Port Douglas,
We had a pleasant drive up to Port Douglas
stopping en-route, at a fruit stall, to purchase some lovely fresh fruit. Six mangoes were $5.00 and three
avocados $2.00. We also bought
Rambutans, somewhat like Lychees, delicious along with a pineapple and
everything was so fresh.
We arrived in Port Douglas around 6pm to find a
beautiful, peaceful, quiet resort.
Our unit was very large and we were not far from the free form swimming
pool, which has a tranquil waterfall that can be heard from the balcony. In fact there are two balconies, one at
the front and a huge one at the back.
Once again we listen to the birds chattering away and watch the fruit
bats fly over in the evening. Another tropical paradise and the weather glorious. Cyclone Tim veered further south and
that was just fine with us.
Our first day we spent purchasing a few
groceries, a stop at reception to discuss tours and a walk to a nearby resort,
that was absolutely unbelievable, for coffee. The lower apartments had direct access right into the
swimming pool, which has to be one of the largest we have ever seen, one acre
in size. The resort is called Sea
Temple. From here we walked to
Four Mile Beach with hardly a soul to be seen. The water was flat calm, the sand smooth as silk and the
jellyfish await the unsuspecting.
Such a shame!!!
After walking back to our apartment we drove
back into town and booked some trips.
We were able to secure spots on The Lady Douglas for the sunset river-
boat cruise and at 4:30 pm set sail up The Dickson Inlet. We were hoping to see saltwater
crocodiles and were rewarded with two.
The first was languishing on the mud bank and was fairly small at around
six feet. The second was in the water and much larger at around 13 feet in
length. He used to be the dominant
male but had recently been displaced by a larger male croc. Saltwater crocodiles are a protected
species and tend to be solitary and very territorial. We also saw a pair of white-bellied sea eagles, which were
truly magnificent who feed on the abundant carp in the inlet. We were also lucky to see rifle fish,
also known as archer fish, that lurk beneath the mangroves and spout jets of
water onto unsuspecting insects on the branches above, which then fall into the
water for their supper. At the end
of our trip we were treated to a beautiful sunset over the Queensland
Mountains. Back at the apartment
we enjoyed a scrumptious meal of Green Lipped Mussels and Banana Prawns that
were straight from the trawler that morning. It was a great end to a beautiful day. They say in Queensland “If it is a
beautiful day today, tomorrow will be perfect.” I like that saying.
Monday we drove to the Daintree Rainforest
another World Heritage site. The
weather was “perfect” and luckily so, as days like these only occur about
thirty times a year here. Although
not a long journey it took a long time due to the narrow, winding mountainous
roads and the ferry crossing of the Daintree River, which is very wide and full
of saltwater crocodiles. The trees
and the undergrowth were very dense and the beaches were breathtakingly
beautiful. Along the road we
encountered signs for Cassowaries crossing, but unfortunately we didn’t manage
to see any. They are very large,
pre-historic like birds as tall as a human and very colourful. They are also very dangerous if
cornered and can kill with one kick of a foot with its enormous razor-like
claw. Crocs sound almost tame. At least your gone in one gulp and not
split asunder. After our magical
drive, where we saw an emerald dove and other small birds, lovely butterflies
we arrived in Daintree Village.
The river cruises start at this point but as we had already done one on
the Dickson Inlet we opted not to go.
However, we were told that in the river upstream there was a dead pig
and two large crocs feeding on it.
With the ferocity of their jaws it would probably have been long gone
before we reached them. Back at
the resort we had a welcoming cuppa and a sublimic dip in the pool. Later we feasted on Moreton Bay Bugs
(like lobsters) with a Thermidor sauce, a fresh salad and a nice glass of
vino. As Fred would have said –
‘ansome!!!
Tuesday we drove just a short distance to
Mossman Gorge, Daintree National Park and still very much part of the World
Heritage Rainforest. We arrived at
the interpretive centre and rode the shuttle up to the gorge entrance. The first part of the trail is a
boardwalk so as not to disturb the fragile environment. As it is rainforest, the boardwalks are
uniquely constructed to be non-slip.
