Cairns and the Tropical North

Crystal Cascades

We spent 4 days in Cairns, mostly relaxing and catching up on household chores - finishing and publishing the blog, which was a struggle with the very slow and unreliable internet connection, washing, cleaning and shopping. 

But there were a few highlights as well: a walk and plunge in the swimming hole of the Crystal Cascades, the new Botanic Gardens, a walk along the coastal promenade in the city, and to top it off, a day on the reef. 

This time we went with the Reef Magic company to their pontoon at Moore Reef. The 50 km ride out in the morning was a bit rough, many people got seasick, fortunately we survived without major trouble. Then we enjoyed all the usual activities, the glass-bottom boat, the semi-submersible boat, and especially the snorkeling. We saw lots of fantastic coral formations and bright colured fishes and other marine creatures. There is a fascinating  underwater world out there that should not be missed by anybody if possible.

Lunch at Mossman Gorge

Then on Thursday (10 May) evening we picked up our daughter, Eszter, from the airport, and spent the next four days checking out the Tropical North. On the way North we stopped for a quick visit at Port Douglas, then had lunch at Mossman Gorge, followed by a walk and a plunge in the beautiful swimming hole. 

Then we crossed the Daintree river with the ferry and drove up to Cape Tribulation. It is a difficult narrow winding road, with several 20 km/h speed restrictions where cassowaries used to cross the road, sometimes unsuccessfully. 

We were lucky enough to catch sight of a cassowary family alive, a mother with 3 chicks, crossing the road just in front of us. The camping at Cape Tribulation was just behind the coconut palms along the beach, a cute little hideaway, with lots of bush turkeys running around all the time.

Eszter checking the water before crossing

On Saturday 12 May we left the caravan at the campsite and went up to Cooktown along the Bloomfield track. It was the first time we tested our car, and ourselves, on a real 4WD track - although the track was in very good condition, but there were several water crossings and two very steep climbs up and down. Everything went very well, and the landscape and vegetation were very interesting. Unfortunately no more animals to see. 

Cooktown

Cooktown is a sleepy quiet little village, although we arrived there in the middle of the Saturday market, with more activity than otherwise expected. We dutifully visited all the monuments and memorial plaques of Captain Cook's landing and the Palmer River gold rush, and enjoyed the view from the old lighthouse lookout. We had lunch at a little restaurant at the banks of the Endeavour river, and after coffee we headed back to Cape Tribulation the same way. It was a 2.5 hour drive each way, but it was worth the effort. 

In the afternoon we still had time for a short boardwalk close to the campsite - again, very interesting exotic vegetation, plenty of birdsounds, but no fauna to see... In the evening, with Eszter's expert knowledge, we managed to cut open a coconut picked up on the beach. It was no mean feat, and we could enjoy the benefits. 

Face-to-face with a croc

Sunday morning, after another boardwalk, we packed up and drove down to Daintree Village on the other side of the river. We went on a river cruise and saw a few crocodiles, one 3-m long adult, and a 1-year old little one, several big birds, jabiroos and herrons. The scenary around the river was also magnificent. 

Mossman Gorge

We stopped for the evening in Mossman and had another jump in the Mossman Gorge pool before sunset. The caravan park in Mossman included a 50-m swimming pool that we had to try this morning, all 3 of us had a good swim before leaving the camp. On the way South we stopped at Palm Cove for a little walk along the coast and the jetty. 












By lunchtime we came back to Cairns and checked into the same caravan park as before. After lunch and siesta, we went to the city, had a nice walk around the Lagoon and the coastal promenade to the harbour and back in beautiful sunset lights, followed by a farewell dinner in a Thai restaurant.


Then tomorrow morning Eszter will fly back to Sydney, and we leave the East coast, heading West towards new adventures!


Our itinerary can be seen at the following Google Map:
http://g.co/maps/wcwv8 
(Note that to see the more recent parts of the route, you need to move down to the bottom of the right panel, and click next page!)



Az elmúlt hét még gyorsabban ment el, mint a korábbiak. Négy napot Cairn-ben töltöttünk, fõleg pihenéssel, meg szükséges háztartási munkával, de azért minden nap volt valami kellemes program is: fürödtünk a közeli Crystal Cascade patakban, sétáltunk az új Botanikus kertben, no és egy nap elmentünk a korall-zátonyokra, hajóval 50 km elég viharos tengeren, de megérte. Volt üveg-fenekû hajó, meg búvárkodtunk (csak pipával), sok szép korallt és rengeteg színes halat láttunk, jó volt.
Aztán csütörtök este megjött Eszter, és másnap vele együtt elindultunk északra egy kis trópusi körútra. Cape Tribulation-ig burkolt úton lehet menni, útközben megálltunk fürödni a Mossman folyó szurdokában, láttunk cassowary-t, meg kígyót, és mág egy kókuszdiót is sikerült felnyitni, ami nem könnyû dolog, de megéri. Szombaton kipróbáltuk az autónk terepjáró képességeit "élesben": Cape Trib.-tõl Cooktown-ba kb 80 km-t mentünk földúton, ami elég jó állapotban volt, de több patakon kellett átkelni és két nagyon meredek hegyen átmászni le-föl. Mind az autó, mind a vezetõ jól vizsgázott, gond nélkül megtettük az utat oda-vissza. Cooktown egy csendes, érdektelen kisváros azt leszámítva, hogy Cook kapitány ide vontatta be a sérült hajóját javítani 1770-ben. Ennek aztán számos emléktábla és szobor állít emléket a városkában az Endeavour folyó partján. Késõbb itt is volt "aranyláz", egy közeli folyóban találtak aranyat a 19. szd. közepén, ami 15-ezresre duzzasztotta a város lakosságát egy pár évre, de az arany hamar elfogyott, és kevesen maradtak itt. 
Visszafelé jövet megálltunk a Daintree folyónál, elmentünk egy rövid hajótúrára, láttunk krokodilokat, egy szép nagyot, ugyan nem nagyon mozgott, de eleget ahhoz hogy elhigyjük hogy él. Szép vizimadarakat is láttunk, és a táj is nagyon érdekes a folyó körül. Késõbb megálltunk egy szép tengerparti üdülõhelynél is kicsit nézelõdni, és délutánra visszaértünk Cairns-be. Este sétáltunk egyet a városban, megettük a búcsúvacsorát, és kedd hajnalban Eszter visszarepült Sydney-be.
Mi is összepakolunk, és itthagyjuk a keleti kulturált tengerparti vidéket, elindulunk nyugat felé az ország belsejébe, ismeretlen tájakra. Egy hónap már eltelt az utunkból, igyekezni kell... 



Az útvonalunk a következo Google Map-on látható:
http://g.co/maps/wcwv8
(A Bowen utáni szakaszokhoz le kell menni a jobboldali panel aljára, és a következo oldalakra kattintani!!)