Cairns

Our week in Cairns (pronounced cans) was just what we needed in the middle of this dark, rainy and cold winter. Although we would have preferred to be hot, we were grateful for the 23C-25C (73F-77F) temperatures during the day.

We had the million dollar view in our upgraded apartment in Trinity Beach, north of Cairns. We spent many hours sitting on our balcony watching the sunrises and sunsets and listening to and watching the waves. Truly a relaxing time. 

 

We did manage to leave the balcony for a few of the sights around Cairns. A scenic train ride (originally for gold mining) up to the rainforest village of Kuranda, the traditional home of the Ngunbay,  and then the pleasant gondola ride back. We saw koalas, wallabies, kangaroos, wombats, and all kinds of tropical birds. It wasn’t exactly “in the wild”, but we were more than satisfied with our experience.

Ah...  Who could resist?

Feeding the wallaby

Green Tree Frog

Wombat

Cassowary:-1.6-1.8 meters to the top of its head and about 60 kg
(4.9-5.9 ft and 132 lb)

The beautiful Kauri Pine. We missed the 2000 year old kauri in New Zealand and had to settle for this 400 year old tree in Australia