CAIRNS 2016

My flight left Perth at 11.10pm. It’s a long flight but I got an aisle seat although I don’t sleep particularly well on planes anyway. The time between flights in Brisbane to Cairns was only two hours and then two and a half hours to Cairns. The fun began when I landed in Cairns and tried to contact the hire car people for their shuttle. The 1800 number kept cutting out for Cairns office. I tried their regular number and got a disconnected message! Great! I was starting to think I’d been scammed as I’d paid for the car in advance. I finally managed to contact their Brisbane office who also had trouble contacting Cairns. They were finally able to connect me and confirm that it was a phone line problem. I was duly collected by the shuttle and driven into the city to collect the car. I was expecting a Hyundai Accent but it sorta grew and became a Toyota Camry – and I couldn’t find the hand brake. Apparently they don’t have one – they have a foot parking pedal – thank goodness for Google! I reckon I look like a meerkat sitting up to drive a car that size. I suppose I’ll get used to it around about the time I take it back! The hotel is comfortable and clean and VERY secure. There are automatic gates that close at 11pm (guests can still enter and exit) and two locked doors to enter your room. Unfortunately there are no lifts (I knew this before I booked) but I had a studio apartment on the first floor so only one flight of steps and that wasn’t too much to handle once I’d got my case up there. Strange I never saw any reviews that mentioned the railway line at the rear of the hotel! Scared the shit out of me the first evening when I was sitting on my balcony and the train whistle blew! Luckily there don’t seem to be many trains. I found out later that the line is the Kuranda Railway and there are only two trains in the morning before 9am and two in the late afternoon. So if you’re out early and home late you’d miss them completely. I checked out another review site when I came home and oh my goodness did one person whinge about the trains! I would have sworn they were talking about a different hotel! The hotel is centrally situated and just round the corner from the large shopping centre and about a 10 minute walk from the waterfront.   Day 1 This was Kuranda Railway and Skyrail Day. Siri took me to Freshwater Station with no problem to catch the train. I’d treated myself to Gold Class so had mocktails on the station after the first train carrying the first load of plebs had left. Very civilized I must say! The second train has the Gold Class carriages and they are so much more comfortable than cattle class! The seating is tub style armchairs set in groups of four and the carriage is wood panelled and really rather swish. They serve munchies and drinks on the journey and I sat with a couple from northern NSW and a family from California. The scenery on the way is beautiful and we stopped briefly at Baron Falls for a photo opportunity and to stretch our legs. There is a commentary about the history of the rail line which is really interesting and it’s incredible to think that all the tunnels and cuttings were originally made by hand. It must have been a huge task.

Cane Fields 

From the train

Once you arrive at Kuranda there is a free shuttle that will take you into the village. It runs every fifteen minutes so you can return whenever you like. The village is very pretty with several markets and the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary, a Koalas Sanctuary and a Bird Sanctuary. I didn’t do the koalas or birds but the Butterfly Sanctuary was amazing. They breed the various species there and a guide will take groups round and explain about the whole facility and the butterflies. The Cairns Birdwing butterfly is enormous and the largest species in Australia. There are some really beautiful butterflies there but it’s quite difficult to get them to stay still long enough to get really good photos.

  I had lunch in the village at a restaurant called Frogs. My opportunity to try out crocodile. There was crocodile in a Sri Lankan curry on the menu. It was nice but quite honestly the meat was a bit tough and probably nice tender beef would have been better. At least I tried it!

The journey back down to Smithfield was by Skyrail. There was quite a long queue waiting to go down but couples or singles were actually able to “jump the queue” to fill partially filled gondolas. There’s an advantage being on your own on occasions! I shared a gondola back with a French woman and her two sons. What great views are to be had from up there. You’re looking down over forests but also out to the ocean. Once at Smithfield, if you drove to Freshwater for the train there is a free shuttle to take you back to your car.  

Day 2 

Daintree and Cape Tribulation today with a 6.30am pick up from the hotel. Our coach driver was really good and kept us interested with a great commentary full of information and facts. Our first stop was at a Wildlife Sanctuary at Port Douglas. Although it’s probably much like any other Sanctuary around the country it was still enjoyable. Most of the animals were in enclosures that you could walk through without any problem. It was a great hit with some Americans who were part of our group. Our Coat of Arms sharing lunch!

Our Coat of Arms sharing lunch

From there it was on to Mossman Gorge and a walk through the rain forest. What a spectacular spot it is. It is so lush and VERY green. It was absolutely beautiful. I was a bit dubious about the walk when it went over rocky ground and up rocky steps but, taking it carefully, I managed not to break my leg or anything!

