King of the Jungle

You better beware this is the king of the jungle here

  

You better beware
I had booked a couple of trips with the help of Michael and it was time for my first one. I was up and out early for a trip to the Daintree Rainforest. I was being collected from the service station on the edge of town, just a short walk from Jason and Michael’s place. I had enough time to nip into the shop and get myself a drink and some breakfast before the minibus arrived. It was a small group, there were just eight of us - a family of five Italians, an English couple and me. Our driver for the day was called Peter. We headed north, stopping briefly at Mossman so that Peter could collect our provisions for the day. He explained how the day would pan out and then he chatted with us. He seemed very friendly and was clearly knowledgeable.

We drove up to the Mossman Gorge and our first stop. It was still early morning as we headed into the rainforest and it was a little chilly. Peter did a great talk, pointing out various insects and plants to us. He made a couple of jokes which I laughed at but I think they might have been lost on the Italians. After a good walk round we headed back to the minibus and on to our next stop. Peter assured us that it would be deserted as not many people knew about it, not even some of the other guides at the company he worked for. Our journey took us through some great countryside and across the Daintree River on a ferry. There were warning signs along the river as crocodiles had recently been spotted and there had been an attack fairly recently. I was glad we were safely inside the minibus. We finally pulled off onto a little dirt track that opened into a little parking area with a few picnic tables. It didn’t look like much. We climbed out and helped Peter carry the tea & coffee making things across to the nearest picnic table. We all got our drinks and then Peter passed round a tray of Lamingtons. They were amazing and I ate mine in record time. The Italians looked at them a little suspiciously but ultimately ate them. After we had finished the Lamingtons Peter took us down a little path through the trees. It suddenly opened up to a stunning beach, as promised, completely deserted. It is one of the most picturesque places I have ever had coffee in. The Italians and the other couple wandered off in different directions. I enjoyed the last of my coffee sitting on a big piece of driftwood. There was only the sound of the waves breaking on the shore and the odd bird calling. I could easily have been alone on a desert island.

Our next stop was Cape Tribulation. Peter explained the history of the place and we had a bit of a walk round before heading for lunch. We had time for a walk while Peter set up the lunch for us. We sat and ate lunch in the middle of the rainforest. Before we set off again the mother from the Italian family headed to the rather primitive looking toilet. Shortly after, the serenity of the rainforest was shattered by a piercing scream, followed by the Italian mother rushing out of the toilet. I don’t speak any Italian but I picked up on “ragno”. We went to investigate and there was a spider the size of my hand nestled in one corner. I would have had the same reaction had I seen that while I was peeing. After lunch we called in at the Daintree Ice Cream Shop for, surprisingly, some ice cream. It was all made on site in the middle of the forest and it was delicious. I tried banana, wattleseed, mango and sour paw flavours.

This is the king of the jungle here

The next part of our journey involved us swapping out of the nice air-conditioned minibus and into an old Land Rover so that we could head cross-country. I got to sit in the front with Peter, making the journey a little more comfortable for me than the people in the back. A bumpy ten-minute ride later we parked up and then followed Peter down to a large pool and waterfall. We got to swim in the crystal clear water. There were a couple of turtles sitting over on the rocks at one side. I tried not to think what other creatures might be in the water with us but figured it must be pretty safe if it was part of the tour. The swim in the cool water was just what we needed after a warm morning and afternoon in the rainforest. Having dried off and got back into the van it was my turn to be quizzed by Peter. He asked if I was on holiday and I explained I was doing a round the world trip. He jokingly asked if I was staying in the toilets of the service station where he had picked me up from and if it was a money saving ploy. I told him I was staying with friends close by. He asked who and I said “Jason and Michael”. It turned out that Peter knew them well.

The final part of our rainforest adventure was a boat trip along the Daintree River. We were crocodile spotting although our guide explained that it would be fairly quiet as most of the females were off laying eggs. After a couple of false alarms where some log-odiles were spotted we finally saw a huge 4-metre croc on the bank under some trees. We got fairly close although the fauna in the way made it difficult to get too close. I was happy to stay a good distance away. A little further down the river we saw another crocodile of a similar size. It was one that the driver of the boat didn’t recognise. This one was basking in the sun in the shallow waters of the river’s edge. We managed to get really close, our driver explaining that he wouldn’t go any further as he didn’t know the crocodile or how it might react to our presence. I was really pleased we had been able to see some close up. It was a great way to end the trip. I snoozed in the van on the way back.

Once back at Jason and Michael’s I showered and changed so we could head out for dinner. They had suggested one of their favourite places, On the Inlet, a fish restaurant on the marina. We sat outside on the deck overlooking the marina, the evening warm but thankfully not too humid. The weather so far had been perfect. I asked if “rainy season” was just a myth that they put about in order to keep the tourists away for a few months so they got some peace and quiet. Jason assured me that it wasn’t always this nice. The food at On the Inlet was great. I started with some calamari and then had a delicious reef fish curry. As the waitress cleared our plates Jason asked her to thank the chef, who he knew, for a great dinner. She returned shortly after saying that the chef was pleased we had enjoyed the meal and that dessert was on him. Not needing any more food we all opted to have an espresso martini. Following dinner we had a nightcap in Bistro 3, a bar on the main street. A couple more espresso martinis later we headed home and I headed straight to bed, hoping to get to sleep before the caffeine kicked in.

“You better beware this is the king of the jungle here” 
Lyrics from I’m a Mean Ole Lion from the musical The Wiz