The final Stage of our Great Divide Ride series – Mackay QLD to the very Tip of Cape York QLD. River crossings, crocodiles, outback station stays, camping. It’s got adventure written all over it!
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The final Stage of our Great Divide Ride series – Mackay QLD to the very Tip of Cape York QLD. River crossings, crocodiles, outback station stays, camping. It’s got adventure written all over it!
Cape York in Far North Queensland has a reputation in 4WD circles as a “must do” bucket list destination. The same could be said in adventure riding circles apart from the fact the logistics of doing it by yourself are a little tricky.
The riding is generally for the most part fairly straight forward running, but when the going gets tough it can be tough! The CREB track and Overland Telegraph Track have fearsome reputations that are well deserved. You will have the option of tackling them with our support or bypass them and stick to the easier main route.
Ride Cape York with the support of Maschine and our trusty support crew.
Mackay, Queensland
Palm Cove, Queensland
Monday 18 August 2024
Thursday 28 August 2024
Arrive in Mackay at your leisure. We will kick official proceedings off with our rider sign on & welcome dinner at our hotel.
Getting out of Mackay we will head north for Townsville with its imposing rocky sentinel overlooking the city. Some pretty big kilometres to cover but we will travelling on some open roads where the speeds will be high. Maybe we will do a little more bitumen than would normally but Australia is a bloody big country and we have make the kays up some how.
The tropics are calling! Today we will sample some of the lush green bush of FNQ.
Another big distance day so we can’t muck about. Climb the escarpment of Paluma Range and you could almost imagine yourself being in the Alps with the twisting bitumen road if it wasn’t for the sugar cane fields that surround.
Once we get west of the range again you will witness the stark change in landscape. The nearby shores of Lake Tinaroo is our home for the night which puts us in good place to dive into the tropics surrounding Cairns and Cape Tribulation tomorrow.
We will enjoy some of lush tropical vegetation in the hinterland behind Cairns and the famous twisted road along the Gillies Range.
Heading west of the Divide we will check out the historic Palmer Goldfields with it’s ruins scattered around the harsh landscape. You can’t help but be impressed by the founders pioneering spirit. They were certainly made of tougher stuff than most of us!
Overnight at Hann River, an old roadhouse along the PDR which is pretty basic but somehow the atmosphere is relaxing and the showers are heaven sent after a dusty day on the road! Perhaps your first camping night.
Pretty much a straight run today heading north on the Peninsula Development Road but you have the opportunity make a couple of detours if you’re game on some back station roads to stay off the PDR.
Today is where we start to enjoy the wide open spaces of the Cape and ever changing landscape with ant hills, big river crossings and red red dirt.
Overnight at Bramwell Station in a donga or camp. Bramwell Station is a working cattle property that caters to tourists and has recently been purchased as a National Park to preserve its heritage.
We can almost see The Tip now!
Keen to tackle one of Australia’s most iconic 4WD tracks? The Old Telegraph Track is on many riders bucket list and it does pose a reasonably formidable challenge in places. Steep entries and exits to creek crossings that will have you searching for the ideal line. Fruitbat Falls is a must do stop for everyone along the way with beautiful clear water spilling over limestone rock shelves. It is a fantastic place to cool off and wash off some dust.
The Jardine River Ferry will take us over the otherwise impassable river and then we are left a short hop to Bamaga and beyond.
Today is the day. You’ve made it to The Tip!
To cap the ride off we will regroup at Punsand Bay and take a leisurely ride from our accomodation to the Tip. A short walk over the volcanic rock of the headland until you see that famous sign stuck in the rocks with just a few islands jutting out of the ocean over your shoulder as you pose for that iconic photo at the Tip!
Overnight at Punsand Bay for a couple of nights with some R&R.
For those riders that have made the commitment to all three stages of our Great Divide Ride this will be a tremendous feeling to reach the northernmost point of mainland Australia after riding from the Grampians in Victoria all the way along the Great Dividing Range to where it drops off into the ocean.
Revel in your achievement with a rest day at camp with a few cold beverages or perhaps take a scenic helicopter flight or some fishing and fully enjoy the coastal surrounds.
Recharge your batteries before we make the return trek back to civilisation, the fun isn’t over yet!
Some big kilometres to cover today as we head back south on the Peninsula with an opportunity to tackle the northern end of the Overland Telegraph Track. Enjoy a refreshing dip at Fruit Bat or Eliot Falls.
Maybe another spicy Enduro option for you to contemplate today with a relatively new track cut in towards Weipa. Overnighting at Weipa gives us the full Cape experience and a chance for some luxury with a bed for everyone!
Easy one today with plenty of time to enjoy Weipa before departing. Maybe a quick scenic tour or wet a line?
Coen is our overnight stop with one of the few pubs along the Peninsula.
