Days 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84 and 85

(Michelle)

Our flight to Cairns stopped at Sydney where we were meeting up with Mum, Dad and Helena. I knew Mum would be eagerly awaiting our arrival, and it was great to see them all once we had finally found them in the airport. Below I have just added a bit that Helena wanted me to put on the blog from their journey.

(Helena)

After the mad rush of getting in from work and leaving for Oz, we were finally on our way to the airport. The plane journey was long, we had 4 meals (which were actually really nice) and hot chocolate before all the lights got turned off - it was then time for bed! After stopping off at Thailand for a quick break, we were finally on our way to Syndey, ready to meet Shell and Jay. By this time mother was very excited, and once at the airport even fell over due to too much excitement!! :) It was then time for spotting Shell and Jay.. and after a while, I spotted them. With a 'baywatch lookalike run' mum ran towards Michelle to greet them. Family.. reunited...holiday..begun!

(Michelle)

We were staying in a motel (Aspect Central) for the first night, and once we were settled in we headed into Cairns to get some information about the area and for a quick walk around the town. After a good catch up over dinner that night we headed back to our motel for an early night as we were all shattered. In the morning we drove over to our apartment in Palm Cove where we were spending the remaining 6 nights of Cairns. For me and Jamie it felt like luxury compared to some of the hostels we have been staying in! After lunch we walked up the beach to the pier and then spent the rest of the afternoon by the swimming pool.

(Jamie)

We all decided to head up the coast for the weekend market in Port Douglas. The Market was perfect for Helena's souvenir hunt, and she soon found a Boomerang destined for her bedroom wall. After a really nice pie for lunch we headed further north for a cruise along the Daintree river. Our guide didn't fill me with too much confidence after spotting a Green Tree frog and referring to it as a reptile, but we soon got a sight of what we had all come to see, CROCS! In total we saw four adults and a baby which we were pretty satisfied with. However on the return journey we got a real treat as two crocs were in a standoff over a dead cow, with the larger picking it up and smashing it into the water, CRIKEY!. We knew it must have been a rare sight as the rangers had all stopped to watch and our boat was late to return to the harbour. On our way back to Palm cove we made a detour to the Mossman gorge, which was a nice area with waterfalls fringed by rainforest. Unfortunately we arrived at dusk and without Mosquito spray, so after a quick trip over the waterfalls suspension bridge we retreated.

(Michelle)

The following day we headed up into the Tablelands to an aboriginal village called Kuranda. There was quite a lot to see in and do around the village, and we took a boardwalk walking circuit through some beautiful rainforest where we saw quite a lot of interesting bugs and butterflies. The walk ended up at a lookout point to yet another waterfall. The Baron falls, however, were much more impressive than those seen at Mossman gorge. After some lunch we drove further into the Tablelands to another village called Mareeba where we stopped off at a chocolate and coffee lovers paradise (just the right place for me!) At the Coffee works there were loads of different types of coffee to try, as well as different teas, and chocolates, so we spent a few hours just eating and drinking. There was also a small museum, and factory tour where they told you how coffee was made etc. After a long drive back we had a good old Aussie BBQ complimented with some cheap goon (wine in a box)!

(Jamie)

We all had to be up early for our number one activity in Cairns, The Great Barrier Reef. The day didn't start too well when one of the boats engines broke meaning it was going to take much much longer to reach the reef and we would only get to snorkel in one of the two sites planned :(. After a bit of a moan from the passengers we got to go on a semi-submersible boat ride around the reef to make up for it! One of the boat staff was the best Fernando Torres look-a-like I've ever seen. Fortunatley he had no idea he looked like a traitor. The day began to improve when we made it to Michaelmus Cay, a stunning sand bank surrounded by coral seas. We decided to make the most of our 'apology boat ride' and jumped into the underwater tank in the semi-submersible. The tour guide onboard was pretty excited as a manta ray had just been spotted on the previous tour, and he had only ever seen one in the area before, because they are a pretty rare sight. We soon chased it down and although only a baby it still had a 4m wing span!!!. I was also the first to spot two white tipped reef sharks and after a colourful tour around the coral I was excited to get into the water. After lunch and a quick talk about the types of fish we might see we got dressed into out lycra stinger suits, and followed fernando for our guided snorkel tour. Joanne and Helena were brave enough to get in, which is something we never thought we would see, and I don't think they could believe it themselves! The amount of fish seen was amazing and it wasn't long before we spotted Nemo too, which was the only thing the Chinese in the group were bothered about seeing. Two stingrays, and one Jellyfish later I got the chance to put my hand into one of the giant Clams dotted around the reef! The only disappointing thing about the day is that it ended so soon. I would have liked to have spent a whole week on the reef as it really is that amazing.

The next day we decided to head further north up to Cape Tribulation where lush rainforest meets the Great Barrier Reef. It was quite a long drive twisting, and turning around the coastline, and at the croc infested Daintree river we had to cross by ferry to enter the National Park area. The area was full of rainforest boardwalks, and although we kept our eyes peeled for the local Cassowaries we didn't spot any. I did however have a Steve Irwin moment after Michelle spotted a massive green Peppermint stick insect (see pics). Along the way there was many beautiful deserted beaches although this may have been a result of crocodiles lurking in the shallows. When we finally made it to the Cape the views were amazing, however Helena was disappointed after pointing at a patch of mangrove in the sea, and saying is that all we've come to see! Unfortunately she had taken our "where rainforest meets the sea' quote quite literally :p

On our last day in Cairns we decided to have some relax time by the swimming pool before heading to the beach in the afternoon. We were only able to swim in a designated area of the beach due to possible crocodiles, and lots of killer jellyfish. This was enough to put off everyone bar myself and Tim from going in the sea, no matter how much I nagged.

We really enjoyed our time up in Cairns and felt like we had done a months activites in one week.