Our next port of call was Cairns (pronounced "Cans" by the locals). It seems that we were to be the largest ship that had entered their cruise ship terminal. The details, as I found out later, were that the approach to the berth is via a narrow channel, only 90 meters wide. Our ship was about 50 meters wide so there was not a lot of room for error. Add to that the winds and currents that caused us to "crab" through the channel and we didn't have much "wiggle room" at all. Add to that the fact that we had to wait for the right tide. There was only 2 meters of water under the keel!!!! That means that if I were standing under the boat as it passed, it would clear me by about an inch!! If that wasn't enough, once in the terminal dock area, we had to execute a 180 degree "about face" turn. Due to the narrow channel, we had very little clearance from the dock. The captain told me that it was the most difficult maneuver that he has ever done (but he had a great time doing it!).
This is the approach looking into Cairns. You can barely see the buoy markers in the water that outlined the channel into the harbor.
Here we are while making the 180 degree turn. Not a lot of clearance.
We spent two days in Cairns. On the first day, we took a bus to an aerial tram tour of the rainforest canopy. You boarded a gondola car (like a ski resort lift) and traveled 7 miles over the canopy with three stops to get off and walk through trails.
Here is the view looking back as we just left the departure station.
Above you can see where the ocean meets the shore as we made our way up the mountainside.
My opinion, everything in nature in Australia is out to either hurt you or eat you! Look at the needles on this palm leaf and stalk. Like a cross between a Palm tree and a cactus.
I don't have a clue what this plant is but it was very pretty and unique.
The return trip we took via the Kuranda Scenic Railway. We wandered along through the mountains that we had just crossed over.
Anybody remember the song "I Come From a Land Down Under" by Men at Work? There is a line in the song about some guy giving the singer "...a Vegemite sandwich." Well, here Geoff is proudly displaying his packet of Vegemite. He really liked it on toast in the morning. I tried it and, first of all, you DO NOT spread it on like jelly! It goes on very sparingly. Secondly, it may be high in Vitamin B, but it is very salty. Too much so for my taste. But anyway, we had to try some.
After an evening touring the shopping markets downtown, we got up early and met our excursion boat for a trip out to the reef. I've never been on a dive quite like this one. There were about 50 folks on this boat. Some were there to snorkel, some were there getting certified to dive, others had just been certified, and some of us were experienced divers. The tour operators gave us the option to dive with a guide (for an extra per person fee) or we could go out on our own. We chose the latter and after reviewing the bottom map and getting a briefing from the dive master, we were off. We had two dives at two different locations on the reef. It was magnificent!
This particular spot on the reef presented us with a myriad of coral the likes of which I have never seen. There were some marine life, but the showcase was the coral.
The different sizes and shapes were unbelievable. Along the way we passed several "Live Aboard" platforms. Here folks come to stay for several days and dive and play. There were even helipads where folks were shuttled from the mainland to the platform.
All too soon it was back to the ship and we made our way out of the harbor. That night, we were greeted by yet another towel animal...
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