First of all we had to get to Melaeluca. Either by ship or by plane. We took the plane. Because of our baggage and another passenger, who booked a scenic flight, we flew in two little planes. Fortunately the weather over the mountains was bad so that we flew along the coastline and enjoyed a marvellous scenic flight.

From Melaeluca, a small bird observatory and a mining camp, a small path leads through a marshy plain, sometimes over long duck boards, to the coast and along the beach to the first campground. The weather was good but the sky overcast. It had rained the whole week previous week which made the trail muddy and sometimes the duck boards were kneedeep under water.

The first campground was crowded because of a guided group. We hadn't planned to stay on this and went to our intended campground alittle further down the coast. To get to that campground we had to cross two little rivers which weren't eighter high nor deep.

During the night it rained quite hard and even in the morning the rain didn't cease. The places where we pitched our tents were like little moory lakes and the rivers from the previous day were approximately 1m higher and at least twice as wide. Fortunat that we hadn't to cross those rivers!

The first day we were keen not to get water in our shoes but this changed after 100m walking that day. The duck board was kneedeep under water and hard to make out, not to mention loose or missing planks.

The first creek we had to cross was also our first test. How deep it was was difficult to tell but it was wide and the current fast. No passing with a jump. Somehow we crossed without swimming. Fabi fished a leech there and it wasn't easy to get rid of that. Wind and rain made it difficult for the ighter to stay alight.

More flooded creeks and mud followed. One of those creeks was meant to be crossed over a duck board which could hardly be seen. Because of the strong current and the slippery board it would have been ideal to stumble and fall in. We managed to get across without...

From the top of Red Point Hill, the first hill we had to climb, we could see some tents in the distance. We were curios what that mwant and assumed that they dried their tents because it stopped raining. The tents definitely dried, but they were put up there because the creek was to high to cross. It wasn't a creek anymore, it was a wide and rapidly flowing river! The rope to hold on while crossing was 2m beneath the water level. We had no chioce and dried our tents as well...

The next morning the creek was only kneedeep again. The guide from the big group went exploring in the early hours and told us that if it didn't rain again, the next river, a real river, might be crossable the next morning. Johnny, Miekes son, had troubles finding drinking water when hed did the track a year ago and we weren't able to find a dry spot. Unbelievable how fast rivers flood!

With heavy hearts we decided to turn around and walk back. We could have afforded another day waiting at Louisa River but not two or more days.

Instead of walking to Cockle Creek we came back to Melaeluca where we started. There we had to wait for a plane. In the meantime we observed one of the rarest and andangered birds in Australia, the orange-bellied parrot. The flight out of the park was great and the weather unfairly good and sunny.