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We finished packing up and Lauren, Andrew and John headed to breakfast, leaving Sonia one final attempt to get a great photo of the cockatoos. Before coming to join us at breakfast, Sonia was informed that the weather was too rough for the seaplane to fly and we would need to get back to Hamilton Island by boat. While not a big disappointment, the boat was leaving sooner than we had planned for, so it set us into a bit of a scramble to finish breakfast and snatch a few pastries for Sonia. The boat ride was luxurious but quite bumpy due to the stormy weather and we were quite happy when the one-hour trip to the airport was over. We arrived at the airport with just enough time not to be rushed. We arrived in ... read more

We slept in and lounged about the room for a bit in the morning, making it to breakfast just as they were about to finish service. Sonia and John returned to the marina after breakfast to watch the daily feeding of the giant grouper. The skies were again a beautiful blue, but it was much windier than the previous day and our plans for waterskiing had to be cancelled due to the wind. As an alternative, we were offered an opportunity to go jet-skiing which we accepted, although Andrew was quite disappointed that he was not old enough (16 yrs) to be allowed to drive. The tentative plan was that John and Lauren would drive two jet-skis and Sonia and Andrew would ride on back, but Sonia ultimately decided to stay on land and shoot photographs ... read more

No one was happy at the 5:45 wake-up call, but there is only one daily non-stop to the Whitsunday islands and we didn’t want to miss the plane. Heavy rain started to fall in Cairns just as we were ready to board the turbo-prop, and we struggled to avoid getting soaked as we crossed the tarmac. We arrived at Hamilton Island just after 9am and then boarded a small seaplane for our short trip to Hayman Island. Views (and photos) were fantastic from our cruising altitude of 1000 feet and the skies were pleasantly sunny after our rainy morning in Cairns. The plane did in fact land on the water and then taxi onto shore on Hayman. Andrew noted that the sea-plane can travel on land, sea and air! We were pleased that our rooms were ... read more

We had a relaxing morning, with breakfast overlooking the river followed by packing up at a leisurely pace. John took another quick swim in the river, but asked Sonia to come along and spot for crocs. After checking out of our cabin, we decided to hang out for a bit in the beautifully appointed library (and use their WiFi) before hitting the road. The drive to the Jabiru Lodge in the Mareeba reserve was about an hour and a half, starting with a steep winding climb into the mountains. The terrain changed from rainforest to grassland, dotted with thousands of termite mounds, some as large as boulders. Unlike in the rainforest, wallabies and kangaroos are common in the grasslands. At the lodge we checked in and moved into our two eco-tents. The tents were rustic but ... read more

We enjoyed sleeping in a bit before checking out of the lovely Sea Temple Resort for a drive up to Cape Tribulation. After getting breakfast and some snacks in downtown Port Douglas, we embarked on the trip north. The two-hour drive was quite scenic and included a ferry crossing at the Daintree River followed by signs warning us that we were in “Cassowary Country”. We stopped for lunch at the Turtle Rock Café in the town of Cape Tribulation where we later met Mike, our guide for the day. Our pre-arranged tour took us up the “Bloomfield Track” which was passable in Mike’s four-wheel drive Land Cruiser. Mike was a very knowledgeable and personable guide with a genuine passion for the area. He explained to us the origin of the name “Cape Tribulation” (the starting point ... read more