Laura and Greg's World Adventure

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.

16.01.10 Quicksilver Cruise to Flynn Reef

After our disappointment at not getting to snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef because of the stinging jellyfish two days ago we decide to give it another go and book to go out on another cruise to reef sites further out, hoping that there won't be any jellyfish there. The larger cruiser makes easy work of the offshore waves and we power through the water, covering 36km to get to our first of three dive sites of the day on the outer reef. When we ask about whether there's been any occurences of jellyfish on the sites we're told there have been and not just the blue bottles. Kurandji jellyfish have been spotted also and they pack a sting that'll put you in hospital for two days. We're quite worried from this news but we're all given stinger suits to wear in the water which prevent jellyfish from being able to sting you through the stretchy lycra. The suits have got mittens, hoods and come right down under the feet so we're pretty safe. And, much to our relief, today there doesn't seem to be that many jellies on site so our snorkelling experience is 100 times better than it was a couple of days ago. The reef is more pristine out here also and the coral is very impressive. We're able to float above the shallow waters of the reef with fabulous viewing of the sun-illuminated coral formations housing and providing food for thousands of little fishes. Butterfly fish with different stripey patterns of yellow and black swim around in pairs, occasionally turning on their sides to show us their colours. Rainbow parrot fish use their sharp little beaks to bite off the coral and it's possible to hear the cracking sound they make. Many other types of parrot fish can be identified by the way they use their side 'wings' to 'fly' through the water. We both like the little black tiger fish which sit motionless on the coral's edge, their bulging eyes making them distinctly different from the other fish.

underwater pics- the red unfortunately doesn't come out underwater

The coral itself is not as bright in colour as that swim around it, apart from the fuschia pink flower-shaped coral, but it's strange and wonderful formations are very impressive. There's fluorescent blue and white finger coral which looks a bit like deer antlers, big balls of smooth coral, undulating wave-shaped coral with frills on the edge and formations that snake up and down to make up a tight nit pattern on the reef. Polyps, which are micro-organisms that attach themselves to the coral make it look hairy as they all dance in the underwater currents. Some of this coral is extremely slow-growing and just by looking at the sheer size of some of the individual organisms you can tell that they're hundreds if not thousands of years old. We're excited when we spot two clown fish swimming in and out of a pink anemone. They are part of a symbiotic relationship with the underwater plant, giving each other protection. The anemone has a stinging power as a defence system but offers a certain immunity to the clown fish who in turn live in the anemone and will protect their home from predators. It's actually wrong in Finding Nemo though, when all Nemo's brothers and sisters are eaten by the barracuda and only his dad and himself survive. His dad would in fact turn into a female fish and begin sexual relations with him to produce more of their species. Wouldn't really work for a kids film though would it? Maori wrasse are large, fat-lipped fish displaying intricate blue green patterns on their purple skins which are reminiscent of traditional Maori tattooes, hence the name. As in much of the animal world, it's the male fish in the ocean that are the pretty ones, displaying the most colour and pattern. Three snorkelling sessions later and we're psyched by our experience on the reef. It's been a great day and such a serene yet stimulating visual experience.

more images from botanic gardens

Cairns Botanical Gardens

No greenhouses needed here- it's so hot all these tropical plants are thriving.

saltwater lagoon

14.01.10 Reef Daytripper Cruise to Upolu Reef

We start out early to catch our boat out to the Great Barrier Reef. It's warm at this time of the morning but it won't be long til the heat of the day sets in and out on the waves especially you can feel the full force of it.

the reef's the turquoise bit in the distance

It's nice to be on a smaller boat than the huge motor cruisers, which carry up to 300 people, because there's only fifteen of us on board and it's a much more intimate sailing experience. However with a catamaran of this size, it's easier to feel the waves as they pull us up, down and side to side, so we soon begin to regret having forgotten to pick up the travel sickness pills off the side when we left this morning! I just keep my eyes fixed on the static horizon and try not to move my head around too much! It's always the same. Going sailing looks so appealing from dry land but, as I get older, motion sickness seems to take it's hold easier. It's really unfortunate that blue bottle jellyfish have infested the water around the Upolu reef because it means that when we all get in the water to go snorkelling we all get stung and it's not a very nice experience.

