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  “That was the ‘Golden Hope’,” the old prospector replied.

  During this exchange Kylie’s mind had been furiously busy. She felt a wild surge of optimism and said: “So now we know where to start. Let’s go and look.”

  “Steady on,” Uncle Bill said. “It’s getting late.”

  Peter checked his watch. “It’s only half past five.”

  “And it will be dark by seven,” Uncle Bill replied. “We need to get back to camp to cook before it gets dark.”

  “Oh please Uncle Bill! Just for a little while,” Kylie pleaded.

  Uncle Bill relented. “Half an hour. No more.” He stood up and drained the last of his tea, then handed the cup back. “Thanks Mr Donaldson. That was nice.”

  Kylie took back her letter of instructions and read them. Then she asked the old prospector if there was another old mine just across the other side of Nugget Creek.

  The old prospector nodded. “Aye. There is. Wasn’t ever much though I don’t reckon. Just a few mounds and some empty bottles in the scrub.”

  “Are there any tracks leading up beside Nugget Creek?” Graham asked.

  The old prospector nodded again. “Yep. There’s a few. Some are still in pretty good condition. I’ve been using them meself.”

  “Thanks very much,” Graham replied. The others added their thanks and then prepared to start walking. The old prospector smiled and waved. “Guid luck ter ye. Hope ye find plenty of gold.”

  The group hurried on west along the track which led off the other side of the small clearing. The track was well used and easy to move along. Within two minutes they had reached Nugget Creek. By then the sun had gone off the treetops although the sky overhead was still bright blue. Nugget Creek was larger than the previous creek, being at least five metres wide and flowing quite well. It was a typical jungle stream with alternating sandy stretches and rocky rapids and pools. The water was crystal clear and refreshingly cool.

  Kylie paused to refill her waterbottle and to wash her face. All the while her excitement had been increasing. ‘At last we are starting to get somewhere,’ she thought happily.

  The foot track went on up the other bank. Fifty paces on it abruptly forked beside a mound which might have been artificial.

  “Frank’s Claim?” Graham suggested, indicating the mound.

  “Should be,” Peter agreed. “What do we do now Ky?”

  Kylie checked the instructions. “Turn left at Frank’s Claim, which means turn right; then go downhill to the mossy rocks. That means go uphill.”

  She looked at the track going right. It certainly went uphill. The sight of that made her excitement mount. “That way,” she said.

  “Let’s go,” Graham said.

  “Ten minutes more,” Uncle Bill cautioned.

  “Come on!” Kylie cried. She hurried after Graham. The others followed.

  This time there was a track. It was cleared and easy to walk along. Gnarled scars on the bark of the larger trees marked old blaze marks but the vegetation had not reclaimed it and the old prospector had obviously kept it open as well. They were able to make good progress. The slope was quite gentle and the jungle fairly open. They went steadily uphill for at least five hundred metres. The ridge then began to narrow and become steeper and Kylie soon found she was panting.

  “Mossy rocks!” Graham cried.

  Kylie’s heart leapt. Yes! She could see them. Slap in the centre of the ridge was a huge pile of boulders and they were all covered with moss and lichen. The track went around the rocks on their right hand side. It had obviously once been bench cut and was still easy to follow.

  “Time to turn back,” Uncle Bill called from the back. He was puffing along with Allison and Roger.

  “Oh Uncle Bill! We are nearly there,” Graham cried.

  “It is ten to six. We go back,” Uncle Bill replied firmly. “The gold mine has waited seventy years or so. It can wait another few hours.”

  “Oh Uncle Bill!” Kylie pleaded.

  “No. Back we go. We can get here in half an hour tomorrow, now we know the way.”

  “Can we just find the next track junction please?” Graham asked.

  “No. It is getting late and I don’t feel like trying to grope my way home through the jungle in the dark. Back we go.”

  Reluctantly they turned back. Kylie felt sharply disappointed but had to concede that Uncle Bill was right. It was already quite gloomy and she certainly did not want to find herself blundering about the rainforest in the dark.

