Port Douglas and more

From Brisbane, we took a short flight north to Cairns for the next leg of our trip. We rented a car and drove just over an hour further north from Cairns to Port Douglas, returning 11 years later after our first visit. This time we were spending a week here which gave us a lot of time and with a car we were able to include exploring more of the surrounding area as well. Our home for the week was the Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort Port Douglas. This resort was incredible, a mix of lush tropical gardens with white-sand beaches at two of the ten saltwater lagoon pools situated around the property. The resort is beachfront with direct access to Four Mile Beach. Unfortunately it was stinger season while we were there in March and so swimming in the ocean was not recommended unless in a netted area which was about a 15 minute beach walk from the resort. These stingers , box jellyfish, are massive and we saw so many of them washed up on the beach when. It was interesting to see actually how big they are and to learn that their tentacles could grow up to 3 metres in length. It's quite possible you wouldn't even see the jelly but could still get stung, which would be bad. The box jellyfish is regarded as the world's most venomous animal because it can kill an adult human in under 3 minutes. Stinger season runs November to June and it really sad that we were there in season because the coastline is so gorgeous and was just calling our names to go swimming in the water. We did walk the 15 minutes to the netted area and spent some time in the water there before I heard someone say they saw a stinger in the enclosed area, prompting me to call it a day at the beach. 

We had a very spacious ground level room with direct access to one of the lagoon pools from our patio. The resort wasn't overly busy while we were there and provided a great place to just relax and unwind. It was also a good central spot to head into town when we wanted. The gym is open 24 hours and had only opened a couple weeks before we arrived so all the state of the art equipment was brand new. We made a point of ensuring that we worked out at least once at each hotel on this trip in addition to all the walking we did. There are seven restaurants on site and we managed to dine at most. The resort is really set up so that you don't really need to leave if you didn't want to. It's also Australia's first Eco-Certified destination and one of the things we really liked about that was that the resort gives you glass refillable bottles at the water stations where you could choose sill or sparkling water. I like seeing more and more hotels go this route over providing plastic water bottles. 

The resort's location made day trips super easy. One such day trip was 20 minutes north to Mossman Gorge. The gorge has plenty of trails for hiking/walking. It's such a peaceful and beautiful place and as part of the Daintree Rainforest, Mossman Gorge contains the oldest, continuously surviving rainforest on the planet. It's just one hectare of the 120,000 hectare forest and contains over 30,000 species of plants and animals. The Daintree Rainforest has survived for over 135 millions years and it was pretty special to step into it and immerse ourselves in the forest during our hike knowing that we were hiking amongst something that old. Despite it being the beginning of fall in Australia, Port Douglas and north are much closer to the equator and the weather was still quite hot and very humid. Jumping into the gorge after our hike was extremely refreshing. We were there at a good time for this where the gorge wasn't running fast or even high. 

On another day trip adventure we ventured even further north and had to even take a short 10 minute cable ferry to get deep into the Daintree Rainforest. The rainforest was listed as a World Heritage site in 1988 and is one of the most complex rainforest ecosystems on earth. We spent a good amount of time taking a self guided audio walking tour through the Daintree Discovery Centre which gave us a really immersive experience exploring the different rainforest layers on the aerial walkway which provided spectacular views of the mid-level rainforest. The walkway led to the canopy tower which as 23 metres high provides amazing view of the forest floor to the upper reaches of the forest canopy. The walkway also brings you down to the forest floor where you get a completely different experience and view and you stare up at the enormous trees reaching into the sky. The audio part of the tour gave us a lot of information about the various different flora and fauna that call the rainforest home. The species diversity is mind blowing, with over 920 different types of trees, 130 different species of reptiles, more types of snakes than I care to know exist, birds, frogs, and invertebrates - we actually saw a mantids. We were on the look out for cassowaries but did not encounter one here; it was mid day so probably a bit too hot to be out and about. It was an amazing time exploring not only the discovery centre but also driving through the rainforest and checking out some of the other hikes in the area and finding an empty pristine beach that once again we could not swim at. It was on this day trip where we tried crocodile in a burger form. The meat was a lot more tender than I had thought it would be, and it didn't taste that bad but it didn't seem to work as a burger. Perhaps it was the seasoning, or perhaps it was just the meat but both of us only had a few bites before we gave up on it. Thankfully we had also ordered a beef burger. And to cap off the day, we treated ourselves to some amazing ice cream at the Daintree Ice Cream Co. This was a pretty popular spot and we thankfully arrived just before a big tour bus pulled in. 

