Kuranda 20 years on

After sea kayaking we spent a quiet few days near Kuranda in the Atherton tablelands. We stayed at Cassowary House, where there is a cassowary family that visits regularly, and so you get up close to these amazing birds. The male is on the nest at the moment so didn't see him, but the female visited one morning before breakfast, and we watched her at a distance of about 2m. If they feel threatened they can eviscerate you so we tried not to alarm it.

Kuranda was one of my favourite places when we visited 20 years ago. It's a village that hippies settled in, and it became famous for its markets. I bought one of my favourite T shirts there - a hand-designed rainforest image, with a little frog on it. I hoped to replace this which wore out a couple of years ago, but the merchandise has changed. Now most stuff is made in China, and there is very little original stuff. I did buy a pendant and ring from a German guy who's been there about 15 years. They look nicer in real life. It's quite weird cos it's a place that gets lots of day trippers from Cairns by the coach load so it get busy for the middle of the day and then very quiet. We found a nice café Village Vibe, the only place that had free wifi and had a relaxing lunch there. And didn't do much else really.

Sea kayaking - the return journey

After a picnic lunch we prepared to leave the island. We carted all the stuff down to the motor boat, loaded it, and finally set off in our kayaks. Aaron had told us that the journey back would be much easier and quicker. Not sure why he’d said this, as it seemed from the start more difficult to keep the boat in the right direction, there was much more wind and swell making the journey difficult. I never realised you could feel seasick in a kayak, but you can. Bet was on her own again, and really struggled. So about a 1/3 of the way, Aaron asked for a volunteer to swap with her. Even though we were really the least fit and experienced, Leon ended up volunteering. So we waited for Bet to catch up, then Leon had to get out of our kayak without capsizing me, then roll into the single kayak. He managed the first part, but not the second. He’s never rolled a kayak before, and Aaron was not good at explaining how to do it. He just kept saying ‘You’ve got to get in there mate, there’s no other way back’. Leon was getting very tired, and just couldn’t manage it. So Aaron impatiently tied up the kayak, and told him to climb aboard the back of the motor boat. Easier said than done. The boat was rocking with the swell, and there were no steps up, he’d just got to haul himself on. It took another 20 minutes for him to get onboard. We thought that he was then going to just ride back in that boat, but oh no. Aaron told him he’d got to get into the kayak by climbing over the side. He managed to do this, so was finally in the single kayak, which had a foot-controlled rudder for direction. We hadn’t got a rudder on our kayak, and had to do the opposite steering thing - paddle on the left side if you want to go right etc. So Leon exhausted and seasick was confused, and started to paddle off into the open sea. Aaron finally realised that it would have been better all along to have just towed the kayak. Yet again for some reason he didn’t do it the easy way, with Leon in the motor boat. Oh no, he towed the kayak with Leon still in it, and went so fast that Leon capsized. And Aaron wasn’t watching so didn’t see him fall in, and it was only his shouts for help that made Aaron (or Moron as I now think of him) stop. It was horrible, I couldn’t get close because Bet & I could hardly paddle our kayak. I imagined he’d somehow got mangled in the propeller and lost a leg, but things seemed to be OK, and Aaron just sped off towards the shore. The rest of us made our way back. It was tough, we were all very tired, and anxious about Leon. Carmen, who was travelling with her 8 year old son Jackson was paddling on her own effectively, and said that she’d just had to grit her teeth and keep pushing on - he felt sick, was crying, but fortunately went to sleep for much of the way.

The sun was blazing down, and made it hard to see the shore. Bet & I were exhausted and frustrated at the difficulty of steering, but just kept going knowing we could collapse when we made it to the beach.

Finally we were all back. We landed at one end of the beach, not knowing that Aaron would drive the kayak trailer to the other end. So we then had to haul the kayaks through the swell, and load them on. I didn’t help I’m afraid, I was exhausted and also had lost all good will toward Aaron, so as far as I was concerned his kayaks could stay on the beach.

It’s a shame the trip ended like this, we’d been enjoying the kayaking experience and were talking of doing a course. I don’t think Leon will be going near a sea kayak again for a while.

