Australia, that captivating country full of landscapes, whose horizon has no end and plenty of the strangest creatures, whose evolution separated from the rest of the continents more than 35 million years ago. This country is a dream for many people; a representation of the faraway, the novelty and the unknown, the foreign, odd and fabulous that this planet can be.
This enormous island leaves no one
indifferent. Forget about moving from a starting point and touring in daily
trips and get ready to take your driving license and be long on the road. Here
the distances are enormous and long hours driving are inescapable.
Our journey
runs between Sydney and Daintree Forest in 22 days. It was September and, during
that month, the route southwards could be cold, while the heat becomes bearable
in the north; so there was no doubt: this one was the right route in late
winter and the start of spring. First moments planning the trip, the desire of
going places, both, in the north and south of the country, can bother and
distract you. But here is my first advice: focus yourself! Don’t try to go all
over the country in a single trip and enjoy better traveling during the right
season in each place.
We flew from
Barcelona to Sydney: 20 hours of flight without counting the time in transfer.
I remember the moment I woke up and saw sunrise. I looked out the window and I
could tell Australia there. We were already arriving! (I thought) But it was a
false illusion. We were flying over Australia, we did were; but there were
still 4 hours of flight left to reach our destination. Anyway, patient was a
good alley, because this trip was completely worth.
Sydney and
surroundings:
We landed in Sydney. Since we wouldn't be much time in cities for the entire trip, we decided that Sydney was worth at least one day. We decided to pick up the car on the second day and walk around the city at the very beginning of our trip.
We joined a “free-tour” to learn a little about the history and curiosities of the places we were visiting. We went to the city center and the most emblematic places throughout the morning, ending at the Sydney Opera House. It seemed like a nice city to me, pleasant to live in. I'm not very enthusiastic about cities, but I did enjoy that day. I daydreamed having done a scholarship there; surely it would have been fabulous. There was a young and safe atmosphere. There were many huge, quiet and green parks, plenty of black-headed ibises.
In the afternoon we crossed the river
to Luna Park. It was cold, under 10 ºC. Luckily, we had have taken a coat –
which wouldn’t be never used once again after heading north.
The second day, we picked up the car that would take us all the way up the coast to Daintree, dropping it off back in Cairns at the end of the trip to catch a domestic flight back to Sydney. That day we did not want to be too long on the road, since we were aware of what awaited us later. We visited the most famous beaches in the area before embarking on the long Australia’s Highway 1, whose the first section northwards, from Sydney to Queensland, follows the Pacific Highway.
We visited Gordon’s Bay, Clovelly Beach and Bondi Beach in the morning and Manly and Whale Beach in the afternoon.
We starting from Dunningham Park and
walked around the Gordon’s Bay, which was deserted. In fact, all the beaches,
since it was cold and windy, they were. It was a sandy beach with houses up the
hill behind, full of green trees. We walk around taking some pictures and we
moved to Bondi. We wanted to go there by walking the trail which follows the
coast. We started it, being possible to do some kind of improvise birdwatching,
since electric blues. male and female, noisy miners, crested pigeons and even
rainbow lorikeets started to appear.
The weather got worse, falling a
storm in the middle of the trekking between Gordon’s Bay and Bondi Beach. The
rain started to fall, and the waves were crashing violently the sea walls.
Luckily the rain stopped soon, and we continued a while, but the dark clouds made
us decide to come back to Gordon’s and take the car to Bondi.
Bondi Beach was more different to my
eyes from others European beaches than Gordon’s was. It was huge, 1.5 km long
and curve, made of golden sand and constant waves. The sprawling sandy crescent
is spectacular but it is not the best place for a quiet sunbathe and swim. It
was easy to realize that it is an ideal for surfers. There were dozens of
surfer schools in the surroundings and it is said that the waves are gentle and
consistent, what makes it good for beginners. Here there were some surfers, who
made us stay for a bit longer, watching them enjoining. We treated ourselves
too to a photo session in the lifeguard tower, since there was no one there. It
was fun.
We moved to Manly and Whale Beach,
where they were able to stop to eat at some picnic tables.
When taking the sandwich out of the
backpack, a noisy flapping of wings sounds behind us and out of the blue, it
was there, in front of us, free and wild… a sulphur-crested cockatoo appeared.
We were delighted. It alighted in a tree branch, but soon it felt emboldened
and came to our table. The feeling of seeing these birds in the wild is
exciting. We grew up seeing these animals as the typical exotic bird to which
people love to teach speaking at home. Luckily this is not usual anymore.
This first cockatoo appearance was
really a moving moment. This kind of situation is always odd to me; familiar
and common animals in captivity, but being in their real habitat seems like an
unreal situation where someone put the animal there for me… as my mind could
not put an “exotic” animal in a natural environment for real at the first
moments. After that, it becomes an extraordinary sensation. It was funny that the
cockatoo tried to steal part of my sandwich, just like some magpie-lark in the
area. After a while, a second cockatoo appeared... and throughout the day, what
had surprised us so much at the beginning became part of our everyday routine,
as the cockatoos are as pigeons in Europe.
Walking along the beach, we saw a
group of pacific black duck in the sea. I'm not used to seeing ducks in salt
water, so it took my attention. In the evening, we dined at Manly city and we
drove back to Sydney to rest.
The day was not bad at all, but
let's say that it is dispensable.
Tilligerry
Habitat and Koala Hospital:
Our first day on the road led us northwards
to Moonee Beach, an amazing place almost 600 km from Sydney. A nonsense
distance, but the trick is to make interesting stops in between. We divided the
route into three parts: A first stop at Tilligerry Habitat, a second stop at a
koala hospital in Port Macquarie and the last one in our final destination of
the day.
We spent the morning in Tilligerry
in search of koalas in the wild. We were not lucky, but we were pleasantly
surprised by the place. It is a freely accessible natural reserve with lots of
vegetation, which extends to the beach with a sandy shore. A virgin beach, with
shallow waters when the tide is low. Full of life. Thousands of soldier crabs moved
like clouds, in unison... It was spellbinding, I could stay long watching them.
Black swans, ibis, herons and other waterbirds prowled the beach due to the
feast offered by the crustaceans. We saw some honey eaters eating from the
banksia blooms too.
The man of the property was quite
nice and friendly and he accompanied us almost all the trail, explaining a
little bit about the endemic vegetation and the history of the place.
A little before Port Macquarie there
is The Koala Hospital, a rehabilitation center for these loving animals. You
can tour on your own. You find individuals who are in public view and you can
read their stories explained on posters, but they also have others hidden from
the public because either they have a chance of being released and they want to
isolate them as much as possible from the humans, or they are in a more
critical condition, or are stressed by human presence, etc.
We arrived on time for a free guided
tour that they do daily, around 4:00 p.m. and we were able to listen and learn
more about the story of each animal, as well as learn about the great threats that
koalas are exposed to and how they are cared for, when they are brought to the
place, depending on their problem. Koalas are totally defenseless animals and
in great danger. The national programs for their rehabilitation and protection
are incredible. You find panels and pamphlets everywhere in the country, even
in supermarkets, with telephone numbers to call if you find an injured one.
Cats, roads, fires and habitat loss are their greatest threats. Them, in
addition to the widespread infection of chlamydia and other diseases, puts the
survival of the koalas at seriously risk.
It was our first contact with
koalas. It could not be in freedom but the place made us become more aware and
empathize even more with the necessary human help that these animals need at
this time. Some people already consider them functionally extinct and this
makes my hair stand on end. I strongly wish that this situation improves little
by little and we can get them out of this terrible situation.