From there it was on to the Daintree River and the car ferry. It seems the only way north is to cross on this ferry. There are no roads or bridges to take you past it. The coach just trundles on to the ferry, we all stay put in our seats and slowly we head across to the opposite bank!

It was as we were driving towards Cape Tribulation from the ferry that we saw our first cassowary off to the side of the road in the bush. As an endangered species (they estimate that there’s only about two thousand left in the wild) we were very lucky to see one. Some people go years and never see one at all. To cap it off, we saw another one with a chick on the way back! Lunch was at the Beach House at Cape Tribulation and then a look at the beach itself. The road down to the restaurant is very steep and the coach must park at the top. Our guide asked me if I’d be OK with the steep slope. I told him I’d be fine – once I got going I’d just keep going until I hit the brick wall at the bottom! Actually it was fine but going back UP would have been a bit more difficult so he arranged for one of the staff of the resort to drive me back. It was hilarious. My “transport” was a really old, rusty Holden ute with a column change and no lining in the inside of the doors. The resort of one of Eco Resorts so it’s not “posh” looking, although I’m sure it’s quite expensive. I actually think the poor old Holden had nearly as much trouble as I would have had getting up that hill!

  Cape Tribulation Beach in the middle of winter! One thing that surprised me at the end of the day was that no one, not even the overseas visitors, tipped the driver. I had really expected to see the Americans at least give him a tip.   

Day 3 - Hot Air Ballooning

The pick up from the hotel was 4am! A very early start! It’s an hour’s drive up through the hills on a very twisting road to Mareeba in the Atherton Tablelands. The first problem I had was the hotel security gate. Reception had told me there was a button on the inside to press to open the pedestrian gate but I couldn’t find it! Luckily there is a key lock on the outside of the gate and I was able to hand my keys to driver and he let me out!!! We duly arrived in a farmer’s paddock where about three balloons were being readied for flights.

 If you booked a half hour flight and you were on the second leg, the coach with you in it would attempt to follow the balloon on the ground. If you booked an hour, you stayed on board when the first half an hour was over and those on the chasing coach then joined you for the next half an hour. That meant you got to land twice for your hours’ worth! Actually, landing wasn’t really a problem – a couple of bumps and that was it. The first landing the pilot was aiming for a paddock but balloons isn’t really able to be steered with any accuracy and we landed in a mango plantation. Luckily the space between the rows of trees was wide enough to accommodate the balloon safely!

The magnificent sunrise over the Atherton Tablelands

Other balloons making their way up through the ground fog

The BIG problem came with how to get in and out of the basket. I had been under the impression that they had removable steps or even a gate on the basket – but NO. They showed a safety video in the coach on the way to Mareeba and horror upon horrors – you have to CLIMB into the basket using toe holds in the wicker and then climb out again the same way – UNAIDED (it’s a safety regulation). I might have had second thoughts if I’d realised that but there I was, on my way, so I decided I’d just have to make the best of it. I managed to scramble into the basket in a most inelegant manner! My 73 year old knees don’t bend that well these days! But I made it. Getting out was more difficult as I’d been standing in the basket for the hour flight but I was helped out – after all, they couldn’t leave me in there regardless of safety regulations at that stage! The amazing sunrise There was a thick ground fog and it was amazing to rise above it and then see other balloons following us up through it. It’s a great feeling, just floating along and it’s silent apart from the occasions when the pilot releases more gas. The sunrise was incredible and I was surprised that it really wasn’t particularly cold. It was an experience not to be missed that’s for sure.  

Day 4 - A trip to Green Island 

It was a beautiful day to be out on the ocean. It was warm but with a light breeze blowing and just perfect on the upper deck.

I’d opted to include lunch in my ticket and it was a good plan. The lunch was buffet style but there was plenty of food available and you could go back as often as you liked.  I did a trip on the glass bottomed boat to see the reef which was really good but doesn’t really lend itself to photography unfortunately. We were sitting back up on the top deck again about mid-afternoon when we heard a lot of splashing at the rear of the catamaran. Looking over, we saw loads of fish swimming around right near the surface. About ten minutes later it increased when one of the crew went down to feed them. Apparently it was a regular afternoon occurrence and the fish were there waiting! Don’t let anyone tell you fish don’t have good memories!  

