We went out to the Great Barrier Reef on a boat called the Passions of Paradise. It took about 2 hours to get out to the reef. The crew was nice and tried to make the time pass. They gave Heather some colouring to do. Jacob was quite offended that he was offered some too. It was St. Patrick's Day so the crew had their hair spray painted green and were liberally applying green face paint to all and sundry.
The snorkelling at the reef was ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. I could not count how many different fish and corals we saw. We had gone to a lecture the night before called Reef Teach. It was done by a marine biologist. It gave us a lot of information about the kinds of fish and coral on the reef, so we had a context for what we were seeing on the reef. It was well worth doing, especially for the kids. I think the whole experience was a lot more educational for them that way. Heather was with me for the day and she was very excited to be able to name the kinds of fish and coral. We even saw several clown fish in their anemone homes. Heather and I also saw a stingray. On the way home on the boat, Heather saw a shark.
We had about 2 hours snorkelling off a small cay(=island) then they served lunch and gave us another hour in the water at a more open water spot. It was good that we went first in the lee of the island because it eased us into the whole thing. In the open water there was a lot more swell and the current carried you along. I could have stayed for a lot longer, but the trip back was 2 hours. You can stay overnight on huge boats out at the reef, but we didn't take that option. You probably get a lot more swimming time that way. On the way home they gave everyone who had anything green on a free drink. If you didn't have any green clothing, they applied face paint and gave you the drink anyway.
Yesterday we went on the Skyrail cablecar above the rainforest. It is a 7 km cable car in three sections. It goes above the canopy of the rainforest, which is a world heritage area. In between the first and second sections you can stop at a boardwalk through the rainforest. We had a little 20 minute lecture by a forest ranger. At the second stop there is a lookout on Barron Falls. It has been raining a lot so the falls were in full flood. They are impressive but the water is very brown. I think they must have a real problem with erosion somewhere upstream. I haven't seen water that full of silt since I was in Nepal where whole mountainsides regularly fall into their rivers. There is also a small interpretive center about the rainforest.
The cable car ends at a tourist trap village called Kuranda. It is the kind of place that I want to leave as soon as I get there, if not before. Luckily our bus back to Cairns arrived about 5 minutes after we had marched through the village. Apparently there is usually a craft coop that is good, but it was closed. I may have had a different outlook on the town if it had been open.
Hopefully we will be able to put some pictures up again soon but it is difficult to find a place with the software needed for uploading....
The snorkelling at the reef was ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. I could not count how many different fish and corals we saw. We had gone to a lecture the night before called Reef Teach. It was done by a marine biologist. It gave us a lot of information about the kinds of fish and coral on the reef, so we had a context for what we were seeing on the reef. It was well worth doing, especially for the kids. I think the whole experience was a lot more educational for them that way. Heather was with me for the day and she was very excited to be able to name the kinds of fish and coral. We even saw several clown fish in their anemone homes. Heather and I also saw a stingray. On the way home on the boat, Heather saw a shark.
We had about 2 hours snorkelling off a small cay(=island) then they served lunch and gave us another hour in the water at a more open water spot. It was good that we went first in the lee of the island because it eased us into the whole thing. In the open water there was a lot more swell and the current carried you along. I could have stayed for a lot longer, but the trip back was 2 hours. You can stay overnight on huge boats out at the reef, but we didn't take that option. You probably get a lot more swimming time that way. On the way home they gave everyone who had anything green on a free drink. If you didn't have any green clothing, they applied face paint and gave you the drink anyway.
Yesterday we went on the Skyrail cablecar above the rainforest. It is a 7 km cable car in three sections. It goes above the canopy of the rainforest, which is a world heritage area. In between the first and second sections you can stop at a boardwalk through the rainforest. We had a little 20 minute lecture by a forest ranger. At the second stop there is a lookout on Barron Falls. It has been raining a lot so the falls were in full flood. They are impressive but the water is very brown. I think they must have a real problem with erosion somewhere upstream. I haven't seen water that full of silt since I was in Nepal where whole mountainsides regularly fall into their rivers. There is also a small interpretive center about the rainforest.
The cable car ends at a tourist trap village called Kuranda. It is the kind of place that I want to leave as soon as I get there, if not before. Luckily our bus back to Cairns arrived about 5 minutes after we had marched through the village. Apparently there is usually a craft coop that is good, but it was closed. I may have had a different outlook on the town if it had been open.
Hopefully we will be able to put some pictures up again soon but it is difficult to find a place with the software needed for uploading....
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