Moone Beach
Reserve:
That same night we slept at Emerald
Beach. We wanted to take a walk after dinner. It was totally dark, but we had
our headlamps on. Already on the road, before reaching the entrance to the trail
of "Look at me know headland walk" we found the first kangaroos (Roos
to friends ;)), grazing on the grass of the sidewalk. It was incredible. It was
just our first day out of the city and we hadn't seen one yet. We got a little
further, already into the trail and we could see the shinning eyes of the
kangaroos and their silhouettes that made small jumps to move a few meters away
from us. They were huge and there were many. We turned off our headlamps to not
bother them and tried to get our eyes used to the moonlight, what allowed us to
distinguish the trail and the roos shapes.
It was very dark, the trail became more shadows and the moonlight stopped to be helpful so it was not necessary to continue bothering these animals anymore, since we needed our headlights again, so we let them graze in peace. This first encounter got us in a high, being able to figure out what awaited us the next day. Getting out of the trail, just around the houses near the entrance, a possum ran to climb on a light pole and stood watching us for seconds. This was the Australia we were looking forward to live and the trip was just starting.
Next morning, at dawn, I decided to
take a walk while my travel buddy was resting a bit longer - she is the one who
was driving all the time. It was great to see the trail for the first time in
the reddish light of dawn, totally on my own, hearing just the birds singing and
the sea. Instead of the main trail entrance I walked on the sandy shore, along
the beach. At first it was completely deserted, with some soft waves and a nice
breeze. I walked to the end of the Emerald Beach and I climbed up to the small
hill. From there I took some pictures of the beautiful view and I went down
back to the beach, since a brand new light reflected in the waters attracted my
attention. Already on the sand again, I spotted two kangaroos that were
approaching me from the distance. They went down to the shore and soaked their
feet. They stopped, looked at me and continued as if my presence were totally indifferent
to them. They passed in front of me, a few meters away, jumping on the sand,
wet by the waves.
After this amazing moment I went
back away from the beach and I walked to the “Look at me now headland”
entrance. At the beginning, this path is a little bit leafy, and the birds were
appearing such as the electric blue. When I got the hill up the beach, much
more open and with low vegetation, I could tell some roos silhouette on the
horizon. While I was walking calmly and slowly, paying attention to everything,
the roos were appearing, little by little, on my side. In order to no get far
away, I went some places off-the-trail, and then I spot a group of few galah
cockatoos. They were starting their morning feeding. Then, some magpies and
lots of kangaroos. On the way back I came across a lone swamp wallaby near the
houses. It differs in size and even in face. Although at that point of the trip
I didn't notice these differences so easily, I did see it somehow differently.
I suppose that unconsciously I distinguished the black muzzle, something that
the rest did not present.
Leaving the entrance to the path
where we were the night before, with the houses next to it, I could see a
beautiful rainbow parrot, which was feeding from the pink gum blossom.
Here I met my travel buddy and we
returned to the trail. That time, with the sun higher, the kangaroos were more
abundant. There were plenty of them. Walking around surrounded by the roos
which were craning their heads above the tall grass to watch us and jumping
across the meadow when we were close, was dreamy. The landscape was also
idyllic. Beautiful sandy beaches and hills full of vegetation of different
colors.
Returning from the trail, we found a
bearded dragon, a reptile whose throat is covered with spiny scales.
Looking behind the houses, we found
dozens of kangaroos grazing with their joeys in their pouches and individuals
of all sizes. There were some huge male too, that measured twice the females,
being really impressive and commanding respect.
In the afternoon we went to
Muttonbird Island on the coast of Coffs Harbor. It is an island where birds
nest but it was not a good season and we saw just a few. We ended up spending
the night in Byron Bay (220km more).
Byron Bay:
Byron Bay has a reputation as an
alternative and bohemian city. One of the best places to live in New South
Wales. Honestly, I didn't find it surprising at all. It was cute and nice and
an interesting atmosphere involved some streets where the live street music was
transmitting a very good vibe; but apart from that, I didn't see anything
special about it. It is true that Australia, being a country with so few cities
and urban centers, this one might be the best of the best.
In the hostel we did not have a good
experience, since there was a “party-time” all day. Too many young people
willing to drink and get sloshed. We couldn’t rest properly. That fact
destroyed the “nice and pleasant city impression” that other people talks about
and it weighed us down a bit.
Besides knowing the city a bit, we
decided to do a kayak tour along the beach to do something different and try to
spot some dolphins. We had fun. We joined a group out to sea and we had a hard
time trying to find the dolphins, but we made it. The dolphins appeared
surrounding us but they weren't particularly active, they just went out to
breathe and little else. No jumping or games. The sea was really rough.
Although it was sunny, the waves began to gather strength. In fact, it was
quite a feat to be able to get out of the sea with the kayak. Luck of the
monitors who, sometimes, had to pull us toward the shore. Rowing against the
current became very difficult and we reached the shore really wiped out... Now
it was time for the surfers to take the sea.
After lunch, we took a walk to the
Cape Byron Lighthouse. We went up around the beach with spectacular views. We
were even able to see the dolphins better from up there. Right next to the trail
we came across a carpet python. I was excited to see the first snake.
Moreton o
Tangalooma Island:
At dawn we took the car to the port
of Brisbane. We had a ferry to Moreton Island at mid-morning and 170 km of road.
Nevertheless, and used to get up early, we got the port early enough to change
our ferry ticket and be on board of a previous one that was sailing just 20 min
later than our arrival. We had no intention of visiting the city of Brisbane since
Tangalooma called our attention much more. It was a stroke of luck, since this
island will become one of the best places of the trip and we earn half a
morning there; it was truly worth it.
As soon as we went ashore, a
multitude of pelicans and cormorants were awaiting on the beach. After
checking-in and on the way to our room, we came across a bush stone-curlew, what was really impressive
due to its enormous eyes, what seems disproportionate to its head. Also,
a masked lapwing and its chick were on the surrounding lawn.
Then we went for a walk along the
beach until we reached the wrecks of Tangalooma. The sand was full of starfish
and crabs. The stars are dragged by the tides and end up piling up and dying in
some areas, where the rotten smell can be sensed in the environment. Luckily,
the stink is only noticed in certain areas, so it is easy to avoid it quickly.
In the forest touching the sand, we
had already seen a white-bellied sea
eagle, a brahminy kite, the galah cockatoo and the iconic laughing
kookaburra. Some lizards hid quickly, but we could see one eastern blue-tongue
lizard. Its body is quite odd, with such as very short legs, that it can be
mistaken for a snake if it is just glimpsed. On the sunken ship, whose some
parts sticks out of the water, cormorants rested and sunbathed.
We snorkeled around the wrecks. The
water was freezing and we didn't see any special species. If you like water and
dive, you must do this snorkel, but if you are not a big fan, it may be
dispensable.
At sunset we returned to the
Tangalooma Resort to watch the sun going down quietly. The Galah cockatoos were
around the green down the palm trees near the sandy beach. After the idyllic
sunset, we approached the port, since some spotted wobbegong sharks and
dolphins appear there almost every night.
At Tangalooma Resort the wild
dolphins have been trained over the years and show up every night and start
playing around the pier. If you stay there, you can line up to be able to feed
them with a fish with your own hand. They give you strict instructions not to
touch or scare the dolphins. But they have made the experience of watching them
swim and play from the dock a kind of show. They let you feed them once and
then, they sell you the “official” photo. It is a unique experience, but one
that faces opposite sensations. Although it is true that a fish does not prevent
them from hunting in the wild (therefore you do not make them dependent
animals), they are altering somehow the natural behavior of these dolphins.
Anyway, the sudden appearance of
these dolphins after the sun goes down it was really joyful and funny. They
approached the port at high speed, surfing the waves and the babies were
playing their own “tag game”. They were maybe like a half an hour there, before
6.30 pm, the time at which the line started to form for the feeding time. This
half an hour was the best. They were completely doing what they felt like, no
show at all, just being themselves near the shore.
