Cape Tribulation

vehicle for the day
Daintree river
Daintree river
tree snake

On the daintree river (pig island to the left and the mainland to the right)
Riverboast cruising the daintree
On the daintree river
4 metre croc

Mouth of the daintree river
Alexander ranges
Fan fern, when the air pressure falls indicating a tropical storm teh leaves fold up!
Oldest living species of tree

Big reds
Feeding time
Big reds
Tropical fruit tasting
Swim stop at the river
Preparing the billy tea
Vines
At cape tribulation

Cape tribulation
Cape tribulation
Cape tribulation
Cape tribulation

Mangrove trees of the Daintree forest reaching into the sea
Twisted vines
Cassowary sign

Daintree cable barge crossing we went over in our minibus
View from the rex lookout
View from the Rex lookout

Apparently there are two things that you should do whilst in Cairns. The first is the Great Barrier Reef and the second is Cape Tribulation. I booked a day long trip up to the Cape and again the trip wasn’t that cheap!!!

The trip is billed as a safari and was in a small 4x4 minibus. I chose Billy tea safaris whose gimmick was to make everyone Billy tea (tea in a Billy/tin can) in the afternoon. We set off at 7 am and started our drive north. Our proper stop was at a centre on the edge of the Daintree river. We hopped aboard a riverboat and started our crocodile spotting trip. We were cruising for about 45 minutes without seeing any crocodiles at all. The fact that there was a high tide meant that there wasn’t that too many spots for crocodiles to climb up the banks of the river and rest in the sun. We did though see a tree snake (thanks) to the eagle eyes of the guide and a tree frog (brought aboard by the guide). We eventually saw two crocodiles, a small 2 metre one and one that was 4 metres!!! We couldn’t get too close as they are really fast in the water and can jump fairly high. There was one really annoying German man who kept on climbing on the front of the boat, even though the guide was telling him not to as the boat was quite jumpy when the engine was put on!!! The guide said that if he had fell in that he guaranteed he wouldn’t get out alive!!!

After getting back on the bus we went to a look out over the Daintree rainforest. The rainforest is said to be the oldest rainforest in the world and home to the oldest species of tree still alive today. The fern actually predates the dinosaurs!!! The forest was humming with life and there were tones of butterflies, birds and lizards!!! Again that German man was climbing over the boardwalk to take better pictures. The forest is a world heritage site and everything inside is protected by Australian law.

We then made our way to a kangaroo sanctuary for a BBQ steak lunch!!! The lunch was really good and the steak was the size of half a cow at least!!! After lunch we got to feed the kangaroos. They were big reds rescued from the red centre of Australia. They were really friendly and some of the girls even kissed them on the nose.

After getting our fill at lunch we headed to a secluded river for a swim and some exotic fruit tasting. The fruit was good and there was even a custard apple fruit which actually tasted like apple custard!!!

We then stopped at Cape Tribulation. At Cape tribulation two world heritage sites sit side by side. That is the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest. Out of the 700 world heritage sites in the world, only two sit next to each other. It was a really beautiful spot. One of those places you definitely have to see to appreciate.

When then headed back and stopped another couple of times to take a few photos. By the time I got back I was knackered!!

Botanical gardens and the espanade

Botanical gardens
Botanical gardens
Botanical gardens
Botanical gardens Freshwater lake
Freshwater lake
One of the signs dotted around
Freshwater lake

Freshwater lake
Salt water lake
Salt water lake
Esplanade
Esplanade

Salt water lake
Mud flats next to the esplanade
Mud flats
Mud flats

My next day in Cairns and I wanted something to do that was nice and cheap. I had read in Lonely planet that there were some lovely gardens to walk around just near the town centre. Next to these gardens there was also some boardwalks around some lakes. I packed a packed lunch and went to the bus stop. As it was a Sunday the buses were running every two hours!!! I was gutted as I just missed one. After some walking I found another bus stop and a different bus route. I eventually got to the gardens just after lunch. The walk to the gardens was past a building site which made finding the entrance difficult!!! I had a wander and some lunch. It was like I was in the middle of paradise. I lay down and just day dreamed for a good hour!!! After I found the walks around the centenary lakes. One was saltwater, the other Freshwater. I saw a white lipped tree frog, stork and some other wildlife whilst walking around. It was a bit apprehensive as by there were a few signs dotted around warning of crocodiles!!!!

