Here We Go Again

31st August – Monday

Tonight will be the 99th night since we left home! Time flies.

It was with deep regret that we left Crystal Cascades Caravan Park at Cairns this morning and headed for Townsville. After being in the one spot for so long, it does take a while to say goodbye.

Another hot day as we left the wet tropics behind and drove through sugar cane, and more sugar cane, on our way south. The road between Cairns and Townsville has always been known as one of the worst parts of the national highway, and it certainly hasn’t improved any. Although wide enough and with a generally good surface, it is very bumpy. Cat was obviously feeling quite carsick after all the bumps, because we discovered at our first stop, that Cat was no longer sitting up on the bed and was laying down having a sleep.

There was also lots of traffic with big trucks as well as caravans heading both ways. Cardwell is roughly half way between Cairns and Townsville and the highway travels for a couple of miles along the foreshore with plenty of parking available. Consequently, most caravans heading in either direction pull up in Cardwell for a lunch break. It was very nice, and very hot, having lunch sitting in the caravan beside the sea, with Hinchinbrook Island a short distance away and watching the salamanders playing in the mud.

We even passed a couple of bushfires today, one was actually burning quite close to the road and we could easily see the flames. The weather bureau has said that the winter season has finished a month early and we are well into the warm weather now.

The Big 4 Woodlands Holiday Park at Townsville was a bit of a disappointment after Cairns. A very depressing lady in reception whose first words were, “I hope you don’t want to use the money machine, it is broken.” We did, of course, and after returning later with cash, she told us it was now fixed. The park has a lot of permanents who have been allowed erect structures and generally the place looks a bit run down. The grass sites are very dry (probably due to water restrictions) and for some reason, the dump point (to empty the toilet cassette) can only be used for 15 minutes twice a day. Mmmm. Anyway, tomorrow night we will be in Charters Towers, heading inland again.

Thick Knees

30th August – Sunday

The time has come, as the Walrus said – time to pack the outside tables back into their bags, roll up the ground cover, restore order to the storage area under the bed, buy the last minute groceries and fresh food, fill the Pajero with diesel and adjust the tyre pressure. Tomorrow we hitch up and head for Townsville.

Another very hot day, with the temperature on 33 degrees at 2.00 pm. It is no longer pleasant to sit outside in the “fresh” and humid air, inside is much more comfortable. We should have hot weather until well south in New South Wales, hopefully it will stay warm until Melbourne.

Last night the call was made to TT Line to make a reservations, preferably on Sunday, 4th October. They can’t take pensioners that night or the previous night, unless we were TPI, but we could sail on Monday, 5th October. One must ask the question, do they refuse to carry children (who don’t pay the full fare, either) on certain sailings??? To add insult to injury, after paying their exorbitant fare of $811, I discovered this morning that there has been a fare restructure and the shoulder season fare has been abolished from today and there are now only two fare structures – off peak and high season. So, back on the phone to TT Line this morning to have a grizzle and told that if I had booked today, it would have actually cost more – the passenger fares are cheaper but the vehicle costs have increased (quite substantially!). Can’t win.

Last night I managed to get a couple of photos of the bush thick knees (or stone curlews) that live in the caravan park and party all night. It is hard to believe that such a vague looking bird (about 40-50 cms high) can make so much noise!

The sunrise this morning on the mountains to the west of the caravan park was rather nice to look at. The western side of the park has similar mountains, and the bird life here is quite spectacular. Not only do we have the resident curlews, but there are plenty of yellow oriales, lorikeets, cockatoos, sunbirds, a tiny little bird that wont stay still long enough to identify, small doves and a large flock of metallic starlings. These fly in flocks are zoom around like fighter jets – low, around, through and FAST!

Cat has decided to now support St Kilda on their way to the Grand Final – his colours do match, of course!

Yorkey's Nob

29th August – Saturday

Even hotter today – and no clouds! Glad we are not playing bowls.

It has taken us six weeks, but this morning we finally made it to Yorkey’s Nob for the very first time. Yorkey’s Nob is one of the beachside areas of Cairns and not quite as old as Machens Beach. The Nob is actually a hill on the headland, with some very nice houses with some very nice views – and some very nice cars! There was a very nice beach, complete with life savers and stinger net. The boat club is very well known, both among Cairns locals and tourists, has a very nice clubhouse overlooking the Coral Sea and some very nice yachts moored in the marina.

We have started to get organised for our departure on Monday morning – the freezer is chock-a-block and both the car and caravan have been washed.

The afternoon has been spent inside the caravan with the air conditioner going – much to Cat’s relief. He does struggle with the heat. In fact, the caravan park has had a very sleepy feel to it this afternoon, with most people inside.

Hope the weather in Victoria and Tasmania soon improved!

Today’s photo is of crocodiles on the Cairns Esplanade.

Fruit Bats

28th August – Friday

More boring hot weather and a beautiful, clear day. Let’s hope that Tasmania’s weather improves in the next few weeks!

After completing the necessary housework this morning and discussing nothing with neighbours, we decided to check out shade cloths at one of the local camping stores – something that would be suitable to attach to the end of our awning and provide a bit of shade when needed. Unfortunately, the ready mades were the wrong size, so will make something to fit when we get home.

