17.01.10 Coastal Drive up to Cape Tribulation

Mossman Gorge on the way up to Cape Tribulation
A lot of the land up here has been given back to the indigenous Aboriginal population because of it's sacred importance. It's much less populated up here and once you get past Cape Trib there's only a 4WD track which takes you up to Cooktown. The drive is pretty as it hugs the coastline and goes through ancient tropical rainforest.

view over the top of the rainforest canopy

We take a rainforest canopy walk to learn a bit more about the environment and find out lots of things including the way fig trees grow. They are parasitic vines which attach themselves to mature trees growing round them and eventually taking them over, suffocating the original tree inside until it rots and becomes hollow. The Ideasternum (Idiot Fruit) is the oldest of flowering rainforest plants dating back 135 million years and still grows in this rainforest in Daintree National Park. We chance our luck at spotting a crocodile on the Daintree River on an eco-cruise and we do manage to catch a glimpse of a baby one sitting on the bank.

can you spot the baby croc?

Unfortunately we've come at the wrong time of year to see crocs because the water temperature is at a warm 28 - 29 degrees and the crocs don't need to come up to the surface to regulate their body temperature with the sun. When the water's colder, about 20 degrees, they come out on to land to soak up some of the sun to sync their temperature with that of the water. Our guide explains the species of mangrove plant which dwell on the edges of the river. They're termed mangrove if they are able to root down into saltwater (we're in the river's estuary, to explain the presence of saltwater) and twenty of the thirty international wide species of mangrove plant can be found in Daintree National park. One of the ingenious ways of plant reproduction in mangroves is the use of long pods which dangle from the plant's branches, then drop into the water managing to root themselves into the river bed and soon enough new green shoots start appearing on the surface of the water.

Cape Tribulation beach- it was a cloudy day!

view from Alexandra lookout over the north Queensland coastline

On the way back to Cairns, we spot kangaroos enjoying long green grass pastures next to the highway. It's a bit cooler at this time in the evening and the ginger roos are sitting and sometimes hopping through the grass. Yes! We've seen one!

Aussie Dictionary

G'day - hi!
Fair'd income - I know what you're saying
Tucker - food
Esky - transportable travel fridge which plugs into your yute for cool drinks and picnics. (Mike had one we were very impressed with!)
Mate - friend or complete stranger. The Australians tend to be a very friendly bunch and call everyone their mate.
Yute - pick up, a must for every self-respecting outback fella or farmer.