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Thanks Simmo for a thorough walkthrough and on your afternoon after working for the day to boot!
Legendary effort mate.
Simmo and his family invited myself and my better half along on their adventure to checkout part of the long closed-off Palmerville Station and have a look at country that's now available as a pay to fossick area.
It's been a while since I've been out to the Palmer, been there a few times before and met some of the local characters. The guys at Palmerville Gold running the campground as well as the fellas from the Western Yalanji Ranger station are no exception, theyre genuine, friendly, helpful people through and through.
So whats my 2 cents worth;
Getting There
To get to Cannibal Creek campground it's a 2 1/2 half hour drive from Cairns City to the Whites Creek Rd turnoff on the Mulligan Hwy (approx. 200kms) then a graded dirt road 41kms to the Cannibal CK turn and about another 4kms to the campsite itself.
For anyone travelling the nearest point for fuel etc is the Palmer River Roadhouse about another 15kms up the Hwy from the Whites Creek turnoff, handy if you need a top off before heading inland.
Whites CK Rd is graded periodically, usually around autumn so atm there's a few spots where washboard will slow you down.
I found going in very heavily laden I was doing about 30-35km/h average but as said there's a few spots that are slow and a few decent hills to get over.
That being said there were a couple of people there that had towed their caravans in.
Coming back after a week with alot less water etc I was comfortable doing 50km/h over most of the road.
During the wet seasons we get up north here that road can be impassable as the creeks are mostly seasonal, dry season is mining season!
Campgrounds
These are Bush Camps i.e cleared sites with no amenities , un-powered spread out around the main dam.
Each camp site has its own designated firepit so if you want to campfire cook or just sit in the evenings (like we did) and stare at the bush tv you can!
There is also a communal firepit up at the entrance where the cabins are and is open to everyone on a Friday night, Ben and the lads from the Yalanji Ranger station come down to tell stories and have a chinwag.
Generators are allowed, there's so much Sun though that solar systems are super efficient. I believe 6am to 10pm were the allowed times.
Some are right at the edge and usually the spots that people fill first and a few are on the other side of the track but still close enough to walk down.
There are Cabins if camping isn't your thing (believe there is a walkthrough of one on the FB page) which you can rent but they aren't cheap.
As Simmo mentioned the site managers are allowing any campers to use the shower and toilet facilities attached to those cabins when they are not being rented.
They are working on amenities for the campground proper but the grounds are a working progress and fair enough when you're 180kms from the nearest major town. So for now Self-sufficiency is important.
The dam itself, and there are 2 much smaller ones around the site all have some freshwater yabbies (red claw) in them as well as fish. There are also a few larger dams out in the fossicking area as well.
Ben said they have recently released Barra fingerlings in a couple of them to see how they fare.
The dams do also container a few resident freshwater crocs which are usually pretty placid toward people and common in most waterholes and rivers in the far north.
There are No sightings of saltwater crocs and swimming in the dams is permitted but like all things at your own risk so use all reasonable caution.
Free WiFi is available up at the Cabin sites, they are working on getting that extended to the whole site also.
Fossicking Area
The Fossicking area is accessible through a track at the top of the hill where the office is (in Simmos video above its right at the end as we were camped on the far side of the dam).
The main track is dirt and reasonable atm though imo I would recommend a 4wd as there are a couple of spots where the ground is soft bulldust or has hollows.
Ben is currently in the process of pushing that main track further in to give best access he can to ground.
Good ground clearance as Simmo mentioned is very important (there a more than a few dry creeks to cross with low to moderate angle entry/exits) especially if you plan on exploring some of the side tracks as we did where there is small saplings to pass over, ruts from runoff erosion, rocks hiding in grass etc.
The side tracks aren't shown on the maps yet but there are lots, some short, some long and they are trying to update their main map where possible.
The Fossicking area we discovered upon arrival has been extended considerably, almost triple the the maps shown previously on posts!
The ground itself is hill country, lots and lots of hills and gullies ranged around a few tall peaks (think the highest is 680m) so the ability to read a map well or even your own mapping app or GPS unit is a great thing to have!
There is a quite a few active mining leases encompassed by the area so if you are planning on going far off the main track then be very aware of your position!
Gold
The gold is most certainly there!
Just a case of picking the right spot, we were unlucky this time (must have accidentally kicked a leprechaun before we left or something) and only found non-gold targets. Or we were looking on the wrong side of the hill ?
There were others that found grams and ounces in the time we were there so I guess just comes back to our favourite saying "gold is where you find it"!
Finally a couple of other notes at the end of the week;
Right now it's quite hot out there, expect days of 35 to 38 degrees so take LOTS of water with you!
The further you go off the main track the rougher it gets, my old Prado coped with it all except a 0.5m drop down into a creek where I called a stop.
There are a few No Access signs about, these tend to lead back to private mining access tracks or leases. I'll be recommending that they add some signs up for future visitors to help people find their way out and back.
The guys at the campground are working on a getting a few grocery items kept on site (hopefully up in the next few weeks) just in case you run out of baked beans or conflakes :lol:
There is a very large dam about 3ks into the Fossicking area that seemed to be a favourite for swimming and fishing, it also big enough to paddle on if you felt like kayaking around it for an hour or so.
Families - feel free to bring the family along!
Simmo brought his youngest son and a friend (both teenagers) who had a ball fishing for red claw and anything else and mucking about for a week.
There was another family that arrived just before we left with a toddler and a baby that seemed perfectly content
Wildlife - we spotted a few locals during our week:
Birds of all sorts, fish, yabbies, crocs, spiders, a baby snake, lizards, a dingo, brumbies, toads, a tiny scorpion and what we believe was a wild goat! Worth packing the camera ?
Feel free to throw any questions out if your thinking of heading there guys!
