Cooktown is a small tropical town on the Endeavour River in far north Queensland. It feels very different from the resort towns farther south: less polished, more isolated, with rainforest, reef, outback roads, and Cape York country all close at hand.
The town's place in Australian history is unusually heavy for its size. In 1770 Captain James Cook beached the damaged Endeavour here for repairs after it struck the Great Barrier Reef. A century later, Cooktown boomed as the port for the Palmer River goldfields, then shrank again as the gold faded and isolation returned. The James Cook Museum is the best place to put those stories in order.
Cooktown is also a base for wild country. Grassy Hill gives the classic view over town, river, and sea, while Mount Cook National Park rises just south of the centre with walking tracks and lookouts.