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Published: October 2nd 2008
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Bears with sore heads
We arrived at our pre-booked hostel around 8pm after being picked up free of charge from the airport. Suffering with colds we were both ready for an early night and eager to see our room - remembering the cosy pictures we had seen on the internet. However our room looked more like a prison cell than a bedroom - yellow painted breeze block walls, a bed with mattress falling to pieces, a tired rusty fridge and drab curtains. It was worlds apart from the crisp blue bedrooms advertised on the website and we were just a little disappointed! Our colds were in full force by the morning and after a poor sleep we felt worse than ever. Needless to say, we were not feeling up to doing much for our first 3 days in Cairns.
Day trip to Cape Tribulation
By Thursday we were feeling a bit better and were eager to escape the hostel and do some sight-seeing so we went on a day trip to Cape Tribulation, about 31/2 hours north of Cairns. The weather had been bad since we arrived, raining for most of the day and it was no
My first snorkel
I didn't need the life ring, honest! better today. Fortunately we had a funny, middle-aged Auzzie tour guide called Joe who kept everyone smiling with his jokes.
Our first stop of the tour was at the Rainforest Habitat in Port Douglas, 11/2 hours north of Cairns. Here we had the chance to get up close and personal with several different species of kangaroos and wallabies, some emus and lots and lots of birds including the giant cassowary. Next it was an hour drive to Mossman Gorge where we could swim or go walking to various vantage points around it. Mike and I, plus the majority of the group opted to go walking - put off by the heavy down pour and the cold wind. We then drove for another hour to the Cape to enjoy a 5 star buffet lunch.
After lunch we had a guided walk through the Daintree Rainforest. This was amusingly led by Joe who was barefoot and in his swimming trunks, determined not to get his clothes wet. Well I think he had the last laugh when I soon realized my kag in a bag was not as effective as it once had been! A boat cruise along the Daintree River
to spot crocs followed our walk. Along the river we saw a freshie, a kingfisher and a tree snake, but were told most of the wildlife would be sheltering out of sight up on the river bank to keep out of the rain! I have to admit, we did not enjoy the cruise that much - not only for the lack of wildlife, but we regretted not applying mosquito repellent.
The Great Barrier Reef
On Saturday we enjoyed a full day on the reef. It was an early start as we had to board the boat by 7.30am. The sun had finally made an appearance which lifted our spirits as we travelled 90 minutes to reach the first dive site, Hastings Reef Fish Bowl. As introductory divers we had a full explanation of the principles of diving and the importance of equalizing pressure in our sinuses with each metre dived. We then had to get kitted out in all the equipment.
Once we had arrived at the first dive site, I felt incredibly nervous and started to panic. It took me several minutes to actually get into the water, lowering myself carefully in via a
hydraulic platform attached to the boat. When I finally got into the water I had to get straight back out again, giving in to self doubt.
Whilst Mike did his first dive with an instructor plus a Korean couple, I moped around on board until I was persuaded by one of the crew to try snorkelling. It was fantastic - so many colourful fish, giant clams and coral. I also saw a large grey Maori Wrasse who was the main predator on the reef and understandably curious of humans.
After regaining my confidence with snorkelling, I was given the opportunity to try diving again which I gladly took. This time it was just me and an instructor called Daryl who promised to 'hold my hand' throughout the entire dive. Even as a one on one, I still needed some encouragement to do it, but when I did I was so pleased and overwhelmed by the experience. Snorkelling had been good, but diving enabled me to get so much closer to the marine life - it was wonderful. I only actually went down to 5 metres, but I was still very proud of my myself as was Mike who
by this point had completed 2 dives (he had done it before though).
Following a cold buffet lunch we travelled about 40 minutes to a second dive site called Pretty Patches for obvious reasons. Mike and I both snorkelled here and I got to see a rare white tipped reef shark which was great. A good day was certainly had by all.
Sunny Sunday
The scuba diving had left us rather tired so a relaxing day was planned for our last day in Cairns. It was another hot, sunny day so we decided to walk to the Botanic Gardens. We had attempted to walk there on Wednesday, but the heavy rain had made us turn around. The gardens were very luscious and included a rainforest walk, section on plants used by aborigines and a freshwater and saltwater lake.
In the afternoon we cooled off in the man-made saltwater lagoon in the centre of Cairns. It did not match up to a beach, but it was ideal for swimming and a good way to relax.
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