Day 801 – 803 21/7 – 23/7 Cooktown

The view from Grassy Hill. Captain Cook climbed this hill to check out the reefs after the Endeavour was beached. The unofficial words he expressed were “we are in deep shit”.

The Grassy Hill Lighthouse was built in 1886 as the port became busier after gold was discovered at Palmer River.

The view back across the Endeavour River from Grassy Hill.

Endeavour River Entrance from the Foreshore.

Ulrika has a habit of finding slytherins, this one at the Botanical Gardens

Some old buildings around town. The Powder Magazine is the oldest building in Cooktown.

Baptist Church – Cooktown Built 1900

Bank of North QLD – 1888

Seagren’s Inn – 1880

QLD National Bank – 1891

Cooktown Railway Station – 1889

Cooktown Hotel – 1885

Powder Magazine – 1875

Old Cooktown Hospital – 1879

The current Archer Point Lighthouse was built in 1975 & replaced a timber framed lighthouse that was built in 1883. The remains of the jetty is from a failed attempt to export sorghum to Japan in the 1970’s.

Black Mountain is a peculiar looking granite mountain that was formed 20 million years ago. When it formed it had an unusual jointing pattern that over time was penetrated by water & fractured into the boulders that make up the mountain.

Bloomfield Falls & River are 60km south of Cooktown on the Bloomfield Track. We last visited the area 25 years ago when it took us 6 hours to travel the 200km from Cairns. Today only 31km of the track is dirt & there is even a bridge over the Bloomfield River. It’s all getting too easy 🙂

Another icon on the Bloomfield track is the Lions Den Hotel. Lunch & a beer is mandatory.

Captain Cook seems to be very popular in Cooktown. Statues, museums, etc everywhere. He spent 48 days on the banks of the Endeavour River fixing his ship after striking a reef 24km out to sea.

James Cook

The memorial

The tree that the Endeavour was tied to.

One of Endeavours anchor

Endeavours Cannon

The actual site that Endeavour was beached

The James Cook Museum has an interesting history in its own right. Built in 1889 was a convent & school run by five Sisters of Mercy from Ireland. In 1941 the sisters were evacuated & the building commandeered by the US Military. It was returned to the church but was not reopened. It was severely damaged by a cyclone in 1949 & sat empty until 1969. A local man Has Looser helped raise £12,000 for its restoration. QEII opened it in 1970 as the Cooktown Museum.