Spectacular rainforests, magnificent waterfalls, a rugged wilderness track, Aboriginal rock art, old gold rush towns and a Twilight Zone mountain range are all part of the 4X4 Cooktown Adventure itinerary. It's a route that takes you to places in Tropical North Queensland few visitors see.

Total drive approx:  700 kms

Day 1. Depart: Cairns  O/night: Mossman  Approx: 80 kms

Two roads link Cairns and historic Cooktown. The inland route, known as the Peninsular Development Road, is about 330 kilometres and suitable for all conventional vehicles. The coastal route is shorter, running for 235 kilometres – but it is suitable only for 4X4 vehicles.

The Cooktown 4X4 Adventure route uses both – up the coast to Cooktown and back to Cairns along the ‘easier’ inland road. It’s the way to go -- no backtracking.

When you’re planning this drive remember that the wet season (call it the green season) comes during the local summer. It may sound strange, but this is because rainfall is more frequent during Tropical North Queensland’s humid summer days. The dry season from May to October is the best time for this drive.

Cairns is the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef for anybody arriving by air. Like Port Douglas, it’s a jump off point for reef and dive cruises: but Cairns does not have a beach. A good reason for starting your trip from Cairns is that you are likely to find a better deal for your 4X4 hire there. Don't forget -- check that your rental agreement allows off-road driving: read the small print.

Start your adventure with an easy run up to Mossman from Cairns on the scenic Captain Cook Highway.

Consider spending a couple of nights in Mossman, perhaps at Silky Oaks Lodge, an award-winning spa resort. That would give you ample time to explore the magnificent Mossman Gorge, Daintree National Park – and try your hand at some night-time spear fishing at Cooya Beach.

There are one or two ‘musts’ on your way up to Mossman, the first being a trip on Skyrail, a 7.5 kilometre long scenic cableway that glides just metres above the thick rainforest canopy to the rainforest village of Kuranda. This spectacular ride has won more than twenty top travel awards since opening in 1995.

Skyrail is just a thirteen-kilometre drive up the Captain Cook Highway from downtown Cairns. You will be following the Captain Cook Highway all the way to Mossman, a road that hugs the Coral Sea coastline for much of the way,

Skyrail is located off to your left at the fourth highway roundabout after leaving Cairns. It’s signposted, so you can’t miss it. There is ample parking space available at the departure point. It’s best to make an advance reservation just to be on the safe side. Do it online. During peak periods many boarding times become heavily booked and passengers without a reservation can face delays.

You’ll find several things to do while in Kuranda, including a colourful butterfly sanctuary and bird aviary, a koala park, a street market oozing with local arts and crafts, shops and cafes plus one or two rainforest walking trails.

You’ll need an hour to do the shortest walk. As you have a lot more to pack in on this first leg of your adventure drive you might want to just browse the market and enjoy a local coffee (grown at the nearby Atherton tableland) before going back down on the cablecar.

Allowing for a little time at one or both of the cableway’s two interpretative stations and a little stroll around Kuranda, your Skyrail experience will take about three hours.

At one of the interpretative stations you’ll enjoy spectacular views of the awesome Barron Gorge, a deep chasm lined with dense rainforest vegetation – a very high ‘wow’ factor.

Heading further along the Captain Cook Highway you come to Palm Cove, which sits off to your right.

Palm Cove is just 25 minutes north of Cairns and 45 minutes south of Port Douglas -- worth thinking about if you were looking for a base to explore the Cairns region attractions located south of the Daintree River.

Palm Cove is a laid back yet sophisticated coastal village with centuries-old melaleuca trees lining its esplanade. Soft sands, alfresco dining, art galleries and a choice of spa resorts suggest that Palm Cove is Queensland’s answer to St Tropez. It boasts some of the best restaurants in the Cairns area, and some very innovative cuisine.

Have a lazy seafood lunch in Palm Cove while looking out to Double Island, one of Australia's most exclusive island retreats, or continue to Port Douglas, just a short drive further up the coast.

