Page 146 - Ebook Explore Cape York

Chapter 11

Islands & Tours

Albany (Pabaju) Island
Albany Island, a quick trip across the Albany Passage from
Somerset Beach, has an interesting history in Cape York. A
short walk from its main beach will lead you to the graves of
Thomas Wall and Charles Niblett, the only bodies recovered
from the ill-fated Kennedy expedition. Christopher Aplin, a
Somerset magistrate, was later buried beside them.

In the 1960’s Albany Island was a pearl farm, nowadays it’s a
fishing resort. The boatshed is a place where memories are
made, and tall (fishing) stories are told. For more information
contact Cape York Fishing Charters.

Possession Island (Bedanug/Thunadha)
Few tourists visit Possession Island, it’s not your usual tourist
destination due to its location and rocky terrain, however, it
does play a huge part in Australia’s history.

In 1770 Captain James Cook chose Possession Island to hoist
the English flag and claim the east coast of Australia for Britain.
Why the island? It was thought that to make the claim on the
inhabited mainland would be too dangerous.

In the late 1800s a successful gold mining operation ran on
Possession Island, resulting in over 110kg of that valuable
bullion being extracted.