Cairns we have been and gone; we had a busy couple of days. There were 2 main things that we wanted to do while in Cairns. The first was a tour of the waterfalls around cairns and the tablelands. Over the course of the day we visited 7 places and saw 3 waterfalls.
It was an early start and we were collected by the tour bus from our hostel. Our tour guide for the day was Jordan, an enthusiastic and entertaining guide. We drove for about an hour to our first stop Babinda boulders. Jordan warned us that if we were male and between the ages of 18 and 25 to keep your wits about you as the place was cursed.
The story goes that there were 2 tribes living side by side when the wife of one tribe leader fell in love with a handsome man from the other tribe. As the girl was married they met in secret. One day they were caught and as punishment the couple we dragged from each other never to see the other again. The girl managed to escape a jumped into the river to escape. She cried for him to return but he never did. While she was crying and calling out for her love the land shook with “terror and sorrow” causing rocks to appear from the earth. Her tears became a rushing water covering the rocks and the whole area. The heart broken girl disappeared between the water and the rocks becomeing part of the rocks. The ledgers goes that the girls spirit still remains at the boulders. She cries out for her love and she calls to the wandering traveller into the water in the hopes of reclaiming her love again. So boys you have been warned 😉
After Babinda Boulders we went to Josephine falls. I think this was my favourite stop of the day. It was a natural water slide! We spent quite a while there just having fun and getting to know the group we were with for the day. Harriet and I went down on an inflatable watermelon 🍉 With a little help from our tour guide, Mikey, we both successfully got on without loosing either of us.
Our second waterfall of the day was Mila Mila falls, this is the waterfall they use in the Herbal Essences advert. Jordan, our tour guide, played some big and dramatic music for the big reveal of the waterfall as you could drive right up to it! Everyone wanted to do the famous hair flick so we spent a bit of time just watching every one throw their head in the water and then out again trying to get the flick, Harriet had a go a we got the perfect video!
After Mila Mila falls it was lunchtime! The day was flying by, we stopped at a one of the oldest wooden pubs in Australia. We had a much deserved lunch ready for the afternoon ahead.
Mount Hypipamee National Park was our next stop. As we got off the bus our tour guides began looking for really big rocks. We wondered why. A short walk to a large crater, didn’t shed much light on the rocks but it was amazing. It was really deep and the walls of the crater were also fee nominally tall. So when our tour guide said that he was going to throw the large rock he had carried to the crater we all watched. It was not what we saw that was amazing but what we heard. As the rock hit the water there was the most realistic gun shot sound and it echoed around the crater too which made it cooler.
A short walk on from the crater was Dinner falls. Dinner falls was quite a fast flowing waterfall. Our tour guides told us about a small cave behind a part of the waterfall and how cool it was to get into the cave. So a line of people attempted to get threw the waterfall and into the cave. It looked really hard, even the tour guides struggled a bit and in the end they were dragging people through. I didn’t go in this time by the time I had lunch I was ready to put in dry clothes and just watch the fun unfold.
Have you see Avertar? If you have you will hopefully know the tree of life? Well the Curtain Fig Tree inspired the tree of life in Avertar. This was our next stop. I found it really interesting how the Curtian Fig Tree grows, a seed begins to grow on a ‘host’ Tree. The Fig tree grows roots which run down the ‘host’ tree to the ground, more and more roots begin to grow and eventually they strangle and takeover the ‘host’ tree. The Curtian Fig Tree was formed as the ‘host’ tree fell onto another tree, the Fig tree then took over the second Tree strangling and taking over the second tree and creating the the curtain-like look of the tree. It was a very old looking tree but understanding the way it has grown was fascinating – showing the inner geek in me 🤓
We hoped to see a platypus at Yungaburra but unfortunately they were feeling shy and didn’t come to say hello, it we did see a small turtle popping up for some fresh air.
Our final stop on the day was the beautiful Crater lakes. The water was th colour of a jade stone and you could jump or dive off a pontoon into the water. A great end to the day.
The whole day was so much fun and it is something I will never forget! Jordan and Mikey were ace as our tour guides. They knew the area but were also so much fun. I can’t believe this is their job!! How lucky!!
Peaches & Pencils 