Spring Break in Cairns, Atherton Tablelands, and Port Dougls

Stick and I asked our Residential Coordinator to take us to the airport, and Meg being a nice RC she said ok even with the early time of 6:00 AM leaving our unit. The flight to Cairns, which is located in northern Queensland, took about 3 hours. Although excited to arrive I managed to sleep about 2 hours of the plane ride. As I normally do I wore jeans on the plane because I normally get pretty cold on airplanes, upon arrival in Cairns I began to sweat and the jeans were quickly replaced by shorts. We waited for our van to pick us up from the airport. The van was provided by the first hostel we stayed in called Travelers Oasis. You couldn’t miss this van when it passed you on the road, it had “Travelers Oasis” written on the sides and decorated with flowers and all types of tropical plants. When we checked in we got some meal vouchers which we later found were pretty crappy and useless and were led to our room. The room was for 5 people all that were in our group, some were arriving later in the day. We set our stuff down and got changed ready to go to the Lagoon. The Lagoon is a local pool; they use a pool instead of the beaches in Cairns because the beaches are extremely muddy and have little to no sand on them. Cairns in itself is not a beach town, but was developed mainly as a shipping center. We laid out in the grass near the Lagoon and quickly realized that we would be needing to buy some suntan lotion. We headed back to the hostel and on the way stopped in the mall to do some quick shopping for the essentials, consisting of peanut butter and bread along with some suntan lotion that only comes in SPF 30 (little extreme but it’s needed) .

Though Travelers Oasis we booked a trip to the Atherton Tablelands with a group called “On the Wallaby.” For a start to our spring break we went to the bottle store and got a beer for the evening, right after buying the beer I walked out the store and the handles on the bag ripped. I probably looked like a complete drink but the guy at the counter told me to go and get a new bottle. With the new bottle web decided to head towards the Lagoon where we would sit under a pavilion, drink a beer, and relax. When we found an empty shelter we twisted our tops and the rain began to fall again. Some people were sitting in the grass and quickly joined our group. They were all German, and we quickly became friends. They would talk to each other in German then one would try telling us what was said. Most of the time they could not understand us if we talked quickly or used colloquial English so they would also look at us with the look of “WHAT?” We became pretty close with two of the girls named Meike and Carolin. They had graduated high school and wanted to travel around Australia before starting to study. They bought a car earlier in the day and Mike and I began to think of a way that they could take us to Port Douglas. We exchanged numbers and we told them that we would give them a call upon arriving back from the trip to the Atherton Tablelands to go out for a night.

