Roadtrip to Cape Trib (Monday, May 8)
This is a continuation from the entry titled A Lazy Day in Cairns (Sunday, May 7), which tells the tale of our trip to Queensland at the beginning of May.
We set out bright and early Monday morning at 7am for a day-long tour/trip up to Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation ("Trib" for short). The trip up was full of touristy adventures: wildlife refuges with cute furry things and ugly feathery things, brief forest hikes, a picnic on a beach, and the crossing of a crocodile filled river. At the day's end we ended up at Cape Trib, where we spent a few days exploring.
Roadside Attractions
The view of the mountains as we head out of Cairns in our little mini tour bus (those are sugar cane fields in the foreground):
A roadside overlook north of Cairns, with a view of the Coral Sea:
Gotta love Australian street signs:
The Rainforest Habitat Wildlife Preserve
Our first major stop of the day was at a wildlife refuge. We jumped on the bandwagon and spent $2 on Kangaroo food while we were there... and found that ducks like it just as much as 'roos. Get ready to gag on Australian wildlife oddities and cuteness...
Birds!
Maggots! Mixed with DOG FOOD!
(it's what the birds eat)
An emu, Australia's national bird. It shares space on Australia's emblem with the kangaroo — and Australians eat both. (Does any other country eat its national emblems?)
A kookaburra!
A cassowary!
(A big giant colorful bird — we saw one in the wild later that day — the males raise the chicks while the females eat bug-filled bon-bons in the wild. Rockin'!)
Boa constrictor!
Wallabies!
A baby wallaby, in the pouch of its mother (although not very comfortably, I think):
Kangaroos!
Koala!
Mossman Gorge
Next stop on the trip was at Mossman Gorge in the Daintree National Rainforest. For those keeping score at home, this is the FOURTH rainforest that I have been in since September 2004:
1) Olympic National Park's Rainforest; Washington, USA (Sept '04)
2) El Yunque Rainforest; Puerto Rico (Dec. '04)
3) Maderas Volcano Cloud Forest; Isla de Ometepe, Nicaragua (Jan. '06)
4) Daintree National Rainforest; Queensland, Australia (May '06)
We did a bit of walking around, explored the trails and bridges, learned about plants and animals and stuff, and then later stood by the river's edge while our guide did a little bit of swimming. Crash and I are so used to the cold, snow-fed waters of the Pacific Northwest that we didn't dare go near the water. But curiosity got the better of us, and we found it quite refreshing and clear. We'd wished we taken up the guide on the offer to go swimming after all, though the sighting of an eel of some sorts did sort of make us happy we'd stayed on land.
Crossing the river on a rickety wood and rope bridge. Fun!
Beware of what lurks near the bathrooms...
A Beach-side Picnic
After Mossman we drove up the main road a bit further and were back alongside the beaches of the Coral Sea. It became a little overcast (to be expected in rainforest territory), but it was still quite warm and nice out. We explored the beach while lunch was being set up for our group in the picnic area.
The first thing we saw — before we even saw the beach itself — was this sign, mounted above a bottle of vinegar:
"Stingers" is the polite Australian way of saying "Jellyfish with incurable fatal stinging capabilities that will kill you". You may also know them as Box Jellyfish. If you come into contact with one in the water, you will look like this for about 3 seconds before you go into shock and die:
Here's why the bottles of vinegar are kept along public beaches in Queensland, and why we weren't about to go swimming that day, even though it was the tail end of summer:
If swimming at a beach where box jellyfish are known to be present, a bottle of vinegar is an extremely useful addition to the first aid kit. Acetic acid, found in vinegar, disables the box jellyfish's stinging cells that have not yet shot into the bloodstream (though it will not alleviate the pain).
If stung, bathe the affected area with liberal amounts of vinegar, remove any attached tentacles and immediately seek medical attention. Removing the tentacles without first applying vinegar may cause more damage and increase the chance of necrosis of the skin. However if no vinegar is available, removal of the tentacles without it is recommended. Vinegar has helped save dozens of lives on Australian beaches. Methylated spirit and alcohol should not be used.
To save the life of the victim, antivenom must be given as soon as possible; this is usually available from hospitals, doctors and clinics, close to where the jellyfish are found. If antivenom is not immediately available CPR may be necessary to keep the victim alive.
It should be noted that, although commonly recommended in folklore and even some papers on sting treatment, there is no scientific evidence that urine, ammonia, meat tenderizer, sodium bicarbonate, boric acid, lemon juice, or papaya will disable further stinging, and indeed these substances may even hasten the release of venom.
