We arrived in Cairns, Queensland on Sunday evening for the next leg of our trip. This was the most exciting part of the trip because we would be experiencing the Great Barrier Reef up close and personal. When we arrived it was dark so the one-hour drive to Port Douglas was uneventful. Little did we know until three days later on the return trip back to Cairns the most amazing coastline and breath taking views that were literally right beside us most of the way along the coastal highway.
We went straight to a tour boat for the Great Barrier Reef early on Monday morning. We didn’t want to waste any time or the beautiful tropical weather on anything but seeing this amazing wonder of the world. I can remember when the kids were young going along on field trips to the IMAX to see films about the Great Barrier Reef, never in my mind thinking that I would someday actually be there in person.
We chose a small tour on a boat called the Calypso. We decided on the smaller group since the crews seemed to interact better with small groups than the boats that were taking out over 200 people in one trip. Our boat probably had less than 50 people. The crew was excellent and very attentive to our needs the whole day. We would be making three stops along what was called Opal Reef during our day at sea. Joe and I decided that we wanted to try to scuba dive at least once during the day. We were briefed and although I was very anxious, I was a little excited to be diving on the Great Barrier Reef.
On our first stop, we were not in the group of divers so we spent our time snorkeling along the reef. There was an underwater photographer swimming around taking some amazing shots of everyone. There was even a large fish named Marvin that is always at the dive stop that was eager to interact with everyone and get his picture taken. Words can’t describe seeing the reef up close and personal. The colors of the corals, fish and water are breathless. It is the most peaceful feeling you can imagine, floating through the water and seeing this beautiful site.
On our next stop we were up to take our shot at scuba diving. First of all, for something to look so effortless, it is the most cumbersome thing I think I have ever done. The equipment is heavy, they put a weight belt on you and I was very nervous about breathing underwater. I was afraid of being claustrophobic underwater and just couldn’t seem to get over my anxiety. Once we were underwater we would have to go through some drills to make sure we knew what to do once we got started. I was OK at clearing my mask and unstopping my ears but getting the breathing was another thing altogether. One drill we had to do was to show the instructor how we could cope if we accidentally lost our breathing apparatus while underwater. I got the thing back in my mouth OK but in the process also took in a lot of water. I thought I was in big trouble and began to panic. My dive instructor was the most amazing, patient person and he literally calmed me down while we were still not even six feet under water. I was ready to give it all up.
I finally got my breathing under control and off we went down into depths of the Great Barrier Reef. It is the most calming feeling to be swimming (well, in my case, gently guided by my instructor) down among the beautiful corals and fish. We saw giant clams and fish in every color you can imagine. Sorry to report we saw no giant turtles or sharks. They say they very seldom see sharks in the area and don’t see turtles very often. I never got completely comfortable underwater, I never felt like I was breathing comfortably and it felt like we were down for the LONGEST time. All in all it was about 30 minutes and we went down about thirty feet. The whole experience was very exciting and I’m glad I at least tried it. I’m still not sure if diving is something I want to continue but I can certainly check if off my bucket list. That dive also counts toward a certification if we decide to pursue that path.
On our third stop I opted to stay with the snorkeling. Joe decided to dive again. He was really enjoying this opportunity and taking full advantage of it. I myself loved just swimming around on top of the water, snorkeling and looking at the beauty below the surface of the water. The underwater pictures we took in no way can do this beautiful site justice. The people who run these tours are quick to stress the delicacy of the reef and continually encourage you to look but not touch what you are seeing around you. We saw only a minute portion of what makes of the Great Barrier Reef. It goes for over 1,600 miles and runs along the coast of Queensland. As you look at on the horizon beyond the reef you can actually see the break in the surf at the edge of the reef. The whole day was an experience I will not soon forget and I only hope that I can someday return.
