We’ve just gotten back from 3 wonderful days in the Daintree National Forest, and will be heading out on a boat tomorrow to spend two nights on the Great Barrier Reef. But during this sliver of downtime in Cairns I thought I’d share a few surprises we’ve enjoyed over the last week.
Shape shifting leaves
There are over 900 species of trees in the Daintree National Forest, and they are constantly dropping their leaves. The result for me (Marsha) was that I spent an inordinate amount of time peering at leaves through binoculars. Old yellow leaves curled up high in the branches looked like the silhouette of a sunbird. A palm frond on the forest floor looked like a lizard. A small leave falling through the air looked like a darting songbird. There are layers upon layers upon layers of leaves to look at and through when birding in the rainforest!
Kangaroos in Cairns
Our first Airbnb host in Cairns (recently arrived themselves from France) let us know that 10 kilometers up the road from there was a field where lots of kangaroos often gathered. Sure enough, when we got there, there was quite a herd of kangaroo – so many we thought maybe it was a kangaroo farm, since there seemed to be wire around the field. However, on a second visit to the field on our way back in to Cairns today we watched the kangaroos hop over the fences and bounce their way into the dry streambed behind the field. Guess they aren’t intended for kangaroo burgers!
Ocean-going crocodiles and road-crossing cassowaries
We had heard that people don’t swim in the ocean in Queensland from October – Feb because of poisonous jellyfish. But we were not expecting to be told to stay out of the ocean because of crocodiles. Apparently the estuarine crocodiles can manage in both fresh and salt water, and they are aggressively territorial. We obeyed the signs and didn’t get more than ankle deep in the water. Our only crocodile sighting was on the ferry across the Daintree River.
We also saw many many signs for speed bumps to make folks slow down for cassowary crossings, but unfortunately never got to see this magnificent, five-foot tall flightless bird.
Shortened words
We are astounded at how many words the Aussies make into diminutives. You can go have brekky or a barbie with your reli and watch footy on telly or maybe plan a trip to Tassie or Brissy or figure out if your 5-year old’s Kindy class will set her up for a great Uni!
Strangler Figs
The strangler fig starts life as a seed dropped in a nourishing crevice among the high canopy and grows downward to eventually root in the earth. It puts down more and more tendrils until it has surrounded and smothered its host tree, which eventually rots away, leaving a lovely hollow chimney. During our guided night hike, we got to climb inside one of the strangler figs. This photo is of another strangler fig assumed to be several centuries old.
Exotic Fruits
On the advice of our neighbor in Durham, who hails from Australia, we stopped at the Daintree Ice Cream Company, where they mix exotic fruits from the rainforest into ice cream to make delicious treats. The day we were there, they were offering a sampler with four flavors — coconut, black sapote, mango, and wattleseed. They all tasted great. We also got to walk through the orchard, and found the Jack Fruit trees. Jack fruits are the largest fruit in the world: they can weigh as much as 42 kilograms! We haven’t tasted one yet, but we are assured they are wonderful!
Sugercane Trains
It may look like a toy train, but it is hauling sugar cane. South of the Daintree River there is lots of sugarcane planted, and in much of the area there are small-gauge railroads built along the roads to haul the harvested cane. I don’t know what I expected to find growing on farms in Australia, but sugarcane wasn’t on the list.
Now, off to the Great Barrier Reef, and who knows what other surprises!
Green Edges 