Having now been warned, we set out to the beach very carefully. The tide was out (WAY out), but I wasn't to certain that there wouldn't be stingers lying on their death beds in the sand, hungry for one last kill before they expired. Crash and I agreed to keep our shoes on. And to not pee on the other person if one of us got stung.
It's not what you think: these suspicious-looking piles are actually tubes of sand, spit up from under the beach by clams and other bi-valve beings that live under the sand.
Once lunch was ready we climbed back up off the beach and helped ourselves to some yummy chicken, pasta salad, and sandwich fixin's. And oh yes, there it was...sitting innocently next to the jar of peanut butter: Vegemite. (For those of you that are Seinfeld fans, you should say the word "Vegemite" like Seinfeld says the word "Newman" — the sneer comes naturally once you've tasted the stuff.)
Crash made a "tasty" vegetable/cheese/vegemite sandwich and gave it a go first:
He lived, and the look on his face wasn't that bad, so I tried it as well:
I really did gag.
The next Aussie "treat" was much, MUCH better: the cuddly little Lamington (sponge cake covered with chocolate and coconut:
Then our guide grabbed a coconut from the beach for us to all try. To properly prepare the coconuts for eating, you must first shake them up by juggling them:
Our guide then attacked the coconut with his Leatherman knife, saw and finally, his bare hands. He shelled it, drained it for the milk (it was kind of watery), and then cracked it open for the yummy white insides, which you can eat once you remove the inner shell that surrounds it. I liked that part best.
Crocodile Rock
Filled with lamingtons and fresh coconut, we piled back into the van and headed towards Daintree River for a tour of a crocodile-infested river. Hooray! And like any tour that will surely end in mayhem and missing limbs, we started it off with a civilized tea and biscuit snack. Then we were off to the dock.
I'm certain the flowers near the dock are placed there on purpose, so that you have a nice happy image to think of while a croc is gnawing on your fingers.
Our "croc-safe" boat:
The Daintree River:
Spotting wildlife on the river was much like a "Where's Waldo?" book — all logs start to look like crocodiles and all branches look like snakes. To spare you the agony of searching for the critters in the photos, I've circled most of them. I know, I know, that's cheating. But if it took you as long as it took me to see them, you'd be gobbled up by now.
This tiny little tree frog was on the roof of our boat, sleeping. The guide brought it down for us to look at (eat your heart out, you Waknitz's and Mosden's!):
Disembarking the boat on the other side of the river, with all appendages still attached:
While we were crossing the river on our boat tour, our guide brought the van across on this little cable ferry. Cars drive onto the barge, and then it moves on cables across the water from one side to the other. It is the ONLY way to cross this river, and it does not run after 6pm.
Later, back on the road, we spotted this cassowary (a male) from the mini-van. It was alongside the final stretch of bumpy dirt road that led to our accommodations on Cape Tribulation:
Arrival at Cape Trib Beach House
Another hour in the van and we arrived without event at the Cape Trib Beach House, a hostel/cabin compound in the rainforest just along the beach. We checked in, thinking that perhaps the crocodile and snake sightings were our last big adventure of the day. We should know better.
We got only a few meters away from the main building where we checked in when a guy came out of the public restrooms exclaiming that there was a tarantula hanging out in there. Crash and I looked at each other: another tarantula? Did they follow us places? (We'd had one in our sink in Nicaragua, which resulted in me calling security to have it escorted out. We were the laughing stock of the staff the next morning.)
Well, of course we had to look at it. So we wandered up the stairs and Crash made sure that no one else was in the guy's bathroom. I wandered in and squealed. It was cool! And very big. And very hairy. Much more daunting than the one we had in Nicaragua.
And not to foreshadow what's to come in upcoming posts, but it was not the largest spider we'd see on this trip. But it was the hairiest.
Let's all shudder together now, shall we?
They're So Cute, and Tasty Too!
After we unpacked and walked on the beach a bit, we decided to grab dinner from the cafe. We're out in the middle of nowhere, so it's pretty much our only option. It was all outdoor seating, but with a big canopy overhead to protect you from the rain and critters that like to drop on your head at the least opportune moment. They had a pretty good selection of food, from fish and chips to kangaroo. Hmmm.... what's a girl to do?
Yep. Eat Skippy the Bush Kangaroo.
I think Crash was a bit shocked that I could be feeding kangaroos out of the palm of my hand one moment, and eat them the next. I shrugged. It's not often you get to eat kangaroo... and it looked SO GOOD! (I was not the only one at the Cape Trib Beach House without a conscience; many others were chowing down on the tender medium rare strips of meat, that looked a lot like steak.) And is that sweet potatoes and grilled veggies on the side? Yummmmmmmmmm.
