Into the Jungle: Experiencing North Queensland

There’s something about being in a rainforest that excites me.  Perhaps it’s the lush, green vegetation, the creative chaos that makes up this ecosystem or the fact that I actually get to wear a tank top without a jacket for the first time in who knows how long! 

Doused with sunscreen, I pondered this newfound sense of freedom while my travel companion and I made the 5-minute walk down the hill from our hotel to the post office where we met up with our first tour into the jungle.  We were headed north to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree rainforest where we could try to spy crocs and I could try my hand at jungle surfing. 

As we scurried along amidst misty rain through the towns surrounding Cairns, I saw what’s called ‘stinger nets’ in the ocean.  Since this is jellyfish season, stinger nets are set out like the end zone of a football field to create a netted boundary for people to swim protected.

Further down Captain Cook Highway we entered deeper into lush, green vegetation and approached a Wildlife Habitat where I gained my first introduction to Aussie animals.  Colorful yet dangerous birds like Cassawarys caught my eye, standing about 4 feet tall with their blue and black feathers slicked back and a block of bone protruding from their skull.  They have a claw that can tear a person or prey to shreds and roam freely in the rainforest. I admired from a distance.  When I went to meet the Koala, it was pretty anti-social as I found out they are normally solitary animals.  Hopefully I will be able to hold one in the near future.

Kristi and her first Kangaroo

Venturing further into the habitat, I saw Wallabies (small roos) but got excited when I spied kangaroos, also known as “jumping cats” in the distance.  As I made my way along the path, I saw a kangaroo hopping towards me, out in the open, getting closer and closer and bigger and bigger with each hop until we met eye to eye, well his eye to my hand.  After all, he was only interested in the food I was prepared to give him.  I admit, I was a bit intimidated at his sheer size but he was as tame as could be and let me pet him, which was really cool!

However, it was our next stop that had me holding my breath.  Following Captain Cook Highway, we entered the Daintree rainforest where we took a river cruise along the Daintree River to not only to gain another perspective of the rainforest, but also to try and spy a croc.  The rainforest was teaming with the sounds of life which we strained to see, much like “Where’s Waldo.”  However, we did spot a couple of Kingfisher birds while we slowly made our way down the still river, watching and waiting and wondering if we’d see a croc.  We actually saw three in various places all sunning themselves, making sure to not linger too long since some gave warning signs of feeling threatened.  While we were happy to see these three, we were on the lookout for Norman, a croc who the day before made a name for himself when he attached and killed the dog of another boat captain as they were disembarking from the same river edge I was about to use.  With eyes wide open, we thankfully made it safely onto land. 

After a picnic lunch in the rainforest, I ventured up a gravel dirt road to the base camp where six of us where going to go jungle surfing which is a series of zip lines high up in the rainforest canopy.  Fitted with a body harness and helmet that gave me my name for the day “Pocahontas”, we walked to the first tree house.  In that short, 5-minute walk, there were more plant species than in all of Europe and Great Britain!  Some of the rainforest is ancient, dating back to prehistoric times. 

Our cheeky guides, reminiscent of modern day Tarzan men, were a wealth of knowledge and full of laughs as they guided our journey over rivers, gorges, and countless trees, sometimes letting us just hang there so we could soak in the atmosphere.  Further on into the jungle, we zipped and flew with arms open wide through the rainforest, even upside down!  The jungle was beautiful and being able to go into the jungle in such unique ways was a truly amazing experience.

Scavenger Hunt items completed:

2a. Pet and feed a kangaroo.

3. Catch up with dear friends.

5. Meet a ‘croc’ (safely of course!).

9b. Go jungle surfing.