Then it was Rusty’s Market and a chance to stock up on fresh fruit and vegetables, especially avocadoes. We will definitely miss these after leaving Cairns. Of course, it would have been very rude to pass by the ice cream shop and not make a purchase! Something else that will be missed.

There are some large trees in the centre of Cairns that are home to a large number of fruit bats. From the mess on parked cars and the footpath underneath the trees, it is not the best of places to stop and ponder the meaning of life. The bat droppings are a disgusting bright yellow colour, large and sloppy. Need I say more!

This afternoon was spent working on the second Cat movie, but this is still a work in progress as photos are added. Interested persons will just have to wait!!! Due to the heat outside and the air conditioner inside, someone came inside to lay on the bed and read his book. An hour and a half later … We sat outside for an afternoon coffee and the same person complained about his eyesight being very blurry and after much rubbing, removing and replacing glasses, realised the reading glasses aren’t exactly designed for distance vision! Nothing to do with age, of course.

Mail from Home

27th August – Thursday

If anyone really wants to know how boring the weather has been this week, it is still very hot. Thank goodness we have an air conditioner!

Today was “get beautiful day” with a visit to the hairdresser this morning. This is the third hairdressing appointment since leaving home and will be the last. Fortunately, the salon was air conditioned – a must for hairdressers in Far North Queensland.

Another piece of gold jewellery has been lost today, with the disappearance of a new gold heart pendant, complete with three small diamonds. It must be in or near the caravan, so hopefully we will find it before we leave.

There was great excitement this afternoon with the arrival of a package from Emma and Michael. We received a lovely letter and story from each of them, copies of their excellent (of course!) school reports and a CD with lots of photos and movies. Dancing seems to be a very popular past-time at the moment. It was also good to see how our garden is looking at the moment with lots of hellebores and bulbs in flower.

Bowling Dangers

26th August – Wednesday

Our hottest night yet – we even turned the air conditioner on for half an hour after we went to bed in the hope it would cool the caravan enough to sleep, even with all the windows open and only a sheet! Today was very hot as well, no breeze. It is hard to imagine that Queensland is having a heat wave and the southern states are being battered.

Today was our final game of bowls in Cairns and we decided to let the jackpot increase until we return some time in the future. Fortunately, the club decided to deploy the shade cloth cover, which made playing a little more bearable. It would have been very uncomfortable without the shade. There was a little bit of excitement during the second game when a snake decided to come and watch the game from the edge of the green. He was obviously enjoying the match because he became rather agro when it was suggested he leave. We certainly don’t have these sorts of hazards on the bowling greens in Tasmania!

Showers were definitely at the top of the list when we returned home.

Harry Potter

25th August – Tuesday

Another extremely hot day, also the lack of breeze seemed to make it even hotter. Of course, when the weather gets too hot, there is only one thing to do – head for a shopping centre!

We have been meaning for some time to get to the movies and see the latest Harry Potter film and today was the day. Luckily, it was also the $9 day! We wandered around Cairns Central Shopping Centre for a while, looking at all the winter clothes on sale, before having lunch and heading to the theatre. Just as well we bought our tickets early, as there were eleven people in the theatre! We really enjoyed the movie and agreed that it wasn’t as “dark” as the others in the series – a bit more touchy, feely perhaps. It has been so long since reading the book that we couldn’t really remember all the storyline.

When we came out into the daylight, we discovered that cloud had moved in – and the humidity had gone up!!!

24th August – Monday

Just a quiet day as it is too hot to be undertaking strenuous activities, even not so strenuous activities. We have even resorted to switching on the air conditioner this afternoon!

The morning was spent on housework stuff like laundry and cleaning, along with a bit of socialising – it is now apparent that there will be a rush for the gate next Monday morning as a large number of caravanners will be starting the run for home. We will probably make reservations later this week for our stays at Townsville and Charters Towers – to be sure, to be sure, to be sure!

Cat is busy checking out the local nurseries ...

Daintree

23rd August – Sunday

As the forecast was for a fine and sunny day, we decided to head to the Daintree and Cape Tribulation. It really is a pity one can’t get to Mossman without having to travel the Captain Cook Highway – it is so windy and uneven, although the scenery is great.

After driving through the cane fields of Mossman, our first stop was at the Daintree Village and a quick check of the two souvenir shops and the most amazing woodworking shop. The quality of work was superb and the wood used was so different to what is usually seen. We also bought lunch here – prawn rolls! The prawns were large, freshly cooked and yummy, plus there was plenty of salad included as well.

Then it was onto the ferry to cross the Daintree River (no crocodiles within sight!) and the slow, windy drive to Cape Tribulation. Despite the large number of tourists, this district is such a beautiful area of tropical rainforest and plenty of the most beautiful butterflies, with no shortage of the large, blue Ulysses.

We stopped at Cape Tribulation for a walk along the beach (keeping a wary eye out for crocodiles, of course) and up to the lookout on the headland. The sunlight was so intense, bouncing off the white sand and the sea, it made taking photos a bit difficult. Cat had slept all the way and really enjoyed the chance to stretch his legs on the beach (ignoring the no dogs or cats sign) and quickly found some vines to swing about on, playing Tarzan!

On the return journey, we stopped at Daintree Ice-cream and sampled wattle seed (tasted like coffee), mango, jackfruit and blueberry. One doesn’t have a choice, just takes what is served up! It was all rather nice. Before we reached the ferry, we came across a snake stretched out across the road. As he lifted his head and looked at the car, it was almost possible to hear him say, "Oh, golly gosh!" We went over the top of him before the snake was last seen heading very quickly for the jungle.