I smacked my lips and dug in. Kangaroos are not only cute; they're tasty, too!
We set out bright and early Monday morning at 7am for a day-long tour/trip up to Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation ("Trib" for short). The trip up was full of touristy adventures: wildlife refuges with cute furry things and ugly feathery things, brief forest hikes, a picnic on a beach, and the crossing of a crocodile filled river. At the day's end we ended up at Cape Trib, where we spent a few days exploring.
Roadside Attractions
The view of the mountains as we head out of Cairns in our little mini tour bus (those are sugar cane fields in the foreground):
A roadside overlook north of Cairns, with a view of the Coral Sea:
Gotta love Australian street signs:
The Rainforest Habitat Wildlife Preserve
Our first major stop of the day was at a wildlife refuge. We jumped on the bandwagon and spent $2 on Kangaroo food while we were there... and found that ducks like it just as much as 'roos. Get ready to gag on Australian wildlife oddities and cuteness...
Birds!
Maggots! Mixed with DOG FOOD!
(it's what the birds eat)
An emu, Australia's national bird. It shares space on Australia's emblem with the kangaroo — and Australians eat both. (Does any other country eat its national emblems?)
A kookaburra!
A cassowary!
(A big giant colorful bird — we saw one in the wild later that day — the males raise the chicks while the females eat bug-filled bon-bons in the wild. Rockin'!)
Boa constrictor!
Wallabies!
A baby wallaby, in the pouch of its mother (although not very comfortably, I think):
Kangaroos!
Koala!
Mossman Gorge
Next stop on the trip was at Mossman Gorge in the Daintree National Rainforest. For those keeping score at home, this is the FOURTH rainforest that I have been in since September 2004:
1) Olympic National Park's Rainforest; Washington, USA (Sept '04)
2) El Yunque Rainforest; Puerto Rico (Dec. '04)
3) Maderas Volcano Cloud Forest; Isla de Ometepe, Nicaragua (Jan. '06)
4) Daintree National Rainforest; Queensland, Australia (May '06)
We did a bit of walking around, explored the trails and bridges, learned about plants and animals and stuff, and then later stood by the river's edge while our guide did a little bit of swimming. Crash and I are so used to the cold, snow-fed waters of the Pacific Northwest that we didn't dare go near the water. But curiosity got the better of us, and we found it quite refreshing and clear. We'd wished we taken up the guide on the offer to go swimming after all, though the sighting of an eel of some sorts did sort of make us happy we'd stayed on land.
Crossing the river on a rickety wood and rope bridge. Fun!
Beware of what lurks near the bathrooms...
A Beach-side Picnic
After Mossman we drove up the main road a bit further and were back alongside the beaches of the Coral Sea. It became a little overcast (to be expected in rainforest territory), but it was still quite warm and nice out. We explored the beach while lunch was being set up for our group in the picnic area.
The first thing we saw — before we even saw the beach itself — was this sign, mounted above a bottle of vinegar:
"Stingers" is the polite Australian way of saying "Jellyfish with incurable fatal stinging capabilities that will kill you". You may also know them as Box Jellyfish. If you come into contact with one in the water, you will look like this for about 3 seconds before you go into shock and die:
Here's why the bottles of vinegar are kept along public beaches in Queensland, and why we weren't about to go swimming that day, even though it was the tail end of summer:
If swimming at a beach where box jellyfish are known to be present, a bottle of vinegar is an extremely useful addition to the first aid kit. Acetic acid, found in vinegar, disables the box jellyfish's stinging cells that have not yet shot into the bloodstream (though it will not alleviate the pain).
If stung, bathe the affected area with liberal amounts of vinegar, remove any attached tentacles and immediately seek medical attention. Removing the tentacles without first applying vinegar may cause more damage and increase the chance of necrosis of the skin. However if no vinegar is available, removal of the tentacles without it is recommended. Vinegar has helped save dozens of lives on Australian beaches. Methylated spirit and alcohol should not be used.
To save the life of the victim, antivenom must be given as soon as possible; this is usually available from hospitals, doctors and clinics, close to where the jellyfish are found. If antivenom is not immediately available CPR may be necessary to keep the victim alive.
It should be noted that, although commonly recommended in folklore and even some papers on sting treatment, there is no scientific evidence that urine, ammonia, meat tenderizer, sodium bicarbonate, boric acid, lemon juice, or papaya will disable further stinging, and indeed these substances may even hasten the release of venom.
Having now been warned, we set out to the beach very carefully. The tide was out (WAY out), but I wasn't to certain that there wouldn't be stingers lying on their death beds in the sand, hungry for one last kill before they expired. Crash and I agreed to keep our shoes on. And to not pee on the other person if one of us got stung.