Some classic Cape scenery today with ant hills, waterholes and creek crossings. The enjoyable roads include Battlecamp Road which leads us back to the coast and the historically significant town of Cooktown. Site of Captain Cooks landing with the ship Endeavour when it ran aground on the Great Barrier Reef in 1770.
The coastal breezes signal our return to the coast. Spend some time around Cooktown exploring Captain Cooks first landing site on Australian mainland.
You’ve heard of the CREB Track right? It’s held high in adventure riding folklore but its red clay surface will trap the unwary. Will today be YOUR chance to conquer the CREB? Even if you don’t tackle the CREB you will still get to enjoy a sensational ride through the Daintree National Park and Cape Tribulation up the Bloomfield Track.
Our final stop on this epic journey is the beautiful Palm Cove, a resort township right on the coast. What an awesome way to unwind at the end of our almighty expedition and wash off the dust with a few bevvies with your mates you have spent the last 11 days exploring with. Job done! It’s party time!
From Palm Cove you are free to make your way home whether that be by transporting your bike back home while you fly or perhaps you might want to load up and continue the ride home under your own steam on two wheels and let the adventure continue.
After breakfast you are free to check out and make your way home, whether that be riding home or perhaps you might opt for bike freight and fly home.
Or, better still, add on a few days at the end your trip and stay in beautiful Palm Cove to treat yourself.
This ride is classed as – Grade 3 – 4: Medium – Difficult
Key elements that give this grading are:
See our Track Grading System for more detailed information to help you decide if this ride is right for you.
We like to make our tours suitable for “an average rider on a big-bore adventure bike”.
So we expect riders to have at least some off-road riding experience – ideally two years.
The main Adventure routes are usually suitable for big adventure bikes, like a Ducati Multistrada or BMW R1250GS with off-road knobby tyres fitted.
For sure less experienced riders can, and have, joined our tours and they find them to be an incredible learning experience. You can learn so much just being around other riders. We suggest this is not the ride for you if you are just starting out.
If you have any questions or concerns just give us a call and we are happy to have a chat about your personal situation.
This ride is capped at 50 riders.
If this sounds like a lot to you then bear in mind that we have experience in managing motorcycle tour events with over 250 riders! We have the systems and knowledgable staff in place to effectively manage these larger group sizes.
A group size of 50 is great because it means we can get beds for most everyone most nights of the ride. The group makes you feel part of a big event but then you get a chance to meet and talk to everyone during the ride and make some new friends.
Yes absolutely, we always recommend riders have knobby tyres on their bikes to maximise your safety and enjoyment.
Our recommended tyres in most situations are Motoz Tractionator Adventure or Motoz Tractionator Rallz (Nick’s favourite!) for their predictable off-road grip and outstanding durability.
For sure other tyres like Continental TKC80 or Pirelli Scorpion Rally are OK too.
We don’t advise riders to use 80/20 tyres like Hidenau K60 Scout or Continental TKC70. These styles of tyre just simply don’t offer enough traction in many off-road situations, particularly when conditions get wet.
No, typically rental bikes are not available for our Australian tours. That said we may have some options we can look into for you on this tour. Please email us with your enquiry.
Yes. This ride is primarily for riders on their own adventure bikes.
For those of you that have the luxury of more than one adventure bike to choose to ride we would give this information:
Yes, this ride is suitable for Enduro bikes providing you have a minimum fuel range of 300km
We provide the pre-planned routes as a .GPX file you can load into your GPS or Smartphone navigation app. This will allow you to follow our planned route at your own pace and arrive safely at the overnight stop.
For each event we also provide printed daily route sheets which include an overview map and address details of fuel, food, overnight accommodation stops etc.
At some events we will also have route marking arrow stickers that are put up by our lead riders on trees, posts etc. as a physical marker.
No, for our off-road adventure tours we provide a luggage support van. You will drop your bag at the van each morning and the van will carry your bag to the overnight stop where it will be waiting for you to collect at the end of the day.
For our international road tours we typically don’t provide a luggage support vehicle so you will have to carry your own luggage. Usually our rental bikes come equipped with panniers and/or top box. Please confirm your required luggage options at time of booking.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
No. Large gear bags, wheelie suitcases are not permitted in our luggage van. We have strict capacity limits.
Hard pannier cases are not recommended as your luggage because we can’t guarantee they won’t get scratched or damaged in transit therefore we recommend soft bags only.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
No, for safety reasons we do not allow riders to ride with hard (aluminium or plastic) panniers or top box on their bikes for our off-road adventure tours. We have seen too many injuries caused by hard boxes hitting riders.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
If you are an Australian resident you should not require a visa for the countries we are visiting. Please check the Smart Traveller website for travel requirements based on your situation.
You can read our full booking Terms & Conditions here.