As we were heading back to Cairns and south of Port Douglas, we came across a couple of blokes jumping off the cliff and floating about under parachutes. They just seemed to float back and forth, mainly for the benefit of all the tourists who stopped to take their photos.

Parade

22nd August – Saturday

Another glorious, clear and hot day – 29 degrees seems to be the norm.

Not much doing during the morning, mainly cooking and catching up on some reading.

This afternoon we headed for the Esplanade in Cairns and the Festival’s activities for the afternoon and evening. There are supposedly eight brightly painted pianos scattered through the CBD, just waiting to be played by anyone who feels the urge. However, these were rather elusive and we just had to pretend. There were a few buskers about, some quite good, some not so good. The boardwalk area was home to a multi-cultural food fair, with the usual Thai, Indian, Middle East and Chinese food, plus some more local type food on offer.

Also in this area were a number of artistic works depicting the artists’ associations with Australia, together with their “feelings.” These included a group of inflatable crocodiles on the small patch of sand, pink washing on clothes lines, plastic items nailed to furniture and a tree, little red houses, a shark fin made of old bits of car bodies, a giant cupcake and some beautiful little sculptures fixed to the stainless steel wire of a fence.

As the sun started to set, the crowds started to arrive in force for the street parade. This was much larger than we really expected (no fire engines!) and took well over an hour to pass by. Nearly all the floats/participants were local community and school groups, with three high schools entering marching and stage bands. A unicycle dressed up as a seahorse was really well done. Following the parade, we headed to the seats along the edge of the boardwalk to watch the fireworks – a wonderful display fired from barges anchored in the mud!

Art Fair

21st August – Friday

A really exciting morning – cleaned out the frig and freezer and mended the tape on the curtain along the front window.

Today is the first day of the Cairns Festival so we decided to check out the Cairns Indigenous Art Festival at The Tanks. Arts from indigenous communities on Cape York, plus local indigenous artists, were displaying their work – mainly paintings, with some weaving and basket weaving. Like all art exhibitions, there were some works we considered very good and some didn’t really appeal. One artist, in particular, had some exquisitely executed (to us!) paintings on display. Unfortunately, all work was well outside our prize range.

The young collector featured on last week’s “Collectors” was also present with some of his collection and we were fortunate enough to hear him talking to a school group.

We were also lucky enough to be outside when some Aboriginal dancers from a couple of different clans, performed some traditional dancing. Evidently, the different styles of body painting depict the dancers’ clans.

We also took the opportunity, seeing as we were in the area, to have a wander through the Botanic Gardens. There isn’t a great deal of flower colour at the moment, some gingers and helaconias, plus a few orchids and an lovely jade vine adorning the public toilets, but the lushness of the foliage plants was wonderful. It was a welcome relief from the 29 degree heat to wander in the shade through the rainforest plants. I have come to the conclusion that I am definitely allergic to something in the Gardens, as hives immediately appeared on both legs and arms! Scratch, scratch!!!

Don’t understand what is happening with the blog – the last two entries had disappeared, so I have reposted them.

Long Tan

20th August – Thursday

Very humid today following last night’s rain and an early shower today. Someone had to get up very early to have the car at the tyre place before 8.00 am. The good news was that they couldn’t find anything mechanically wrong and felt it was just the tyres on the front have now a different amount of wear to what they had prior to the rotation. Their recommendation is that tyres be rotated every 5,000 km.

A big grocery shop at Woolworths this morning so that some meals can be prepared and frozen ready for our journey south. We leave Cairns in 11 days! The time has gone so fast. The remainder of the morning was spent slaving over a hot frying pan making a big curry. When we are on the road, it is so much easier to grab something from the freezer and heat it in the microwave. Will make up some chicken stuff in the next day or two, as well.

This afternoon was ironing all HIS laundry and spending more time working on the photos. Have decided the first file (which wont convert to a movie) needs to be split into two files as today’s effort worked without a hitch.

Forgot to mention the Long Tan Service on Tuesday. This was the very first that either of us has attended, but it was very well done. The Brigadier who gave the address was very casual and down to earth, the bugler gave a very good rendition of “The Last Post” (on a trumpet) and there was a good turnout of veterans. The Cenotaph is directly opposite the RSL on the Esplanade, overlooking the Coral Sea. What a magnificent setting for an ANZAC Day Dawn Service! Following the service, we retired to the RSL for dinner.

Concert

19th August – Wednesday

Very hot night – sheet only – and quite a relief to get out of bed.

The morning was spent working on photos and a spot of supermarket shopping. I drove the car for the first time since the wheel rotation and alignment yesterday and immediately noticed the car was very heavy in the steering at slow speeds. Himself did agree it was not just my imagination, rang the tyre company and has to have the car back at their depot by 8.00 am Thursday. Someone is going to have to get up early!!!

Bowls in the afternoon and the weather was still very hot and windy. However, just before we started playing, it rained. Fortunately, the heavy rain only lasted for a couple of ends and we only had a couple more sprinkles during the afternoon. Enough said about bowls, except our Elliott farming neighbours also play bowls.

