11th July

Another overnight flight, so arrived early in Cairns.We got the bus to Port Douglas which is a small pretty town by the coast, with the prettiest small timber church in Aus.Lunch at a working man's club listening to the lady on the mike calling out for the pokies and raffle!However, no warm beer and pies here. We sat outside on the jetty, overlooking the mountains, across a crystal blue bay and shared a bucket of massive prawns and variety of wines. Continued on to Cape Tribulation and had a beautiful scenic drive through the rain forest about 100 km north of Cairns.We arrived at Jungle Lodge which is back-packer accommodation in the rain forest and immediately Suzanne fell flat on her face on the gravel and injured her leg - good start! Slept in a 'tent like' structure, quite basic, with camp toilets, that are even more basic.Drinks and food in the youngster's bar across the road. Finally, the naff karaoke and lack of sleep drove us out!

12th-14th July

From then on here, we had sleepless nights more or less throughout the whole stay due to the jungle noises that had Suzanne convinced that there were spiders and snakes trying to get into the tent!It's amazing how different the rain forest feels and looks at night. During the day time we were either walking through the rainforest or enjoying a stroll along the beach.There was an area through the forest that had trail on a boardwalk and we were convinced that we would spot crocodiles, spiders as big as plates and snakes hanging from the trees.However, after a leisurely walk, peering hard into the swamps and trees, we didn't see anything apart from a spider in a web that was about 7-8 inches long - including legs.Suzanne spoke to a German man on the beach who claimed to spend six months of the year living in the forest. He was wearing big gloves to catch fish from the sea (although he wasn't successful). Strange that someone would want to stay in the forest with all the things that could crawl over you day and night.We managed a difficult walk part way up part of the steep and covered slopes of Mount Cook, but didn't quite reach the top due to Suzanne's injured ankle.It's so quiet and beautiful being in the middle of this natural wonder and the weather here is perfect.We also wandered along the three beaches and relaxed in the sun.There are warnings everywhere of stingers (jelly fish) and crocs in the water, which is a bit off-putting.