Today was slow, intentionally slow. I woke up watched some football and did some reading and writing. Eventually I caught the bus back to Cairns in the evening. I wanted to take advantage of the pool but the weather really wasn't that cooperative. Regardless tomorrow is a new adventure.
Monday, January 23, 2017
Cairns to Port Douglas on yet another tour bus 1/7/17
Yay mornings, not actually. The first thing I booked with those tour/travel agencies was a trip to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree rainforest. I really wanted to do this because when I was here in Cairns 2 years ago with my dad and sister this is one of the things that we didn't get to do despite everybody raving about it. There are few moments in time when you have a chance to do a do-over and while it often proves worthwhile and you are able to make something right. On the other hand, every once in a while you learn that you needn't have bothered because you did things right the first time. It wasn't a complete waste of time just not the best use of my time or the absurd amount of money given that we sat on the bus the vast majority of the time and half the stops were duds.
Our first stop was Mossman Gorge where we were supposed to take part in an aboriginal ritual of welcome and then go swimming. I will admit that the swimming was in a pretty awesome spot. The problem was the ritual was a complete waste of time. The aboriginal who did the presentation was so bad that after he left our bus driver stepped in to show us a few more things, our white kiwi bus driver, yep that bad. From there we headed up the coast toward the Daintree river where we were hopped on a croc cruise. Too bad there wasn't even a hint of a crocodile anywhere, barely any animal life at all for that matter, yup... unfortunately the frustrations don't end there. We continued on up the coast to Cape Trib where we got to eat lunch by the beach. Only two problems: crocodiles and jellyfish. We weren't allowed anywhere near the water because there was a chance of both and no we still didn't see a crocodile. On the plus side we got to try kangaroo for lunch, unfortunately they put it in a burger which sounds cool but kangaroo is far too lean a meat to be turned into a burger. I did survive by drowning it in barbecue sauce though. On the plus side this is where the trip got at least a little interesting. Our next stop was a short (and I mean really short) hike down a trail in the Daintree Rainforest. The part that was cool was that our bus driver showed us a bunch of really cool things about the jungle. Turns out basically everything in the jungle is trying to kill you from the vines that hang down covered in thorns to the poisonous spiders and the still missing crocodiles. I can't actually remember everything he taught us but there were these really cool vines that strangled trees then replaced them.
Epic structure created by the strangle vines
But it turns out it is even cooler from the inside (there used to be another tree in here)
From there we continued down the coast back towards Cairns and right before we got to the Daintree river crossing we found this spectacular creature.
It is a little difficult to make out because the pictures were taken in a bit of a hurry but this is an adolescent Cassowary (you may see the blue head). They are incredibly rare and when fully grown I might mistake one for a dinosaur
Our next stop was a small ice cream place and the hill behind it that offered some spectacular views. I can't for the life of me remember what mine was called but it had Daintree in it and it was this bizarre shade of green. I couldn't not try it.
The view from the top of the hill (I finally got at least part of a photo sphere)
Our last stop before Cairns was Port Douglas and while we only stopped for a few minutes I did snag a terrible picture of a beautiful parakeet.
The best part of my day was that I got to hop off early in Port Douglas instead of going all the way back down to Cairns. Travel hacking really paid off massively today. I managed to leverage a free night using an SPG promotion at any class 1-5 SPG property. I picked the Sheraton Port Douglas and having status from my Amex Platinum got me upgraded to this gorgeous room.
I know it is blurry but I don't have another good picture
The view
The salt water lagoon (1 of 7) under my window
And my epic restroom
Let me tell you, after being on the road for this long having a properly comfortable bed, a really nice shower, and a little bit of extra space was unbelievably satisfying. I threw the cricket match on tv and just absorbed the quiet for a while.
Friday, January 20, 2017
Onward to Cairns 1/6/17
I hate early mornings, like really really hate early travelling mornings. I had to take a cab to the airport because when I tried to book the shuttle the website kept crapping out on me. I did however make it to my flight and I avoided getting stopped by Jetstar. Jetstar has this rule that anything over 7kg has to be checked and paid for. I only have the one real bag and am not willing to lose it to mediocre bag handling so I have been sneaking my 12 kg bag onto all the Jetstar flights and trying to make it look light so nobody actually checks it. I'm officially 3 for 3 (lets hope this continues because the one time they catch me I'll be out 100$).
