Port Douglas

Port Douglas,

We had a pleasant drive up to Port Douglas stopping en-route, at a fruit stall, to purchase some lovely fresh fruit. Six mangoes were $5.00 and three avocados $2.00. We also bought Rambutans, somewhat like Lychees, delicious along with a pineapple and everything was so fresh.

We arrived in Port Douglas around 6pm to find a beautiful, peaceful, quiet resort. Our unit was very large and we were not far from the free form swimming pool, which has a tranquil waterfall that can be heard from the balcony. In fact there are two balconies, one at the front and a huge one at the back. Once again we listen to the birds chattering away and watch the fruit bats fly over in the evening. Another tropical paradise and the weather glorious. Cyclone Tim veered further south and that was just fine with us.

Our first day we spent purchasing a few groceries, a stop at reception to discuss tours and a walk to a nearby resort, that was absolutely unbelievable, for coffee. The lower apartments had direct access right into the swimming pool, which has to be one of the largest we have ever seen, one acre in size. The resort is called Sea Temple. From here we walked to Four Mile Beach with hardly a soul to be seen. The water was flat calm, the sand smooth as silk and the jellyfish await the unsuspecting. Such a shame!!!

After walking back to our apartment we drove back into town and booked some trips. We were able to secure spots on The Lady Douglas for the sunset river- boat cruise and at 4:30 pm set sail up The Dickson Inlet. We were hoping to see saltwater crocodiles and were rewarded with two. The first was languishing on the mud bank and was fairly small at around six feet. The second was in the water and much larger at around 13 feet in length. He used to be the dominant male but had recently been displaced by a larger male croc. Saltwater crocodiles are a protected species and tend to be solitary and very territorial. We also saw a pair of white-bellied sea eagles, which were truly magnificent who feed on the abundant carp in the inlet. We were also lucky to see rifle fish, also known as archer fish, that lurk beneath the mangroves and spout jets of water onto unsuspecting insects on the branches above, which then fall into the water for their supper. At the end of our trip we were treated to a beautiful sunset over the Queensland Mountains. Back at the apartment we enjoyed a scrumptious meal of Green Lipped Mussels and Banana Prawns that were straight from the trawler that morning. It was a great end to a beautiful day. They say in Queensland “If it is a beautiful day today, tomorrow will be perfect.” I like that saying.

Monday we drove to the Daintree Rainforest another World Heritage site. The weather was “perfect” and luckily so, as days like these only occur about thirty times a year here. Although not a long journey it took a long time due to the narrow, winding mountainous roads and the ferry crossing of the Daintree River, which is very wide and full of saltwater crocodiles. The trees and the undergrowth were very dense and the beaches were breathtakingly beautiful. Along the road we encountered signs for Cassowaries crossing, but unfortunately we didn’t manage to see any. They are very large, pre-historic like birds as tall as a human and very colourful. They are also very dangerous if cornered and can kill with one kick of a foot with its enormous razor-like claw. Crocs sound almost tame. At least your gone in one gulp and not split asunder. After our magical drive, where we saw an emerald dove and other small birds, lovely butterflies we arrived in Daintree Village. The river cruises start at this point but as we had already done one on the Dickson Inlet we opted not to go. However, we were told that in the river upstream there was a dead pig and two large crocs feeding on it. With the ferocity of their jaws it would probably have been long gone before we reached them. Back at the resort we had a welcoming cuppa and a sublimic dip in the pool. Later we feasted on Moreton Bay Bugs (like lobsters) with a Thermidor sauce, a fresh salad and a nice glass of vino. As Fred would have said – ‘ansome!!!

Tuesday we drove just a short distance to Mossman Gorge, Daintree National Park and still very much part of the World Heritage Rainforest. We arrived at the interpretive centre and rode the shuttle up to the gorge entrance. The first part of the trail is a boardwalk so as not to disturb the fragile environment. As it is rainforest, the boardwalks are uniquely constructed to be non-slip. Just as well with people like me around. From the boardwalk we crossed over Rex Creek on the suspension Bridge, a little bouncy!!!! From here the forest trail wends its way through dense undergrowth on a circuit of around 2 kilometres. The forest is so deafeningly silent except for the birds’ way, way up in the treetops and when the cicadas love song begins in earnest. The trees are soooo….. tall and some of them have roots known as buttresses for stability. There are all kinds of roots some of which descend like ropes. The butterflies are huge and the fungi amazingly beautiful. We were lucky to complete our hike without getting wet………….. well, almost. Just as we arrived back at the shuttle terminal the Rainforest treated us to its very best performance. No need for an encore. No bus shelter and in less than a few minutes we were soaked to the skin, literally. We had to wait 15 minutes for the OPEN-sided shuttle and when we arrived back to our condo we rang out all of our clothes including our underwear. After drying off and with better weather we went for a stroll in Port Douglas and bumped into some people that were staying at our resort on Magnetic Island, while we there. We arranged to meet them the following evening for dinner.

Wednesday, we left early to catch the Quicksilver from Mirage Marina, Port Douglas. Once settled on board we began our journey to the Agincourt 3 Reef, which is in close proximity to the Continental Shelf on the Great Barrier Reef. We left Port Douglas in our wake and at great speed we traversed the Coral Sea to our destination, arriving 90 minutes later. We disembarked from the vessel onto the platform where you could scuba dive, snorkel, board the semi-submersibles and also go to the underwater viewing platform. Jim had a great time snorkeling with enormous fish, turtles and colourful tropical fish. Note the stinger suit he was wearing. I elected to stay dry and took two trips on the semi-sbmersibles. The coral and the fish were absolutely amazing but unfortunately without special lenses and the fact that the fish forget to pose, pictures were not the greatest. We had a superb lunch on-board the vessel and wandered at will on board the platform when not doing activities. The weather was superb once again and the wind only increased slightly as we left Agincourt behind. We arrived back to Port Douglas around 4:30pm and headed back to the resort where I went straight to the pool for a swim. Later that evening we met Connie and Darren, our new friends who live at Lake Macquarie, NSW and had a very pleasant time.