  In ten minutes they were back and Nugget Creek. Two minutes later they reached the old prospector’s camp. He was cooking at his fire. He gave them a cheerful wave as they went past.

  “Any luck?” he called.

  “It seemed to be right,” Uncle Bill replied.

  “See you tomorrow then,” the old prospector answered.

  They hurried on along the track to Reward Creek. Now Kylie became worried that they would not make it back to camp in daylight but in only a few minutes they were across Reward Creek and at what they now knew was the ‘Golden Hope’.

  “I love the names they chose for these old mines,” Margaret commented as they passed the overgrown site.

  “So do I. They are really imaginative,” Kylie agreed.

  Five minutes later they reached their camp. It was still light but Uncle Bill said: “Down to the river for a quick wash and fill your waterbottles while it is still light. Take your torches though as it will get dark quickly. I will get the fire going while you do that.”

  They did as they were bid. Kylie snatched up her torch and her towel and toilet bag. The girls went down as a group, in the wake of the boys. Out in the open at the river it was still quite light but evening was clearly upon them. The boys went downstream a short distance until they were out of sight. Soon after the sound of splashing and swimming came to the girls as they crouched beside the water.

  “The boys must be having a swim,” Margaret said.

  “I didn’t see them change into bathers,” Allison commented.

  “They didn’t. They will be swimming in the nuddy,” Kylie replied.

  “Lucky them,” Allison said. She looked in that direction.

  Margaret giggled. “You can join them if you want to. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind,” she said.

  “You’d know!” Kylie replied with a grin. “Didn’t you and Graham go skinny dipping once at Kamerunga?”

  Margaret blushed and snorted. “We were only little then.”

  “I’d love a swim,” Allison said. She looked upstream. There were several pools but Kylie shook her head. “Better wait till morning. It is getting dark fast.”

  That was true. The jungle already looked almost grey and inside it appeared black. Regretfully the girls washed their faces and then filled waterbottles. As they stood up Kylie called out: “You boys better get out. It will be dark soon.”

  Allison added: “If you don’t get out we will send Margaret down to get you.”

  Margaret was deliciously scandalized. “Allie! Don’t say that. They will think I am awful.”

  To add to her embarrassment Stephen’s voice came back to them: “Send her down. She can scrub Graham’s back for him.”

  “Don’t be rude Stephen Bell!” Kylie called. “Just hurry up.”

  The girls set off back for their camp. As soon as they entered the rainforest they had to turn on their torches it was now so dark. They walked in single file back to where the welcoming glow of a fire marked the camp. Uncle Bill was seated beside it adding twigs. He was listening to his pocket radio. The reception was poor, with lots of crackling, but Kylie could hear music.

  As the girls arrived Uncle Bill looked up from the fire. “Bad news girls. That ‘low’ in the Coral Sea has turned into a cyclone. We will have to head home tomorrow.”

  CHAPTER 24

  THE RIGHT FORK

  Cyclone! Must go home tomorrow! Kylie’s mind tried to grapple with this as her emotions reeled and plummeted. ‘E
very time we seem to be getting somewhere we run into problems!’ She sat down beside the fire and said: “Uncle Bill we can’t go home. We are so close.”

  Uncle Bill shook his head. “We are going home. It is better to be safe than sorry. The cyclone will only last a few days and then we can come back and continue the search.”

  “But someone else might find the gold first!” Margaret cried.

  Uncle Bill gave a thin smile. “Not during a cyclone they won’t. These creeks will all be raging torrents then. No-one could get here, even if they knew where to look.”

  “What about that old prospector?” Allison asked. “He must have a fair idea where to look now.”

  This time Uncle Bill laughed. “If he finds the gold before we do then good luck to him. If he has been searching for two years then he deserves to win.”

  Kylie sat and stared at the fire. She felt terribly downcast and frustrated. She tried to think of an argument that Uncle Bill might accept but couldn’t. The noisy return of the boys led to the argument being resumed. Graham in particular was angry and insisted they keep searching. It was to no avail. Uncle Bill was adamant.

