Left Mount Carbine by 8:00am ditching the caravan and heading off to start the first leg of our Cape York adventure. Headed to Port Douglas and arrived at 10:00am and had morning tea by the beach. We decided nothing much to see there so headed to Daintree village to our camp site for the next 3 nights. Got to the park by 11:00am and set up the tent. It's all very basic with just a grassed area by the river (which has a fence up to stop the crocs coming up we think?) and a toilet/shower block. Pretty good for $25/night up here as all the other parks were $30-35+.
After lunch we headed off to explore the Daintree. Got a 5 return pass for the Daintree river ferry for $42, cheaper than buying 2 return tickets and figured would need to get over at least 2-3 times. Went for stroll thru rainforest at Jindalba boardwalk, it would have been tranquil if not for our two girls chattering the whole way. It was lush and green with spectacular old trees and vines wrapping around them, beautiful canopies and creeks. Had a quick look at the beach and found this beach cubby (blog photo) which the girls thought was cool. Finished the arvo off by returning back to Daintree village for an ice-cream.
Was relaxing in the arvo getting bored with each others company when two 4X4 pulled up and set up camp. They were a great couple, Kerry and Dale, with there 3 kids, Jeremy (12), Acacia (6) and Maleka (4). Also with them on the other 4X4 was a young bloke Mick (later nicknamed Bandy, which l will get too later!). Anyhow, they rocked up and set up camp and we all got talking as if we'd known each other for a while. It was great, relaxed, easy. They were on there way to the Cape as well, on a 10 week holiday that they had been planning for a few years. It was great to compare notes and get some good ideas on our next leg of the trip. All the girls embraced one another and hit it off straight away sitting down on the ground making cakes in the dirt.
After tea, the girls got into bed a bit later than normal and us adults kicked back with a few drinks and a laugh. As soon as the sun set all these bandicoots started wondering around the campsite and Mike was a bit weary of our new company. To the point where Dale thought it would be a scream to pretend to catch one and put it in Mick's swag. Well Mick didn't know what to believe and crapped his dack's about the whole thing. We hung s*** on him for the rest of the night and had a real belly laugh together, it was just what we needed.
Headed off to bed around 11pm having finished the day on an unexpected high due to the company of new friends.
Bell Xx