The evening was spent at a very enjoyable concert by the Queensland Orchestra. No programme available, so it was a bit of a mystery until the announcer gave us the news immediately before the arrival onstage of the conductor. A small piece by Mozart, Beethoven’s “Emperor” and Brahms’ Fourth Symphony were all very well received by the audience who enthusiastically applauded each movement. The advertised soloist was unable to perform and his place was taken by a young pianist named John Fisher, who played the Beethoven. From the reception he received, we gathered he may have been a local.

Movies

18th August – Tuesday

We went our separate ways this morning – one stayed in the caravan having a very frustrating time trying to save the movie which didn’t want to be saved and the other took the car somewhere to have the wheels rotated and aligned. Despite being booked in, it still took all morning for five wheels to be moved! The movie was going very well – decided to break the photos before Alice Springs – and all the editing was done to my satisfaction, however, it just would not save as a movie! Grrrr Decided to just leave the file as is and wait until we get home. At least I can get all the photos, to date, into a few movie files and convert later.

There was a nice photo in the paper today of two snakes “dancing” on someone’s front lawn, together with a warning that as the weather is warming up, snakes up now moving about much more and looking for a mate!

Not doing much until later this afternoon when we will head to the RSL for the Long Tan Service.

Another ballooning photo.

17th August – Monday

The morning was spent on administration – starting to put together a DVD of our photos to date. Three hours quickly disappeared just working on the trip as far as Kings Canyon, and fortunately for those who will have to look at the photos later, not all the photos taken will appear in the movie. I am still working my way through the titles and fades in and out.

We have new neighbours across the road, also from Tasmania – Elliot to be exact. I’m sure they are a very nice couple, but he has a very distinctive (farmer’s drawl) and loud voice. They also seem to know a large number of people in the caravan park, who are all given the same news – he has crossed the Great Divide four times to get here!

This afternoon we decided on some quiet time away, so checked at the local Vinnies (recommended to us) for cheap books. We did find some books but spent most of our time talking to a lady and trying to convince her to buy an old table for $120. It was dining room size, had a kauri top and silky oak legs. Unfortunately, it had been very badly “restored” with very shiny varnish poorly applied and the top had been turned over for some reason. It was rather a bargain and could be restored properly to be a beautiful table, although the patina would be lost.

We have been told about a full size replica spice ship, the “Duyfken,” which was originally built in 1606 for the Dutch East India Company and actually touched land on the Cape York Peninsula. The replica was built in Perth, WA, and is currently in Cairns on a round Australia trip. At 21 metres long, not a boat one would want to sail in from the Netherlands to Australia.

16th August – Sunday

A quiet Sunday – it took someone until lunch time to even read the paper! The first hour or so was spent downloading yesterday’s photos and catching up with the blog. Admittedly, a fair proportion of the morning did also disappear entertaining the next door neighbour and providing morning tea.

Extremely hot today and even resorted to turning the air conditioner on this afternoon. It is actually much cooler inside the caravan, so only ventured forth to the supermarket (air conditioned) this afternoon. Unfortunately, there is now the very distinct odour of very off blue cheese in the car, not helped at all by the heat.

Some more photos from yesterday – Millaa Millaa Falls and Captain Cat.

Sunset Cruise

15th August – Saturday

Thank goodness the weather has settled down at last – another BEAUTIFUL day and 29 degrees.

A long day planned as we were off to the Atherton Tablelands to visit some new places, to us at least. Our first stop after passing through Mareeba was at a roadside stall to stock up on avocadoes and red paw paw - $2 for 7 avocadoes! Then it was through Atherton and on towards Millaa Millaa. We stopped at the Gallo Cheese and Chocolate Factory (kept both of us happy!), bought some chocolates and cheese but didn’t bother watching the cows being milked.

Lunch was a picnic at the Millaa Millaa Falls – what a magnificent waterfall. It is really a perfect waterfall, it is almost as though it was constructed for a film set. It was just magic to sit on the grass beside the pool, have lunch and even watch the Ulysses butterfly flitting about above our heads. Even Cat was blown away! Unfortunately, the water contains bacteria and is dangerous if swallowed – a number of European tourists obviously couldn’t understand the warning signs and were swimming regardless.

We decided to check out another couple of waterfalls we haven’t seen before and this meant driving on a tourist route unsuitable for caravans. It didn’t take long to realise why! It was just like an English road – very narrow, windy and with the vegetation growing ride to the edge of the road. We couldn’t find the first waterfall, but the second was actually signposted and right beside the road. However, we happened to be at the top of the waterfall (rather loses the effect, somehow). There was a track leading to the bottom of the fall, but one look at the long, dry grass (taipans and brown snakes), the very narrow track through the jungle (pythons) and the very deep leaf litter (death adders) on the track and we both decided after half a second of thought that we didn’t want to risk the walk as we were wearing sandals and had bare legs. It was a nice drive though. This tourist road ended virtually in a wind farm.