Anyway I got to Cairns and checked into my hostel for the evening where I found out that there is a fruit market called Rusty's on the weekend. With this new information I double timed it the block and half towards said market and was floored when I met the following epicness. Mangos of many varieties, from giant and pink to skinny and green. Bananas in multiple colors, shapes and size. Mini pineapples that were literally 2 dollars apiece. Longan and Lychee and Rambutan took center stage in this beautiful mess. I even found a guy selling coconut (which is odd because in all my time in Australia I can never find fresh coconut despite there being trees everywhere).
Literally fruit as far as the eye could see
In multiple directions
My beautiful late lunch included longan, pineapple, and elephant banana, several monkey bananas, a sweet Philippine mango, a dragonfruit, a pair of chicken skewers and one glorious coconut. Total was like 10 dollars: pretty sure this is what meals in heaven are like.
I just love how pretty these are
Freycinet National Park 1/5/17
Today I hopped a tour bus that took me from Launceston to Hobart via Freycinet National Park (home of wineglass bay). This is a park I wish I had another few days to spend time in because for 4 hours it just felt like a playground. Lots of little boulders to hop around on, scraggly peaks to scamper up, beautiful beaches on all sides and just spectacular views from everywhere.
I swear there are more places to take spheres here than anywhere else I've ever been
These are the views that everybody gets
These are those spots that you can only get to when you are willing to push limits a little
I did find that every time I decided to scamper off I found myself in slightly less safe environments
This was the bluff that finally turned me around, the wind kicked up and with these shoes I got too sketched out to keep going up. I was already a solid 150 feet up off the trail (not straight up but at least a scramble)
These pictures are from the trail to the Wineglass Bay Lookout (didn't actually get to go down to the actual beach because tour bus time lines and I know this is ridiculous because this is supposedly one of the best beaches in Australia). After running through my playground for a few hours the tour moved onto a few other spots around the national park. They were pretty and did provide a few great spots for pictures but I could have spent forever at the first spot.
This lighthouse lookout was the next place we stopped and I think the motto of the day was fences are meant to be hopped
This was our last stop, I think it was called Honeymoon Beach, it was spectacularly clear water but I'm starting to get frustrated with water side photospheres because they just never stitch together properly. This was my 3rd attempt and is alright but I definitely took half a dozen near the 12 Apostles and didn't get any that I was particularly happy with.
Saturday, January 14, 2017
Launceston 1/4/17
After a very slow morning to catch up on some much needed rest I managed to get booked on a trip going from Launceston to Hobart that went through Freycinet National Park and near Wineglass Bay (I say near because we get to hike to a viewpoint but don't have the time to hike to it properly). So with my late afternoon (I also had to get laundry and stuff done) I headed to Cataract Gorge to do some hiking. I started on a chunk of trail called Zig Zag Track and it was incredibly cool if difficult and led me to be really annoyed with myself. It was pretty steep and as I'm panting half way up I realize that I forgot something really important. The whole side of the trail is covered in beautiful climbable rock and despite lugging my climbing shoes across the Pacific they were still in my pack at the hostel instead of on this:
ARRRGH where are my shoes....
Anyway I eventually got over it and kept hiking and was occasionally left to pick my jaw off the floor because I'd round a bend and be presented with view like this:
Or this:
I was really not expecting a completely free and open public pool or the peacock
As the sun fell lower I kept finding places that convinced me to keep going just till the next spot. The view from this bridge is what made me head another couple miles of it (I did run chunks of it because daylight)
The farthest I got up the gorge
Making it out of the gorge as the sun sets
Literally just in time
Not Quite Cradle Mountain 1/3/17
Early morning ride as our bus heads back inland towards Cradle Mountain. I slept through most of it but I woke up to a frustrating surprise. Apparently we got to the park but don't actually get to scale Cradle Mountain. Supposedly rated a difficult hike and beyond the time constraints allowed for us. So that sucked but we instead got to hike to a place called Marion's Lookout and while not as spectacular peak it did offer some incredible views and was actually a very very fun hike (included a few spots that you basically had to drag yourself up on a chain because it was too steep to walk up). The trail was beautiful and meandered through ponds and lakes and rotated between a wooden boardwalk and completely untouched rock that you had to scramble up. This may be one of those spots where little I can say is meaningful compared to the pictures I have.