Port Douglas, or ‘Port’ as the locals call it, was a rival to Cairns in the early days of the region’s development. When Cairns came out the winner, Port reverted to a sleepy fishing village; the ‘forgotten gem of the north’, as someone once put it.

Things started to take off again with the arrival of a controversial entrepreneur by the name of Christopher Skase, who developed the Sheraton Mirage complex in the mid-1980s. Very soon Port Douglas was on its way to becoming one of Tropical North Queensland’s most popular holiday destinations.

What happened to Christopher Skase? He later fled the country leaving a billion dollar debt, became the top fugitive on Australia’s ‘most wanted’ list and later died in exile in Majorca. People in Port Douglas prefer not to talk about him these days.

You might consider Port Douglas as your base for discovering the captivating reef and rainforest region. The town is known for its Four Mile Beach, which starts at the northern rocky headland and runs the length of its name in a gentle curve, continuing as far as the eye can see. A big plus is that there is not a hint of development to be seen: the local resorts and houses are neatly hidden behind gently swaying palms.

The long stretch of beach, Great Barrier Reef cruises and diving are just part of the appeal of Port Douglas, which also boasts a choice of laid back bars and funky restaurants along Macrossan Street; a golf course that has been rated as one of the world’s best (practice your swing on an aquatic driving range); and the ‘must do’ Wildlife Habitat (the renamed Rainforest Habitat Wildlife Sanctuary).

If you haven’t had lunch in Palm Cove and arrive in Port Douglas before two in the afternoon, Lunch with the Lorikeets at Wildlife Habitat may be what you are looking for, an extensive buffet amidst lorikeets, cockatoos, parrots, herons and a host of other birds.

If you choose to spend some time in Port Douglas (as many do) before the drive to Cooktown, the Meridian or Cayman Villas are well worth considering as accommodation options -- both are budget friendly.

From Port Douglas your drive takes you on to Mossman and the Daintree, the oldest living rainforest on earth. It's the only place in the world where two World Heritage-listed sites meet, the Daintree Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef. Stay the night (or two) in Mossman, a sugar town that has become a centre for tropical fruit growing.

Mossman Gorge Daintree National Park provides an easy and accessible introduction to the region’s tropical rainforest. But make an early start. The park is best experienced first thing in the morning, while the birds are calling, and before too many people arrive. Tour groups begin to arrive as early as 08.30.

Remember to avoid hot summer afternoons, especially on weekends.

Signs along the Rex Creek circuit help you explore the rainforest and explain why this place is so special to the local Kuku Yalanji people. They are the traditional owners of the park and run four tours daily, except for Sundays: tours may be unavailable from time to time because of Aboriginal cultural events. Book ahead at +61 7 4098 2595.

Mossman Gorge Daintree National Park is a wildlife watcher’s dream come true. Paradise kingfishers, yellow-potted honeyeaters and yellow-breasted boatbills are just some of the bird species to be spotted in this neck of the rainforest. See a colourful Boyd’s rainforest dragon lizard soaking up the sun, and plump Australian bush turkeys scavenging along the pathways.

In the evening, join one of the Kubirri Warra brothers on their beach, mudflat and mangrove walk at nearby Cooya Beach, traditional fishing grounds of the Kuku Yalanji. It’s a unique place where three diverse ecosystems -- beach, mangroves and coastal reef are connected to each other by constantly changing mudflats and tidal lagoons.

The night spearfishing experience departs at 19.30 and lasts a couple of hours. You’ll be surprised what you can catch in that time. The brothers also run two daily beach walk tours, one in the morning, and the other around lunchtime. You do need to book in advance at +61 7 4098 3437

To get to Cooya Beach, take Junction Road out of Mossman and continue for just over three kilometres east on Cooya Beach Road.

Accommodation options: Silky Oaks Lodge for those who enjoy the good life. Mossman Riverside Leisure Park offers comfortable un-powered grass sites for campers. Papillon Bed and Breakfast and Mossman Gorge Bed and Breakfast are also located in Mossman.