We returned to Yungaburra for a wander before heading to the nearby boat ramp for our sunset cruise on Lake Tinaroo. It was a very personal cruise (we were the only passengers) and we were taken across the lake to some small feeder creeks to look for wildlife. The first “special” bird we saw was a jabiru – such a glorious coloured stork. Kingfishers became quite common once we were drifting through the creeks, the barramundi were “rolling” beside the boat, a water dragon was resting on a branch overhanging the water and we even saw a snake swimming in front of the boat. Lots of egrets and water birds, of course. As we were returning towards the boat ramp, the watch a fantastic sunset – there were a couple of bushfires on the Tablelands and the smoke was hanging low to the horizon. The sun was such a deep red as it sank through the smoke and reflected across the water. Just magic! As we returned, the sarus cranes arrived in droves and the kangaroos were starting to appear. It was a wonderful experience to have such a personal tour - the champagne and nibbles didn't go astray, either.

We completed the day with another picnic (in the car, this time) on the edge of the lake, watching the sky darken and with some thick knees running around the car.

We discovered when we arrived home that blue cheese doesn't keep very well all day in a hot car! The chocolates didn't survive lunch.

Walking

14th August – Friday

Today certainly wasn’t as exciting as yesterday! To finish yesterday’s news, there was a police raid in the caravan park early yesterday morning – someone had to get up earlier and make his own coffee – so saw the events unfold shortly after 6.30 am. A number of police, and cars, arrived and entered one of the units. After some discussion with the couple staying in the unit, the woman was taken away – haven’t heard why.

Very, very hot today – the northerly winds have arrived and the clouds are gone. This is more like the weather one would expect in Cairns at this time of the year.

A new caravan pulled in next to us last night and this morning the friendly Geelong supporters (we play Geelong tomorrow!) asked if we would like to go for a walk with them. This filled in the latter half of the morning quite comfortably.

Following lunch and while doing some ironing in the laundry, I was talking to a lady who informed me she came from Tasmania, Kingston in fact. After further swapping of details, it transpired her husband had taught Cameron at university, knew Cameron very well, being a fly fisherman, and knew Diane as well. It is a small country sometimes!

This afternoon we had another walk along the Esplanade – this time the tide was coming in – and tried out a Movenpick ice cream. Gave this brand a definite thumbs up, nicer than Baskin Robbins.

Some more photos of the balloon ride.

Would you like to ride ...

13th August – Thursday

The alarm went off at 4.00 am! Had no trouble getting out of bed and was ready to be picked up at 4.40 am. Today the weather conditions were just right for ballooning!!!

The 21 seater bus which picked me up contained one Australian and 19 Japanese. We headed for Mareeba, running into fog just past Kuranda. Mareeba township was clear of fog when we stopped for a compulsory pit stop (everyone was sent to the toilet), however, the local council had the sprinklers set to come on just as we left the conveniences. Lots of Japanese squeals!

Then it was off to a local farm where the five balloons were already set out and starting to inflate. It was a bit foggy and quite cool here, especially standing around in the dark taking photos. The other Australian and I were moved to another bus before being informed that this busload were on the second flight. (The balloons have two by thirty minute flights.) We watched the first flights take off – three balloons had baskets which held 20 people, the other two balloons had baskets which held 8.

Back on the bus to chase the balloons, so we thought, only to be told we were returning to Mareeba to collect a couple who were helicoptering in from Cairns (obviously weren’t keen on the early start!). Expectations of Mary and Frederick, Charles and Camilla, Nicholle and Keith or Tom and Katy were dashed when a middle aged couple from New Zealand alighted from the helicopter. The pilot hopped on the bus as well, although didn’t fly in the balloon. The mind boggles at the cost of hiring a helicopter for four hours in order to take a 30 minutes balloon flight! We are obviously not one of the “other half.”

Anyway, back out to near where the balloons launched from and we were in time to see our balloon (8 seater basket) descend over a farmhouse, appear to set on the power lines, prune the top of a dead tree (starting to have a few doubts about the pilot by this) and then land on top of a mango tree before settling in the grass between the rows of mango trees.

Passengers were exchanged on a one out, one in basis (to keep the weight even) – we had to climb into the basket using footholes in the end. Then the burners roared and we were up and soaring. What a fantastic experience!!! Parts of the landscape were still covered by fog and the sight was unbelievable, with the sun rising over the hills. (There will probably be some photos of this in the coming days.) We rose to 4000 feet and just floated about, with everyone taking photos non-stop. It really was incredible, especially the silence. The burners were only used occasionally to gain height. The balloon was equipped with an outrigger camera so we could have in-flight photos to purchase!

We drifted towards Mareeba, much to the pilot’s displeasure, as he said he wasn’t keen on all the power lines (not the only one!) and some people didn’t really like balloons landing in their backyards. However, he managed to keep us aloft until we reached an old cane field behind some houses and put us down there – no trees or power lines, thank goodness. The landing was so gentle, not even a bump. We were then pushed back up into the air to move as one of the “big” balloons was coming into the same area. Back down again, then we were informed the basket would be tipped onto its side so the balloon could be deflated before we alighted! No one was really keen on this idea. We had to sit on the floor (not exactly easy to do in a very confined space) and hang on to the grab ropes. (Can you spot me in the photo?) We were then slowly tipped until we were flat on our backs. The bottom layer of people crawled out first, then the top layer (including me) had to get out – not easy as there was no support from the waist up and not a lot of room to manoeuvre. After everyone was out, it was pack up time and most of the passengers (someone had to take photos!!!) helped roll the balloon and put it in the bag. The bag and basket were then placed on the trailer of the support vehicle, we all stood on the side, hanging on tightly, and drove back to the road and our bus.

