Heading Home

Airport time....what an odd selection of goods. What exactly would one expect to gain by taking Kangaroo Essence?



And we have lift-off. Terrific time, wondeful folks and country. We would go back in a heartbeat 20+ total hours airborne and all!!

Thanks for following Mary and David's 21 G'days

Last Day in Queensland

Beautiful day for our bitter sweet drive back along the coast to the airport in Cairns. We'll miss the sugar cane fields, rich burnt sienna earth, rolling hills, curious cows and towns that felt like we had been transported back to the 1950's.





Mini stops along the way brought us to terrific National Parks. All are free access, super clean with well marked walking trails and posted points of interest.

The Boulders Gorge made us feel like we were already back home at Bingham Falls. Well... except for the stray palm tree!

All packed, last bit of crackers and wine consumed, our picnic companion crowed...."time to get on the plane!"

Num Nums!

Ok so the food was pretty expensive. This menu is a bit over the top but...you can see...$$$



No worries, These crackers were fantastic, reasonable and a staple at all picnics!

Beach and Dunk Island

Our own private beach down the hill from the sanctuary plus.... The Best footwear ever!



Dunk Island from Mission Beach, island map, our water taxi and a stretch of isolated beauty.
Since coming home I've ordered "The Confessions of a Beach Comber:Life on a Queensland tropic isle" by E. J. Banfield...it just came in the mail today! It is Banfield's account of Dunk Island life and was first published in 1908...very cool...Walden of the tropics!

Cassowaries

Why did the Cassowary cross the road?

Unbelievable, on our first full day on the coast in Queensland, we came upon this amazing creature!

"Cassowaries are usually shy birds of the deep forest, adept at disappearing long before a human knows they are there. Even the more accessible Southern Cassowary of the far north is not well understood."



"The 2007 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records lists the cassowary as the world's most dangerous bird. During WWII American and Australian troops stationed in New Guinea were warned to steer clear of them. Many internet entries about cassowaries state that they can disembowel a human or dog with one kick, with the long second toe claw cutting the gut open."

Great!!!
OK, they cross the road because they are big scary dinosaurs that deserve the right of way.





The Cassowary Plum...their main food source. The gorgeous blue color matches the bird's neck.

Sanctuary Retreat

A beautiful drive along the coast from Cairns to Mission Beach lead us to the eco-lodge where we would be staying for three nights. This remote yoga retreat is accessible only via 4WD and our hike from the car park to the lodge was wild! We chose not to hike it in the dark!




The Lodge's lobby and view from the porch at sun-up...really great, especially hearing the birdsong!




The communal kitchen and our screened in hut....deluxe camping!

Checking out for now

We will be heading out for our eco-sanctuary rain forest tree hut for our last three nights...don't expect to be on-line, more like on-vine!


David is wild about the fruit ice-cream made directly on site....yumm!

Crocs...Estuarine or Saltwater Crocodile

Our River Cruiser Awaits....would you trust this bloke?


Care for a refreshing dip?


Well on second thought...I'm good in the boat.


In a while....

Sail Away and Snorkel...Awesome!

We sat sail on our 62 foot Catamaran on the best day of the entire trip!!
This was only its third voyage and they put me at the wheel...dah what were they thinking!!!



We shared the waters with a gorgeous yacht from Italy. Our Aquarius moored while we snorkeled the waters of the Low Isles.


The waters of the Low Isles are beautifully full of both hard and soft coral....we found Nemo!


This was the most perfect day....a gift of a lifetime.

Sand Art

We've been curious about the painting style used in the Aboriginal art...patterns and dots...

Well perhaps the small sand crab has been the inspiration!