Next day we walked on the pier to
see the seabirds again and then we looked for a desert route by ourselves. Moreton
is the world’s third biggest sand island and in the center, there are high sand
dunes, one of the highest in Australia, Mt Tempest comes in at 280m high. But
we were to the sand desert near Tangalooma, where they can arrange a tour for
you, but we didn’t want. We walked along the beach for a while until we reached
the beginning of a trail that was going up the hill by some wooden stairs in
the middle of the forest. Then, it reaches the top, where it is possible to
devise the huge and fascinating sand dunes. Down there we saw a
"truck" of tourists that looked like a little ant. They were the
organized tours that take you there, but you can do it completely by yourself,
like us. We went down the sandy hill and behaved like babies, throwing
ourselves across the sand and rolling around like croquettes for a while. It
was fun and something different.
We then headed back near the resort for sunset again and to be back at the dock for watching the dolphins and sharks approaching at night. At some point we saw a kind of a huge rat, but we never saw it again and it was impossible to identify it.
Noosa Heads
and Hervey Bay:
When we took the boat from Moreton
Island back to Mainland Australia, we had almost 300 km ahead to Hervey Bay. We
stopped at the middle of the journey, at Noosa Heads and its Natural Park.
We took the coastal track to Hell's
Gate, with incredible views. The day was warm and the blue of the ocean and the
sky, together with the green of the vegetation, drew a beautiful landscape. At
Hell's Gate, we took the Tanglewood track to transform the coastal route into a
circular one and return to the entry point. That trail led through the forest
on the mountain. It is not very busy, since there are no views there, but the
place is very pleasant and, surely, you should see more animals than on the
coastal trail, although it was not our case. Apart from birds and reptiles, we
were lucky to see the first wild Koala. It was on the coastal track and it was
asleep in a eucalyptus tree. We stayed for a long time, but it didn't move a
finger. These animals sleep most of their lives. It is amazing, but a little
bit boring and a neck pain source.
At lunch time, we wandered around
Noosa Heads looking for somewhere with appetizing food. This little town
pleasantly surprised us. It was obvious that it was very touristy, but it had
its charm. It gave a relaxed and alternative atmosphere, at the same time it
was clean and cute, young and healthy. We ended up eating a delicious poke bowl
on a small terrace and then we followed northwards to Hervey Bay.
In Hervey Bay, the accommodation was
already a place teeming with fauna. We were not far from the port, at Sanctuary
Lake Fauna Retreat where the private villa overlooked their picturesque lake
with only the sounds of the resident wildlife to break the silence. The lake was
full of waterbirds: ducks, geese or ibis, swamphen and moorhen, as well as countless
turtles from the Maria river, which were approaching to you full of algae everywhere.
In Hervey Bay there are countless
eco-friendly companies for whale watching. We had pre-booked with one of them
and the next morning, they came to pick us up at the door of the accommodation.
They warned us of rough sea. The water was choppy with quite a few waves, but
it was safe. They gave us the opportunity to postpone the day if we wanted to,
if we were scared of waves or afraid of feeling very dizzy. We had no more
options since we should leave the next day so there was no change possible for
us. They assure that it was safe so... let’s go!
They were not wrong at all about the
rough sea. The boat kept moving to one side and the other. Even at speed, the
sensation of capsizing was noticeable, but it was decreasing a bit. Once the
motors were stopped, standing still it was tremendously uncomfortable. Luckily,
it didn't take us long to find the first whales and, from then on, it was quite
a spectacle. I don't know how many we could see there, but they were jumping
near and far from the boat. There were many of them and they were very active.
I have seen whales in other places but never like that. I had always spot them
come up to breathe to go back under, but there they were communicating with
each other continuously. Jump to the right, back whip, banked pirouette... or
pulling out the fin and swinging it from side to side. A female appeared with its
calf being continuously together but they were more quite and they didn't jump.
With no doubt, the best whale watching I've experienced so far. We almost forgot about the rough sea and the rocking of the boat, if it hadn’t been for the constant tension for the efforts to not losing our camera in one of the sudden movements or do not falling into the water ourselves during a distraction. Honestly, it was truly possible.
After that show, we were offered
food for lunch... but this could be a drama. With a knife and a wiggle, we
could kill someone or ourselves. We almost couldn't have lunch. Luckily, the
rough sea was only uncomfortable. Some of us felt dizzy and after the touring
we were all spinning. But it was worth it.
In the afternoon we went to Fraser
Island, to the most remote part of the island and less crowded. There is no
free transportation to Fraser Island so it is necessary to hire an organized
tour. We went to Wathumba Creek, kayaking through its wetlands where we found a
green turtle and different birds as the yellow-billed spoonbill. The atmosphere
was pleasant and evolving. There were no sound but the birds and our kayaks
plowing through the waters. We stopped in a sandy small beach to rest for a
while and enjoy the scenery and then we came back to leave the kayak and sunbath.
I took my diving goggles and jumped into the water. Apart from bothering the
small puffer fishes and another green turtle, there was little else to do. There
was no reef, just a sandy bottom, so it was not so plenty of life such as other
places. We went back for a picnic on the boat and then, we strolled along an
endless white sandy beach. The sunglasses where so essential due to the
reflection of the sun on the extremely white sand of Awinya Beach. I was lucky
to have them.
Road to
Rockhampton:
Our next destination was Eungella
National Park, but the journey is so long (about 800 km – 9h) that I recommend splitting
it in two days. We stayed in Rockhampton, at halfway, but even so, the journey
that awaited us that day was also long and tiring.
Since the final destination of the
day did not attract our attention, we wanted to dress up the day, with some
interesting stops. We woke up wanting to search for kangaroos, since we knew
that further northwards it would be more complicated. The follow stages of our
roadtrip it is more a wallaby area and not kangaroos. Although for
inexperienced eyes they are the same at first, in the end you see the enormous
differences between them. Kangaroos are much larger and more put on muscle.
Even their faces differ.
Searching for information on the
Internet, we found that kangaroos are often seen in Venont Point, an area of
Hervey Bay. Our first challenge of the day was to bump into some roos before
we leave the city. We drove to that area. There was a large park between the marine
passage and the houses. It didn't seem like the best place to see kangaroos,
but there wasn't much else. We went down and walked around for a while, but
decided to drive further. We drive wandering between the chalets for a while.
We saw the signs "attention, kangaroos" all around but we did not see
any appropriate place to see them. Some photos on the Internet show the
kangaroos in the gardens of the houses, so we did not want to give up. We also
passed through areas where the sides of the road were "forest" or
"urban park" but absolutely nothing could be seen.
Just as we were leaving the
neighborhood, my travel buddy had a hunch and backed off. She turned east and
crossed two perpendicular streets. We stopped the car in a dead-end street and
we tried our luck behind the houses. Surprisingly, they were there! A mob of
kangaroos resting in the shade of the trees and grazing. A jill (female) was
scratching and staring at us, swiveling its ears when we were whispering. Suddenly,
a joey leaned out the pouch. It was quite funny seeing the baby with its legs
and its head out; without a doubt, it was a good contortionist!
We went stealthily and very quietly
approaching and, at a safe distance, we stayed watching them and enjoying the
moment. Jack was really toned on. I wouldn’t like to be hit by it. It is funny
for me that local people referred to the male (jack) / female (jill) / baby
(joey) roos with special names). The
male didn’t stop grazing but when it was staring, it looked quite defiant. Of
course, we took no more steps forwards, we were close enough.
The Bruce highway was under
construction and, furthermore, Australians never exceed the speed limit. And
when I say never it is never. It didn't matter that the road was straight and totally
empty. If it marks 80 km/h, everyone goes at 80 km/h... and if they mark 20
km/h... it's 20 km/h... even though the reason –the construction- in some
sections were not even started yet and no evidence of it and, of course, nobody
working, drivers did not exceed 20 km/h… it was exasperating sometimes. It was
something that surprised me a lot, since in Europe, this does not usually
happen and we take advantage of any opportunity to accelerate and move forward.
