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Cairns, Australia
Dec. 10th - Rainforest Habitat in Port Douglas
 When
it's too hot to walk at 6 AM, you know it's hot. I sat out on
the balcony reading for an hour before DW & AD got up. They
worked on schoolwork while I went off to the dentist. Dr.
Peter Martin BDS worked on my broken tooth. He didn't see any
problem with doing a rebuild job. What luck! No crown needed
now, makes my life much simpler. As long as I stay away from
hard foods, the repair should last at least through the trip.
I walked back to the hotel a happy man.
 Swimming
in the motel pool appears to be a main part of the Cairns
routine. The pool area is full of tall palms trees. It is a
saltwater pool with a waterfall. After the swim, we walked to
the city center. I worked on bookings while DW and AD headed
to the mall. I booked our Barrier Reef trip, a Daintree River
cruise, breakfast at Rainforest Habitat wildlife sanctuary,
and a Kuranda excursion. Thrifty had the best price on our 4
day car rental and they were just across the street.
An air conditioned car is a must in Cairns. The taxi was
expensive and limiting. Cairns is quite spread out. We shopped
at the mall before eating at the food court. Back to the motel
for swimming and schoolwork. We had expected to go to an
Aboriginal Life Park but found it closed earlier than I
thought. Souvenir shopping and dinner completed our day. Other
than more swimming.
Dec. 11th - Rainforest Habitat in Port Douglas
 On
the road before 7, so we could make the opening of Rainforest
Habitat in Port Douglas north of Cairns. We drove along the
Capt. Cook Hwy which follows the ocean coast. Breakfast with
the birds is at a wildlife sanctuary. They serve a buffet in
the middle of the bird section. Tropical birds are allowed to
walk and fly around you. The meal was delicious and the
company unusual. Parakeets land on the table as you eat.
 After
eating, we walked around the sanctuary. You are allowed to
feed kangaroos. There are koalas that can be petted. AD loved
holding a python. The sanctuary rescues injured animals and
educates the population about protecting native species.
 Continuing
our drive north, we stopped at Mossman Gorge for a refreshing
swim in the river and falls. We enjoyed the cool water and
floating in the swift moving water. The temperature today are
brutally hot. It was 35C according to the radio on the way
north. It was only going to get hotter as the day went on. The
flat land north of Cairns is all cultivated in sugar cane.
There are narrow gauge railroad cars spread out in the fields.
Harvest was completed a month ago. It surprises us that there
are still so many
 houses
without air conditioning. Older homes were all built raised up
on stilts with lots of windows to help capture breezes and out
of flood waters. There are poles along some roads marking
flood heights.
After lunch at a roadside café, we road the Daintree River
Train. It's a boat made up to look like a train. We traveled
with the Daintree River in search of crocodiles and the
tropical rainforests along the banks. The water is over 30C
and the water high. We only spotted one juvenile specimen. The
few kilometers of river, we cruised supported one male and up
to 12 females. Males can grow to 10 meters in length. The
river in this section is a mixture of fresh and salt water.
 More
swimming in Mossman Gorge sounded just right to break up the 2
hour drive back to Cairns. The swimming pools had lots of
people in them. It is on the tour bus circuit. We were quite
tired after another swim. DW drove us back along the coast. A
wild fire was burning in one section. We tried to explain to
AD about fires in Australia and the evolution of the trees and
plants.
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AD Journal |
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This morning we got to eat breakfast
with the birds at the Rainforest Habitat Wildlife
Sanctuary. While eating birds flew around us and landed
on you or the tables. Later they had a water python
display. The guide talked to us about pythons, and then
you could hold him. He wrapped his body around my arm.
 We
bought some kangaroo food to feed them. The kangaroos
and wallabies ate it right out of your hand. I had
my picture taken with a Koala. They were very soft and
cute. Koalas sleep up to 19 hours a day. The most fun
was holding the snake.
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Great Barrier Reef...»
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