The start of this hike at the shores of Dove Lake (the sign cracked me up)
On the way up we passed this little lake named Wombat Poo (there may have been an L at some point in time but it wasn't there when I got there)
Apparently the weather is normally awful here but we got lucky and had an absolutely perfect day
Right below the chain climbing you had this view while you prepared
Making it to the top (that is Cradle Mountain in the background next to Dove lake)
The half of my bus group that braved the summit
An absolutely spectacular place
Sometimes covered in a few too many people
After we headed off the mountain somebody spotted a wombat in a field off the side of the road
He is incredibly adorable and has absolutely no fear, he literally walked up to us and then under the boardwalk we were standing on.
As the day waned we headed to Launceston. When I booked I messed up by waiting too long so all the 5 day trips that would have gotten me to Hobart were booked up. So while the rest of the bus was going to Hobart over the next 2 days I had only gotten 3 days booked so I was on my own to get to Hobart. My evening was spent trying to figure out how to pull that off after grabbing a couple of drinks with the group.
Strahan Day Trip 1/2/17
So we are staying in Strahan for another night but we did hop on the bus to go check out some of the cool stuff on the west coast. Our first hike was pretty damp, the rain would go on and off (we are in a rainforest after all), the waterfall at the top was so tall that the mist would blow around and coat everything in a thin layer of water. The ground was muddy and covered in puddles of unknown depth. We did get a chance to walk to the base of the impressive waterfall and the even more entertaining little bridge I'm standing on.
I do really like this bridge, it is just shaky enough
I'm not yet convinced that selfies are the right way to take pictures but I can't seem to stop taking them
After the little rain forest hike we stopped by the Henty Sand Dunes and later the beach on the west coast of Tasmania. Cool, but unfortunately no great pictures. Eventually we headed back towards Strahan where I wandered up a local trail that led to a waterfall. I was told that there might be platypuses in the river but I saw none (probably because it was the mid afternoon and they tend to be active right at dusk).
Platypus free river and waterfall :(
This eventually led to some mediocre hostel kitchen eggs and an early night because we have to be up way too early tomorrow.
Saturday, January 7, 2017
New Year's Day 1/1/17
Like most of my travel days I had an early start on the bus as we headed towards the west coast of Tasmania. We got a couple of short hikes in but there was a decent amount of driving. We did find a few waterfalls on the way. The interesting thing for me is this feels much like the west coast of New Zealand except even more remote. One thing worth pointing out is that it is not particularly warm. Eventually we made our way to the hostel and after making some dinner and getting to know some of my new tour mates I passed out.
New Year's Eve in Hobart 12/31/16
After yesterday's extended antics I really needed to sleep in so I took my time getting of bed. Eventually I made my way down to the Salamanca Market (yes 3rd market in 2 days). This one is a little more like a cross between an art and wine festival and a farmer's market. The food proved to still be good though I did not find the variety of ciders I had elsewhere. I did find one when I walked past the part of the waterfront that was celebrating the end of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race though. For the afternoon I headed up Mt Wellington and just hiked for hours. I did get a bus to the top, because I started so late, then hiked from there.
The view from the top of Mt Wellington
Tons of dolorite slabs that made annoyed I keep missing opportunities to take my climbing shoes
The view from halfway down
This is called Octopus Tree, it deserved a picture
Eventually I realized it was getting dark and started heading off the mountain. I got really lucky because a young family from the the Australian East Coast picked me up and got me into town.
Happy New Year
Tomorrow I start heading to Launceston via a 3 day tour of the Tasmanian West Coast with Under Down Under tours.
Welcome to Tasmania 12/30/16
So today has been rough but very cool. I did have a very good use for that sleeping pad that I've been dragging around. I do not like this airport there is limited seating and what seating there is is relatively uncomfortable. Thankfully I came prepared.
Sleeping pad gets good usage
When I got to Hobart I was exhausted because after all was said and done I really only got a few hours of sleep. So I crashed on a couch in the hostel till about noon. When I woke up I decided to find some food and wander the city. The reason I decided to spend the beginning of the New Year in Hobart was because I heard they had some incredible markets and local food right around the end of the year. Let's just say I wasn't disappointed. There are sooooo many local ciders. For lunch I started at a market called Taste of Tasmania where farmers and restaurants from around the state come and set up booths this time of year.
Wild and cloudy cider with a pork pie: this was an epic lunch with a very interesting cider
After lunch I just walked and walked and walked. One cool stop was the botanical gardens but I saw much of the city after walking for about 6 or 7 hours (it stays light really really late here)
From the botanical garden
By the time I wandered my way back into the heart of town it was about time for dinner so I found another night market and grabbed another cider and some pork ribs and took in some live music at the park underneath the market.
An epic food and cider day
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