So trust Google's time calculation, you will not be able to shorten even a
minute. It was one of the most tiring driving ever.
We didn't find anything else
interesting along the way that wouldn't make us detour and lengthen the road
trip, so we headed straight for Rockhampton. Of course, a stop for a coffee and
stretching our legs was necessary. We stopped at Big Giraffe Café, in Bororen.
A highway bar that had great reviews. We didn't eat there, but it looked like
home cooking. The coffee was very good and the place... well, the bar is something
worthy to see. I recommend not look at pictures in anticipation and enter the
back terrace without spoilers. You will get a fun surprise.
Then we continued until we got
Rockhampton. We walked around the city and we ended up entering the Zoo that
was for free, to spend the afternoon -there's not much else to do in Rockhampton-
and to be able to see some animals that we knew we wouldn't find on our route,
such as the wombat, the dingo -since in Fraser Island we did not get to see- or
the emu.
At night we walked along the river
bank, we had a few beers in a very American sport bar but with the best beers –some
pale ale- we found in Australia... Lagers are massive watery and very
expensive.
Next day we continued the road to
Eungella.
Eungella
National Park:
The arrival to the Eungella National
Park was kind of tough with lots of slope and curves during a continuous steep
drive up the Clarke Range. There was no one on the road, lucky of us, because
the cliff on the roadside and the narrow road were tricky and sometimes not
very safe.
We were staying inside the National
Park. The main attraction that brought us there was the platypuses. These
unusual creatures in the animal kingdom are often described as a mix of a
paddle-shaped tail, like a beaver; a sleek, furry body, like an otter; and a
flat bill and webbed feet, like a duck.
Broken River in Eungella is one of
the best places for having some chance to spot the platypuses in the wild, in
the natural environment. The platypuses are not just odd animals but really
rare to see as well. The best hours are during the dawn and dusk. This is the
reason why staying inside the park is almost a “must” since the opening hours
leave out these best moments.
Once there and after a well-deserved
shower, we went directly to the Broken River walk, near the accommodation.
There, some areas dispose "viewing platforms" from where the platypuses
might be seen during the key hours of dawn and dusk. At night is when the
platypuses are more active, but late in the evening or early in the morning are
the best chance to spot them feeding. During cloudy days with cold weather they
could become more active during the day, because it means they need more food
so have to spend more time finding it. It was sunny so it might not be our day.
The platforms in the Broken River
offer a good sight of that area where it is known some platypus family have
their burrows or shelters. It is important to be patient and wait for rapid ripples
and bubble trails in the water that might appear. These bubbles come from the
bottom of the river, where the platypuses are busy removing the sediment
looking for food. Soon they come out again for few seconds to breathe.
It was near dusk, so during the walk
around the river our eyes were wide open. In the trail to the fist platform, we
didn't see anything, but the river side was quite nice. Just when we reached
the first platform, we saw one platypus near the opposite shore, quite far, but
it already gave us the rush. We knew that Broken River was a good area to see
them, but we didn't expect to find them so soon. It was a priceless luck. The
platypus was coming out every few minutes for a few seconds just to dive again.
Sometimes the bubbles were appearing near us, sometimes further than at the
beginning, but we were patiently waiting for them to float atop the water.
As time went by, we saw some more individuals.
All the time they were appearing and disappearing. I was also surprised to see
a short-billed cormorant in the river. I expected it closer to the coast. We
continued the trail to cover it completely before dark. We reached a point
where the vegetation was so dense that it had “eaten” the trail and, then, we went
back to search for a second platform on the opposite direction of the trail,
which we hadn't covered yet.
There we saw some platypus too, but
far from the platform. We also saw a wallaby that got scared as we passed. At
night, we were lucky and just that day of the week, a night out was organized from
the accommodation completely free of charge for guests. Obviously, we had an
early dinner and joined the tour.
The specialist guide was quite a
character. I don't know if it was his peculiar accent, impossible to understand
100% or if he had taken a few extra whiskeys that night… I guess we'll never
know. We tried to see wallabies behind the villas, which are supposed to appear
around there, but we didn't see any. We approached the entrance booth to the
river walk and there, we could see some amphibians and some geckos. On the
bridge that leads across the river to the trail a family of platypuses was
having a feast. The guide explained to us that they had a nest just under the
bridge. There were several platypuses but at dark, with just the light of the
guide’s torch and our headlight it wasn’t easy to watch them properly. We also spotted
several cape toads floating and swimming in the water. This species is an
American toad that has invaded many parts of Australia and is becoming a
problem for different native species.
On the way back we found some
wallabies on an esplanade in a blink of an eye. They went away jumping as soon
as we appeared.
At dawn we tried our luck again. We
went to the two platforms quickly to decide in which to stay. On the way, just
in the grass that surrounded our bungalow there were some beautiful blue
parakeets feeding on the ground. On the second viewing platform we spotted a
platypus. There I went off the trail to get closer to the shore nearby. Hidden
into the vegetation and the trees, I found a good place to watch it perfectly.
Just a meter or two away from me, I could enjoy this amazing creature. Thanks
to the large jets of bubbles while it was feeding, it was easy to guess the
spot where it was going to come out. Because it was not conscious or bothered
by my presence, it stayed all the while in the same area and I could watch it
again and again. I never thought I could have this animal so close in a totally
wild way.
Airlie beach
and Whitsunday Islands:
On the way to Airlie Beach, at 170 km away from
Eungella, we stopped at Cape Hillsborough National Park. It is reputed to have
kangaroos there but for that it is better to do it as the first thing in the
morning. At that time we were still in Eungella enjoying the platypus, which we
thought was more appropriate. Likewise, the stop was worth it to stretch our
legs and enjoy a wallaby very close to the campsite that was wandering around,
within the vegetation, but easy to see. It seemed to be an individual who
frequented the area, since it was not so afraid of human presence either
(although it always kept a safe distance). This wallaby was a pretty faced
wallaby, one of the two most characteristic species of the area, together with
the agile wallaby.
We walked along a walk trail and the beach, with
an extensive shore area. The sunrise here along with the kangaroos must be
spectacular, but at that time, the sun was quite hard and it was deserted.
In Airlie Beach we find the typical tourist
seaside town, overcrowded with apartments and souvenir shops. For a change of
scenery, it was not bad. We were able to have a drink and a comfortable dinner,
as well as a nice walk along the beach and the promenade.
The stop in Airlie Beach wasn’t for the beach
or the night life, but because it has the closest port to access the Whitsunday
Islands. We took fast boats, super comfortable. The speed, in addition to
adding fun with some good music as RHCP or Silverchair, made me enjoy the ride
a lot and not get dizzy. We did two snorkeling stops of 1h each. One of them
near Hook Island and the second one on Border Island. The water here already
maintained a pleasant temperature with the neoprene, and it is possible to
easily last an hour without freezing. The corals also deserved it.
Snorkeling locations are protected from wind and
waves which enables calm water and comfortable experience. There are a large
variety of colorful reef in the Whitsundays plenty of many hard corals such as pillarcorals,
platecorals such as heliofungia which can be confused with anemones, braincorals
or staghorncoral; some soft corals such as cabbagecorals and also anemones. These
beautiful corals are full of fishes. Damsels, fusiliers, butterflyfish,
rabbitfish, flutefish, parrotfish, angelfish, wrasses, trouts, cods, groupers
and more was swimming around the corals.
I was surprised to see some almost transparent
squids –glitter squids- (although they look pink in the picture) and the
tropical rock lobster that made me swim around with prudent, since I did not
know whether the striking and brightly blue colors on the carapace and the
orange spines meant poisonous or not – in Australia everything can be
poisonous-. Now I know they are not. They were huge and the antennae were extremely
long and always moving in my direction, what made that respect and prudence grew
even more. They were fully alert for my presence. Now I know they are among the
largest of the Panuliris lobsters and they are nocturnal and rarely seen out
during the day. I was lucky so.