Sea kayaking part three

On arrival at the island Aaron had doled out the sleeping gear - thermarests, foam mats, and we each had a couple of sheets and a blanket. He didn’t bring tents, but put up a tarp for us to crowd under in the event of rain. We each chose a spot for our sleeping areas. Leon & I set up under a tree. There was a hole in the trunk, but I inspected with the torch and it didn’t seem to be inhabited, so we felt relatively safe. It’s a romantic notion to sleep under the stars, with the waves lapping the beach. Of course the reality is that my bones ached as soon as I lay down, the sound of the waves was almost like water torture, and the whining of the mosquitoes drove us under sheets in a vain effort not to be eaten alive.

It was a long night. We did get some sleep, but we both were relieved when morning came and we didn’t have to lie there any more.

And of course the reward was a spectacularly beautiful sunrise over a blue sea, puffs of marshmallow cloud cloaking the rainforest mountains on the mainland. It really was gorgeous, but we’ve got no photos because Aaron advised us not to bring a camera. Grrr.

We enjoyed the morning pottering around the beach again: there was a low tide so we were able to see creatures in the low reef just off the beach - octopus, sea slugs, hermit crabs. We kayaked over the reef and the water was clear which allowed us to see it. We also had our books to read, which relaxing in the hammock I did (although the hammock smelt a bit of pee, not sure why).

Sea kayaking part two

Snapper Island is so named as it looks like a croc’s head in the water. Fortunately no crocs have made it there, and there are no venomous snakes, spiders, creepy crawlies, so camping was not a problem. It’s part of the national park, and apparently owned by aborigines, and the access is only permitted on the small strip of beach that we were on, so there was little to explore when we arrived. Aaron had emphasised that we shouldn’t bring anything that wasn’t waterproof, so we had no camera, binoculars or even a watch. Just a book and a spare set of clothes. It was a shame not to have the bins because there was some bird life, but I couldn’t make it out with the naked eye, other than a beach stone-curlew pair, which were guarding one end of the beach. We felt that in fact as he brought the boat we could have brought the bins in one of the bags, but it was too late by then.

We pottered up and down the beach, watching the waves come in and out, in and out, in and out, It was mesmeric, but with our low boredom thresholds we were a bit restless. Not being snorkelers we weren’t really tempted into the sea, but we did explore the rocks and found crabs scuttling around.

We eked out our reading, and of course by 6.30 it was dark, so it was pretty much bedtime after a moonlit tea.

Sea kayaking part one

After a week of rain in Queensland, we were due to go out on a sea kayaking trip, paddling across to an island, spending the night there camping, then paddling back. We were treating this as an ordeal to be undertaken, likely to be wet, cold and difficult. So when we reached the beach on Monday morning, we were amazed to find the sea blue and still, and the sun blazing. Our guide for the 2 days was a rather laconic Aussie called Aaron. He seemed rather jaded, and although he knew what he was doing, his briefing on how to kayak was somewhat cursory.

We were 5 doubles and a single kayak, with Aaron in a motor boat going ahead to show us which direction to travel in. As Leon and I have never kayaked, and couldn’t really manage paddling a canoe along the river Ant at Wayford Bridge, we were apprehensive. However, luckily as the sea was calm, we got into a rhythm and found that we were enjoying it.

The single kayaker, Bet, was quite far behind. Aaron had told us to stay together as a group, so that if there were any problems he could reach all of us. He didn’t seem too worried about Bet though. And in fact when he checked in with her about ¾ of the way across, she was OK. We made it onto the island at about midday. Our inexperience led to an inelegant landing - as I was getting out Leon went to get out as well, so capsized us into the water. But it was beautifully warm and we soon dried out.

Along the boardwalk

Much of the time at Cape Trib we wandered along the excellent boardwalks that have been set up. This gave the opportunity to get in amongst the rainforest, rather than skirt around the edges. We didn’t see many birds as they tend to be hidden in the canopy, but we heard them. The distinctive call of the wompoo pigeon - wom poo, the rattle of the rifle bird and the occasional rumble of a brush-turkey.

