Moreton Telegraph Station; beautiful, but expensive

If you’re on the way to the top of Cape York, you’ll pass a number of different places that you can pull in and relax, grab some food or set up for the night in a tent, or supplied accommodation.

Moreton Telegraph Station is one of these places, and after a few days at Weipa, we decided to continue our journey north, and stop here, or Bramwell Station.

The intention was to do one station on the way up, and the opposite on the way back down, and we eventually settled on Moreton Telegraph Station.

Moreton Telegraph Station
We rolled into Moreton Telegraph Station for a night

Where is Moreton Telegraph Station?

This private property is super close to the Telegraph Road (sometimes referred to as the Peninsula Development Road), about an hour and a half away from Weipa via the Batavia Downs shortcut, or you can skip Weipa all together and keep heading north from Coen.

In distance, you’re looking at 194 km from Coen, 38 km from Bramwell Junction (or the start of the Old Telegraph Track) and 262km to Bamaga.

Distances from Moreton Telegraph Station
The distances to more locations further north

Do you need a 4WD to get there?

You’ll find most people who are out here have 4WD’s, but technically speaking you could get a 2WD, or AWD vehicle to Moreton Telegraph Station, depending on the road conditions.

When we did it, the road was great with exception of a handful of dips or floodway’s which needed some clearance (and resulted in a bent chassis on a dual cab!)

Gravel on the PDR
The PDR can be in a whole heap of different conditions
PDR Floodway
Make sure you slow down for ALL of the floodways

How much is the camping?

When we’d scoped Moreton Telegraph Station out, we had read on Wikicamps that it was $15 per adult, and $5 for the kids, so it was going to cost $40 for us, in an unpowered site.

We were already considering skipping the property due to the pricing (which we thought was expensive), but decided to make it a short day it would do.

However, when we arrived, the prices have gone up for 2023, and we paid a whopping $50 for an unpowered, bush camping site. That’s $20 per adult, and $5 for both kids (anyone over 4), which I reckon is a bit rough.

Now, I understand that this is a business, and they aren’t open all the time and need to recover costs of operating, but when you camp at Hann River Roadhouse for $30 a night, or Bramwell Station for $30 I have to question the fairness, and did feel like we’d made a mistake.

Moreton Telegraph Station
This is quite a bit more expensive than alternatives

What’s on the property?

Moreton Telegraph Station is a picturesque location that often has a substantial number of cattle on their property. There’s a coffee van, small shop, and little café.

There’s also a small museum, lots of grassy areas with plenty of shade, and powered or unpowered sites.

They do a number of glamping tents, and its really well set up.

Glamping tents at Moreton
There’s a heap of tents set up for people to camp
Glamping kitchen area
This area is really well set up

The property backs onto the river, and they advertise a Barra hole, which apparently a 1 metre barramundi was pulled out of a few days prior to us arriving.

You have to walk here, and the walk continues around to a natural bridge, and lagoon if you are in the mood for a stroll.

Barra Hole at Moreton Station
The Barra hole, which is a reasonable walk away from the camping area
Natural Bridge at Moreton Station
The natural bridge is fascinating
Moreton Lagoon
A nice lagoon on the way back

There’s a lot of room, a heap of bird life, a fair bit of privacy, and the hum of the diesel generators ticking away.

Camped at Moreton Telegraph Station
Some of the camp sites are fantastic, and really beautiful

Watch the vlog

YouTube video

Would we stay here again?

I really liked Moreton Telegraph Station, but the price certainly left a sour taste in my mouth, and whilst they are free to charge whatever they like, it’s too expensive for us. There’s plenty of gravel pits and cheaper campsites nearby that in hindsight we’d have made use of.

We had a nice, private, grassy site with lots of bird life, and it was a really nice place to be. The amenities are good, but not anything I’d rave about, and for us, we’d find something else next time.

That said, Cape York is expensive, and this is a magic property, so if you are happy paying that sort of money its a different thing.

Camping at Moreton in a private site
We had a truly awesome camp site

Pricing aside, if you want a quiet, well set up property that is really convenient to visit and stay at, Moreton Telegraph Station is a fantastic place to spend a night or two.

Camping spot at Moreton
There’s a few private spots to camp, and lots of room elsewhere

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2 Comments

  1. Hey Kerry,

    Interesting to know. Thanks for that.

    All the best
    Aaron

  2. Moreton Telegraph Station does NOT run any cattle, they are wild and come and go as they please.