I must say, that at the beginning,
after jumping from the boat, nothing was as I described before. Unfortunately,
there are areas in the Whitsunday’s reef that are dead. I could see some. This
is because, in addition of bleaching problems, the Cyclone Debbie left the reefs
in ruins, damaging and destroying the corals in many areas. It was startling to
jump into the water and see just death: grey and faded dead corals and almost
no fishes around. I was stunned, and shocked. Fortunately, swimming far from
the boat, the colors and lives came to push aside the grey and horrifying
previous scenery.
After snorkeling, we went for
stretching our legs. The Hill Inlet lookout to the lookout above the silica sand
of Whitehaven and its walk up to the Lookout is not bad at all, just a little
bit crowded and probably suggest a minimum level of fitness because of the
number of steps, but also has flattened areas. The biggest problem was the hard
sun. The views are well worth the walk since you can see the Whitehaven Beach in
its full glory from this lookout. The image from the top of this lookout is
probably one of the most photographed of the country, but I am sure there are
no pictures completely the same since the white sand forms changes with the
oceans waves and tidal from time to time and the contrast in blue tones between
the sunlight and the shadows of the clouds are changing constantly. But those
colors always draw a picturesque landscape.
It can be seen also a tip of white sand where we went. It is Betty's Beach, which you can only access to it if you book with our operator. We were the firsts in stepping the sandy beach that day, so the sand was completely flat, without any footstep at all. Virgin and white sand just for us. It was a stunning beach and the walk and the lunch there was completely relaxing and refreshing after the hours of snorkeling.
Magnetic Island:
A short ferry ride separates
Townsville from Magnetic Island. This island is an essential on our trip, since
it is one of the best places to see wild animals. It offers two highlights: it
is one of the best places to find koalas in the wild and also it is easy to
find the rock wallabies. It is a tropical island paradise that has a unique
natural environment. It is 52 km2 but you can take your car with you
on the ferry, so moving around the island is not a problem.
We disembarked at Nelly Bay and
headed for Horseshoe Bay, at the northern end of the island, where we were
staying in some bungalows on the bay. The place has its own
"sanctuary" for animals, but that's not why it can be interesting. In
the enclosure of this accommodation you can find animals roaming in freedom,
especially at night, when nobody bothers them.
The first day, after unpacking, having
lunch near the beach and enjoying the lorikeets' feeding time in the accommodation
enclosure, we decided to go to search for the rock wallabies. The best spot to find
them in Magnetic Island is Geoffrey Bay, at the end of the Arcadia Jetty Road.
The best time is early in the morning or late in the afternoon. They have been
fed for tourists for time ago so they are not much shy there anymore. The
colony is big enough that you are almost guaranteed to spot one. There’s no
need to feed them, in fact it can cause problems like overpopulation. It is
recommended not to do it so but, being aware of preventing people to feed them
is almost impossible, there are big panels and signs with a list of food that,
at least, will not make them sick.
Leaving behind the main road and
getting to the rocks at the end of the left part of the bay, it is on a colony
of the delightful rock wallabies resident. Walking further around the rocks and
passing a balancing rock tunnel, the small wallabies started to be seen. First
of all, a female was eating some leftovers that someone left between the rocks. These rock wallabies are much smaller than other
wallabies and kangaroos and they nimbly jump from rock to rock.
The accommodation was excellent for
a night walk in search of nocturnal animals. Right next to the bungalow we saw the
first possums and agile wallabies that roamed the accommodation enclosure. Outside
the complex, it was completely dark. There was no light at all, not even at the
roadside. Walking alongside the road, we heard a noise among the bushes. We
stopped and tried to identify where it was coming from. With our headlamp we
could find an echidna digging through the dry leaves. It was a rush! When our
light illuminated it, it got alarmed under the possible thread of our presence
and it dug a small hole and rolled itself up into a ball of spines for
protection. It was rolled in a flash, so we couldn't enjoy it for long. Nevertheless,
we were not expecting to see echidnas on our trip, so that was a gift. This animal
is similar to a hedgehog or porcupine, but it is colloquial called “spiny
anteater”. Anyway, it is much rarer animal than that. The echidna is a monotreme
and the only living egg-laying mammal species, along with the platypus. It is one
of those oddities of nature and evolution.
Near the residential houses, after a
lonely roadside walk, we passed through what we thought was a park. It was
bordered by large trees and vegetation but we felt too much curiosity to look
through it. It was a large esplanade and there were a lot of sudden movement
and with the help of the weak moon-light we concluded it was a large number of larger
wallabies than the rock ones – agile wallabies -. As soon as we entered the
illuminated area of the houses we turned around towards the accommodation
area, since our headlamp wasn’t good enough to explore the forest behind the esplanade
where the wallabies disappeared.
At midnight, since I was awake and I
couldn't sleep, I went out for a night walk again in case I found any other animals.
Among the bungalows, I could see a wallaby again, which jumped away when it saw
me, and on one of the paths that lead to the reception, there was a cute and peaceful
echidna, it did not run away or roll itself in terror. Luckily I spotted it from
afar, since the path had constant dim lights. I got closer very little by
little, and I lied on the ground to watch it from the same level. It didn't
seem scared and kept walking and sniffing everything looking for ants. I was there,
staring at it for a quite long time, since I felt it might be the last one I would
see – and so it was.
Next morning, we headed towards The Forts. The Forts Walk is a hiking trail that claims to be the best on the island to find koalas in the wild, as well as giving you countless amazing views from the top of the fortresses. It starts at a right hand turn off the main road and the ride is about 3.5-4 km round trip so it takes about 1-1.5 hours at a normal pace but if you are a foodie of animals, leave yourself free all morning. At the very beginning of the trekking the first eucalyptus trees surrounded the trail. We walked slowly, stopping to look at each eucalyptus in case there was a sleeping koala. There the largest colony of free koalas in all of northern Australia lives, so we could not accept not seeing any! It took us a long time to spot the first one, which was sleeping in a branch of the canopy of one of the eucalyptus trees, but from here on, we found more and more. At least 6 or 7 koalas we could see during the trekking.
Near the fortresses in the final
high stage of the trekking we had a little emotional meltdown. We saw how other
tourists were climbing a tree to take selfies with a koala that was there. At
first we felt aggravated because they were noisy and we felt that climbing the
tree for a selfie crosses the line and tramples the personal space of the wild
animal; but that was not the worst. After they left and we were taking some pictures
of that koala, we could realize that it presented a rainy noise. It was the
most active and “awaken” koala we saw, and that’s probably because it was not feeling
comfortable and healthy what was agitating it. The poor animal was clearly
sick. The situation got even sadder and more irritating. It is incomprehensible
how they could be selfieing with the koala, messing it up, and not even paying
attention to the animal – because clearly it wasn’t a good image for social
media with this poor rainy noise koala but they did not even notice that, it
was like they not even look at the animal face. Shame. People don’t like animals, don’t like
traveling, they just want to boast and putting on an appearance in the social
media. They don’t really live what they are doing.
We took photos of the animal, the tree and the nearby billboards and tried to memorize the place in detail. First thing in arriving at the accommodation was raising the alarm so that they could go look for the sick koala and take it to a koala hospital to save it. They listened to us with attention and wrote down all the information. It was worth. Already in Spain I wrote them to ask about it. It seemed they found it and the animal was being properly cared in the koala hospital on the island.
In the afternoon we drove to the
most remote place on the island, to the west point, for another trek. The place
was very pretty, but apart from birds and some lizards, we didn't see other
animals. At sunset, we approached the place where we thought we saw wallabies
at night. It was an Australian football field and it was full of agile
wallabies! The place was very extensive and the wallabies colony very large. A
few minutes later, the football team, that was ready for the training session,
came out scaring consciously the animals away. It was a show of jumping fluffy-toy-like
animals fleeing together.
