“Far Karumba” (Marilyn)

Our first view of the Gulf from Karumba Point

Shane Howard, lead singer of the 80’s band Goanna wrote many songs about Australia, ‘Solid Rock’ the most famous.  Another of his songs, “Every Passing Day”, talks about living in ‘far Karumba as paradise’.

One thing is true of Karumba, it is far! We have travelled nearly 12000kms to get here.  We have timed our visit to coincide with the southern winter, which in the north translates to the ‘dry’ and is the best time to travel due to the absence of rain.

Karumba has a large population at this time of year.  As we have experienced at other places in the far north, people bring their vans and set up camp for several months so that they can spend their days fishing.  My two eldest sons and husband have invested in a fishing charter today.  With the help of some local knowledge and appropriate equipment they are hoping to feed the family for several weeks.  It is an understatement to say they were a little bit excited at the prospect of catching lots of very large fish!

The Sunset Tavern - the place to relax with views to the Gulf

Karumba is also a port town and is used by the mining industry to move cargo from the very remote northern Queensland mines by ship to other destinations. The port also transports livestock from nearby cattle stations to the Middle East. So the town has an industrial feel to it as well as a holiday feel.  Massive road trains trundle through the streets alongside caravans and mobile homes.

­­­­­­Jackson and I have spent the day looking around town.   I find myself seated at the ‘Sunset Tavern’ with a cup of tea and a view to the horizon that is the edge of the Gulf of Carpentaria. The sun is reflecting off the water and pelicans are sunning themselves on the sandbar at the mouth of the Norman River.

So, ‘far Karumba as paradise’?  It’s certainly not paradise for cows, or for fish.  It is not the hippy town I had expected either. Though for this Victorian family, escaping an extremely cold and miserably wet Melbourne winter, looking for fish, ocean views and sunshine, Karumba had it all.  Paradise.