  The group then sat around the fire to cook their tea. They were all tired and the low spirits led to a few snaps of bad temper. As they sat eating they listened to the news on the pocket radio. At the end was the weather forecast and then the official Cyclone Warning. Kylie listened to this anxiously, worrying about her father and brother Alex. ‘They are out at sea there somewhere.’

  “I hope dad and Alex are alright,” she said.

  Graham made a face. “They’ll be OK. Only the good die young.”

  “Graham! Don’t be horrible,” Kylie replied.

  “Stop worrying sis. I think they are up near Thursday Island somewhere. This cyclone is only half way up the Cape,” Graham replied.

  “Where is it?” Margaret asked.

  “The radio said it was a Category One cyclone and that it was about five hundred kilometres north east of Cairns,” Uncle Bill replied.

  “Five hundred kilometres. That will take days to get here,” Graham said.

  “Depends how big it is and how fast it goes,” Uncle Bill replied.

  “If it’s only a Category One then it can’t be very big. That is the weakest category of cyclone,” Graham replied.

  “It could be up to a hundred kilometres across,” Uncle Bill cautioned.

  “That shouldn’t affect us here,” Graham insisted. “The mountains should break the force of the wind.”

  Uncle Bill shook his head. “It isn’t the wind I am worrying about. It is the rain. Cyclones bring flood rains remember, and we could easily get trapped here. Besides, the mountains could have the effect of funnelling the winds, increasing their force.”

  They all knew this was true and it was a sobering thought. The argument was dropped and the topic of conversation switched to the old prospector. Kylie took little part, feeling too tired and depressed, except to say: “I thought he was a nice old man. I hope he finds some gold.”

  All were tired so it was early to bed. Kylie tried to cheer up and to join in the chatter with the other girls but she found it hard going. Later, when their torches were turned out, she lay and went over the events of the last few days in her mind.

  The boys were awake at the first hint of dawn. Kylie heard them talking quietly and she looked out of the tent. Graham and Peter were busy heating water on their stoves. They were fully dressed and looked ready to go. A check of her watch showed that it was only ten past six. Pulling on her boots Kylie crawled out to join them.

  “Morning Ky,” Graham said. Peter said the same and favoured her with a pleasant smile.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, noting that the sketch map lay open beside them.

  “We want to go and have a quick look before we have to leave,” Graham said.

  “You’d better not go without asking Uncle Bill,” Kylie cautioned. “He would be ever so angry.”

  From the way the boys glanced at Uncle Bill’s swag she divined that such had in fact been their intention. She shook her head. “Don’t please Graham. It will cause a lot of ill-will. We can wait.”

  Graham made a face but had the grace to look abashed. Peter was also plainly embarrassed. Reluctantly Graham nodded. “OK. But I am still going to ask him.”

  From Uncle Bill’s swag came the muffled question: “Ask who what?”

  The teenagers gave a guilty start. Uncle Bill rolled over and looked at them. Then he sat up and rubbed sleep from his eyes. “I suppose you kids want to rush off and look for this gold mine.”

  “Yes we do,” Graham answered. “Please Uncle Bill. The cyclone is hundreds of kilometres away still and it hasn’t even begun to rain yet. A few hours won’t matter.”

  Uncle Bill muttered something then picked up his pocket radio and turned it on. “Let’s have some facts to work on,” he said. Then he stood up. “While we wait for the seven O’clock news let’s have a wash and some breakfast.”

  The sound of talking had woken the others. With mumbles and grumbles at the early hour they all appeared. Kylie collected her towel, toilet gear and waterbottle then said to the other girls: “Come on. Now is the time for that swim.”

  Allison wasn’t keen but Margaret cheerfully agreed. The two girls then jollied Allison to join them. They made their way down to the river, passing Uncle Bill who had already been down to wash his face and fill his billy.

