DAINTREE RAINFOREST and MORE

                                A Great Visit
       When we reached the Daintree River our guide drove the van onto a small cable ferry to get across the river. After crossing the road was narrow and winding, and it seemed like a long ride as much of it was done in the dark and the last part in the rain.

     We stayed in the Daintree rainforest where the lovely cabins we built on stilts. It was morning before we could see just where we were settled. During the night we listened to lots of nature noises, and that was great. The first morning I was quiet so not to wake my travel buddy, but I am an early riser. I sat in our lounge area in front of huge picture windows with my coffee, and all I could see was lush foliage and vegetation! Great care had been taken to design the resort to blend into its surroundings and to be ecologically sensitive to the World Heritage Area. Elevated wooden pathways protected the ground from being trampled. The 250 acre site showcases a towering mountain range in the background. The mountains collects the rain clouds and then sends rain to the valley and coast. The normal rainfall is 60-inches a year,

     Early one morning we walked down to the beach for a ride out to the Great Barrier Reef to do some snorkeling. We learned that at certain times of the year box jellyfish  wash down from the rivers bringing the stinging devils close toshore. This deadliest of all jellyfish is but fist-size but has four meter-long tentacles. At these times some beaches drop nets to enclose an area for safe swimming.

     It was a bit over an hour boat ride out to the reef. The Great Barrier Reef,  the largest coral system in the world, protects hundreds of small off shore islands on Australia’s east coast fom Brisbane north to Cairns. I found the snorkeling here much better than a previous trip when we went off of Green Island which pretty much has been trampled by many tourists. It was a pleasant day and a new experience for my travel buddy.

   Another day we walked down to Coopers Creek where our skiff captain was waiting to take us on a boat ride through the estuary. We learned the brackish estuary is hoe to 20 of the 69 known mangrove species. Mangroves in this area grow 30-50-feet tall protecting 70% of the tropical shore around the world. Only 70% of the mangrove is above water surface; the rest in underwater where a filter at the bottom of each root filters the water. Sitting in the motorized skiff looking up at the mangroves was amazing.

    After a while the captain started talking about crocodiles saying, “Crocks prefer temperatures of at least 30 degrees centigrade. Female crocks are territorial and reach 14-feet long. Males reach 23-27-feet and can way up to two ton. They wander in and out of territories. It is possible for them to live 80-100 years. Crocks eat mud crabs, wallaby, and mud pigs among other things.

    “ They can swim 100km into the ocean. Capable of slowing their heartbeat, they can stay submerged in the water for an hour. Breeding season is December to April, and mama lays 30-80 eggs in a nest. The crock goes into a trance-like state when laying eggs, then afterward returns to her vicious self. Gestation is 6-8 weeks. Mom monitors the nest for 90 days, then uncovers it removing the 10-inch hatchlings to the water. The temperature of the nest determines the sex of the egg; 85 degrees is good for a female, 90 degrees for a male.

    “A baby crock is not safe to be on its own until 4-5 years old. The survival rate is ½%! Crocodiles have been protected since the 1970s, and there is a fine for anyone caught poaching. The growth rate is about a meter every 10 years.

    “The cold blooded reptiles can move up to 30 km an hour and cannot zig zag. He has no tongue and cannot swallow under water. It has piercing but no grinding teeth. The brain is in its head between the eyes. They thermos-regulate through an open mouth.”

    The talkative entertaining guide/captain ended saying,”It’s always a good idea to give a crocodile its space!” was a full fun morning.

    That afternoon we met a botanist who took us on an interesting hike through the rainforest. Enthusiastic, she obviously loved her job. She pointed out the coral cycad tree, corkscrew vine, matchbox bean vine, black palm and black walnut tree. She said, ”Studies are being done on the black walnut bark as possibly helping in nerve regeneration.”

     She also talked about the flightless cassowary and two tree climbing kangaroos found only in the rainforest.

    This delightful place is definitely on my return-to list!

DAINTREE RAIN FOREST

                                What a Wonderful Stay
       I have stayed and visited several rain forests and I have found them all exciting and delightful. Our accommodations have always been great, but the Daintree facilities were especially nice.

      It was a two-hour ride (160 K) from Cairns to Coconut Beach Rainforest Resort, our hotel at Cape Tribulation in the Daintree Rainforest. We drove onto a small cable ferry to get across the Daintree River. The road after crossing was narrow and winding. It seemed like a long ride as the last hour or so was in the rain.

    It was still raining quite hard so the hotel supplied us with large umbrellas and guides escorted us to our cabins. The first part of the facility opened in 1989. Our large cabin had a gorgeous wooden floor and was lovely, but it was morning before we could see where we were situated. During the night we listened to lots of nature noises. It was great! Waking in the morning, I was quiet so not to waken my travel partner.  While I sat with a cup of coffee in our sitting area I looked out into a forest of greenery and could see nothing but lush foliage! It was beautiful, quiet and peaceful!

     The impressive facility also has a 40-unit villa, large reception area, long house, pool, bar, in-house accommodations for 70 staff, and an education and adventure lodge. There is also a private beach.           Because of its rainforest location, great care had been taken to design the resort to blend into its surroundings, and to be ecologically sensitive to the World Heritage Area. Covering 250 acres, it was designed to have minimal impact on the local flora and fauna.  The cabins were built on high set poles, requiring minimal removal of trees. The use of boardwalks minimized the impact of pedestrian traffic, preventing damage to the forest floor. The facility has its own water supply and generates all its electricity.  It truly was a fabulous place, somewhere I would love to return to!

Capt. Cook named the area Cape Tribulation after his ship ran aground on Endeavor Reef. The rain forest, only 10-20 degrees south of the equator, was named  in 1832 after Richard Daintree, an explorer and businessman. It is all wilderness area, covering 100 hectares, and is 130 million years old. The Daintree National Park, established in 1979, was designated a World Heritage Site in 1988.

The area protects 70 species of animals and over 200 bird species including the cassowary, plus many flowers and plants. It is the only place in the world where two World Heritage Sites meet---the Daintree Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef.  The Daintree Rainforest is a  coastal rainforest and runs in pockets for 450 kilometers. It is an upland rainforest and is the largest rainforest in the Heritage complex. Thirteen of the 19 flowering plants are found only here, and 60% of Australia’s bat species live in this rainforest. There are no monkeys in the country.

One afternoon a biologist took us on a nature walk to identify much of the flora and was most interesting. She was very animated and it was obvious she loved her job.

Another day we took a catamaran several miles to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef. The snorkeling was much better, the reef more alive and interesting here than when I went off from Green Island, a much more popular and busy tourist attraction. Five years earlier Green Island with its tourist mentality had been a big disappointment.