Dogs at Adels Grove

G'day Justin,
We've just come back from a trip to Cape York and returned via Adels Grove etc.
The 1st question they asked when we went to book in was "any dogs or generators?" Our friends had a genie so we answered "yes"....they said no worries, but we had to camp in the crappy area away from the nice shady spots close to the water.
We were a bit p!ssed off cos it was real hot, hardly anybody else about, mates genie is a quiet Honda, no shade up the back where we were and about 10 degrees cooler down under the bamboo and heavily tree'd area. Also, the place's own big LOUD diesel genie runs until midnight so you wouldn't have been able to hear my mates Honda, which he turned off at bed time anyway.

You won't be able to use a boat anywhere around there from what i saw.
The restaurant is a joke.....you need to let them know by 2pm that you will be wanting to eat there and it's a set menu....you have to pay before 6pm even if you want to eat later. The menu when were there was Chicken Stir Fry ($18- per plate regardless of adult or children's serving) + an un-named dessert. Needless to say we didn't eat there.

The NP is 10 klicks away from Adels Grove.....we just went there one morning, did the canoe hire bit and paddled up to the end of the 1st gorge and back again. They have 2 or 3 person canoes for hire. They don't allow the 3 seaters to be dragged up to do the 2nd gorge, but the 2's are okay. It was too bloody hot there to be bothered having a good look around the NP, so we just went back to camp and swam the rest of the day.

It's a nice spot alright, but not as inviting as I thought it was going to be from all the hype I'd heard over the past several years. Probably too late in the season, but at least we avoided the crowds (I HATE crowds)....

Good luck

Justin,

I'd give Adels a different wrap to Roachie. They do allow dogs and will look after them while you visit the national park. Sure the restaurant isn't worth using but the shop does have ice creams and cold drinks, they have fuel and are nice folk. Why use a restaurant when camping I would ask?

We spent 4 days at Adels and did all the walks in the park - great views and lots to see. An equally great spot is Kingfisher camp which is on the cattle station - Bowthorn - just next to the natioanl park. Could have spent weeks there. You can fish, use a boat, hire a boat, heaps of bird life and again really nice people. You even get to camp on grass.

Cheers

Peter

We were up there in late may this year for 4 days and found it great. Can't help you with domestic dogs but I did see a dingo so you would have to keep your dogs locked up during the night. I did some fishing at Adels Grove but the creek down river from the camping area is quite narrow and is full of palm trees that get washed in during the wet. I was asking about fishing just before I left and was told that you have to go downstream a few K's from the camping area for any decent fishing. Apparently there are a couple of tracks into the creek from the road.
I can agree with the generator bit. I didn't have to use the generator much as we went to the gorge every day and just that travelling was enough to keep the aux battery topped up.
When we went to hire the canoes the bloke hiring them said that it gets busy at Easter slackens off during May and then gets busy from Queens Birthday until Sept. Fuel was an arm and a leg in May, now I think it would cost you both legs.
Leave your boat home as you will find it to be a nuisance.
I don't know which way you are going but if you go from Mt Isa via Riversleigh you should give then a ring to see if the road is open as you have to cross the Gregory and O'shannesy rivers by causeway.
Have a good trip