Day 2.  Depart: Mossman   O/night: Helenvale  Approx: 170 kms

The drive today takes you across the Daintree River and on to Cape Tribulation before testing your 4W4 skills on the rugged Bloomfield Track. So start out very early, and remember that the Bloomfield Track should only be attempted by competent and confident drivers. It’s a drive that you’ll talk about for years, that’s for sure.

You take the Captain Cook Highway out of Mossman and join the Mossman-Daintree Road for just under 24 kilometres. Turn right on to Cape Tribulation Road. The ferry that will take you across the crododile-infested Daintree River is four kilometres ahead.

The Daintree River vehicular ferry makes continuous crossings from 06.00 to midnight every day except Christmas and Good Friday. You will only need to buy a one-way ticket, as you do not pass this way on your return to Cairns.

Once across the river it’s a 35 kilometre scenic drive up to Cape Tribulation. Watch out for endangered southern cassowaries, which grow very large (up to 95 kilograms) and frequently cross roads without any forewarning for drivers.

Your first stop should be the Daintree Discovery Centre, an accredited Wet Tropics Visitor Centre that provides interpretive information about the Daintree Rainforest and its environs. It is located just ten kilometres from where you leave the ferry, just before you get to Cow Bay.

The Daintree Discovery Centre has a large indoor display area, touch screen technology, audiovisual theatre and sweeping, all-weather verandas. Visitors can also meander along elevated rainforest boardwalks, including the Cassowary Circuit and the Bush Tucker Trail. Make this your first ‘must’ of the day.

Just pass Cow Bay the road turns left. At this point Turpentine Road is facing you, and just up this road you’ll come to Daintree Entomological Museum, a formidable private collection of rare and local butterflies, moths and beetles.

If meeting giant prehistoric looking cockroaches and an untold variety of camouflaged stick insects are not your thing, carry on along Cape Tribulation Road to Thornton Beach. If you feel that time is on your side, walk the beach to the mouth of Cooper Creek, one of Australia's richest mangrove systems, but be aware that this is a prime crocodile habitat.

The road continues through magnificent rainforest to Myall Beach and Cape Tribulation, where you will want to walk the white sands and think of the local history. Cape Tribulation was named by the explorer Captain Cook back in 1770 after his ship, the Endeavour hit a reef and almost sunk. Cook named the point Cape Tribulation because, as he wrote at the time ‘here began all our troubles’. He then put in at what is now Cooktown further up the coast to carry out repairs.

A visit to Cape Trib Exotic Fruit Farm is another ‘must’ – especially for foodies.You will get a taste of at least ten rare fruits and a tour of the orchard, where more than 200 different fruits are cultivated. The farm, which carries Eco Tourism Certification, also offers bed and breakfast.

If you set off from Mossman after an early breakfast, and stopped off at a couple of places along the way, you should arrive in Cape Tribulation shortly after mid-day.

You could always take your time and spend the night at Cape Tribulation and tackle the Bloomfield Track fresh the next day. This is not a rally drive. There are a couple of resorts at Cape Tribulation, plus a popular backpackers and one or two B&Bs.

The road suddenly becomes unsealed just north of Cape Tribulation and continues like that for about five kilometres to Emmagen Creek – it’s a prelude to the Bloomfield Track.

The Bloomfield Track crosses several creeks and river crossings and includes several steep climbs and descents. It’s an exhilarating drive. You are strongly advised to check rain conditions before you set out, as at least one creek crossing can be treacherous after heavy rain. The track is often closed during the wet season (February to April).

The track ends at Bloomfield Crossing, at the Aboriginal community of Wujal Wujal, where you will want to take a walk on the wild side with the Walker Family. They are a close-knit group of warm and friendly Kuku Yalanji people, a clan that has lived in this area for tens of thousands of years.

Their traditional lands are part of the beautiful World Heritage rainforest area, and include the Bloomfield Falls. The Walker sisters will take you through the area on a bush walk with a difference. See the rainforest through their eyes, and learn about the cultural significance of this area to them.