The last walk at the Cape we did was Jindalba just south of Cow Bay. It was a wet day, and we’d spent a good hour in the Jambu café at the Daintree Coffee company enjoying coffee, lunch and some magazines. When the rain eased we thought we’d try the walk. There was a short boardwalk, or a longer ( only 2.7km, hardly the Pennine Way!) track. We went for the longer track. The Australians are very good at their route guides - they attach coloured tape to trees so it’s easy to make your way. And this path was also fairly easy to follow. It went up a slippery slope through the forest, and we felt quite intrepid as we made our way. About half way I stopped to scratch my leg, and discovered a leech. It clung on like a leech, but probably breaking bush etiquette I’d pulled it off before I realised what it was. Leon wanted me to leave it on for a photo, but I was feeling repulsed at the thought of it and wanted it off asap. It left a bite hole (well, a tiny spot that was bleeding) so he got a photo of that. The rest of the walk was uneventful, just wet & muddy but I felt like a true bush walker after my first leech.

Rainforest impressions

We spent over a week in the wet tropics, mainly at Cape Tribulation. This was named by James Cook as it offered a challenge when they arrived. And to be quite honest it’s still a challenging environment in which to live. At the exotic fruit farm where we stayed, it rained every day. In fact often we’d find that leaving the farm and going to the beach, the weather was clearer. But on the edge of the rainforest the clouds were low, and the humidity was so high the bedclothes, towels and general atmosphere never dried out. Kieran and Rosemary who were looking after the farm for 6 months while the owners were hiking the Appalachian way said that they’d been advised not to bother with leather sandals in the wet season, as they just go mouldy.

We found the dampness difficult, and couldn’t imagine what the wet season would be like. We managed to potter around boardwalks, and didn’t get wet too much, but the humidity made for an oppressive atmosphere, and although impressed by the beauty of the vegetation, we weren’t seized by a desire to up sticks and move to the jungle.

However I was mesmerised by the sounds of the forest - frogs, insects, birds & bats throughout the night. I loved it.

Bush camping the easy way

We stayed for 2 nights at the bush camp near Murdjuddil. It was very comfortable - sprung mattresses, stand-up tents which were mozzy-proof, flushing toilets, hot showers, and catering by Gerry. On the edge of a billabong inhabited by a croc (luckily we didn't meet him) we were able to enjoy an under-the-stars experience in relative comfort. I did make the mistake of having exposed ankles (see picture taken a week later) and received a number of bites which drove me mad.



The sky was packed with stars and the night hummed with life. We did a nightwalk but didn't spot the croc's eyes in the water. However, we did learn how to find spiders - if you have a headtorch, when you look to the ground it picks out the glow of their eyes like twinkling diamonds, can't wait to try this at home.

We clocked up 100 species on this trip, I'll save the list for another post.

Murdudjurl

We met Sylvia, a member of the Murdudjurl community for our cultural tour. She showed us a digital slideshow of some of the ways of life of her clan. This included images of how to bake turtle, both long-necked and pig-nosed, and killing a snake by biting its head off. I asked if members of the community have ever not wanted to eat meat, but she said this was the case only for individuals adopted in white families. I guess if I'd been born in the unforgiving bush I'd be eating turtles rather than veggie burgers.

Sylvia spoke English pretty well, although it was her second language. She had a very gentle manner, and made us feel welcome. We wandered down to the river at the rear of the community and saw a croc basking in the sun. In the wet season they lost 6 of their dogs to crocs, as the water comes up so much closer and the dogs go too close to the edge.

Our final activity was to weave a bracelet. The clan collect fibres from I think the pandanus plant, then dye them with natural dyes. Using a central bunch of fibres, we then did a blanket stitch around them, pulling it as tight as possible for neatness. I managed to complete mine, but Leon got in a muddle and abandoned his. It was a nice way to round off the afternoon.

God's own country

After an excellent week in Vietnam, we arrived in Darwin, Australia at 04.30, with a 3 hour wait for a pick-up to Kakadu. We were just thinking of getting our binoculars out so the guide would recognise us when a typical Ozzie in safari shirt & shorts approached us, it was Gerry our guide for the next 3 days.