When it Port Douglas, you have to book either a snorkelling or diving tour to the Great Barrier Reef. We found a tour through Calypso that did both so Z decided to dive two of the spots while I snorkelled and then joined me snorkelling at the last spot. The conditions were steller on our tour day, the water was calm, the boat was a catamaran making it a smooth ride out, the crew was amazing, and the sun was shining. It took about an hour and a half to get to the Opal Reef which is situated about 50 kilometres off the coast in the Coral Sea. The conditions couldn't have been better, at least for the first two stops. The water was crystal clear with amazing visibility. The reef was so alive with a diverse and abundant marine life. It was amazing to see and swim with so many variety of colourful fish and around vibrant coral gardens. I was so happy to see the coral appear in such great health too as we've heard stories over the years about how the Great Barrier Reef coral is dying. Some on the tour saw a turtle, but I was a bit far away and by the time I got there it had moved on. I did see a jelly and stayed well clear of it even though we had full head to toe stinger suits on. At one point I also got to see Z diving below me which was pretty cool as I've never seen him diving in open water before. At our second stop along with seeing an amazing amount of colourful fish again, I got to see a reef shark as well swimming towards me. I didn't panic which is a major feet for me and thankfully it decide to veer off before it got too close. I had already decided that I'd be the one veering if it didn't first. The third stop off lunch the water had become a bit more choppy as a rain cloud passed over and it made it a bit less interesting for me to spend too much time in the water even though this time Z was with me, and I cut it a bit short as I was feeling tired from the first two stops and not overly interested in dealing with the small swells. 

We made our way inland and explored the Atherton Tableland area which is a mix of rainforest, wetlands, and agricultural lands. We found out way to Granite Gorge Nature Park where we hiked on the granite rock formations, exploring the lovely scenic views from high above, and got to interact and feed the uninhibited rock wallabies who are somewhat shy at first but enticed by food. Once comfortable that you aren't a threat, they would come right up to you and eat right out of your hand. We found a local ice cream cafe called Emerald Creek Ice Creamery where we first had a light lunch before indulging in some of the best ice cream ever!! This family run ice creamery is certainly worth a visit!! We also found our way to Barron Falls after a short walk from the parking lot along a well built and maintained walkway through the forest. The falls are comprised of four drops, 260 metres cascading over a granite rock face into pools below before making their way further down the gorge. This was a stunning sight to see with the beautiful rainforest around it making it one of the most beautiful waterfalls I've seen. From here we drove back towards the coast to Cairns to check out the city a bit before making our way back to Port Douglas. Had we planned a bit better we would have gone another day when some of the farmer's markets were open, but man, what a lovely way to spend a day exploring the area. The scenery was absolutely incredible all around. 

We rounded out our week in Port Douglas and area with a visit to Hartley' Crocodile Adventures, a 10-hectare wildlife sanctuary and ecotourism park. In addition to crocodile feeding show, you can walk on the many trails throughout the park and discovery much more wildlife than just the crocs. We saw koalas, kangaroos, finally found a couple cassowaries, and more wallabies. During the lagoon boat ride you learn about the natural habitat in which the rescued crocodiles live along with getting to see their hunting skills as the guide lures the crocs with chicken on a pole for feeding. The park is also  a crocodile farm where it breeds and raises crocs for their meat and skin. The farm raises Estuarine crocodiles whose skin is particularly popular in fashion for its high quality grade skin. We toured this part of the park and learned why farm raising crocs leads to sustainability and conservation of wild crocs and their habitats. It's illegal to kill a wild croc in Australia. 

After a week of relaxing lagoon side at our resort and exploring the surrounding area, discovering so many cool new sights, trying new foods, and having the best day out at Opal Reef snorkelling and diving, it was time to head back to Cairns Airport and hop on a 2.5 hour flight south to Sydney for the last few days of this incredible trip.