If I were king of the fore-e-e-est

We packed A LOT into 9 days (and still had a little time to relax)!  Here’s the rundown:

·         Flew to Cairns, rented a car, drove to Port Douglas.
·         Disregarded the warning sign that the bridge over Mossman Gorge was out and thus had part of the Daintree Rainforest to ourselves for a little hike.  (The bridge was just fine.)  The Daintree Rainforest, at 120 million years old, is the world’s oldest rainforest.  The trees and their root systems were unbelievable.
·         Traveled the Daintree River in search of some salties (saltwater crocodiles).  Apparently we were supposed to see the 3.7m male croc who inhabits the area, and apparently we were the only boat in 2011 not to see any crocs.  
·         Indulged in a 6 course meal in the rainforest while listening to aboriginal stories and tunes on the dijeridoo. 
·         Visited a wildlife sanctuary where we held a koala named Glenn, petted wallabies and emus, saw the cassowary (giant flightless bird), a tree kangaroo, a giant salty and his giant teeth!

·     Crossed the Daintree River by car ferry and continued on the twisty and narrow road to Cape Tribulation.  Warning signs of cassowary crossings everywhere, and this bird definitely would have done some serious damage to our golf cart-esque rental car.  Fortunately we didn’t encounter one (though it would have been pretty cool to see in the wild!).

·         Camped for three nights on the beach in Cape Trib.  Saw a couple of amazing sunsets, beautiful blue Ulysses butterflies, and had wild turkeys and a lace monitor lizard as daily guests to our campsite. 

·         Visited an exotic fruit farm and tasted the following fruits:  West Indian Lime, Pommelo, Abiu, Black Sapote, Davidson Plum, Longan, Yellow Sapote, Solo Papaya, Rollinia, Soursop.
·         Sea kayaked around the Cape.  Tried to surf with our kayak (we need a little work on that).  Saw a giant sea turtle. 
·         Returned our rental car and took a ferry to Fitzroy Island on the Great Barrier Reef.  Whales were migrating in front of the resort.
·    Adam visited the outer reef during the first day of my dive course.  
·    Saw the clown fish go in and out of the anemone (it really is just like Finding Nemo).  

·    Heard the whales when I was 20 feet deep. 
·    Encountered a 4m tiger shark on my fourth and final certification dive.  Luckily he wasn’t hungry and we have all of our limbs. =)
·    I completed my dive certification!  

The cassowary's claws, the croc's teeth, and the tiger shark's mere presence reminded us that we were much more cowardly lions than kings of the forest.  

We had an amazing trip that only could have been better if it was shared with friends and family.  


Love, 
Kelly and Adam