It was nearly 8.00 am by this and breakfast was sounding very appetising. We were taken to the Heritage Centre for a hot buffet breakfast, complete with a glass of champagne. Whilst Cat chickened out of the balloon flight (he wasn’t allowed, anyway), he certainly wasn’t backward in coming forward for a glass of champers! In-flight photos were printed off to be purchased and it was back on the bus for the return journey to Cairns.

The rest of the day was rather boring!

More Shopping

12th August – Wednesday

Decided to return to DFO this morning and buy an Oroton handbag I saw last week (they were very cheap, especially for Oroton). Unfortunately, there weren’t any left, which means next time: no dithering! Of course, someone headed straight for the Ralph Lauren shop and bought another pair of pants and socks – “too good a bargain not to buy!”

This afternoon it was back to bowls and an extremely hot afternoon on the green. As it is winter, the sunshade isn’t unrolled. One of us had a couple of very good games and came third overall at the end of the day – this makes a second and third in three weeks, so I am determined to crack the big one before we leave. Afternoon tea was bread and vegemite or bread and pickles; a bit different to Beltana’s sausage rolls, party pies and cocktail savs, but probably more appropriate for the climate. Stratford is a very nice club and we have been made very welcome.

The postman brought us a parcel today, with some photos and movies starring Jack. Great fun!

Early to bed tonight!!!

Mossman Gorge

11th August – Tuesday

I am starting to wonder if I should believe the owners and wait until the weather is perfect for a balloon flight! This morning was just gorgeous – no clouds, no wind and warm.

As Himself was feeling a little better today, we decided to brave the windy road and check out Mossman Gorge. I think every tour company in the area was offering a discount on tours to Mossman Gorge today!!! There were so many people! To make it worse, most of the track was closed, so everyone was congregated in a fairly small area. Listening to a tour guide, someone evidently did the wrong thing on the suspension bridge (rocked it badly) and actually moved it sideways. Therefore, the nice, long track through rainforest was out of bounds. There was plenty of water in the gorge as well – a bit too much, actually, for turtle spotting.

As we were in the vicinity, Port Douglas was also on the itinerary. A very up-market town with heaps of very posh resorts. I’m sure some people never leave the grounds of the resorts. We parked in the main street, wandered around the shops (most VERY expensive and exclusive), decided we didn’t want to take out a bank loan to cover lunch and ended up buying fish and chips. Thought it probably wasn’t the done thing to sit in the car in the middle of the main street and eat, so found a nice shady spot beside the marina and looked at the big boats. Cat was very quickly reassured that he wouldn’t have to go on one of the boats.

Back to Cairns in time to buy some tickets for the Queensland Orchestra’s performance next week. All we know is that they will be performing Mozart, Brahms and Beethoven, so should be good listening.

It is unbelievable the number of people who dry their clothes in the dryer, instead of using the clothes line, especially in this climate!

Gift Voucher

10th August – Monday

A very quiet day, today, as the dreaded migraine struck again. Consequently, the man of the caravan has spent the day in bed – a complete waste of beautiful weather!

I received a gift voucher from Myer for my birthday, and as it would expire this week, decided this morning would be a good time to check out suitable purchase options. Of course, with all these “gifts,” one usually ends up having to spend money to save money. Cairns Central Shopping Centre has also had free parking, but as the local workers have been making use of it and not leaving any room for shoppers to park, the decision has been made to commence charging for the privilege of parking. At this stage, the book gates are being installed and most of the entrances and exits are currently blocked off. This made both getting into and out of the car park quite an adventure! Unfortunately, the Tomtom wasn’t much use.

We only have three weeks remaining of our stay in Cairns, so will need to start undertaking some of the activities on our “to do” list.

Great result in the cricket – let’s hope the next Test has the same result.

A New Zealand lady staying in one of the units near our caravan (only ever said "Hello" to her) wandered over late yesterday afternoon and asked if I would like some groceries she had bought and not used - she couldn't take them back on the plane. I ended up with rice, pasta sauce, noodles, coffee - and a bottle of nail polish remover!

Today’s photo is of the Kuranda Train.

Cheer, Cheer ...

9th August – Sunday

An absolutely glorious morning – 30 degrees before 11.00 am.

A swap meet had been advertised for today, so as we are always willing to undergo new experiences, we set in anticipation. I do have to say that we quickly realised we weren’t dressed appropriately – black t-shirts would have blended in far better. What was there? Lots of motor bikes and older cars (didn’t mind the nice red MGs!), heaps of car “junk” – rusty pipes, wheels, wheel caps, engine bits and other boy stuff – a few stalls with normal old junk and LOTS of people. It was also the Cairns Cup today, and anyone who didn’t attend the Cup managed to find their way to the swap meet. Anyway, it is something else we can cross off the “now done” list.

Very important game this afternoon between the Swans and the Tigers, so the boys kitted themselves out before making themselves comfortable on the bed – the best place to watch television. Cat was becoming very excited by half time (so was someone else!) and was quite ready to burst into the theme song at the end of the game.

Visitors

9th August – Saturday

Beautiful day, warm and clear – temperature about 28 degrees.

