ERCA Great Cape Rally 2024 - Rally Report
On the 20th of August this year, 14 classic cars set off from Cairns, Qld, to participate in the Great Cape Rally 2024. The route would take us north to the very tip of Australia, the Cape York Peninsula, then south via the Gulf of Carpentaria, central Queensland, Birdsville, and the Flinders Ranges, before finishing in Mildura 18 days later.
In our group, we had 2 Datsuns, 4 Mustangs, 2 Mercedes, a Peugeot, 2 Holdens, an Alfa Romeo, an Austin Healy, and a Mitsubishi Colt. It was a very eclectic bunch.
Day 1 took us up the Bloomfield track for a night in Cooktown, then on to Coen where we stayed in dongas at the iconic Exchange Hotel. Not 5 stars, but cold beers and lots of fun.
The following day was a dusty 442 km north along the Peninsula Development Road to Bamaga. The road is still mostly dirt with some very rough and corrugated patches, plus quite a few river crossings. A river crossing in a classic car is challenging at the best of times, but we had the added drama of crocodile-infested rivers – you didn’t want to stall mid-crossing!!
Overall, all the cars went very well with only a few minor problems to deal with. We certainly drew a lot of attention, being pretty much the only 2-wheel drive vehicles around, and most cars were over 50 years old.
On day 4 we arrived at the carpark of Cape York, with only a short walk to the tip of Australia. We took the opportunity to drive our cars down onto the beach where we got some great group photos on the northern-most beach in Australia. Everyone was on a high!
From Cape York we headed south via Karumba, a small fishing town on the Gulf of Carpentaria and a beautiful spot. Kurumba is well known for its prawns and Barramundi, and we sampled both – delicious! Several of the group went out on a fishing charter while the rest of us explored the area.
From Karumba we headed into central Qld with overnight stops in Cloncurry, Longreach, and Birdsville. A highlight was spending an evening out on “Big Red”, the iconic sand dune that is the sight of the annual Big Red Bash music festival. The sunset and star gazing were spectacular!
We then headed south down the Birdsville track for a night in Maree and a night in the Flinders Ranges. Then it was on to Broken Hill and our finish in Mildura.
All up we covered almost 7,000kms, mostly on dirt roads and tracks. It was an awesome trip through Australia’s stunning outback scenery. We were with a great group of super friendly, and like-minded adventurers, and it was even more special being able to drive our classic rally cars!
We can’t wait for the next big adventure!
