Cairns, again?

Getting a car

Yesterday, I booked a car on Transfercar, a service that allows renting cars for relocation at a very low price, a model that benefits both car rental companies and travellers. However, this morning, there is no sign of my demand getting accepted... My plan was to go through multiple cities within the time constraints specified by Transfercar, which would allow me to pay only 1 Australian Dollar per day for it, but as my first request ends up timing out, I have to rethink this approach.

Instead, I book a car directly from Cairns to Sydney, there are some options that allow paying extra days and comparing the prices, going through Transfercar still gives me basically a 50% discount on a 2-week car rental. But I'll get that car tomorrow, so I have to do something for today...

Thankfully, the hostel host recommended me a car rental company that has decent prices for daily rentals, so I'll go with that. I'll have to stay in Cairns for the night, so I decide to book another hostel, closer to the city center (and the car rental company).

The car I get is a Suzuki Swift, a pretty standard model from a few years ago, that will do the job just fine for my plans of the day. I did not even bother to set up the bluetooth connection, and just turned up the radio to see what the locals listen to.

Port Douglas

After getting the car, I am headed north, using the scenic Captain Cook Highway. The road has nice views of the ocean and goes through some forest sections, making it a pleasant drive, if we ignore the roadworks (there is plenty, always accompanied with intermittent traffic since they have to close one way).

My first stop is Port Douglas, a small town on the coast. It has a nice little port, with a view on the rainforest, and a few beaches, one of which shouldn't be used because of crocodiles...

I go to a park, greeted by some strange birds, then follow a path that goes to the top of the hill. On the way, I see a fisherman.

From the top of the hill, the Trinity Bay lookout offers a beautiful view on the main beach. I understand why there are millionaire houses here, even if it's a small remote town...

I then head down, have a pasta dish with local seafood at a restaurant with a view on the beach (it was nicer from the top...) and make some essential purchases of insert repellant and sunscreen (mine was nearly finished when I started the trip, now it is fully finished...). Then I head to my next destination.

Mossman Gorge

I wanted to visit the Daintree rainforest, but when I looked at the map, the main road going there goes over 300m of elevation, which I can't do today because I've been diving yesterday (it could cause compression sickness). My best choice to still enjoy that rainforest was the Mossman Gorge, which happens to be close to Port Douglas (it's almost like I planned it on purpose...)

The parking lot for cars doesn't go all the way to the start of the walk, instead we have to get a shuttle from the Cultural Centre, which allows them to charge a fee to access the walk and have us look at the shop on the way... Thankfully the shuttle arrives quickly, so I don't really have to wait, and it is a short drive.

The forest itself is beautiful, dense and with plenty of weird, large trees. Some have thick vines going up their trunks, some seem to be merged with each others... My favourite feature is the massive roots, partially outside the ground and all flat, to capture the moistness of the air. The path crosses the Mossman river, which is not really remarkable.

One point I was a bit disappointed about is the fauna: I expected to see some animals, but the only one I saw was a bush turkey running through my legs.

When I was in the forest, it started raining, so I started heading out, but not fast enough: it quickly turned into a torrential rain, even though I managed to reach the shelter to wait for the shuttle bus a few minutes after it started I was still quite wet. At least now I know why it's called a rainforest!

Back to Cairns

I had to hurry a bit on my way back to Cairns, so the rain pushing me out of the forest actually worked in my favour: I forgot my dive log on the boat, and since the rest of the team is coming back today, I have to be at Divers Den around 17 to pick it up.

Of course, with the heavy rain and roadworks, I ended up being a bit late, but not that much, the instructors team was having a debrief session so I didn't make them wait for me to go home.

I then checked into the hostel, and I understood why it was so cheap: it is very run down, the AC is running at full strength with signs saying that because it's a tropical climate, we have to leave it on, but I'm pretty sure it's to avoid noticing the smell of mold... Thankfully I'm only here for one night. And not a very long one: the diving team is actually going to the pub tonight, since I'm spending an unexpected night in Cairns I might as well join them.

At the bar, there is not only my diving partners (minus Hauke who is still on the boat) but also instructors and other staff members. One of them is Danish! (but from Silkeborg...)

I have a couple of local beers, which taste like normal lagers (it doesn't seem like they have their own beer style in Australia, unfortunately), as well as fish and chips. Javier also ordered food. We are sitting outside, in the smoking area, and a waiter tells us that we can't eat there. Apparently, by law it is forbidden to eat in smoking areas, even if they are arranged like the rest of the place, just outside... I can see why such a law exists, but that should be to protect consumers, not annoy them... So we quickly eat inside before joining the rest of the group again.

After a while, the few remaining ones (I am in that group) head to a cocktail bar, where we enjoy a couple of good cocktails, then we each head our separate ways (some with each other). I arrive at the hostel around midnight.

It felt like I was still on the boat when I slept, and I woke up with a mild hangover. It has been a long time, I forgot how that felt like...