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.
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.
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