Cheers,
TGW.
Legendary effort mate.
Simmo and his family invited myself and my better half along on their adventure to checkout part of the long closed-off Palmerville Station and have a look at country that's now available as a pay to fossick area.
It's been a while since I've been out to the Palmer, been there a few times before and met some of the local characters. The guys at Palmerville Gold running the campground as well as the fellas from the Western Yalanji Ranger station are no exception, theyre genuine, friendly, helpful people through and through.
So whats my 2 cents worth;
Getting There
To get to Cannibal Creek campground it's a 2 1/2 half hour drive from Cairns City to the Whites Creek Rd turnoff on the Mulligan Hwy (approx. 200kms) then a graded dirt road 41kms to the Cannibal CK turn and about another 4kms to the campsite itself.
For anyone travelling the nearest point for fuel etc is the Palmer River Roadhouse about another 15kms up the Hwy from the Whites Creek turnoff, handy if you need a top off before heading inland.
Whites CK Rd is graded periodically, usually around autumn so atm there's a few spots where washboard will slow you down.
I found going in very heavily laden I was doing about 30-35km/h average but as said there's a few spots that are slow and a few decent hills to get over.
That being said there were a couple of people there that had towed their caravans in.
Coming back after a week with alot less water etc I was comfortable doing 50km/h over most of the road.
During the wet seasons we get up north here that road can be impassable as the creeks are mostly seasonal, dry season is mining season!
Campgrounds
These are Bush Camps i.e cleared sites with no amenities , un-powered spread out around the main dam.
Each camp site has its own designated firepit so if you want to campfire cook or just sit in the evenings (like we did) and stare at the bush tv you can!
There is also a communal firepit up at the entrance where the cabins are and is open to everyone on a Friday night, Ben and the lads from the Yalanji Ranger station come down to tell stories and have a chinwag.
Generators are allowed, there's so much Sun though that solar systems are super efficient. I believe 6am to 10pm were the allowed times.
Some are right at the edge and usually the spots that people fill first and a few are on the other side of the track but still close enough to walk down.
There are Cabins if camping isn't your thing (believe there is a walkthrough of one on the FB page) which you can rent but they aren't cheap.
As Simmo mentioned the site managers are allowing any campers to use the shower and toilet facilities attached to those cabins when they are not being rented.
They are working on amenities for the campground proper but the grounds are a working progress and fair enough when you're 180kms from the nearest major town. So for now Self-sufficiency is important.
The dam itself, and there are 2 much smaller ones around the site all have some freshwater yabbies (red claw) in them as well as fish. There are also a few larger dams out in the fossicking area as well.
Ben said they have recently released Barra fingerlings in a couple of them to see how they fare.
The dams do also container a few resident freshwater crocs which are usually pretty placid toward people and common in most waterholes and rivers in the far north.
There are No sightings of saltwater crocs and swimming in the dams is permitted but like all things at your own risk so use all reasonable caution.
Free WiFi is available up at the Cabin sites, they are working on getting that extended to the whole site also.
Fossicking Area
The Fossicking area is accessible through a track at the top of the hill where the office is (in Simmos video above its right at the end as we were camped on the far side of the dam).
The main track is dirt and reasonable atm though imo I would recommend a 4wd as there are a couple of spots where the ground is soft bulldust or has hollows.
Ben is currently in the process of pushing that main track further in to give best access he can to ground.
Good ground clearance as Simmo mentioned is very important (there a more than a few dry creeks to cross with low to moderate angle entry/exits) especially if you plan on exploring some of the side tracks as we did where there is small saplings to pass over, ruts from runoff erosion, rocks hiding in grass etc.
The side tracks aren't shown on the maps yet but there are lots, some short, some long and they are trying to update their main map where possible.
The Fossicking area we discovered upon arrival has been extended considerably, almost triple the the maps shown previously on posts!
The ground itself is hill country, lots and lots of hills and gullies ranged around a few tall peaks (think the highest is 680m) so the ability to read a map well or even your own mapping app or GPS unit is a great thing to have!
There is a quite a few active mining leases encompassed by the area so if you are planning on going far off the main track then be very aware of your position!
Gold
The gold is most certainly there!
Just a case of picking the right spot, we were unlucky this time (must have accidentally kicked a leprechaun before we left or something) and only found non-gold targets. Or we were looking on the wrong side of the hill ?
There were others that found grams and ounces in the time we were there so I guess just comes back to our favourite saying "gold is where you find it"!
Finally a couple of other notes at the end of the week;
Right now it's quite hot out there, expect days of 35 to 38 degrees so take LOTS of water with you!
The further you go off the main track the rougher it gets, my old Prado coped with it all except a 0.5m drop down into a creek where I called a stop.
There are a few No Access signs about, these tend to lead back to private mining access tracks or leases. I'll be recommending that they add some signs up for future visitors to help people find their way out and back.
The guys at the campground are working on a getting a few grocery items kept on site (hopefully up in the next few weeks) just in case you run out of baked beans or conflakes :lol:
There is a very large dam about 3ks into the Fossicking area that seemed to be a favourite for swimming and fishing, it also big enough to paddle on if you felt like kayaking around it for an hour or so.
Families - feel free to bring the family along!
Simmo brought his youngest son and a friend (both teenagers) who had a ball fishing for red claw and anything else and mucking about for a week.
There was another family that arrived just before we left with a toddler and a baby that seemed perfectly content
Wildlife - we spotted a few locals during our week:
Birds of all sorts, fish, yabbies, crocs, spiders, a baby snake, lizards, a dingo, brumbies, toads, a tiny scorpion and what we believe was a wild goat! Worth packing the camera ?
Feel free to throw any questions out if your thinking of heading there guys!
Cheers,
TGW.