To return to mainland Australia we
took the first ferry in the morning and from Townsville we drove towards Hidden
Valley, 110 km away.
Hidden
Valley:
Crossing the mountains near Paluma
Range National Park and passing through numerous creeks and innumerable curves,
we arrived at Hidden Valley Cabins, an ecolodge that has been run by the
McLennan family for more than 35 years. This family, whose elderly couple, Ian
and Bonnie, were about to retire by then, and whose son would take over the
place, is truly noteworthy. They have a vast knowledge about the local nature
and, furthermore, their kindness and enthusiasm for what they do day by day rubbed
strongly off on us. The place was "in the middle of nowhere" with excellent
surroundings and the family service was unbeatable, offering good food and stimulating
conversation.
After our arriving, they recommended
us to do a bushwalk on our own, heading out along the Pine Creek to discover
the rock pools. The trekking was worth and we were jumping on the creek rock,
looking on the water blocked between the rocks for amphibians, insects and
others types of animals and, overall, admiring the surroundings. It was quite
hot so we decided to go back to the accommodation for rest a while and have lunch.
Still the hard sun, we observed some birds in our way back, such as the forest
kingfisher or the mangrove honeyeater.
At 4.30 pm we departed with the
family’s son to look for platypus. This place is in the top five of better
places to watch it, but that day we were not lucky. We were sitting, waiting on
the side of one creek where a family of platypus lives and had its shelter. Sunset
is in the best hours, but time went out and the night fell without any single platypus
appearance. Now we were appreciating much more our luck in Eungella. We were
very fortunate there, but this was the reality in platypuses search. Lots of
Australian hadn’t seen any in their whole lives.
Turning back, an Australian couple,
friends to the family - I guess -, were really surprised by our presence there
and curious for our motivation to stay in such as far-away from the “civilization”
lodge. We were kind of an attraction that day for them. After a wonderful
barbecue (with home-made plant-based meat for me) on the family’s garden and
interesting conversations during dinner, at 8 pm we went with Ian for a night
walk. It was just AMAZING. It was a great place to watch cute and rare
nocturnal animals including squirrel gliders and greater gliders, ringtail and
brushtail possums, wallabies, some bettongs and spiders. At just a
walking-distance from the cabins, in an off-the-road esplanade we were
surprised by some squirrel gliders jumping and gliding from tree to tree after
sighting us, a betong which stayed paralyzed with the lamp light, an one-eyed brushtail
possum up in a tall tree and all the wildlife mentioned in the list above. Even
we were talked a brilliant speech about how spotting animals in the dark with
the help of our flashlight. It is an art how to position the angle of the light
source regarding your vision and how to identify the animals just with their
eyes glow or reflection when placed under the light. Spiders’ eyes, for
example, had a creepy green glow and you can see them cents of meters away. We
had demonstration of all of that.
Even turning for the walk to the
family’s house, we were surprised with a pademelon whose
presence shocked even the owner, because that species does not live in those
latitude but a little further northwards, in the rainforest.
Also, we went silently to the family’s
garden, because a pretty-face wallaby was going there every night... and there
it was!
Mission
Beach:
Our next destination, ca 200 km
northwards, was the tranquil town of Mission Beach in search for the majestic cassowary.
These elusive flightless birds are very important to the rainforest, as they
are the only creatures capable of distributing the seeds of many species of
trees whose fruit is too large for any other forest dwelling animal to eat and
relocate. It is also famous for being the most dangerous living bird in the
world due to their razor-sharp claws, their body’s most powerful weapon.
Anyway, an unprovoked attack from cassowary is rare.
Unfortunately, the cassowaries are
on the list of the world’s endangered species. The prediction by many experts of
their possible extinct by the turn of the century would be a tragedy. They are
well beloved by locals and there are local associations that aim to preserve
the Mission Beach population. Many road signs in and out the city remind you to
slow down and be careful with the cassowaries that may cross the road.
Our accommodation was part of those organizations that report and monitor the population in the area, and it is famed for having them as frequent visitors to the gardens, that are opened to the surrounding rainforest and nature. We arrived in the morning, but not as early as the best hours to maybe spot some cassowaries in the surroundings. The owner told us that may appear during the moments after the sunrise and that day had had one as a visitor after days without –of course, they are wild animals, and their appearance is not predictable. We had breakfast and left to the rainforest to do some trekking with the hope of bumping into one of this massive birds, but we didn’t have that luck. We came back for the midday and took the car to go to Etty Bay, a beach where the cassowaries are often seen too. Maybe one kilometer from the beach town, just on one side of the road, I could see a cassowary lying down on the grass. I informed my colleague to stop the car nearby. We went out of the car and we stood from a prudent distance for a while, for taking some pictures and admiring the claws, the big leg and the spectacular and amazing physiology of this bird. It seemed calm, so did we. Seeing us stopped on the roadside, some more cars realized of the cassowary presence and they were stopping in the nearby. Soon, the cassowary stood up and left. Too much crowd for it. Then, we continued to the beach and we were walking around. It was funny to see signs of death danger for coconut falls. Also, many signs of crocodiles' presence. For us it was a peaceful walk on the sandy beach and the coastal rocks and after a while we left, assuming no more cassowaries will appear that day on that location.
During the morning, I was waiting for
my travel buddy in the decks place for guests just in front of the room doors.
The elevated rooms in the treetops were a perfect place that provided proper
views over the lush landscape below and beyond. It was a good space to sit and
be still, being in alert in case some cassowary or other animals appeared. The
ground near the rooms was full of loose stones and while I was sending some WhatsApp’s
messages on the mobile, I started to hear some footsteps. It didn’t have my
attention since I thought it was someone from the stuff walking around,
cleaning or caring of the gardens. Big mistake. When I had my head up from the
mobile and I looked to my right side, I saw a cassowary walking calming just
down the elevated rooms. Its steps sounded like human’s. I called my colleague
as soon as I can. She could have seen it first through the room windows, after
hearing the steps, but she thought the same as me, that It should be someone
from the stuff… We were completely stunned, realizing the size of its claws and
its weights. We stood staring the huge bird which was just nosing around and we
went down at half rise of the wood stairs to align better our vision with the cassowary,
but without approaching it too much. It was an incredible experience to have
this rare bird just in front of us, staring at us for moments and ignoring us
later. After a walk around the rooms, it went away as calm as it appeared,
disappearing into the forest trail which entrance was just in front of our
room.
Cairns:
140 km northwards, it is Cairns, one
of the main cities of Queensland, the biggest city after Sydney that we visited.
It has a human-made salty lagoon as a beach, due to the presence of salt crocodiles
and sharks in the ocean. Seabirds and crabs are all along the coast. The city
also has numerous shops, markets and parks and a pleasant atmosphere at night,
when having some drinks in front of the promenade it is possible to see
innumerable flying foxes in the sky.
Unfortunately, Australia already has
the highest rate of skin cancer in the world –astonishingly, 2/3 of all
Australians will have been diagnosed with some form of skin cancer by the time
they are 70 –. This fact is because of both: the Ozone layer over Australia
which was severely thinned as a consequence of the use of ozone-depleting, but
that, that “hole”, fortunately, had been diminished to its smallest after their
strict control of these substances; and also because of the “wrong” type of
skin of Australian people for their environment (whose ancestors come from much
less sunny climates and had fair skin). It is because of these that Australian
people are very conscious about the sun protection. You can find billboards and
panels all over the highway along the whole country and, also, panels of daily
UV index indicators in some beaches, and, of course, lots of local people
swimming with long-sleeves swimming cloths.
