So read my diary on 13 November, written whist sitting in a hotel bed in Cairns, Queensland. The view from our hotel balcony confirms what we've been missing for the last few days, for here our old friend, the Pacific, laps tropical shores. Sultry Cairns is a holiday town, nestled along Australia's tropical coast, the only place in the world where two UNESCO World Heritage Sites meet - that is, the Daintree Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef. We intend to explore both during our time here, but first off it's a stroll down Cairns Esplanade, where signs warn of the dangers of saltwater crocodile attacks, and nobody dares set foot on the beach due to the potential presence of the deadly box jellyfish.
Our first destination, on a warm and muggy day, is Port Douglas, an hour's drive to the north, and accessed by the Captain Cook Highway, surely one of the world's most stunning and spectacular roads. To the left, the rainforest cascades down, whilst to the right, pristine beaches give way to emerald seas. Every now-and-then we cross little saltwater creeks, crocodile territory if every I saw it. The twisting and turning road follows the coastline closely, but eventually we arrive at Port Douglas, embarkation port for a catamaran called Quicksilver VIII. Quicksilver VIII is a speedy vessel, cutting smoothly through the waves and taking us some 30 miles off-shore, delivering us to a giant platform anchored on the Agincourt Reef, one small part of the 1,500-mile long Great Barrier Reef. On the platform, numerous activities are offered for every taste - you can dive, snorkel, take a helicopter tour, and so on. To boot, Quicksilver Tours have been given the highest environmental accreditation, and work hard to preserve this incredible environment.
We opt to snorkel, and after donning very silly wet suits (box suits - again, to protect from any rouge jellyfish,) fins and masks, we slip tentatively into the warm tropical sea. For a moment all is calm, and only when I put my face into the water do I realise - with a little panic - where I am. Beneath me, perhaps 50 feet down - is a crystal clear world of coral and fish, some of which are quite big. It's a surreal experience to be suspended mid-water whilst the local wildlife swims all about you, but once I acclimatise to this, the whole experience becomes a pleasure. My progress is very slow, the giant fins on my feet causing me some difficulty, but it doesn't actually matter, for we stick close together and within the recommended boundary rope. I couldn't identify many of the fish we saw, but I do particularly remember the Maori Wrasse, known to be inquisitive creatures, and instantly likeable.
Back on the platform, we have our buffet lunch and then board a semi-submersible, which takes a half hour tour around the reef. Corals and fish abound, although not as colourful as I had hoped (apparently 80% of coral is brown, and what you see presented on TV is something of a inaccuracy.) we see sponge corals, brain corals, cauliflower corals, and huge boulder corals. Our guide is comical and has slightly broken English, but squeals with delight on two separate occasions, beseeching us to turn our heads and take in the marvels of wild green sea turtles, a sight that is one of the highlights of our holiday.
The following day is a quiet and leisurely one in Cairns, before our time in Australia - and our honeymoon - draws to a close with a final excursion to the Daintree Rainforest. The rainforest makes up the greater Wet Tropics Rainforest, and is the oldest continually surviving tropical rainforest in the world. Joining us on our excursion are a couple from Sydney, a couple from Brisbane, a couple from Texas, and a group of three from Bognor Regis, all taken under the careful eye of our guide for the day (and, we think, the best guide of our trip,) Kelvin. Kelvin explains that, when the Australian continent slipped away from Pangaea, it evolved (or rather, it didn't) in a different way to forests in the rest of the world, retaining its ancient character. We are taken first to Mossman Gorge, where an affable Aboriginal guide called Matty takes us for a fascinating walk, stopping here-and-there to show us interesting plants and flowers, and traditional tools and weapons. Matty himself lives in a community of about 250 people in the gorge, one of five branches of his tribe. The houses are wooden, but all come with air conditioning and satellite dishes, and Matty also mentions that 90% of the community are Christians. I notice an interesting difference between Matty and the very few Aboriginals we encountered at Uluru - here, it seems, people are a lot more open and talkative. Eventually we reached a tributary of the the Daintree River, a very beautiful spot with the water gushing over smooth stones. It's a very enjoyable walk, but a very hot and humid one, and our comfort is made all -the-worse because of the layer of mosquito repellent we've sprayed on our hands and faces.
After our humid walk in the forest, we are taken to the Daintree Teahouse, where we are served a tasty lunch and offered the chance to try a number of exotic fruits. The proprietor of the teahouse gives an interesting talk about some of the plants and fruits of the forest, and although I don't remember everything we tried, there was dragon fruit, passion fruit and pomello among the selection. Our host is clearly knowledgeable on many things - when he hears we are from Devon, he remarks regrettably: "I'm afraid we don't have any clotted cream available."
From the Daintree Teahouse, it's a short drive to the Daintree River, where we hop aboard a frighteningly small boat for a river cruise. Here, mangroves and other forest trees edge the riverbank, and we feel decidedly that we are in the tropics. We are joined on the journey by a very cute white-lipped green tree frog, who is fast asleep by our bench. The Daintree River is quite sizable, and at this point feels utterly unchanged over the centuries, so mush so that I would not be surprised to see a dinosaur wander into view on the shore. That, of course, is not an entirely inaccurate expectation, for lining the waters here are the dreaded saltwater crocodiles, and after some searching, we happen upon one sitting very still in the bank. Our guide suggests that it's a female, sitting on a nest of eggs. Shortly afterwards we encounter another one, a male, who slowly submerges when we get closer, in a sinister and uneasy manner. Saltwater crocodiles are enormous animals - the largest of all reptiles - and have been known to take human beings here, although this is usually avoided with little bit of common sense, and my overwhelming reaction is one of delight that we've been able to see a couple on our trip. Elsewhere, we encounter little mudskippers and fiddler crabs, whilst when we get back to the jetty, out boat attracts the attention of some archer fish, prompting our guide to place small pieces of fruit on the boat's edge, watching with delight as they spit and knock it into the water - they hit the target every single time.
Our drive back to Cairns took in the Captain Cook Highway once again, and we stopped for one final view at the Rex Lookout, which overlooks Wangetti Beach, a particularly stunning portion of the coastline. Here, para-gliders set off from the cliffs and head up into the clouds (sometimes the owner of this business takes his dog with him) and whilst we opt to stay firmly on land, you can understand the desire to see this landscape from above - it must be spectacular. As Lizzie and I stand looking out across the ocean, it dawns upon us that our trip is drawing to a close, for tomorrow we must leave Cairns and head ever-eastwards, back to Britain, back where the North Atlantic - and not the South Pacific - dictates the state of play. With the exception of Uluru, the ocean has been our constant companion since we landed in Los Angeles, so much so that I'm sad to give it a final glance. But despite this, we both leave with a heart full of gratefulness and thanks, for the opportunity to come out here in the first place is a huge privileged, and one that we have been determined to absorb in every way. It's a wondrous part of the world.
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