Just as well with people like me around. From the boardwalk we crossed over Rex Creek on the
suspension Bridge, a little bouncy!!!!
From here the forest trail wends its way through dense undergrowth on a
circuit of around 2 kilometres.
The forest is so deafeningly silent except for the birds’ way, way up in
the treetops and when the cicadas love song begins in earnest. The trees are soooo….. tall and some of
them have roots known as buttresses for stability. There are all kinds of roots some of which descend like
ropes. The butterflies are huge
and the fungi amazingly beautiful.
We were lucky to complete our hike without getting wet………….. well,
almost. Just as we arrived back at
the shuttle terminal the Rainforest treated us to its very best performance. No need for an encore. No bus shelter and in less than a few
minutes we were soaked to the skin, literally. We had to wait 15 minutes for the OPEN-sided shuttle and
when we arrived back to our condo we rang out all of our clothes including our
underwear. After drying off and
with better weather we went for a stroll in Port Douglas and bumped into some
people that were staying at our resort on Magnetic Island, while we there. We arranged to meet them the following
evening for dinner.
Wednesday, we left early to catch the
Quicksilver from Mirage Marina, Port Douglas. Once settled on board we began our journey to the Agincourt
3 Reef, which is in close proximity to the Continental Shelf on the Great
Barrier Reef. We left Port
Douglas in our wake and at great speed we traversed the Coral Sea to our
destination, arriving 90 minutes later.
We disembarked from the vessel onto the platform where you could scuba
dive, snorkel, board the semi-submersibles and also go to the underwater
viewing platform. Jim had a great
time snorkeling with enormous fish, turtles and colourful tropical fish. Note the stinger suit he was wearing. I elected to stay dry and took two trips
on the semi-sbmersibles. The coral
and the fish were absolutely amazing but unfortunately without special lenses
and the fact that the fish forget to pose, pictures were not the greatest. We had a superb lunch on-board the
vessel and wandered at will on board the platform when not doing
activities. The weather was superb
once again and the wind only increased slightly as we left Agincourt
behind. We arrived back to Port Douglas
around 4:30pm and headed back to the resort where I went straight to the pool
for a swim. Later that evening we
met Connie and Darren, our new friends who live at Lake Macquarie, NSW and had
a very pleasant time.
|
The Dickson Inlet |
|
Small Saltwater Crocodile basking in the sun |
|
White Bellied Sea Eagle |
|
Pair of White Bellied Sea Eagles |
|
Port Douglas looking from the Estuary out to sea |
|
Sunset from The Lady Douglas |
|
Cape Tribulation - Daintree Rainforest |
|
Cape Tribulation - Daintree Rainforest
|
Rainforest floor - Cape Tribulation |
|
|
Thornton Beach - Daintree Rainforest |
|
Small Island off the coast at The Daintree Rainforest |
|
Daintree River |
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Butterfly Mossman Gorge |
|
Fungi Mossman Gorge |
|
Rex Creek - Mossman Gorge |
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Rock pool - Mossman Gorge |
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Strangler root - Mossman Gorge |
|
Jim and Barbara - trying to avoid being strangled - Mossman Gorge |
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Rex Creek - Mossman Gorge |
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Rainforest - Mossman Gorge |
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Leaving Port Douglas for the Great Barrier Reef |
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Sand Island - Great Barrier Reef |
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Coral - Great Barrier Reef |
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Fan Coral - Great Barrier Reef |
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Fish - Great Barrier Reef |
|
Jim snorkelling - Great Barrier Reef |
|
What a Hunk!!!! |
|
Jim and Barbara on board Quicksilver |
|
Leaving Agincourt Platform - Great barrier Reef |
After a lovely dinner we said our farewells and went back to pack for an early start to drive to Cairns the next day, see you there…………………………..
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