They will also accompany you to Bloomfield Falls and explain its significance in Aboriginal lore. The falls cascade for 40 metres to the tidal estuary banks of the Bloomfield River.

The tour takes about half and hour and departs daily throughout the year. Departure times are flexible, and you have to book in advance. +61 7 4040 7500

From Wujal Wujal you continue north through the tiny settlements of Bloomfield, Rossville, and Helensvale before meeting the sealed Cooktown Developmental Road that brings you to Cooktown.

The Lion's Den Hotel is situated at Helenvale, about four kilometres south of where the coast road joins the inland road. The pub dates back to 1875 and sits on the banks of the Little Annan River, surrounded by hundred-year-old mango trees.

It’s a landmark hotel made of timber and iron, famous for its quirky decorations and walls adorned with visitor’s signatures. You have to drop in at this pub, if only to have a cold beer (sink a coldie), and admire the memorabilia – the latest addition being a massive sign made up of no less than 4,302 Australian beer bottle tops.

The Lions Den Hotel offers a range of basic budget accommodation ranging from a camping site and safari lodges to no-frills motel-style rooms.

A little further on from the Lions Den Hotel you come to a small road that leads four kilometres into the wilderness to the rustic Mungumby Lodge, a hidden gem that that offers ten wooden bungalows with new private ensuites. Chic it’s not. Don’t expect television and mobile phone connection. But it has a true tropical rainforest feel to it, and Cooktown is an easy half-an-hour drive to the north.

Guests use the sprawling veranda of the spacious main house, surrounded by large tropical gardens and a pool, for meals and to chill out. If you are feeling adventurous take advantage of the numerous walking trails, exploring the adjoining World Heritage-listed rainforests and historic mining sites, secret waterfalls and jungle pools of one of the Mungumby’s numerous creeks.

The surrounds at Mungumby Lodge have been attracting botanists and zoologists for many years. In particular, their attention is drawn to the elusive Bennetts tree kangaroo, rare stream frogs, quolls, various species of owls and an extensive range of regional and migrating birds.

Mungumby Lodge is close to Black Mountain National Park, a mysterious range of mountains steeped in Aboriginal myths and legends. The mountains are a place of cultural significance for the Kuku Yalanji people, who call them Kalkajaka, or 'place of the spear'. There are also many non-Aboriginal stories about the mountains -- Twilight Zone tales of people, horses and whole herds of cattle disappearing into the maze of black granite rocks, never to be heard of again.

The park is home to some rare wildlife, including a frog and two lizard species that are unique to the area. Godman’s rock wallabies and ghost bats also live here and there is regular talk of a strange striped and fanged beast that goes by the name of the Queensland Tiger -- which most naturalists say is extinct, but is still said to be seen from time to time.

Accommodation options: Mungumby Lodge, Lions Den Hotel

Day 3: O/night: Helenvale

You might want to take an early morning walk on one of Mungumby Lodge’s easy trails, then set off to discover Cooktown, returning in the late afternoon for a cold beer and dinner: good homestead cooking. It's about 60 kilometres round trip from Helenvale to Cooktown.

Cooktown has a lot of history behind it. In 1770, Captain Cook beached the damaged Endeavour here after hitting a reef near Cape Tribulation. Cook and his crew stayed in the area for several weeks while carrying out repairs – making it the site of Australia’s first white ‘settlement’. There are a number of Cook monuments in Cooktown and a re-enactment of Cook’s arrival is the highlight of the Cooktown Discovery Festival held each June.

The next chapter in the town’s history was written during the gold rush of the 1800s, following the lucky strike of an expedition led by the Irish-born explorer, James Venture Mulligan in the interior behind Cooktown. Within three months of the news reaching the outside world more than 3,000 fortune hunters arrived in Cooktown.

In its rip-roaring gold rush days Cooktown boasted a population of more than 25,000 assorted Europeans and 50,000 Chinese – and that’s a conservative figure. At a time when any country Australian town boasting two pubs was seen as thriving, Cooktown had 65. The population today is around 2,000 and there are only a handful of pubs.

