Cairns

Kuranda Railway Station, Cairns
Originally uploaded by Frickley.

We are having an action packed time in Cairns!

The hostel we are staying is excellent (http://www.dreamtimetravel.com.au/).

So far we have done the Sky Rail to Kuranda (http://www.skyrail.com.au/) and the Kuranda Scenic Railway return. The view into the rain forest from the pod is amazing. Check out the pics on the web site. At one of the markets in Kuranda they had a stall selling authentic didgeridoo’s... Fran bought me a fair dinkum didgeridoo for my birthday! (Mum – this will be arriving at your place in the next couple of weeks!). I’ve had a half an hour’s lesson and have bought a teach yourself CD – watch out Hayley!

We’ve also been white water rafting on the Russell River (http://www.foamingfury.com.au/russell.php). We didn’t realize that we would have to carry the rafts for nearly an hour through thick jungle to get there! It was well worth the effort, unless you take into account leeches that attached themselves to Fran or my shoulder dislocating after we capsized... Fran was the only person out of the 6 of us to get leeches (one other couple and 2 instructors) – to say that she wasn’t happy about it would be an understatement! I am in quite a bit of pain with my shoulder, but it already feels better than it did the day after the rafting, when I was in agony. The rafting its self was excellent. It took a while to get the hang of steering, and we ending up beaching ourselves on the rocks a couple of times.

Yesterday we did a trip to the Great Barrier Reef, which is one of the 7 wonders of the world I believe (http://www.oceanfree.com.au/oceanfreedom.html). The whole trip was amazing. We did loads of snorkeling (one armed in my case!) and saw some fantastic fish and coral formations.

Tomorrow we set off for Port Douglas and the Cape Tribulation. Fran is hoping to do some horse riding on the beach, but I’m not sure my shoulder will be up to it ;-)

After Cairns the plan is to hire a camper van and drive down the East coast, taking in Mission Beach, Airlie Beach (where we can get a trip out to the Whitsunday’s), Hamilton Island, Mackay, Rockhampton, Hevey Bay (for a trip to Fraser Island), Rainbow Beach and finally Brisbane! From Brisbane down I think we’ll be using Grey Hound buses, as these seem to be the cheapest way to travel...