We had arranged one visit to the
Tolga Bat Hospital, in Atherton, ca 85 km from Cairns. It is the largest bat
rehabilitation in Australia that began in 1990 after hundreds of young
spectacled flying foxes became orphaned by tick paralysis. They now work with
all bats, megabat or microbat, from that region and afar. They do rehab,
caring, educational work and even revegetation projects to assure the habitat
of these flying mammals. Most of the bats can be free after their caring;
others are so injured that may stay forever with them due to the inability of
surviving by their own in the wild. Educational projects are very important
because this kind of animals are not always well-considered by people, who may
think they are terrifying, vampiric creatures of the night; but the reality is
that, even if you like them or not, they are extremely important in each ecosystem
stability, playing an essential role in
pest control, pollinating plants and dispersing seeds.
There, we learned there are two
different classifications for bats but the most done (based on morphology and behavior)
is microbats and megabats, and it is not always a matter of size. All microbats
rest with the wings folded along their forearms. Megabats do this too, but they
often have their wings wrapped across their bodies.
Usually, in this rehabilitation center, they have a lot of flying foxes arriving to their caring: spectacled, little red, black and grey-headed ones, but mostly spectacled flying foxes. They also have a nursery and a kindergarten. The abandoned bat pups were an ideal proof that baby bats can be just as adorable as any kitten or puppy. The spectacled flying foxes’ babies had an irresistible loveliness.
It was an incredible experience and
a strong feeling of grateful for the labor that the funders and volunteers are doing
there every day.
Port
Douglas and the Great Barrier Reef:
Port Douglas is one of the doors to
the Great Barrier Reef. I couldn’t miss the opportunity of diving in this
world-famous place so, while my travel buddy stayed in Mossman trekking along its
waterfalls, I joined one boat to the outer reef barrier, accessible in one day trip. We jumped into
the water somewhere around the Agincourt
Reefs for three amazing different dive sites.
Agincourt
Reef is a distant reef along the northern end of the Great Barrier Reef. It
took around one hour and a half of sailing to reach the dive points. The
staggering section of biodiversity creates one of the most pristine ecosystems
found anywhere on the reef. It runs parallel to the line with the continental
shelf, so it is a ribbon reef type and it is made up of four separate reefs
that face out to the South Pacific Ocean. Agincourt Reef is regarded as one of
the most significant sites of this natural wonder full of rich and diverse
coral gardens that help form protective ocean walls, filled with hard and soft
corals as well as the reef’s most iconic species such as sharks, stingrays,
turtles, groupers and cods, maori wrasse and parrotfish.
There are
sections of the reef just a few meters below the crystal-clear turquoise waters
where even snorkeler can enjoy. There, in the shallow lagoons, thousands of
fish inhabit a reef that is bursting with vibrancy and colors, and there are even
species like the giant purple clam.
The first
dive of the day was Nursery Bommie pinnacle, one of Agincourt Reefs top spots
to dive. Brimming with life and excellent visibility conditions. It consisted
in a plenty and brightly colored column of coral, rising from around 25 m and
decorated with sea whips, soft corals and gorgonians. At the base of the bommie
pinnacle there were schools of colorful, blue-striped snapper, but also of
picklehandle barracuda, trevally, surgeonfish and fusiliers. On the numerous
ledges can be found rock cods, lionfish, coral cods, nudibranchs and a lovely
leaf scorpionfish. The top of Nursery Bommie is home to hundreds of fairy
basslets and also massive schools of snubnose drummers, making the dive a very
memorable one.
The second location was the underwater photographers dream Three Sisters, along the inner edge of Agincourt reef. It was named such, due to the presence of 3 deep water pinnacles located on the sheltered side of a patch reef. We could enjoy a complex community of colorful branching, shrub, and plate corals and also several large boulder corals. We found several giant clams approaching their maximum size in the area. The surroundings were dominated by colorful reef fish species of small and medium sizes such as many different species of butterflyfish, colorful wrasse and parrotfish.
There, the
gardens were plenty of anemones and their resident clown fish. The shinning
colors were completely amazing due to the shallow dive and last reef flat,
extremely shallow. All the color scale was maintained visible, so it became an
incredibly experience.
The last dive was Castle Rock is a tower of coral rising from 25 m to almost break the surface and it is home to trevally, snappers, sweetlips, goatfish, fusiliers and surgeonfish. One of the features of this site is the wonderful healthy hard coral gardens found in the shallows, which are some of the best on the Great Barrier Reef. Exploring those coral gardens, I could enjoy a nice dive accompanied by lionfish, giant clams and all the typical reef fish you would expect to find on the Great Barrier Reef. This location is a good chance for encountering the white-tip reef sharks resting on the sandy ocean floor, and it was also plenty of interesting looking christmas tree worms of different colors residing on the coral.
Daintree Forest:
There massive reptiles were basking
in the sun with their big jaws open wide to avoid overheating. In the small boat
we were sailing all along the river, watching the waterbirds and these crocs. The
boat was leaving the engine running, or idling, getting slowly a close look to
the crocs. In one occasion, one of the hugest one dove into the
river just one or two meters from us. For a while, it seemed to come to us, and
it was a heartbeat quickener moment.
Other waterbirds were around the
shore, such as a juvenile black-necked stork.
After that, we went to the Walu Wugirriga Lookout. We walked in the surroundings,
and we ended up in Cape Tribulation. Many spectacled flying foxes were
hanging upside down in the branches. There were so many that our jaws drop
unconsciously.
Unfortunately, there was no more
time left for discovering further this incredible country; so we went back to
Cairns to drop off our car after almost 4200 km in it, and we flew to Sydney.
There, we had our last few hours to do some shopping and return to Spain, leaving
behind one of the most amazing and astonishing countries I’ve ever been and
hoping to have more opportunities to continue discovering all that this
territory still has to offer.
Wildlife we spotted (*Rockhampton zoo animals are not in the
list):
Mammals:
agile
wallaby (Notamacropus agilis), black
flying fox (Pteropus alecto), Brahman
bull (Hybrid Bos primigenius taurus), common
bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), common
brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula),
common ringtail possum (Pseudocheirus
peregrinus), diadem leaf-nosed bat (Hipposideros
diadema), eastern freetail (Ozimops
ridei), eastern grey kangaroo (Macropus
giganteus), eastern long-eared bat (Nyctophilus
bifax), fishing bat (Myotis
adversus), greater glider (Petauroides
volans), grey-headed flying fox (Pteropus
poliocephalus), humpback whale (Megaptera
novaeangliae), koala (Phascolarctos
cinereus), Lindy’s freetail (Ozimops
lumsdenae), little red flying fox (Pteropus
scapulatus), northern broadnosed bat (Scotorepens sanborni),
platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), red-legged
pademelon (Thylogale stigmatica), rufous
rat-kangaroo or rufous bettong (Aepyprymnus
rufescens), spectacled flying fox (Pteropus
conspicillatus), squirrel glider (Petaurus
norfolcensis), swamp wallaby (Wallabia