Our trip back to shore took about an hour. Going back in we were able to get a glimpse of the coastline where we were staying in Port Douglas. It is a beautiful little seaside town and I only wish we had made plans to stay longer in this area. Back at the hotel I was overcome with either seasickness, food poisoning or swallowing too much sea water but was ill the rest of the evening. Poor Joe had to eat at the hotel dinner buffet and enjoy an array of local seafood dishes all alone. ☹
The next morning I was feeling better and we decided to get out and see some of the surrounding area. We opted out of another tour since most of them took you one to two hours out of the area and were gone almost all day. We chose to visit the Rainforest Habitat Wildlife Sanctuary in Port Douglas. It has rainforest area, wetlands area and a grassland area. Along the way we saw many species of birds native to the area, kangaroos, wallabies, emus, crocodiles and of course, my absolute favorite, the koala. I also got an opportunity to hold Bailey the Koala, which turned to be a highlight of my entire trip. Although they appear to very gentle, we were told that koalas can be very aggressive if need be and are very particular about where and how they want to be touched. Bailey was very solid, compact and not at all as light as he appeared to be. He was awakened from his sleep to be held by the visitors. Koalas are nocturnal by nature so being awake during the daylight hours is quite unusual. We were told that they only allowed Bailey to be held a couple of days a week and only for a period of about 15 minutes so my time with him was very short. Barely enough time to get a picture snapped. I LOVED the whole experience.
The kangaroos were also fun to watch. We were able to walk in the compound where they lived on marked paths. At times they were close enough to reach out and touch. One instance we saw was two workers with a baby kangaroo that had been pushed out of the pouch by its mother. They had made a couple of attempts to put the baby back but the mother continued to push it back out. They said they would have to probably find a surrogate mother or hand the raise the baby if the mother rejected it. We also saw a young joey along side his mother. We then saw him jump into the pouch and watched as it stuck its little head out to see what was going on around him. Amazing to watch these animals.
We saw a granddaddy of a crocodile. It had to have been over ten feet and was very intimidating. Even though not moving, it gave you a creepy feeling just to look at it. We did however get to pet a little guy that was about two and half feet long. Mouth taped of course!
We spent the rest of the day back at our beautiful hotel. The Sheraton Mirage Resort is right on the shoreline. The grounds and buildings are surrounded by a series of saltwater lagoons that you can actually swim in just about anywhere. The shoreline is a beautiful site but people don’t seem to go to the beach much. At 5:00 we went to a small marina bar that is known for feeding a giant grouper that lives under the dock every evening. We sat in anticipation with the rest of the crowd waiting for the appearance of the big fish but to no avail. We had dinner in town at a small little seafood restaurant looking out at a beautiful sunset. Once again, another evening of wonderful seafood, great atmosphere, and great weather. What more can you possibly ask for? Our time in Port Douglas was coming to an end and we were not ready leave.
We went straight to a tour boat for the Great Barrier Reef early on Monday morning. We didn’t want to waste any time or the beautiful tropical weather on anything but seeing this amazing wonder of the world. I can remember when the kids were young going along on field trips to the IMAX to see films about the Great Barrier Reef, never in my mind thinking that I would someday actually be there in person.
We chose a small tour on a boat called the Calypso. We decided on the smaller group since the crews seemed to interact better with small groups than the boats that were taking out over 200 people in one trip. Our boat probably had less than 50 people. The crew was excellent and very attentive to our needs the whole day. We would be making three stops along what was called Opal Reef during our day at sea. Joe and I decided that we wanted to try to scuba dive at least once during the day. We were briefed and although I was very anxious, I was a little excited to be diving on the Great Barrier Reef.
On our first stop, we were not in the group of divers so we spent our time snorkeling along the reef. There was an underwater photographer swimming around taking some amazing shots of everyone. There was even a large fish named Marvin that is always at the dive stop that was eager to interact with everyone and get his picture taken. Words can’t describe seeing the reef up close and personal. The colors of the corals, fish and water are breathless. It is the most peaceful feeling you can imagine, floating through the water and seeing this beautiful site.
On our next stop we were up to take our shot at scuba diving. First of all, for something to look so effortless, it is the most cumbersome thing I think I have ever done. The equipment is heavy, they put a weight belt on you and I was very nervous about breathing underwater. I was afraid of being claustrophobic underwater and just couldn’t seem to get over my anxiety. Once we were underwater we would have to go through some drills to make sure we knew what to do once we got started. I was OK at clearing my mask and unstopping my ears but getting the breathing was another thing altogether. One drill we had to do was to show the instructor how we could cope if we accidentally lost our breathing apparatus while underwater. I got the thing back in my mouth OK but in the process also took in a lot of water. I thought I was in big trouble and began to panic. My dive instructor was the most amazing, patient person and he literally calmed me down while we were still not even six feet under water. I was ready to give it all up.
