No 4WD needed: Reaching Australia’s northernmost point the cheat’s way

We arrive at the tip of Cape York at 4pm. Rain squalls are splattering across a sullen sky. Low land with straggly green vegetation slumps against a grey sea. It could almost be Scotland if it were 30 degrees cooler.

The tip – Cape York, Australia’s northernmost point.Credit:

The northernmost point of mainland Australia is a small peninsula sticking into the Torres Strait like a ragged fingernail. On one side, a splendid white-sand beach runs for kilometres. Its shallow waters must be gloriously turquoise in sunny weather.

I’ve arrived here on the sleek and stylish Scenic Eclipse II, which is anchored in open sea. It looks like a billionaire’s yacht that ought to be berthed in Monaco, but it has more than looks.

This cruise ship has rugged expedition capabilities and is unintimidated by the remotest of places. We’ve sailed from Cairns and are about to head to Thursday Island and scattered, seldom-visited Indonesian islands.

Does it seem like a cheat to be arriving at Cape York so easily? Well, perhaps I should have slogged for a thousand kilometres in a 4WD vehicle with spare tyres, fuel and water strapped to the roof.

Just in case you were wondering ...Credit:

Perhaps I should have plunged through creeks and over corrugations, said farewell to Google Maps, and listened in on the crackling radio advice of outback drivers with dust-dazed eyes.

But my back is un-bounced, my eyes refreshed, my mind at ease. Instead of sleeping on a roof rack, I spent the night in an air-conditioned stateroom prepared for the evening by an affable butler called Crispin.

All day, I drifted effortlessly through the convoluted channels of the Great Barrier Reef, tucking into charred yellowfin tuna steak and chocolate-and-raspberry tart as I went.

I don’t have the skills to drive a thousand kilometres on dirt tracks, nor the urge, yet I do have the urge to stand on the northernmost tip of Australia. Sure, getting there on a luxury yacht may be adventure lite to some, but to me, it’s no less of a thrill as I clamber into a Zodiac on an undulating ocean and lurch towards this legendary spot.

It still isn’t easy. Navigating a ship in these waters takes expertise, and Scenic’s experienced expedition team of naturalists and marine biologists were scouting out conditions as I was enjoying a properly made coffee in the ship’s Azure Bar, and squinting at the rocky headland.

Disembarking the Zodiac is tricky. The tide is low, the sloping rocks slippery with algae, the water heaving and slurping. We’re hauled off by ever-attentive crew members. I find myself ankle-deep in a rock pool wiggling with sea creatures.

But here I am at last, at the final frontier. Uplifted rocks are stacked against each other like leaning books on an unkempt bookshelf. A few cairns have been piled up by other visitors long gone.

X marks the spot. The humble cairn at Cape York.Credit:

“You are standing at the northernmost point of the Australian continent” says a simple metal sign peppered with numerous dents that look as if they were made by bullets. An Aussie flag is unfurled for those keen on photos, which is everyone.

There’s no great drama to this location. Scrubby hills at our back, monochrome islands ahead, humidity that hugs us with hammam-like fervour. The drama is all in the mind. Everyone is thrilled to be here. None of us could have made it any other way.

Sure, we haven’t done the traditional hard yards overland from Cairns and Cooktown, but I don’t think any of us regret that when we return damp and tired to Scenic Eclipse II and face, not dust and creepy-crawlies, but showers and plump sofas and a tumbler of celebratory whisky at the Scenic Bar.

THE DETAILS

A stateroom aboard Scenic Eclipse II.Credit:

CRUISE
Scenic has an “Australia’s Top End” expedition itinerary between Darwin and Cairns that takes in Cape York and other destinations such as Thursday Island and the Great Barrier Reef. The 16-day cruise departs on October 11, 2025. From $18,720 a person including all dining, speciality restaurants, beverages, Wi-Fi, gratuities and shore excursions. See scenic.com.au

The writer was a guest of Scenic.