Driving south from Port Douglas, we were feeling quite relaxed and comfortable with our decision not to tackle the rough roads to Cape York. The sun was shining and the view was lovely. The Captain Cook Highway we were on was getting busier and we noticed beach side caravan parks were full. This is peak season in Queensland.

As we drove the highway negotiating the traffic, we felt a sudden shaking in the car. John managed to pull over as he thought we had a flat tyre – again. But everything looked fine. He said he would pull off at the next street but as we took off, one of our caravan wheels went rolling past us! Luckily we weren’t going fast. We had to pull up on the side of the left hand lane but still in the way of traffic. With our hazard warning lights on, we checked the damage and looked for the wheel. It had sheared off with all the studs and nuts too but they were nowhere to be found.

Within a few minutes people were stopping to see how they could help but there was nothing they could do. We rang the RAC but held on for ever trying to get roadside assistance. Then a young man, Mat, stopped and wouldn’t take no for an answer. He was sure he could fix things at least temporarily. He took off to his home nearby and came back with a jack and tools then set to work. While he was gone, another man, John, a pastor, stopped to help then took off. He returned with some witches’ hats and orange netting which he set up to keep us all safe. (While Mat worked on the van, John and I had been directing traffic around him). Very soon after, a Mobile Caravan Repair Van pulled up. Alex had been driving home in the other direction and turned back to see how he could help. Next thing we knew a police car arrived with its lights flashing. Two young police officers wanted to assist too. They helped direct the traffic around us. We really were overwhelmed with the kindness of these Palm Cove locals who could not do enough for us.

Before long the Main Roads people and another group responsible for the flow of traffic on that stretch of highway had joined us. They cordoned off the area we were in and stayed until we could leave which was a couple of hours later when we were able to organise a tow truck. Despite Mat’s hard work, the wheel would not stay on the van.

Pastor John

Pastor John stopped and helped even though he was due to officiate at a wedding later in the afternoon. He left it until the very last minute and was covered in grease before he left us.

Mat

Mat, a Phys Ed Teacher at the local high school, insisted he could do something to help. He runs a YouTube channel on travelling and fishing the Cape York Peninsula. Obviously his 4wding experiences benefitted us today. I had seen his videos before and checked them out again. Definitely worth watching. Have a look here https://youtube.com/c/MatTwentyEight

Alex

Alex is a contractor for a caravan mobile repair company and he went over and above in his duties of getting us back on the road. And always with patience and good humour. He also organised us a campsite when all the caravan parks in the area were full. Not just a campsite but the best campsite for miles.

The Police

The two police officers were very kind and helpful. In the evening they found us in the caravan park to make sure we were all right!

Palm Cove Caravan Park

This was a lovely park opposite the beach in beautiful Palm Cove. They were fully booked through to September but, after a word from Alex, they fitted us into the best site in the whole park. The staff were exceptionally nice to us and even found space to allow us to stay longer than the three days allocated if we needed to. We didn’t but we did end up having a lovely few days here even though we had a slanty sleep the first night!

Crickette and Rob

I think Crickette must have noticed how tired and dejected we were when we arrived with the tow truck at the caravan park. They were our new neighbours. She immediately offered to make us a g and t! Once we got ourselves organised we did join them for a drink. In fact we had drinks with them the following evening too. We laughed lots as we exchanged camping stories. They really took our mind off our problems.

We really liked Palm Cove. It was like a mini Port Douglas. Although we are not very keen on busy, touristy places, it was a nice change to have a variety of lovely cafes and bars to choose from. They were all situated on the promenade overlooking the beach. In fact we found a great little Cafe called Espresso that had the best pancakes and banana bread, and we enjoyed a ‘Cheeky Guinness Pie’ at O’Donnell’s Irish Pub. The caravan park was also on the promenade which was handy. It was a pretty good place to be “stuck”!

We still need work done on the wheel so taking it easy until we find a workshop that has staff! We are very grateful to all those who helped us. Pastor John told me later that he used the incident in his sermon on the weekend, talking about Good Samaritans. I hope he remembered to include himself.