Atherton

MONDAY, 27 JUNE 2016

Fluffy red flower

Mauve fungi

White and brown spotted fungi

Spot the red-browed firetail

Scrub turkeys

Yesterday, we had a long drive of 14 kms from Yungaburra to Atherton, our final stop before Cairns.  The weather was quite overcast and we even had a few misty showers during the afternoon.  We are staying at the Big4 Woodlands Tourist Park and it is so nice to have the four and a half stars again: we are both so over red dirt, red mud and red dust.  This is a large park, mainly cabins, set among tropical gardens and with plenty of birds to keep the birdwatcher happy.  Apart from the usual honeyeaters, we have spotted the beautiful king parrot and the very tiny red browed firetail, along with plenty of butterflies – even the Ulysses!

Atherton is the biggest town we have stayed at so far this trip, evidenced by a Coffee Club, Brumbies Bakery and McDonalds.  Lunch at the Coffee Club was a nice treat.

Today, with the weather looking kinder but very humid, we set out for a good walk and intended to take in the Chinese Museum and Temple, only to discover they don’t open on Mondays.  We made do with a walk through a patch of rainforest either side of a very unpleasant looking creek, complete with domestic ducks and scrub turkeys.  A walk along both sides of the main street completed the morning.