  At the river bank Kylie looked up. There wasn’t a breath of a breeze and the air was humid and still. The river gurgled cheerfully down over the rocks. Birds chirped and, except for a bit of high level cirrus, the sky appeared to be completely normal. The water felt cool and fresh. The girls separated to have their wash as they were very self-conscious about their bodies. Margaret selected the first pool upstream while Kylie went fifty paces further on before she was satisfied. She found a nice pool behind a large boulder. Allison made her way another twenty paces past that.

  Satisfied the boys would not accidentally see her Kylie stripped off and gingerly lowered herself into the cold water. It took an effort of will power to wet herself but once she was in she felt very refreshed and her spirits rapidly improved. Several times she saw Allison’s head and once she even caught a glimpse of her standing naked on a rock in the morning sunlight.

  ‘Heavens Allie is well developed for her age,’ she thought admiringly. At that moment Allison turned her head and saw her. She waved and then dived into a deep pool out of sight. Kylie finished her toilet and stood to dry herself. While she did this a flock of white cockatoos suddenly erupted from the trees a hundred paces upstream. The birds wheeled overhead, screeching and chattering.

  Kylie watched them, wondering what had caused them to suddenly take fright. As she watched she saw Allison, still nude, climb out of the water to stand on a rock. She stared upstream, her womanly shape making a delightful picture against the green of the jungle.

  Allison shrugged and went out of sight behind a boulder. Kylie finished drying herself and dressed. Then she sat in the first beam of the morning sun to brush her hair. As she did this a fully dressed Allison came back, hopping from rock to rock to join her.

  “You shouldn’t run around in the nuddy like that Allie. You scared all the birds,” Kylie said. Allison laughed and sat down beside her.

  “That was really nice. I felt so free and relaxed,” she said.

  “You looked lovely,” Kylie added. “I’ll bet Bert would have loved to see you like that.”

  Allison tinged pink. “He might, one day. If he is nice.”

  “Allie!”

  The conversation turned to boys and what they liked. Kylie had a fair idea about this, from overhearing her two older brothers, and Allison was quite fascinated to hear. Margaret joined them. She looked very fresh and happy.

  “Come on you two. The boys are calling. They want us to help weaken Uncle Bill’s resolve.”

  “How do you know?” Allison asked.

>   “Graham told me,” Margaret replied. Suddenly she went bright pink. Kylie smiled and voiced her suspicions. “Did Graham come down to the river while you were swimming?”

  “Yes he did,” Margaret replied. “But I stayed in the water so he wouldn’t have seen much.”

  “Much! Margaret! You naughty little girl. You will get into trouble one day,” Kylie replied, but she wasn’t shocked and secretly thought that it would be great if Graham did love her.

  “Did any of the other boys come down?” Allison asked.

  “Yes, but they stayed near the track and didn’t see me,” Margaret replied.

  “So how did Graham find you?” Allison asked.

  Once again Margaret blushed furiously. “He saw me when I stood up to see who it was.”

  Kylie laughed as she pictured the scene. Allison smiled too but then asked: “Those boys didn’t come creeping along the bank to peep at us did they.”

  Margaret looked shocked. “No. Oh no! They wouldn’t do that. They aren’t like that.”

  “All men are like that,” Allison replied.

  “Stephen might,” Kylie added. “But the others wouldn’t sneak.”

  Allison nodded. “I hope not. For a moment I thought it might have been the boys who scared those cockatoos.”

  “Oh Allie!” Kylie was shocked. “They wouldn’t. Anyway those birds were on the other bank.”

  Still discussing the boys the girls made their way back up to the camp. All the boys were there and they were busy arguing with Uncle Bill while they cooked breakfast. The girls had missed the news but Graham soon gave them the details of the latest official Cyclone Warning.

  “It is now a Category Two cyclone and is moving south but it is a long way off,” Graham explained.

  “Where is it?” Kylie asked.

  “About a hundred kilometres east of Cooktown,” Graham answered. “It is still three hundred and fifty kilometres north east of here.”

  Uncle Bill added: “So it has moved one hundred and fifty kilometres overnight. That is over ten kilometres per hour.”

  “That’s not a very strong wind,” Allison said.