Cape York- the Tip, Punsand Bay and Somerset–5 August 2011

We drove up to the tip stopping at the Croc Store on the way. The Croc store has quality Australian Souvenirs. They give you a free one page map and description of everything you need to see in this part of the world which is well worth having.

It is an easy walk out to the tip especially at low tide when the sand flats are exposed. Here one is on the East and the West Coast of Australia at the same time.

Views to the East, South and West

We reached the tip.  The nothernmost point of the Australian Continent.
When we had taken a zillion photographs we went on to Punsand Bay for lunch. This is a camping spot / resort with a good kitchen. It is very attractive but too tight for our caravan.

From there we drove to Somerset. Somerset was established on the 21 August 1854 as a sign of British occupancy and a safe haven for sailors. With cannibals and head hunters in New Guinea and warlike Torres Strait and Cape Tribes shipwrecked sailors didn't stand much of a chance of surviving. Somerset was the administrative headquarters of the Northern Peninsula Area (NPA). John Jardine was placed in charge of the settlement, until he was succeeded by Captain Simpson in 1866. Soon after Frank Jardine was appointed Magistrate of the Territory and Chief Police Inspector a job he held until 1873. He was a tough man and the local aboriginals are reputed to have dug him up after his death and buried him head down so he would trouble them no more. They called him debbil debbil Jardine.

The Jardines had various commercial interests at Somerset, including pearling and cattle and are famed for the cattle drive they did in 1864-1865 to establish the Station.

Torres Strait is at the meeting place of two seas, the Coral Sea and the Arafura sea. This means there are different tides at each end. This results in strong currents and variable tide patterns. Sea levels are unpredictable and even now are taken from real time observations for the boats going through. Somerset was a difficult harbor and the administrative centre was relocated to Thursday Island which has a better harbor. The Jardines and related families continued to live and work at Somerset until they were evacuated during WW2 . They never returned. The house burnt down in the 1960's. Now all that is left is the cemetery, a couple of monuments and some guns.

The Somerset Beach is a nice spot for a picnic or an overnight camp. It has a shelter and a composting toilet.