On the Wallaby picked us up from the hostel at 8 the next morning and traveled from hostel to hostel picking up guests. The small bus pulled a trailer where we placed our bags. As we left Cairns we passed many field of sugar cane, which is a main crop for the area. Plumes of smoke rose from the areas where they were harvesting had started. Due to the high amounts of sunlight and rain the growing season is basically all year so they are constantly harvesting sugar cane. Leaving the fields we headed into the mountains where we would take a road that had something like over 200 curves, bends, or turns before we would reach the Tablelands. As we wound up the side of the hill we traveled into a rainforest environment, we also stopped at Heales Lookout which looked over many of the sugar cane fields we had passed and part of the hill we had traveled up. On our way to our hostel located in a small town called Yungaburra we stopped at a few waterfalls and parks. We first stopped to see a tree, but this is not a regular tree this is a fig tree, and not only a regular fig tree but a very special on; special in the sense that the tree grew it roots about 20 meters off of the forest floor. This happened because a bird pooped in the top of a host tree, the fig seed sprouted, and began to grow roots toward the ground. As it connected to the ground it eventually grew more and more roots eventually strangling the host tree and a few other trees surrounding the host tree. Our next stop we made was at a waterfall called Millaa Millaa Falls. We were able to swim into the falls and sit in behind them. During the wet season this swim would be very difficult and probably a little dangerous, but we were in Cairns during their dry season. As we traveled through the rainforest we arrived at Lake Barrine, this lake was created by a volcano. As the magma under rose close to the surface it was cooled by water and then sank back down, over many years this continued to form a crater which filled with water. This happened to another lake near by called Lake Eacham; they are often called sister lakes. Surrounding these lakes are rainforests were we took a short hike thought the rainforest around Lake Barrine. As we walked through the forest, our guide Bart told us of animals to watch out for, but stressed that the animals should be the least of our worries when there are plants that are much worse. One of the plants he showed us would act very similar to fiberglass, except it takes months to leave the pores of your body. We then traveled to see an area where volcanic gases blew a deep hole in the mountain. We stood on a platform that was about 58 meters above the water that was covered with algae. The hole is much deeper than 58 meters the water in the shaft continues to at least another 60 meters and after that they were unable to measure the depth of the water. Located close to the shaft is another small water fall of the name Dinner Falls. This water was a little cooler than the previous waterfall, but Mike and I decided to go for a swim anyways and jump off the falls. To get up the falls we had to climb up some rocks that were slimmy and slippery with algae. We only had a small area that was deep enough for us to jump into or other wise we would have landed on rocks, needless to say we did not hit the rocks and survived the jump. From Dinner Falls we headed to a park that was around Lake Eacham for our picnic lunch. There we encountered a Bush Turkey. To describe a Bush Turkey think if a chicken that acts like a duck or a goose at a park, they always want what you’re eating. The Bush Turkey did not get any of our lunches but sat there waiting for someone to forget about their sandwich. From lunch we walked about Lake Eacham, saw some turtles, and some people went for a brief swim in the lake. Also while we walked part of the lake we saw some kids jumping out of the trees and into the water which gave us an idea for the next day. After visiting this lake we were all pretty tired so we headed for our hostel at On the Wallaby. Before dinner we had one last small event and that was to go platypus spotting. We went to a small creek and viewed a platypus in it environment doing what is does best, swim. On the Wallaby fed us a barbeque dinner and offered a night canoe trip. I went on the night canoe trip in hopes of seeing some interesting wildlife because most of Australia’s wildlife is nocturnal. During the trip it rained, and rained, and was cold. We did however see some tree possums and also a tree kangaroo. After some hours out on the lake we headed back to the hostel and curled up for a nights rest.

Our next adventure at On the Wallaby was a mountain bike ride. On our way to biking we stopped at another fig tree called Curtain Fig Tree. The concept of its growth is much the same except this one took host trees in a wide pattern. Our bike ride looped through the rainforest and through some farmlands on the Tablelands. We didn’t bring any rain gear so obviously it rained, BUT being clever and useful individuals we found some trash bags and made some stylish ponchos out of them. It kept us fairly dry as we rode the bikes throughout the day. On this ride we stopped occasionally to take a break and enjoy the rainforest. At one of the places we stopped we hid the bikes in the woods and continued to walk back along the trail to a small water fall. This water fall was located pretty close to Lake Eacham and little did we know had leeches in the water. As we left the area we got the leeches off our legs that we could see. Once we arrived at Lake Eacham we examined our feet and legs for leeches, and then went jumping out of trees into the lake. These were the same trees we saw people jumping out of the previous day. After buying lunch at a local stop we went for a canoe trip in the manmade Lake Tinaroo. We took the same trip as we did the night before and saw similar animals except small bandicoots and the brown possums. Again it decided to rain which left us cold yet again. All day we were trying to dry clothes at the hostel but it continually rained on and off so our stuff was never thoroughly dry. In the evening we headed back into Cairns and stayed at Cairns International Backpackers Hostel. The reason we picked this place was because it was pretty close to the harbor where we would launch from the next day for the reef. In the evening we met up with a friend from the On the Wallaby and ran into Mieke and Carolin at a pub. The group of us went sat around and talked for awhile and then we left for our hostel to prepare for our day on the sea.

