We picked up our campervan, a Toyota Hiace (rented from Camperman Australia) on 12th April. We were shown how everything in the van works - it has a table which folds down into a double bed and a shelf above which can fold into a single bunk. It also has a microwave, grill, 2 gas hobs and a fridge along with some small cupboards for food storage. Perfect for our trip!!

The first stop we made was a Woolworths (a huge supermarket just like Tesco, not like Woolworths in England!) where we stocked the van up with everything we could possibly need for the next 7 weeks! We did a bit of shopping and I got my hair cut (a bit short!). We drove to our 1st campsite only to pull up behind another van exactly the same from the same company. We thought maybe it was the people who'd been in front of us at the hire place, but as the door opened we realised that it was Christian and Claire (an English couple we had met in Thailand and travelled with to Malaysia, but hadn't really heard from since!). So it was very strange to bump into them here in the same van as us!!! We spent a few hours unpacking our bags into the van (both very much looking forward to not having to live out of our bags for a while!). We walked into town which turned out to be further than we had thought and took us 45 minutes! There we met a group of friends, that we had made on our Desert Venturer trip, for a big meal then a few drinks.

Set the van up for the day (ie. put the bed away and made a table instead!) and went to have our breakfast in the shade of a tree on the Esplanade, overlooking the sea - perfect! After walking around Cairns a bit we set off for Port Douglas, stopping off on the way at Palm Cove, Ellis Beach and Rex lookout for some amazing views out over the sea. Once we reached Port Douglas we visited the Rainforest Habitat Sancturary. Here we were able to touch koalas which are really just big live teddy bears and are even softer than they look! There was also a big grassy area with lots of kangaroos, wallabies and walleroos which we could go right up to and see the joeys getting in and out of their mother's pouches. Found a campsite for then evening before going out to Port Douglas to explore a bit and have a few games of pool in a bar. Alex is determined to teach me to play properly by the end of the trip!

We spent Monday wandering around the town: the port area with amazing views out to sea and across to the mountains of Cape Tribulation, a tiny little wooden church, the main street and of course the shopping centre, and four mile beach (which we decided not to walk along the whole length!). They had a 'stinger' net set up for swimming in. We had been told that there are jelly fish (or 'stingers') which are the size of your finger nail, invisible, and one sting could kill you - we avoided going into the sea! That evening we met up with Lynn and Ian, an Irish couple we had met on our desert venturer trip.

Unfortunately Alex was a bit hungover the next day, and although we managed a visit to Mossman Gorge, the rest of the day was a bit of a write-off! The gorge at Mossman was stunning, with crystal clear waters flowing through huge boulders. We sat on the rocks for a while watching the fish then Alex returned to the van while I went for a walk through the rainforest. The afternoon was spent watching lots of kookaburras at a campsite, and listening to their incredibly loud laughter!

On the 16th, we set off towards the Daintree, crossing the river in a ferry (looking out for crocodiles, but not seeing any!). We drove through very windy narrow roads through dense rainforest until we reached the Daintree Discovery Centre, which took us on a guided walk through the rainforest, using hand-held audio-guides. We found out all there is to know about hundreds of rainforest plants, animals and birds, and how the aborigines used to live from them, all very interesting and we ended up spending a few hours there! We also learnt about a bird called the Cassowary. It looks like an emu, but lives in the rainforest. It has black feathers and a bright blue and red neck - it can also kill you with one kick!! Something to be avoided we decided, although we still looked for them! The afternoon was spent wandering along beautiful beaches and doing several boardwalks through rainforest and mangrove areas, spending the night at Cape Tribulation.

The 17th was mainly spent driving as we left Cape Tribulation and drove all the way to the Atherton Tablelands (inland from Cairns). We left the rainforest of the tropical north and found ourselves driving through thick woodland and rolling green hills covered with dairy farms and sugar plantations. First stop was the Golden Drop winery at Mareeba where we sampled (and bought) some very nice mango wine! We spent the rest of the afternoon watching lots of birds from a hide at Hasties Swamp, near Atherton. The night was spent at a campsite near Mareeba, which turned out to be more of a trailer park as everyone apart from us appeared to be living there in their caravans!

The next day was a day of tasting the local delicacies! The morning was spent at a coffee factory where we tasted 21 coffees, 4 teas, 2 liquers and 12 chocolates!! We also learnt everything there is to know about coffee and tea in their museum. In the afternoon we went to a bird of prey show, incredibly interesting as we learnt all about the bird's habitat etc and also got to hold some including a wedge-tail eagle, which is about as tall as my waist!! Next stop was a cheese factory where we watched cows being milked and tasted cheese and chocolate. We then drove to Innot hot springs where we spent the night, visiting some amazing view points on the way and going on a walk in the woods where we saw some waterfalls and a huge volcanic crater with a lake at the bottom. The evening was spent relaxing in the natural hot springs at the campsite!

The 19th was spent driving to Mission Beach, but we managed to fit in some interesting stops on the way. A short walk took us to Millstream Falls, a beautiful waterfall near Ravenshoe. We stopped in the town and went to the information centre where we met a very friendly man who ended up giving us his address and telling us to go to his house to see the parrots that often sit in his garden! He also gave us some home-grown passion fruit to taste! At Millaa Millaa we found an amazing view point where we could see for miles over the Atherton Tablelands, before visiting 3 waterfalls - Millaa Millaa, Zillie and Ellinjaa.

We explored the area around Mission Beach, and managed to do 3 walks in the rainforest! We were hoping to see a Cassowary, and according to the guide book we would be very unlucky if we didn't, but it seemed that we were one of the unlucky ones, as the closest thing we saw was some cassowary poo!! After our walks, we drove to Tully where we visited a giant Gum Boot!!! It was 8 metres high - the depth of their highest rainfall in one year, making it the wettest place in Australia. Sat on the beach as the sunset and watched a flock of black cockatoos flying around. In the evening we made friends with an English couple in the van opposite and tasted some 'Goon' (wine from a box - called goon because goon is the Aboriginal word for pillow which is what you can make with the empty bag after you have finished the wine!).

On Monday 21st we spent the day white water rafting down the River Tully; one of the best white water rafting rivers in Australia because it is continuous grade 4 rapids for the full 5 hours! It was a brilliant day complete with an amazing BBQ lunch on the side of the river. We also got to swim down some rapids and down a waterfall with a 16m deep plunge pool! Unfortunately I didn't manage to equalise my ears as I was sucked underwater (about 4m apparently) which left me with earache for the rest of the day! In the evening we drove from Mission Beach to Ingham.

Spent a few hours the next morning wandering around the Tyto wetlands in Ingham (where we saw a lot more wallabies that birds!) before driving further south. Stopped off at a place called Frosty Mango (mainly because we liked the name!) where we had a mango milkshake before driving to Townsville where we had some lunch overlooking the Esplanade with a nice view over to Magnetic Island. Drove through the friut towns of Ayr and Bowen, where we stopped for a photo of the 'Big Mango' and some nice views over the beautiful beaches. Spent the night at Airlie Beach.