I finally got my breathing under control and off we went down into depths of the Great Barrier Reef. It is the most calming feeling to be swimming (well, in my case, gently guided by my instructor) down among the beautiful corals and fish. We saw giant clams and fish in every color you can imagine. Sorry to report we saw no giant turtles or sharks. They say they very seldom see sharks in the area and don’t see turtles very often. I never got completely comfortable underwater, I never felt like I was breathing comfortably and it felt like we were down for the LONGEST time. All in all it was about 30 minutes and we went down about thirty feet. The whole experience was very exciting and I’m glad I at least tried it. I’m still not sure if diving is something I want to continue but I can certainly check if off my bucket list. That dive also counts toward a certification if we decide to pursue that path.
On our third stop I opted to stay with the snorkeling. Joe decided to dive again. He was really enjoying this opportunity and taking full advantage of it. I myself loved just swimming around on top of the water, snorkeling and looking at the beauty below the surface of the water. The underwater pictures we took in no way can do this beautiful site justice. The people who run these tours are quick to stress the delicacy of the reef and continually encourage you to look but not touch what you are seeing around you. We saw only a minute portion of what makes of the Great Barrier Reef. It goes for over 1,600 miles and runs along the coast of Queensland. As you look at on the horizon beyond the reef you can actually see the break in the surf at the edge of the reef. The whole day was an experience I will not soon forget and I only hope that I can someday return.
Our trip back to shore took about an hour. Going back in we were able to get a glimpse of the coastline where we were staying in Port Douglas. It is a beautiful little seaside town and I only wish we had made plans to stay longer in this area. Back at the hotel I was overcome with either seasickness, food poisoning or swallowing too much sea water but was ill the rest of the evening. Poor Joe had to eat at the hotel dinner buffet and enjoy an array of local seafood dishes all alone. ☹
The next morning I was feeling better and we decided to get out and see some of the surrounding area. We opted out of another tour since most of them took you one to two hours out of the area and were gone almost all day. We chose to visit the Rainforest Habitat Wildlife Sanctuary in Port Douglas. It has rainforest area, wetlands area and a grassland area. Along the way we saw many species of birds native to the area, kangaroos, wallabies, emus, crocodiles and of course, my absolute favorite, the koala. I also got an opportunity to hold Bailey the Koala, which turned to be a highlight of my entire trip. Although they appear to very gentle, we were told that koalas can be very aggressive if need be and are very particular about where and how they want to be touched. Bailey was very solid, compact and not at all as light as he appeared to be. He was awakened from his sleep to be held by the visitors. Koalas are nocturnal by nature so being awake during the daylight hours is quite unusual. We were told that they only allowed Bailey to be held a couple of days a week and only for a period of about 15 minutes so my time with him was very short. Barely enough time to get a picture snapped. I LOVED the whole experience.
The kangaroos were also fun to watch. We were able to walk in the compound where they lived on marked paths. At times they were close enough to reach out and touch. One instance we saw was two workers with a baby kangaroo that had been pushed out of the pouch by its mother. They had made a couple of attempts to put the baby back but the mother continued to push it back out. They said they would have to probably find a surrogate mother or hand the raise the baby if the mother rejected it. We also saw a young joey along side his mother. We then saw him jump into the pouch and watched as it stuck its little head out to see what was going on around him. Amazing to watch these animals.
We saw a granddaddy of a crocodile. It had to have been over ten feet and was very intimidating. Even though not moving, it gave you a creepy feeling just to look at it. We did however get to pet a little guy that was about two and half feet long. Mouth taped of course!
We spent the rest of the day back at our beautiful hotel. The Sheraton Mirage Resort is right on the shoreline. The grounds and buildings are surrounded by a series of saltwater lagoons that you can actually swim in just about anywhere. The shoreline is a beautiful site but people don’t seem to go to the beach much. At 5:00 we went to a small marina bar that is known for feeding a giant grouper that lives under the dock every evening. We sat in anticipation with the rest of the crowd waiting for the appearance of the big fish but to no avail. We had dinner in town at a small little seafood restaurant looking out at a beautiful sunset. Once again, another evening of wonderful seafood, great atmosphere, and great weather. What more can you possibly ask for? Our time in Port Douglas was coming to an end and we were not ready leave.
Next stop Melbourne and the end of our journey.
Stay tuned.
Love to all!
1 comment:
What a once in a lifetime adventure! I am so proud of you, Kim, for conquering your fears and scuba diving! And, that koala was so cute! I'm so glad that you & Joe are getting to share all of these wonderful trips. :)
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