We woke up fairly early to buy some breakfast and an underwater camera so capture some stuff at the reef. We were unable to eat all of our breakfast so we gave it to the crew members as we boarded the boat. Because our one friend knew someone who worked on the boat we got a pretty hefty discount on the entire trip and were basically treated as royalties on the trip. As the boat left dock the captain told us that the wind and rain was going to make the trip out to the reef a little rougher than usual. I didn’t have a problem with the rough seas until people on the boat started getting sick. At that point I quickly headed outside where others were gathering to avoid the people getting sick inside. Crew members were in and out of the doors placing bags in the trash can, which was conveniently located beside me. A few times this can slid pretty close to me as we rocked and rolled to the rough seas. Upon arriving at the pontoon the sea was much calmer because the reef broke the waves. The part of the Great Barrier Reef we were at was called Moore Reef. When we first arrived we were given instructions on our SCUBA diving that was to be held later in the day. As soon as our talk was over Mike and I quickly headed to get some snorkel gear on and head into the water. It was quite interesting watching Asians swim with the snorkel gear on. To give an example of what they looked like picture a new born gazelle trying to walk now imagine that this gazelle is in water, ya they didn’t move very gracefully or quickly. While snorkeling we had a brief encounter with Emily. Emily was a sea turtle that lived around the Moore Reef and stayed close to the photographer because he gave her food. Also around the camera man was a pretty big fish named Wally. We would see both of them later in the day when we went SCUBA diving. As Mike and I swam in the water we saw many types of coral and very colorful fish. The pictures we took with the underwater camera during the SCUBA dive do not do the area justice; they do not display the vibrant colors of the fish and the multicolored types of coral. After snorkeling we went on a semisubmersible boat that allowed us to view the reef while staying dry in the hull of the boat. After our short boat ride we ate some lunch. Most of the food provided for lunch was Asian cuisine because the majority of the boat was Asian except for our group and the boats crew. Shorty after lunch we had our schedule SCUBA diving. There were mixed emotions about SCUBA diving, I was excited but worried that my ears would not pop, Mike was just scared to be underwater and unable to breath, Mark was a relaxed worried, and Molly was a combination or Mike and Me being afraid her ears would not pop and afraid that she would not be able to breathe underwater with the gear. Our instructor walked us through a short tutorial and down we went. As we descended we were to equalize the pressure in our ears to the water by plugging our nose and blowing out. From this point we latched our arms together and started kicking for a bar that was underwater about 25 meters away. The entire time on our way I felt like I was pulling everyone down with me and the coral got closer and closer to my face. The instructor pumped a little more air into my vest and I began to become more buoyant. When we reached the bar underwater we were instructed to kneel down and hold onto it. At this point the photographer took our pictures with Emily and Wally and some other sea creatures. At this point our instructor asked us to swim around in a circle unattached to him to test our abilities. After we were able to perform this task we followed him around the reef where he pointed out large clams, clown fish, different types of coral, and allowed us to experience SCUBA diving. Before our air ran out we headed back to the staging platform where we ascended and finished off our SCUBA diving. Arriving back above water everyone was very excited they chose to do it and everyone agreed that they would do it again if they had the opportunity. The crew was beginning to clean up to prepare to head back to Cairns when we arrived back on the pontoon and we had yet to get the gear off our back and wet suits off. The most difficult part of SCUBA diving is getting the gear on and off. Wet suits are meant to fit snug so that they keep your body warmth inside the suit, this also means they are extremely hard to get off. After fighting with the suit we finally got them off and headed for the boat for our trip home. They offered pictures of the day but they were a little pricy so I found my favorite picture of the day with the turtle and purchased it. If you want to look at pictures of the day go to www.daypix.com and select September 26^th and the trip called SunLovers Reef Tour. Due to an action packed, day many of us decided to take a nap on the way back to the port. When we arrived back on land we had to quickly go to a hostel to find a place to stay for the night. We decided on a place called Shenanigans where the lady at the front desk was extremely nice to us and gave us motel accommodations at the hostel price. We again met up with Meike and Carolin and they had invited us to go to Port Douglas with them the next morning. Mike and I were waiting for the invitation and immediately said yes.