A ‘must’ while in town is the James Cook Museum, which is housed in a former convent school and features displays of the Endeavour’s anchor and cannon, Cook’s diary extracts, stories from local Aboriginal elders, the fascinating Palmer River Gold Rush, and the every day life of the Chinese who flocked to this area.

If you are more interested in Aboriginal rock art, plan the day differently and drive up to Hope Valley to join Nugal-warra elder and storyteller, Willie Gordon on his Great Emu Tour. Willie has become something of a ‘celebrity guide, and his very descriptive tour takes you to three rock art sites, including the Rainbow Serpent and Great Emu Caves, where Willie explains the significance of the paintings and the stories behind the art.

To get to the Nugal rock art sites you are provided with a map to the tour’s meeting point outside Hope Vale, where you will be met by Willie .The sites are not signposted and can only be visited with a Nugal-warra guide.

From the meeting point, Willie leads you along an off-road track to the entrance of the sites, where you leave your vehicle and continue on foot. There is a short climb to one of the sites, but overall very little walking is involved.

The tour departs at 14.30 and returns to the meeting place at 16.30. It will take you around an hour-an-a-half to get there from Mungumby Lodge (an hour from Cooktown). The tour must be prebooked through Guurrbi Tours. + 61 7 4069 6043

Day 4. Depart: Helenvale  O/night: Biboohra   Approx: 386 kms

Start off on your drive back to Cairns – and here you have two options: take the more direct Mulligan Highway, which was known as the Cooktown Development Road until it was renamed in 2006, or make a looped detour on an unpaved road that will take you to Laura and the incredible rock art at nearby Quinkan.

Taking the detour leads you first to the picturesque Endeavour Falls, 32 kilometres northwest of Laura. The falls are formed from the upper reaches of the Endeavour River and what they lack in height, they make up for in width. The nearby parklands are quiet and shady. Enjoy a swim in the crocodile-free billabong at the base of the falls or bush walk along the river to see the tree ferns.

There is also tourist park accommodation available at Endeavour Falls.

Nine kilometres further you come to Isabella Falls where the Battle Camp road fords Isabella Creek. The hilly Battle Camp road is a challenging 4X4 adventure that winds through sandstone escarpments and onto savannah grasslands for almost 75 kilometres. It takes you through the lower end of Lakefield National Park, which is now known as Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park.

Battle Camp gets its name from a bloody battle in the 1800s between a group of gold diggers who were heading west to the Palmer River goldfields to seek their fortune and a group of local Aborigines.

Crossing the Laura River (which can cause problems just after heavy rains, so check ahead) you’ll come to the historic Old Laura Homestead, one of the oldest cattle properties on Cape York.

The pastoral industry on Cape York Peninsula can trace its origins back to the Laura Homestead, which was built in 1879 and is now surrounded by Lakefield National Park.

Arriving in Laura, you find yourself in an area that boasts the largest collection of prehistoric rock art galleries in the world, including images of the legendary Quinkan spirit figures. There are literally hundreds of galleries hidden in the nearby sandstone escarpment.

The Quinkan and Regional Cultural Centre should be your first port of call. It has interpretive displays showcasing Aboriginal culture and the rich pioneering heritage of the region, and arranges guided tours to the Split Rock, Mushroom Rock and Giant Horse galleries.

Split Rock, about twelve kilometres from Laura, is the most accessible site. Mushroom Rock and Giant Horse can be booked as a combined tour and are about half-an-hour’s drive from Laura. Guides are essential to these ancient sites as the stories depicted are brought to life.

Heading south-east from Laura you come to Lakeland. Situated in the pleasant Laura River Valley, the Lakeland Downs area is home to the largest coffee plantation in Australia. Taste the local brew at the local roadhouse.

There are several large cattle properties and banana plantations in the area, while other farmers use the rich volcanic soil that’s found in these parts to grow crops such as papaya (pawpaw), passion fruit and watermelons.