We were to meet Rae and Malcolm before lunch, so it was a quick trip to Rusty’s Market for some fresh fruit and salad stuff before heading to their accommodation in the centre of Cairns. After some discussion (I don’t really mind, whatever you want to do) we decided to head to Smithfield Shopping Centre for some lunch and a wander, stopping at the caravan on the way to offload the food. We felt this would be an appropriate activity that Rae would enjoy!

After thoroughly checking out the shops, we decided on a walk to Crystal Cascades and a bit of a sightseeing tour around the Redlynch area – neither of them had been to this part of Cairns before. Happy hour, followed by a barbecue and lots more talking (and listening) rounded out the day.

7th August – Friday

Absolutely poured with rain last night! However, this morning was bright and clear, just what we needed for our trip to Kuranda.

An early morning for EVERYONE – no grumbles from Cat who was very excited at the prospect of a train ride. We had to check in at Freshwater Station by 8.15 am, so arrived 15 minutes early and were confronted by a long, very slow-moving queue. Eventually arrived at the ticket window and was told we needed to go to the counter inside. No queue at this counter! There weren’t very many people on the train and we were able to have a window seat each. Cat was a little worried about the tunnels, but by the time we entered number 15, we nearly fell asleep in the dark.

After arriving in Kuranda, we headed to the Butterfly Sanctuary – such a lovely place with all the tropical butterflies, lots of Ulysses and Cairns Birdwings flying about. We were also taken into the breeding laboratory and saw how the butterflies developed from eggs to their eventual release into the aviaries. Cat sat very patiently, but was very disappointed when no butterflies would land on his head.

The remainder of our time was spent wandering through the markets with the same stock found in markets everywhere, and the numerous souvenir shops with the same stock found in souvenir shops everywhere. I think we also picked the worst place for lunch (cooked lettuce in a sandwich isn’t really palatable) but did find a nice ice cream shop.

The return journey was on the Skyrail – our booking was for a very busy time of the afternoon, obviously. Unfortunately, the sun had disappeared by this time, so the rain forest and the Barron River were looking a bit on the dull side. It was still a wonderful ride, eventually arriving at Smithfield. We turned our back for a minute and found Cat trying to play the didgeridoos. A coach transferred us to Freshwater Station and our car.

It was still very hot and humid, but it wasn’t long before the rain started again.

Palm Cove

6th August – Thursday

Apart from washing the car, the morning just seemed to disappear. It took someone nearly five hours to read the newspaper!

The lovely, hot morning and early afternoon did rather deteriorate. As it is the full moon today, we decided to head to Palm Cove to have a meal and watch the moon rise over the Coral Sea. The weather just got worse and worse after we arrived at Palm Cove. We had a quick walk along the beach – not even any hardy Asian tourists braving the rough water – and out to the end of the pier. The tide was so low that a long spit was obvious from Double Island almost to Scout Hat Island.

We did stop to watch a couple having some wedding photos taken on the beach, and also saw them later at their reception at the Sebel. Looked to be quite a pleasant affair.

The wind had picked up, along with some heavy cloud cover, so we spent a bit of time looking through the shops along the esplanade – lots of lovely resort wear which would never be worn in Hobart. I did find a nice red skirt, though.

As the weather was so unpleasant by this time and Cat refused to leave the car, we decided to give the moon rise a miss (probably wouldn’t have been visible, anyway) and returned to Cairns. Then spent the next hour commiserating with a couple we have come to know – they are booked to travel to the reef tomorrow and just as concerned about the weather.

Bowls Again

5th August – Wednesday

Wonderful news last night when we heard that Cameron had won a Young Innovators Award and he (and Diane) will be off to Canberra for a posh award dinner and some very important media coverage.

Cairns had its coldest night this year – the temperature dropped to 16 degrees! The most beautiful morning though, so clear and warm with no wind. However, the wind did come back about lunchtime, but it is improving. By Friday, the weather should be back to “normal” for Cairns, so we are told. Therefore, we have made reservations to visit Kuranda on Friday, travelling to Kuranda by train and returning on the Skyway. Cat is rather excited at the prospect and will probably take a bit of getting to sleep tonight!

As Les was still rather lethargic after his migraine yesterday, he spent the morning relaxing while I tackled the grocery shopping (superannuation day, today). Woolworths have a good supermarket not far away.

This afternoon we played bowls again at Stratford. The first game of ten ends seemed to take no time, especially when one is winning. We played pairs today, which was much harder work as there was no opportunity to sit down or find some shade. The second game of the afternoon found us playing against each other, not that we are the least bit competitive!!! Unfortunately, neither of our teams won the afternoon’s prizes, nor the raffle. Next week …

4th August – Tuesday

Feel much better this morning, although we did have a very disturbed night! The local thick knees (birds, not a derogatory term!) decided to party on our front lawn. These are large nocturnal birds which walk around the caravan park every night and make a noise which is a cross between cats mating and a baby crying. Anyway, last night they decided to spend the whole night partying outside our window!!!

Clear, very hot and windy today, much hotter than the last few days.

We headed to the Botanic Gardens early this morning to join their bird watching tour. Unfortunately, every mosquito within a 100 km radius also decided to join the tour as well. It was very nearly a case of stopping at the Red Cross on the way home to have a blood transfusion! Cat wasn’t at all impressed and retreated into his backpack.