I got back to the hostel around 4ish. The hostel I’m staying at is like a holiday resort on some tropical island. The rooms are roomy and have balconies. On the ground floor there is a pizza restaurant, fast food restaurant, beer hall, gaming room, launderette, off-license, and live music space. On each floor is a kitchen and TV room. It’s a bit of a party place with rowdy people screaming all night long but apart from that it’s a bit of a bargain for the hostel price you pay.

I then decided to go for a walk down the esplanade. It is a walkway along the sea front that goes for about 3kms. As there is no beach really (there is a small one but your not supposed to use it due to crocodiles), there is a massive man made lagoon that is really popular just off the esplanade. The walk was lovely and at parts mangrove trees were growing next to the walk. It was a beautiful evening and I got some really good photos!!!!

Snorkeling at the great barrier reef

on the boat to marine world
Underwater viewing room
Aboard the glass bottomed boat
Reef through the glass on the glass bottomed boat
Reef through the glass on the glass bottomed boat
Reef through the glass on the glass bottomed boat

Reef
Reef
Helicopter rides were offered from marine world

giant fish called a mauri wrasse
Wrasse
Wrasse
Snorkelers

You could also go on a trip on a small yellow submarine
Barramundi
Scuba diver

Parrot fish
Marine world
Marine world

I arrived in Cairns on Friday evening. The weather here is hot and humid. It must be 30 degrees minimum here. The humidity is making it quite "airless" outside. My plan for my first day here was to get away from the city as soon as possible and go to the great barrier reef. I originally didn't want to snorkel but I wanted to be able to see the reef. I was advised to go to Marine world (which is a fixed pontoon at the reefs edge). I would get a ferry there and once there I would be able to go below to the viewing rooms and also go on the glass bottom boat to see the reef. I booked the trip (which was quite expensive) and got up early raring to go.

The ferry across to the outer reef took about 1 and a half hours. Before we launched the crew introduced themselves and made quite a lot about people getting sea sickness. O my god. Was the sea rough or what??? It felt like it took days to get there, especially when you felt every wave with a somersault of your belly!!! At the end I was starting to feel it, and I don’t normally get sea sickness!!!! We arrived at the platform and everyone rushed to the lockers to get into their bright red stinger suits and snorkeling/diving gear. I had a look around and found the underwater glass wall. I got down there and was really disappointed as I couldn’t see a thing!!!! I was shocked as I had paid all that money to see nothing. I thought that I better get on the glass bottom boat and try and see some stuff that way. Again when I got on the boat it was the same really, you couldn’t see any fish really and I was really disappointed.

After a long think I decided that I was going to go for it and have a go at snorkeling. I was a bit apprehensive as I’m not that good a swimmer, I don’t really like going under water and I’ve never swam in the open sea!!! All this plus the possibility of sharks was a bit daunting!!! I hired a stinger suit, which was a bright red head to toe Lycra suit that left nothing to the imagination. I got some snorkeling stuff and made it down to the submerged platform.

I got in and tried out putting my head under water. I found it really difficult only breathing through your mouth and also swimming with those flipper things on your feet (tends to pull you down). It took a while to get used to, but I got a bit more adventurous and swam over the edge of the reef. It was amazing the fish would swim really close to you and there were so many different types of fish down there. I saw loads and loads!!!! It was a really amazing experience as it felt like I was watching a natural history programme in 3D. The water was so clear and it was nice and flat thanks to the shelter from the platform. I stayed out for a couple of hours and really enjoyed it. I’m really pleased that I did it, its going to be one of those things that I remember forever!!!!!