My first view of the Great Barrier Reef came from the plane as I approached Cairns at 30,000 feet. At first I thought the reefs were little islands dotting the coast, but as I got closer, I could see that most of those “islands” were under the water. Cynthia and I were so excited at the idea of actually going snorkelling on it
Great Barrier Reef
My first reef experience. Wow. My first thought, rather childishly, was “my mask is too big for my face.” But my second thought was “and I thought God was creative on dry land!” I can’t even begin to describe how amazing the reef is. But swimming from a boat 30 miles out to sea, then viewing the incredible coral and fish and learning how they all interact together to form a complicated working ecosystem…well, I am impressed at God’s handiwork.
My cheap camera didn’t take very good photo’s, so trust my descriptions.
Our day trip to the Cape tribulation and the Daintree rainforest was brimming full of adventure, not least of which was our Aussie guide’s shall we say…suicidal driving on the trecherous, windy roads. All in one day, we went to the Rainforest Habitat Zoo, Mossman Gorge, Port Douglas Beach (perfect!), and a Crocodile Cruise on the Daintree River And yes, we did spot a couple.
Jungle Swinging
As Monday was Sonia’s last day in Cairns, we thought to break open the piggy bank. We though about doing a skydive, from 10,000 feetJungle Surfing, a ropes course through the rainforest treetops but we decided on jungle swinging. Instead of floating peacefully through the trees, we went what I describe as “bungee jumping for beginnerslight.” Basically, we were strapped into harnesses and dropped from 45 meters (approx 150 feet) high down to 1 meter in 3 seconds. The metal cables took our weight so that we swung back and forth through the rainforest…it reminded me of George of the Jungle!
Unfortunately, this day marked the end of Melanie’s time in Cairns, and here is where we parted ways. Melanie left for Sydney to spend Australia’s Labour Day weekend before returning to Canada. Meanwhile, my plans involve staying on in Cairns a couple more weeks to take a learn to dive course on the Great Barrier Reef and dive trip before continuing on to Melbourne.
Farewell, Cynthia! You’ve been a pretty good travel mate these past months. See you in December!