 Day 5 

This should be named “Panic Day”. For some reason I got out my e ticket for the flight home and suddenly realised it was booked for 15th August instead of 15th July! The month must have ticked over when I did the booking and I didn’t notice. I spend an hour on the phone to Expedia, who were really helpful, and I finally got the last seat on the only flight from Cairns to Brisbane that would allow me to connect with my Perth flight. Being a Friday I guess it’s a popular day to head to Brisbane for a weekend. With the ticket drama sorted I decided to head out the Coffee Works in Mareeba. I had been intending to go the Gallo’s who also do chocolate and cheese tasting but the driver on the Daintree trip said that they did the second best chocolate. When asked who did the best he said “Coffee Works” – so, another trip up the winding road but with me driving this time! Coffee Works showcases locally grown and imported coffees and they make chocolates. You can sample as much of both as you like. The varieties of chocolate are amazing. Flavours like chilli chocolate or lemon and myrtle, orange marbled chilli chocolate, the list just goes on! It’s quite expensive to buy as you would expect but I brought some home with me. Not being a real coffee affonciado, that didn’t make a lot of difference to me, although I tried a few different varieties. Liam would have loved it!

I didn't know there were "Coffee Fairies"!

I stopped at Emerald Creek Ice Creamery on the way back and had the most delicious Guava Rose and caramel Macadamia ice cream. As on who doesn’t usually go for ice cream I can say it was really nice! While I was there three beefy looking sorta middle aged men came in and sat down with their ice creams. I left and when I got to the car I found three huge, black, shiny Harley Davidson motor cycles parked next to me. Now they and my car were the only vehicles in quite a large carpark! I started to back out and looked at the ice cream shop and there was one of the blokes, standing in the doorway watching me reverse out. Trusting souls!!!!

 Day 6 

I decided to go to Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures, even though I’ve done the whole “crocodile thing” up in Darwin, and I’m so glad I did. It was so entertaining! I would heartily recommend them to anyone going to Cairns. They have a man-made lagoon (which looks totally natural) and your entry ticket includes a half hour boat trip on that lagoon to view the many crocs in residence. The guides are full of knowledge and also very funny. They interact with the audience so well.

Nigel

I watched a crocodile show and a baby in the audience was restive. Says the presenter “have you got a problem there? I can fix it for you…” and glances at the croc meaningfully. “how old is baby?” “nine months? Oh well you won’t have grown too attached yet….” And the audience is roaring with laughter…and so it goes on.

Future shoes and handbags?

Later in the afternoon there was another crocodile where the same presenter is actually IN the pen with a 3.8m croc named Hagrid. I realise that they keep them well fed so they are less likely to attack but you have to bear in mind that crocs are territorial and don’t necessarily attack from hunger!

Hagrid

There was also another presentation which was snakes, including a King Brown and a Taipan, the most venomous snake in the world. They really have to know what they’re doing!

King Brown Snake

Deadly Taipan

On the lagoon cruise we saw an old croc which they estimate to be about 100 years old. He’s over 5m, has no teeth left and is going blind but he still chases the lady crocs and will mix it with any of the males who care to take him on. I had lunch there but no crocodile this time. I actually had barramundi which was really nice and certainly not expensive, sitting with two ladies from Alaska. 

Day 7 - Last day. 

The rental car people were nice enough to let me keep the car until mid-afternoon. It had been due to go back at 11am. It was really good because I would have been stuck at the airport so early for a 5.10pm flight. I decided to drive down to Innisfail as I hadn’t been south of Cairns. It was the only day that was wet and about half way it just bucketed down. If there had been anywhere on the side of the road to stop I would have but, alas, nowhere, so I just had to keep imitating a meerkat and keep driving! It soon stopped, thank goodness, and I reached beautiful down town Innisfail. Well, the “fail” part is correct. Unless you absolutely HAVE to go there – don’t! It was a nice drive though and it meant that I didn’t have to get to the airport too early. It also meant that I had plenty of time to miss my turning at the airport and have to go round again to get to the hire car drop off! I know that it would be a reasonably tight connection between flights (40 minutes maximum) so I arranged assistance to be sure that I got to the Perth flight on time. It’s just as well I did. There was only 15 minutes between flights by the time we landed in Brisbane. I sat next to a couple of kids from Doubleview and their parents were on the other side of aisle. There was a little people mover beep beep thingy waiting for me to take me the next flight. They waved as I went past and the driver stopped and told them to hop on so they rode with me, passing all those scurrying for the flight. I’m sure they would they probably would have waited a few minutes though as there were 27 passengers on the Cairns/Brisbane flight connecting with the Perth flight. All in all, it was a great holiday but, as usual, it was really nice to come home!