bicolor), tube-nosed fruitbats (Nyctimene
robinsonii), whiptail wallaby or pretty faced wallaby (Notamacropus parryi)
Birds:
Australasian
swamphen (Porphyrio melanotus), Australian
brushturkey or gweela (Alectura lathami),
Australian magpie (Gymnorhina tibicenc),
Australian pelican (Pelecanus
conspicillatus), Australian pied cormorant (Phalacrocorax varius), Australian white ibis (Threskiornis molucca), Australian wood duck, maned duck or maned
goose (Chenonetta jubata), bar-breasted
honeyeater (Ramsayornis fasciatus), black swan (Cygnus atratus), black-necked stork (Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus), brahminy kite or red-backed sea-eagle
(Haliastur indus), bush stone-curlew
or bush thick-knee (Burhinus grallarius),
common myna or Indian myna (Acridotheres
tristis), common whimbrel (Numenius
phaeopus), crested pigeon (Ocyphaps
lophotes), dusky moorhen (Gallinula
tenebrosa), far eastern curlew (Numenius
madagascariensis). forest kingfisher (Todiramphus
macleayii), galah or rose-breasted cockatoo (Eolophus roseicapilla), laughing kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae), little pied cormorant, little shag or
kawaupaka (Microcarbo melanoleucos),little
wattlebird (Anthochaera chrysoptera), magpie-lark
(Grallina cyanoleuca), mangrove
honeyeater (Gavicalis fasciogularis), masked
lapwing (Vanellus miles), metallic
starling (Aplonis metallica), Muscovy
duck (Cairina moschata) – non native
species -, noisy miner (Manorina
melanocephala), orange-footed scrubfowl (Megapodius
reinwardt), Pacific black duck (Anas
superciliosa), pale-headed rosella (Platycercus
adscitus), pied currawong (Strepera
graculina), rainbow lorikeet (Trichoglossus
moluccanus), red-tailed black cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus
banksii), scaly-breasted munia or spotted munia (Lonchura punctulata), silver gull (Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae), spotted dove (Spilopelia chinensis), sulphur-crested
cockatoo (Cacatua galerita), superb
fairy wren or electric blue (Malurus cyaneus),
wandering whistling duck (Dendrocygna
arcuata), welcome swallow (Hirundo
neoxena), white-bellied sea eagle (Haliaeetus
leucogaster), white-cheeked honeyeater (Phylidonyris
niger), white-faced heron (Egretta
novaehollandiae), yellow-billed spoonbill (Platalea flavipes)
Reptiles:
Australian
water dragon (Intellagama lesueurii), carpet
python or diamond python (Morelia
spilotes variegata), centralian bluetongue (Tiliqua multifasciata), eastern bearded dragon (Pogona barbata), eastern blue-tongue
lizard (Tiliqua scincoides), green
sea turtle (Chelonia mydas), Mary river
turtle (Elusor macrurus), Mount
Elliot mulch-skink (glaphyromorphus
clandestinus), saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus
porosus), saw-shelled turtle (Myuchelys
latisternum)
Amphibians:
cane
toad (Rhinella marina) – invasive
species-, dainty green tree frog (Ranoidea
gracilenta), striped marsh frog or brown-striped frog (Limnodynastes peronii), white-lipped tree frog (Nyctimystes infrafrenatus)
Arthropodous:
light-blue
soldier crab ( Mictyris longicarpus), ornate
rock lobster (Panulirus ornatus), painted
rock lobster or blue spiny lobster (Panulirus
versicolor)
Corals:
hard corals:
braincoral,
pillarcoral (Dendrogyra cylindrus), platecoral
(such as Fungia (Fungia fungites), heliofungia
(Heliofungia actiniformis), cycloseris,
and lithophyllon)), staghorncoral (Acropora
cervicornis)
solfcoral:
cabbagecoral
(Sinularia dura)
Fishes, mollusks and others sealife:
Allen's
damsel (Pomacentrus alleni), ambon damsel
(Pomacentrus amboinensis), Australian
damsel (Pomacentrus australis), Australian
goatfish (Upeneus australiae), Australian
mottled moray (Gymnothorax prionodon), bandtail
goatfish (Upeneus taeniopterus), Barrier
Reef anemonefish (Amphiprion akindynos), bartail
goatfish (Upeneus tragula), bicolor
chromis (Pycnochromis margaritifer), bigfin
reef squid or glitter squid (Sepioteuthis
lessoniana), black longnose tang (Zebrasoma
rostratum), black masked puffer (Arothron
diadematus), black surgeonfish (Acanthurus
gahhm), blackback anemonefish (Amphiprion
melanopus), blackback butterflyfish (Chaetodon
melannotus), blackbelt hogfish (Bodianus
mesothorax), blackblotch foxface (Siganus
unimaculatus), blackspotted puffer or dog-faced puffer (Arothron nigropunctatus), blacktail damselfish (Dascyllus melanurus), blue bastard (Plectorhinchus caeruleonothus), blue
tang surgeonfish (Acanthurus coeruleus), bluebarred
parrotfish (Scarus ghobban), bluebridle
parrotfish (Scarus dimidiatus), blue-green
chromis (Chromis viridis), blue-scribbled
damsel (Pomacentrus nagasakiensis), bluespotted
ribbontail ray (Taeniura lymma), bluestreak
cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus), bluestripe
snapper or blue-line yellow snapper (Lutjanus
kasmira), Chinese trumpetfish (Aulostomus
chinensis), Christmas tree worms (Spirobranchus
giganteus), clown wrasse (Coris
gaimard), Common Coral Trout (Plectropomus
leopardus), common starfish (Asterias
rubens), copperband butterflyfish (Chelmon
rostratus), coral cod or coral grouper (Cephalopholis
miniata), crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster
planci), darkcap parrotfish (Scarus
oviceps), dotlined grubfish (Parapercis
lineopunctata), doublesaddle butterflyfish (Chaetodon ulietensis), eastern triangle butterflyfish (Chaetodon baronessa), eclipse butterflyfish
(Chaetodon bennetti), fairy basslet
or royal gramma (Gramma loreto), flowery
cod or brown-marbled grouper (Epinephelus
fuscoguttatus), foxface rabbitfish (Siganus
vulpinus), giant cod or giant grouper (Epinephelus
lanceolatus), giant sweetlips (Plectorhinchus
albovittatus), goldbelly damsel (Pomacentrus
auriventris), goldlined sweetlips (Plectorhinchus
chrysotaenia), goldlined sweetlips (Plectorhinchus
chrysotaenia), goldspotted sweetlips (Plectorhinchus
flavomaculatus), highfin parrotfish (Scarus
longipinnis), latticed butterflyfish (Chaetodon
rafflesii), leaf scorpionfish (Taenianotus),
lemon damsel or yellow damselfish (Pomacentrus
moluccensis), lined butterflyfish (Chaetodon
lineolatus), lyretail grubfish (Parapercis
schauinslandii), malabar grouper (Epinephelus
malabaricus), maori wrasse or humphead wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus), marbled spinefoot (Siganus rivulatus), mini-fin parrotfish (Scarus altipinnis), moorish idol (Zanclus cornutus), ocellaris clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris), palenose parrotfish (Scarus psittacus), peacock damsel (Pomacentrus pavo), Philippine damsel (Pomacentrus philippinus), pickhandle barracuda (Sphyraena jello), pink anemonefish (Amphiprion perideraion), pinkbanded grubfish
(Parapercis nebulosa), pixy wrasse (Coris pictoides), potato grouper (Epinephelus tukula), purple patterned giant
clam (Tridacna gigas), racoon butterflyfish
(Chaetodon lunula), rainford's butterflyfish
(Chaetodon rainfordi), rock cod (Lotella rhacina), scissortail sergeant (Abudefduf sexfasciatus), scribbled puffer
(Arothron mappa), sergeant major damselfish
or píntano (Abudefduf saxatilis), sling-jaw
wrasse (Epibulus insidiator), snubnose
drummer (kyphosus cinerascens), southern
grubfish (Parapercis australis), spiny
chromis (Acanthochromis polyacanthus), spothead
grubfish (Parapercis clathrata), spotnape
butterflyfish (Chaetodon oxycephalus), spot-tail
butterflyfish (Chaetodon ocellicaudus), spotted
wobbegong (Orectolobus maculatus), threadfin
butterflyfish (Chaetodon auriga), tricolour
parrotfish (Scarus tricolor), vagabond
butterflyfish (Chaetodon vagabundus), variegated
wrasse (Coris batuensis), whitebar
gregory (Stegastes albifasciatus), white-spotted
puffer fish (Arothron hispidus), whitetail
damsel (Pomacentrus chrysurus), whitetail
dascyllus or humbug damselfish (Dascyllus
aruanus), yellow longnose butterflyfish (Forcipiger
flavissimus), yellow tang (Zebrasoma
flavescens), yellowstripe goatfish (Mulloidichthys
flavolineatus), yellowtail barracuda (Sphyraena
flavicauda)
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