Day 49: Cairns and the Rainforest

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We left Airlie Beach (3) yesterday and Cairns (4) today before heading to our last Australian stop in Darwin



Final turn into Cairns




Aw we got near the Port, we were visited by the Port Security boat and they dropped off the Port Pilot to help the Captain guide the ship into port.




With a later morning docking, a casual breakfast on the balcony



And next was our tour


The bus took us from the the ship up the mountain to the town of Kuranda and then a Cable Car to the Rainforest.

Neat old building near the port


Campervan rental


IGA (and they had a Woolworths too)


Sugar Cane fields


We visited the Butterfly Sanctuary in Kuranda















How the butterflies see each other


Neat display if butterflies



After walking around town for awhile, it was time to get to the Skyrail that would take us into and above the rainforest



The cable car had two stops. After going over the river, the first stop was the Barron Falls.






The next leg had one last view of the falls and then a stop for a walk through the forrest.





Not sure if Toni was trying to be Tarzan or Jane



After reading a display about the snakes (and a reminder to look up since some nest in the trees), this was the only scary thing we found.


We were on the look out for the southern cassowary, Australia's heaviest flightless bird. But all we found was this display at bottom of the cable car run.


After getting to the bottom, we boarded the bus for the short trip back to town. With a few hours before All aboard, we walked around town. They had a really nice casino that we stopped to checkout.


And with time left and Hemingway's Brewery sitting at the port right in front of the Island Princess, it was an easy decision.






Back on the ship and heading out to sea


We will be slowly heading north until we clear the Great Barrier Reef,









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