Fruit Bat Falls Campground is a popular, very small campground located at the southern end of the northern bypass on Bamaga Road. It is a great place to stop and rest on the way up to Cape York. The nearby Fruit Ball Falls (a 3km drive) are a welcome respite from the dusty road.
You need to have your toilet and shower to stay at this campground
Pets are permitted at this campground.
Tents are permitted.
Fires are permitted.
Fruit Bat Falls Campground Quick Facts
| Campground Name | Fruit Bat Falls Campground |
|---|---|
| Nearest Town | Bamaga |
| GPS | 11°27'15.07"S 142°25'5.52"E |
| Access Road | Unsealed |
| Number of sites | 4 |
| Toilets | No |
| Water | No |
| Dump point | No |
| Power | No |
| Pets | Yes |
| Tents | Yes |
| Fires permitted | Yes |
| Telstra coverage | No |
| Optus coverage | No |
| Cost | Free |
| Booking | N/A |
Campground Layout and Features
Fruit Bat Falls Campground has about 4 unmarked sites available. However, due to its location and lack of other facilities, it can become over-crowded. You must arrive as early as possible to secure a site.
All sites are unpowered and water is not available. It is no more than a cleared area on the side of the road.
Just to reiterate, there are no facilities at this site. Roads in both directions are unsealed, and a 4WD is recommended. Only those using an off-road caravan should consider bringing it on this trip. We towed ours and had no issues (a warning is posted in the section on what to look out for below).
Fruit Bat Falls Campsite Location
Fruit Bat Falls Campground is located about 63km south of Bamaga. The map below shows the campground’s location. You can zoom out for a more general location.
What to Watch Out For at Fruit Bat Falls Campground
This facility can get very busy. We spent two nights at this location and enjoyed the nearby Fruit Bat Falls. On the first night, there were vans. On the second, there were seven vans. There were three vans drawbars to the rear of the next van. Our advice if you have the pick of sites in the one on its own to the right as you enter the site or against the right side as you drive in. Avoid the two spots at the back of the area.
Note that this campground is not at the falls but it is a short distance away.
If you are towing your off-road van on this road check your suspension bolts regularly. A few kilometres to the north of this site, we came across a van that had lost the suspension assembly on one side. They were stuck on the side of the road for four nights before the van was loaded onto a truck.
Final Words
This site is OK but not great due to the over-crowding. However, the nearby falls make up for that. We enjoyed our stay at this site.
A few kilometres along the Old Telegraph Track, there is another camping area near the creek crossing. We considered staying here but it is small and difficult to manoeuvre our small van. If you want to check it out our recommendation is to claim a spot at this site and drive the car in to check it out. That is what we did and by the time we returned all the sites had been taken.
Closeby Campgrounds
If you are travelling north and considering stay at Seisia we recommend Loyalty Beach Campground. We stayed there and it is a good spot. We have only heard negative reports about Seisia Holiday Park.
If you are heading south and want isolation, try Rocky Creek Gravel Pit near Bramwell.