blue bottle jelly at the top of the picture

It's like a nettle sting and the pain lasts for around ten minutes before it subsides leaving a small welt. There are so many of them in the water, (they're dark blue and clear 'bubbles' about the size of your little finger with a stinger tail that can be up to two metres long) that it's impossible to avoid swimming past them. It's a very uncomfortable experience and it's not long before everyone is upset by the stings and making their way back to the boat. We do see a few tropical fish but don't make it all the way out to the reef bed. It's a real shame and it's a very unusual event to see so many of them at this time of year. Normally they congregate closer to shore but our captain advises us that due to the unusually warm waters the blue bottle numbers are rising. He's obviously disappointed for us and encourages us to try an introductory dive because going further down would eliminate being stung by the jellies on the surface. We're both very keen to see if we would enjoy the experience but unfortunately due to Greg's asthma, the State of Queensland diving regulations prevent him from trying it even though his condition is very mild. It's an over precautionary regulation and Iris the dive co-ordinator advises us that once he receives a clean bill from a dive doctor he'll be all set to give it a go. I still opt in and get geared up with an oxygen tank strapped to my back, mouthpiece and flippers. Iris gives us a few pointers on how to clear our mask if it fills with water and how to remove our mouthpiece underwater should we need to. Aside from this brief introduction we're simply guided off the back of the boat and beckoned to begin our descent by using a rope dangling from the boat.

me in my diving gear, jumping into the water

Extra weights round our waists help us to sink and Iris fiddles with our equipment to release the pressure. Once we hit the sandy bottom, around ten metres, we begin our underwater tour of the reef. It's very impressive to view the large numbers of colourful fish and coral up close and personal. I have to train myself to get used to breathing in and out, releasing all the bubbles to the surface, and not to panic. It's a very calm and slow paced environment under the violent waves above. Little shoals of yellow fish flurry around the anemones and larger rainbow coloured fish hide under the bigger coral formations. We see stripey flounders and are very excited when we come across little Nemos (clown fish) swimming in and out of the anemones. Iris picks up a black sea cucumber off the sandy floor and passes it round. It's just as I expected it to feel, like a moving water balloon! We spend a good forty minutes round the reef before we ascend and swim back to the boat. This time I'm only stung once as I make my way back.

Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef

North Queensland Coast
12.01.10 - 19.01.10

When we arrive in Cairns one of the first things we experience is a heavy tropical rainstorm. The town has large open gutters along every roadside to cope with sudden increases in water level. The rain doesn't last for long and hasn't rained again since, although we are here in the region's wet season so it can't be ruled out to not happen again. This is in fact also the low season for tourist activity because of the high levels of humidity and the presence of deadly box jellyfish off the beaches making swimming or going anywhere near the edge of the water a big no no.

There's also the threat of freshwater and saltwater crocodiles who like to build territories along the coast and in the muddy mangroves so that's another reason to steer clear of any water! Fortunately the city of Cairns town council has realised the public's love of swimming in hot weather and built a large saltwater lagoon just off the esplanade with views out to the ocean and round the bay. The town itself has a very tropical feel with an abundance of palm trees and exotic plants lining every street and garden.

It sprawls out from the centre, where the Reef Fleet terminal dominates the front, in long boulevards, with tons of holiday apartments, car rental shops and restaurants on either side. It's unashamedly Queensland's most popular holiday town and some would admit it's become a bit over-commercialised. The main reason tourists flock to Cairns is it's location for touring the Great Barrier Reef and this is exactly why we're here too. We book ourselves on to a snorkelling cruise in a flash sailboat catamaran and look forward to getting underwater to see the exceptional coral and tropical fish.