktown to Cairns via The Bloomfield Track

Many people had suggested we do the Bloomfield track to get to Cairns, this a quote I found

“The coastal drive to Wujal Wujal on the Bloomfield River and beyond is an unforgettable experience, full of spectacular views, creek crossings, secluded beaches, a rainforest archway, majestic plants, unexpected wildlife and history.

The Bloomfield Track is one of the most scenic short 4WD drives in Queensland and a must-do for 4WD travellers”

Its about 30 kms long, and 10 km is sealed including all the steep descents and ascents. In researching 33 pct and 20 pct gradients do not equate to 33 degrees and 20 degrees, in fact 33 pct gradient is about 18 degrees.

Armed with this knowledge we took off up Grassy Hill in Cooktown with an angle app on Liz’s leg to get a feel for what it was comparatively speaking. It peaked at 18 degrees , so research done 😁😁 off we set.

After the 1st ascent where the bike wanted to go left on acceleration I went all moto cross, up on the pegs and leaning forward to put some weight over the steer

The clay would be a challenge in the wet. We had this reinforced at a set of roadworks, where on a steep dirt downhill we followed the grader through what I described to someone as “pig slop” , with no traction at all. Glad the water truck let us go 1st. Not one vehicle came up on us for the entire 30.kms, and relatively light the other way as well