Lakeland sits at the junction of the main Peninsula Development Road (which is paved all the way from Cairns to Lakeland), and the Mulligan Highway. You take the Mulligan Highway south to Mareeba, where you start the last leg of the route back to Cairns, and it is a sealed road all the way from here.

Between Lakeland and Mareeba you will pass the Palmer River Roadhouse, which sits beside the river site of the 1800s gold rush. It has a bar and dining room and offers free entry to the gold rush museum, which has a few artefacts of that time.

In 1877, there were 17, 000 diggers seeking their fortune at Palmer River. There were more 7,000 Chinese miners on the fields at that time and they became involved in a series of  bitter battles, which became known as the Tong Wars, fought between the Macao and Cantonese Chinese.

Looking at the solitary Palmer River Roadhouse perched on the hill above the river it is hard to imagine that in the 1870s tens of thousands of miners flocked to this area searching for gold.

Passing Mount Carbine, a town with a population of less than a hundred, you come to Mount Molloy, an old copper mining and timber town, which today has a slightly higher head count just short of 300. A railway used to run this way to carry the copper, but Mount Molloy is now cattle grazing territory, and consists of just a few shops and an old pub.

Thirty-five kilometres south of Mount Molloy and just before reaching Mareeba you’ll come to Biboohra and the award-winning and eco-certified Jabiru Safari Lodge. It’s located in the Mareeba Tropical Savannah and Wetland Reserve, and makes an excellent overnight (or longer) stop on the way back to Cairns. Accommodation is in African-style safari tents or eco-cabins.

If  you are staying at the lodge overnight on a bed and breakfast basis, self-guided walking tours are included. Optional extras, if time permits, include a range of wildlife safaris, private guiding, eco cruise and canoeing.

Daily wildlife safaris and all activities are included in the Jabiru Safari Lodge’s all-inclusive tariff for longer stays, which are recommended. The open safari vehicle allows excellent wildlife and birdlife viewing. Kangaroos, wallabies, wallaroos, emus and wild pigs are regularly sighted, along with many of the more than two hundred bird species that have been identified on the reserve.

The Mareeba Tropical Savannah and Wetland Reserve is situated on the East Asian-Australasian flyway and provides a unique environment in which to enjoy Australia's tropical wetland and savannah birds. The several lagoons provide a sanctuary for almost all of Australia's tropical waterbirds, and the reserve is home to several threatened, rare and endangered species.

The Jabiru Safari Lodge closes during the wet season (February to March) and reopens in April as soon as conditions allow. If you are travelling during the wet season there are several accommodation options in nearby Mareeba.

Mareeba sits at the end of the Mulligan Highway. In the local Aboriginal language, the name means meeting of the waters - referring to the point at which the Barron River is joined by Granite Creek. Mareeba used to be all about tobacco growing: today it’s better known for its coffee and tropical fruits, such as mangoes, lychees and longans.

The town is also well known for the Mareeba Rodeo, which takes place over a weekend each July.

Accommodation options. Jabiru Safari Lodge, Mareeba Motor Inn, Jackaroo Motel

Day 5. Depart: Biboohra   Arrive: Cairns   Approx: 64 kms

You could have continued on to Cairns the previous evening, but after an adventurous drive across Battle Camp Road and time spent discovering the rock art at Quinkan, you will better enjoy the short drive on to Cairns fresh and during the daylight to fully enjoy the scenery along the way.

The route from Mareeba to the Captain Cook Highway leads past coffee plantations and orchards and through lightly timbered country as it climbs to Kuranda. You might want to spend more time in Kuranda, as your Skyrail trip at the outset of your Cooktown Adventure left you little time to fully explore the village in the rainforest.

From Kuranda the road twists its way sharply down through thick jungle forest, a breathtaking drive that crosses the high level bridge over the Barron River and runs along the side of rocky waterfalls and the buttress roots of giant trees.

The first sign that the journey is nearing its end comes when the Coral Sea peeks into view through the towering trees. Once back on the Captain Cook Highway head south on the short drive back to Cairns.