It's not what you think: these suspicious-looking piles are actually tubes of sand, spit up from under the beach by clams and other bi-valve beings that live under the sand.
Once lunch was ready we climbed back up off the beach and helped ourselves to some yummy chicken, pasta salad, and sandwich fixin's. And oh yes, there it was...sitting innocently next to the jar of peanut butter: Vegemite. (For those of you that are Seinfeld fans, you should say the word "Vegemite" like Seinfeld says the word "Newman" — the sneer comes naturally once you've tasted the stuff.)
Crash made a "tasty" vegetable/cheese/vegemite sandwich and gave it a go first:
He lived, and the look on his face wasn't that bad, so I tried it as well:
I really did gag.
The next Aussie "treat" was much, MUCH better: the cuddly little Lamington (sponge cake covered with chocolate and coconut:
Then our guide grabbed a coconut from the beach for us to all try. To properly prepare the coconuts for eating, you must first shake them up by juggling them:
Our guide then attacked the coconut with his Leatherman knife, saw and finally, his bare hands. He shelled it, drained it for the milk (it was kind of watery), and then cracked it open for the yummy white insides, which you can eat once you remove the inner shell that surrounds it. I liked that part best.
Crocodile Rock
Filled with lamingtons and fresh coconut, we piled back into the van and headed towards Daintree River for a tour of a crocodile-infested river. Hooray! And like any tour that will surely end in mayhem and missing limbs, we started it off with a civilized tea and biscuit snack. Then we were off to the dock.
I'm certain the flowers near the dock are placed there on purpose, so that you have a nice happy image to think of while a croc is gnawing on your fingers.
Our "croc-safe" boat:
The Daintree River:
Spotting wildlife on the river was much like a "Where's Waldo?" book — all logs start to look like crocodiles and all branches look like snakes. To spare you the agony of searching for the critters in the photos, I've circled most of them. I know, I know, that's cheating. But if it took you as long as it took me to see them, you'd be gobbled up by now.
This tiny little tree frog was on the roof of our boat, sleeping. The guide brought it down for us to look at (eat your heart out, you Waknitz's and Mosden's!):
Disembarking the boat on the other side of the river, with all appendages still attached:
While we were crossing the river on our boat tour, our guide brought the van across on this little cable ferry. Cars drive onto the barge, and then it moves on cables across the water from one side to the other. It is the ONLY way to cross this river, and it does not run after 6pm.
Later, back on the road, we spotted this cassowary (a male) from the mini-van. It was alongside the final stretch of bumpy dirt road that led to our accommodations on Cape Tribulation:
Arrival at Cape Trib Beach House
Another hour in the van and we arrived without event at the Cape Trib Beach House, a hostel/cabin compound in the rainforest just along the beach. We checked in, thinking that perhaps the crocodile and snake sightings were our last big adventure of the day. We should know better.
We got only a few meters away from the main building where we checked in when a guy came out of the public restrooms exclaiming that there was a tarantula hanging out in there. Crash and I looked at each other: another tarantula? Did they follow us places? (We'd had one in our sink in Nicaragua, which resulted in me calling security to have it escorted out. We were the laughing stock of the staff the next morning.)
Well, of course we had to look at it. So we wandered up the stairs and Crash made sure that no one else was in the guy's bathroom. I wandered in and squealed. It was cool! And very big. And very hairy. Much more daunting than the one we had in Nicaragua.
And not to foreshadow what's to come in upcoming posts, but it was not the largest spider we'd see on this trip. But it was the hairiest.
Let's all shudder together now, shall we?
They're So Cute, and Tasty Too!
After we unpacked and walked on the beach a bit, we decided to grab dinner from the cafe. We're out in the middle of nowhere, so it's pretty much our only option. It was all outdoor seating, but with a big canopy overhead to protect you from the rain and critters that like to drop on your head at the least opportune moment. They had a pretty good selection of food, from fish and chips to kangaroo. Hmmm.... what's a girl to do?
Yep. Eat Skippy the Bush Kangaroo.
I think Crash was a bit shocked that I could be feeding kangaroos out of the palm of my hand one moment, and eat them the next. I shrugged. It's not often you get to eat kangaroo... and it looked SO GOOD! (I was not the only one at the Cape Trib Beach House without a conscience; many others were chowing down on the tender medium rare strips of meat, that looked a lot like steak.) And is that sweet potatoes and grilled veggies on the side? Yummmmmmmmmm.
I smacked my lips and dug in. Kangaroos are not only cute; they're tasty, too!
posted by ~a at 6/25/2006 11:31:00 pm
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