Port Douglas is a small town located north of Cairns, and the main reason we wanted to head to Port Douglas was because there were sandy beaches on the way there. Meike and Carolin picked us up outside of our hostel and we drove to a beach. At the beach we did beach things, like swim, lay out, try to surf, and go for a walk. The surfing was pretty lousy since none of us knew how to and the board they had was a short board. They had a long board in their car when we first got in, but it was obstructing their view, so they had to get rid of it. If we had the long board we may have been more successful at surfing but I am not making any promises. After our attempt to surf Meike and I went on a walk to the right of where we had our stuff because it jutted out into the ocean and it looked like a nice place to walk to. Well on our walk the beach turned into a nude beach and it was mainly guys. Meike and I both felt a little uncomfortable walking along this beach but we were almost to the rocky part so we continued on. In the rocky part we were surprised by people laying out half asleep behind rocks. You only saw the person as you stepped over top of a rock and looked to where you were stepping and sure enough we saw some surprises. When we got to the point we first wanted to get to we didn’t really have the guts to climb the whole way up the rocks in fear of what would be awaiting us at the top so we turned around and headed back to where Mike and Carolin were laying out. When we got back we went for a quick swim then got into the car to continue to Port Douglas. About 5 minutes into the ride Mike looks at me and asks where his bag is… he worries about it for a little and remembers he put it on top of the car. Well light weight bags do not stay on a moving car well so we had to turn around and find it. His bag landed in the middle of the road but luckily all of the passing cars missed his bag with the camera inside it. After he found his camera we were off to Port Douglas no turning around this time. We pulled off the side of the road at a lookout where people were attempting to launch their hang glider. When the wind was right they were off floating above the water and continued to climb higher and higher. We were strictly spectators and did not want to hang glide so we continued on our way to Port Douglas. When we arrived there we walked around the town and Meike told us that it was named “The Loveliest Town in Australia.” It was a quaint town with small shops lining the main street with small diners scattered amongst the shops. At Port Douglas we went to the beach and walked up a small hill that over looked much of the beach of Port Douglas. The sun was beginning to get low in the sky so we decided to grab some lunch and possibly look for a place to sleep for the night. The original plan was to sleep under the stars but this plan was quickly foiled as it began to rain. The second part that nixed our plan was when we searching for a spot near the beach a bunch of crabs scattered as we put a flashlight on the beach. So back to Cairns it was to try a hostel at 10:30 at night. We found a hostel that was still open and found a place to stay for the night. Meike and Carolin got their own room and Mike and I split in different rooms. The following days we continued to joke about the day how it started out good and continually got worse and worse, but Meike and Carolin were good sports about it and didn’t get upset with Mike and me.

The next day Mike left and a true relaxing vacation began. We laid by the lagoon, went out at night, and slept in until about 8. In Cairns we did a little shopping getting gifts and souvenirs and ended up staying in the same hostel for the last few nights. The hostels overall were not the greatest experience of the entire trip. Our least favorites were International Backpackers followed shortly by Jimmy’s Hostel, both places were a little shady and not the most homey. Jimmy’s was the most outgoing with a little place where people hung out at night to talk and share their views on the world. In Jimmy’s my one roommate came in as the other was waking up this was at 6AM. Chuck came in at 6 turned on the lights and wanted to have a conversation with us while he was drunk. He had no idea I was on the top bunk until about 3 minutes after turning the lights on. We learned a little about travel and how we would change things if we were to go a second time. One of the best things we learned is that we will be renting a camper van when we go to New Zealand. It frees you up to travel when you want where you want and see what you want. This is very similar to what Meike and Carolin are doing as they travel along the east coast of Australia. We all enjoyed our time away from Adelaide to soak in the sun, swim with sea creatures, and experience warm weather. Some of the pictures we took do not do the trip justice and only self experience can satisfy the wants of traveling. Sorry this post was extremely long, but I wanted to try noting everything I could remember in the past eight days.