Day 5 started by lying in bed watching as the gathering light in the east dimmed out the starry sky above.

Our plan of doing some yoga on the escarpment was foiled by Erica having breakfast ready for us. They’d been busy in the kitchen again.

We sat on the deck taking in the view with a cup of coffee and some poached eggs, smoked salmon and avocado.

After breakfast Sigi and I headed off on our own back down to the Magnificent Gallery for a private viewing.

Back at camp Johnny said he’d drive us over to another collection of artwork he discovered only two weeks before. This one, about 30 minutes drive away, he calls the rainbow serpent gallery. He stumbled on it during one of his expeditions looking for new artwork. There are so many caves around the rim of the canyon that were used for shelter by the indigenous people during wet seasons for thousands of years that it’s really just a matter of time until he finds more examples.

Back to the camp for lunch and swapping more stories and then we said bye to Erica and the rest of the family while Johnny packed us into his 4WD for the trip back to Laura.

We had a little diversion on the way however. I’d mentioned to Johnny on the way in that my dad visited Laura a couple of times in the late 70s and early 80s to help a guy called Percy Trezice to photographically document indigenous artwork. Percy’s son Steve still lives nearby so Johnny suggested we drop in to see him. Steve was there with his daughter and grandson. When Johnny mentioned “Ric Arthur” to Steve he said “that name rings a bell” and started to tell some anecdotes he remembered about dad that demonstrated that he really did remember him, and fondly. We were gobsmacked.

Back on the track we crossed a creek where we caught up with the local policeman and his wife, a detective who is based in Cairns, plus their two children.

Back at Laura we said our goodbyes to Johnny and checked into the Laura Motel and, after checking that MSF was still in order, headed to the pub for dinner. Another great day.

Check out Johnny and Erica’s company here:

Jarramali Rock Art Tours | Aboriginal Tours | Cape York Australia