The first stop of my 38 day East Coast ‘real backpackers’ trip is Cairns! Travelling with all my stuff this time, as I will not return to my new hometown Melbourne, it means that my backpack is full of unnecessary winter clothes. But nevertheless, carrying around 18 kilos on my bag is worth it, even in 31 degrees Cairns is thus my first stop and from there I will travel down towards Sydney from where I will eventually fly home. From the moment you step off the airport you understand why this region is known as Tropical Far North Queensland, as the humidity clings to you from the first second. Luckily, monsoon season had not started yet (it can start any day now) so I could enjoy the city and its surroundings in beautiful weather.

I did not choose Cairns just randomly, actually it is a very popular tourist destination in Australia. However, despite its beautiful weather and stunning beaches, you will not find many people swimming in the ocean here. Next to the well-known sharks in Australia, Cairns' beaches are also plagued by crocodiles and jelly fish. Being more deadly than the sharks, people are really advised against swimming in the ocean from November to May due to 'stinger season' and there are warnings all year round for the crocs. Luckily though, Cairns has a very nice (free) lagoon for the tourists that want to cool down a little. I visited it on my first day in Cairns and really enjoyed the view of the lagoon on the ocean. Optionally, there are big nets in the ocean to keep out the stingers from that area, however, it is not guaranteed to be crocodile-free...

What makes Cairns so popular then if you cannot even swim in the ocean? Cairns is unique because it is the only place on Earth where two World Heritage Sites meet. The Daintree Rainforest meets the Great Barrier Reef just above Cairns, and naturally I had to visit both.

So on my second day in Cairns I booked one of the best day-tours I have ever done: the Rainforest Spirit which brought me and some 15 others around the rainforest. We took some pretty pictures at a lookout and a dive in one of the streams (crocodile free) after which we set off to spot crocodiles in the nearby river. The saltwater crocodiles in Cairns have saline linings around their body openings which enables them to also swim in fresh water rivers; so be careful in rivers as well! Many upstream parts are safe, as crocodiles do not like higher altitudes. Unfortunately for us, the water had already warmed up so much that the biggest crocs stayed under water, but we did see a small baby crocodile of around 6-8 months.


It was then finally time to see the two World Heritage Sites meet: Cape Tribulation. Not only is the lookout very pretty, but the beach itself is stunning as well. Too bad that swimming there is potentially deadly. We then though we had finished with the tour after taking another swim in a croc-free stream, however, our amazing tour guide Luke had another surprise for us: a Aboriginal didgeridoo performance! A great way to end an amazing day in the rainforest!



The next day, my tour guide Luke invited me and Hollie, another girl on the tour, for a drive to several waterfalls around Cairns. We had no other plans and as he is much fun we enjoyed cooling down in these fresh streams. We watched the sun set over Cairns and had pizza with cider and went to the Cairns night market. It was definitely another amazing day in the forest (many thanks to our awsome Luke)! Naturally, it was then time to move on from the forest to the reef.

So on my last day in Cairns I got up early to get on board of the Pearl Lugger with Falla Reef Tours, a very good decision. Compared to the other snorkeling tours, this boat is very small with around 25 people (the next smallest one carrying around 85), which made it easier for me to connect to the other passengers. After 1.5 hours of sailing, we arrived at the Great Barrier Reef for our first session. With my stinger suit to protect me from the jelly fish, sun and cold, I jumped into the water. Immediately I was amazed by the amount of fish species we saw (including Nemo) and the colourful reefs. Though the photoshopped images on Google give people a different expectation, I was still surprised by the size and colourfulness of the reef. The second snorkeling session after lunch, however, was the highlight of the day. I finally saw what I had been waiting for since Sri Lanka: a huge turtle! Swimming around as casually as the turtles in Finding Nemo it was easy to follow the turtle around for a bit and really observe its size and behaviour! I was so happy! Finishing off with fruit, cheese and wine, Cairns really showed me how beautiful and diverse our planet Earth can be in such a small region!