CAPTAIN COOK

The South Sea Islands and the Pacific Ocean have always beckoned us. The magical names of Tahiti, Moorea (of “Bali Ha’i” fame), Raratonga and Fiji more than lived up to our expectations. An added interest was endeavouring to seek out Captain Cook connections, from viewing Cook’s Bay in Moorea to visiting Matavia Bay in Tahiti, both being places where he came ashore – but the Tahitians were apparently not enamoured of his arrival. Contrary to this, the people of Raratonga (one of the Cook Islands which Cook did not visit) revered his name. The local press was The Cook Times & the local Cook’s Passenger Transport was at Cook’s Corner. At the oldest timber-built restaurant, overlooking the Pacific, Geoff & I sampled a Cook’s Lager & an Esk Valley wine!

A highlight of our holiday, however, was a 3-day Captain Cook Cruise from Fiji, aboard a 2-masted schooner. We overnighted on Drawaqu Island, sleeping on a palm-fringed beach in basic chalets (bures) built with coconut fronds. There was no electricity, and only a limited supply of cold water on this small island. Snorkelling the coral reef in idyllic conditions was spell-binding, but nothing could ever surpass the magical moment when the crew hoisted the schooner’s sails and gentle singing to lazy guitar music performed by the crew, natives from the nearby Naviti Islands, all conjured up the essence of Paradise.

Next stop, Australia: Sydney – a memorable visit – then on to Cairns when, after snorkelling the famous Barrier Reef, we hired a 4-wheel drive vehicle and departed north along the Captain Cook Highway, following the coastal route to Cape Tribulation where a roadside sign welcomed us to COOK SHIRE. A short boardwalk enabled us to see the bay where Captain Cook breached his ship on the coral reef. It was rainforest & off-road from then on. We slithered along the Bloomfield Track, the only road (a single-rutted dirt track which is impassable during the rainy season). Luckily, traffic was light! A short detour to a viewpoint provided a welcome break. The arrow on a map-board directed our eyes towards the coast and, to our surprise, pointed to Whitby, though the town was never built. Nevertheless, the one isolated homestead, still occupied, is ‘Whitby’!

Our journey continued along a metal road surface, passing through a large, orderly, Aboriginal encampment. Being tourists, we considered it inappropriate to take a stroll. We stopped 4 hours on from Cairns, as planned, in AYTON, a sleepy roadside village consisting of a few single-storey dwellings amongst the trees: a small wooden-built church, a converted container on stilts - the Library, a public loo, and a pleasant wind-swept beach nearby. Fresh sandwiches were prepared especially for us in The General Store, the only shop. Students were bussed to school elsewhere.

A further 2 hours passed by before we reached our destination: Cooktown. The James Cook Museum was just closing so, undeterred, we took a short drive out of town to explore an even smaller village: Marton, on the banks of the Endeavour River. By then, early evening, there was

still time enough to drive up the steep, narrow, winding road to the summit of Grassy Hill to watch the sun setting over the river – a pastime enjoyed many times by Captain Cook during his enforced 48-day stay whilst his ship was being repaired. A stone was erected in his honour by the Royal Australian Navy, bearing a plaque on which is printed: “Dedicated to Lieutenant James Cook RN The crew of Endeavour and to all Mariners.” From there Captain Cook also planned his passage out to the east, thus passing the mouth of the Esk River.

After dinner we visited the oldest wooden-built establishment in town: ‘The Top Pub’, where we were fortunate to meet an interesting Cooktown character. Apparently he not only dons authentic uniform for formal Captain Cook occasions, but also proudly fires his gun to celebrate weddings, and, more recently, to conclude funerals. Cooktown is most attractive, with the original wooden buildings still lining the main street, overlooking a small harbour and bay with the Endeavour River beyond. A delightful promenade runs parallel to the bay and a Captain Cook Statue and Monument are featured in adjoining well-kept gardens.

A visit to the James Cook Museum was a fitting end to our overnight stay. En route back to Cairns, we crossed an old rickety wooden bridge spanning the Normanby River – a dry, sandy riverbed. The scattered remains of a fire and a dirty, torn shirt draped on a branch gave the vicinity an eerie, isolated feel, maybe similar to an ‘outback’ which Captain Cook could have encountered. Although we did not track down a Staithes, it was still fun coming across many familiar place-names, though situated in such unfamiliar locations from the ones we know so well.

Our journey finally ended in Brisbane, where we joined a guided tour of the Botanical Gardens, close by the James Cook Highway, which resulted in an unexpected “Where do you come from?” coincidence. “North Yorkshire,” we said. “But whereabouts?” The retired gentleman from Hert-fordshire had worked at ICI some 30 years ago, staying at The Royal Oak for 8 months! Con-versation featured his memories of Dick & Eve Kirkup, Petch’s pies, Suggitt’s ice cream, Worthy P’s, Josie’s, Laurie Dilcock – and Roseberry Topping and Captain Cook’s Monument, of course! Gill Perks