We did have great fun with the binoculars and even spotted some birds we haven’t seen before – the sunbird and Papuan frogmouths were both spectacular in their own ways. We were “lucky” enough to have an “expert” on birds in the group – kept asking the guide questions (we all know the sort) and even told us Tasmanians that she knew a farmer had imported foxes into Tasmania so he could go foxhunting. We ignored her after that little comment. All told, it was an enjoyable walk (apart from the mozzies) through the parklands for 2 ½ hours. We were lucky enough to also see a Cairns birdwing butterfly which had just emerged from is chrysalis – and a monstrous spider web complete with monstrous spider!

Something for those who like googling – there was a Pacific baza in the caravan park a few days ago.

We had only been home a few minutes when the dreaded migraine struck – the second one since we left home. Hopefully a pill and a sleep will help.

3rd August – Monday

A drizzly start to the day which cleared enough for the washing to dry by lunchtime. Very warm and very humid this afternoon.

Not much happening today apart from a two hour morning tea break with neighbours! This afternoon was spent talking to my favourite company – Telstra! Hopefully they have now sorted out the telephone account and we wont have to have the same conversation again next month.

There are obviously quite a few reptiles in the vicinity. Saturday’s newspaper featured a photo of a scrub python, in excess of 5 metres long, which was captured in the yard of a house not all that far from here. The kind people released it on the mountain behind us! Yesterday morning was passed a snake on the side of the road, again only a couple of kilometres away. We also have a large lizard, probably 40 cms long, living under the caravan. Someone is rather concerned that said lizard may decide to take up residence in his bright yellow clogs!

A nice surprise at lunch time was the arrival of Canada and his wife (aka Gary and Kathy), who have been following us since Mt Isa and last seen at Georgetown. The red wine may have to come out of the wine cellar tonight (need it after Telstra, anyway).

Book Hunt Continues

2nd August – Sunday

A much nicer morning with clear blue skies, although still quite windy. It did cloud over during the afternoon, but the temperature was still around the 26 degrees mark.

As we are still on the great book hunt, this morning we headed for the Smithfield Community Market, which was held at the Smithfield Shopping Centre. It was quite a pleasant morning as the market stalls were actually inside the shopping complex and a nice assortment of goods, not just plants and bead jewellery! There were a few book stalls and we managed to find a few books to add to the collection. We also met a couple who were parked behind us at Karumba and spent a fair amount of time catching up on news. Also spent some time talking to a lovely guy who had an antique type of stall – he did have a couple of pieces I would have been quite happy to buy if transport hadn’t been a problem, fortunately!

Les has been looking for some new fragrance (men’s, of course), so consequently we have been testing various brands whenever we come across some. This morning we were lucky to find a shop at Smithfield with a good range, Les was duly sprayed in a number of different places along his arms and was certainly very pleasant to be near for the remainder of the day.

After lunch we decided to have a walk along the Cairns Esplanade and view the scenery. The tide is still out!!! At least it makes crocodile spotting much easier. The Scouts were having a fun day, as well, at the northern end away from the Lagoon area. This whole area is a lovely place to have a picnic with children as there is an amazing playground full of very imaginative equipment, water spouts and pool. Unfortunately, one does now feel very uncomfortable taking photos of children playing, which is a rather sad reflection of our times. We walked right along the Esplanade, past the mosaic shell, beach volleyball courts, skateboard park, emergency helipad and RSL monuments, to the centre of the town, bought an ice cream at Baskin Robbins (which probably undid all the good of the walk) and walked all the way back.

There has been a lot of publicity lately about “backpackers” in beat up vans free camping on vacant beachfront blocks at Machens Beach. The general feeling among the public seems to be that these freeloaders shouldn’t be allowed to camp in prime residential areas. Fair enough, we pay our camping fees. So we decided to check out this “prime residential absolute beachfront area.” The best way to describe the area would be a few good houses among a beachside suburb that had a definite “gone troppo” look to it! Backpackers in vans are a real problem in Cairns, though, as they just seem to set up camp in car parks, streets or anyway they can pull up.

Cat is starting to suffer from cabin fever as he hasn’t been out in the car for a while. This afternoon we found him attempting to pick green bananas from the tree across the road!

1st August – Saturday

The high pressure system is obviously still stationery – this morning was rather overcast, cool and windy, clearing this afternoon with a top of 26 degrees.

The day was spent book hunting as we have nearly completed reading our stock of books. As soon as breakfast was finished, we headed out with the newspaper to check out the garage sales in the area (ably assisted by Tomtom!). First call was to the local Lutheran school, where the kindergarten were having a trash and treasure sale. Lots of toys, plus a few books on offer. As we had no idea of street locations, we simply keyed the addresses into Tomtom and hoped we wouldn’t have to do too much backtracking. Didn’t buy any more books, but we did get to see parts of Redlynch we hadn’t seen before.

Continued this afternoon at the Freshwater Primary School Fete, along with half the population of Cairns, seemingly. It was quite a big fete (not as good as Illawarra, of course) with lots of different activities for the children, plus plenty for parents to spend their money on. The cake stall was rather unusual in that the cakes appeared to have been made by the students (some of the cakes, anyway) and they were all placed in boxes handmade and decorated by the students. Some of the boxes, and cakes, were really well made, some were made with enthusiasm! I never did find out what a box of cakes cost, but they were very popular. The books were very popular as well and we bought about ten novels – if they aren’t very good, we will swap them somewhere along the way.

That about filled in the day.