Bird watching started in the airport car park where we clocked blue-faced honeyeater & black-faced cuckoo-shrike. We then made our way to Fogg Dam which is a water area created from a failed rice growing project. Some of the water birds there were familiar such as egrets. There were also some new ones for us such as comb-crested Jacana, or Jesus bird, which appears to walk on water. We wended our way in the heat up to the Kakadu national park, gathering ticks as we went. No not the biting kind. This was a catered trip - Gerry as well as driving and guiding was our chef and rustled up a delicious lunch under a shady tree. First major stop was for a cultural visit to an aboriginal community, near to the camp where we would be based.

Life in the Mekong

We only spent 3 days in the Mekong area, so this is not an expert view, it's just impressions from our trip. We cycled past the homes of the riverbank residents, usually a single-storey structure one room wide, perhaps 2 deep. The front part generally has a tiled terrace that is opened up during the day, giving a full view of the front room. There are power lines dangling along the river, and almost all the permanent homes we saw had power, which kept a tv going for films and what seemed to be soap operas. Some homes had large dark furniture, which seemed to take up a lot of space in such a small footprint. Nothing is wasted - rice sacks might serve to catch water, or tv packaging to patch the roof. There were often children playing in the homes as it was school holidays. They often called out 'hello' to us, and exploded in giggles when we replied or waved back.

We saw very little destitution - a small number of people living under tarpaulins in one place, and it's hard to quantify what constitutes poverty here. People are working very hard, for little reward, but also relax in the hammocks, play cards or chat more than in the West perhaps. It's partly the heat, people are up very early, so by 11 it's time for a well-deserved break.

For us the noise seemed overwhelming - not just machinery, it's the tvs and radios that are at full volume much of the time. I think our neighbours would have something to say if we got ito those habits!

Different attitudes to animals

As an animal lover, it is sometimes difficult to understand different cultures, where animals are clearly not always viewed as sentient creatures. At a market we saw live fish, crabs and water snakes as well as skinned frogs ready for the pot. We were looking at a cage of rats when the seller retrieved one which he smacked briskly on the ground and handed to a customer for some protein I presume. Our guide said that the rats were caught when the rice was harvested, similar to the UK, when grass is mown in a circle and rabbits end up in the centre of the field. I suppose they hadn't had a bad life, it just feels utilitarian to me.

Café society

Vietnam is the 2nd biggest producer of coffee after Brazil apparently. And everywhere there are cafés, varying in their offerings and surroundings. Most Vietnamese drink iced coffee - a very strong brew is filtered into a cup, then shaken up with condensed milk and ice to produce a long drink. We avoided the ice, so had the brew on its own, which is potent. More to my liking was the Lipton hot tea we found. It tasted nicer in the countryside than Saigon, presumably due to the water though I'm not sure why. We also had jasmine tea which was delicious, and a cold drink - green tea with lemon flavour, very sugary but delicious.

People seem to be eating or drinking all the time in Vietnam, which contributed to a relaxed ambience even in the chaos of Saigon traffic.

Cycling in Mekong

We spent 3 days cycling along side the creeks & inlets of the Mekong delta, on a tour arranged by Innoviet. It was a wonderful trip. Most of the tracks are concrete, although we did go along some muddy & potholed paths which were a bit uncomfortable. We were passing people's houses, and they were often quite intrigued by these strange Westerners who choose to holiday on a bike rather than on a beach. The way of life was a gentle but hard-working pace - farming at a subsistence level. We saw incredible diversity of crops; rice in one area, peanuts, dragon fruit, pineapples, coconuts elsewhere. Rice is the staple for many. We saw it at all stages, first green shoots, golden ready for harvest, threshing the hand-cut plants, drying out on the road, and then at a processing factory. As well as boiled rice, it's processed to make rice papers for spring rolls, and of course rice wine. The husks are either burnt as a fertiliser, or go as pig feed. After the rice has been harvested, ducks were put into the field to feed up on the spilt grains. Nothing is wasted, and I shall think back to the fields of the Mekong next time I have some sticky rice.

Go funky moped

It's interesting what ideas you pick up when you're on holiday. From Vietnam we've taken away the idea of getting a moped. They are so versatile - you can carry most things on them; for example 5 sacks of rice, 3 small children, or a stepladder. More unusually you can pull bamboo canes along behind you, or transport your wares such as feather dusters. Probably the most unusual cargo we've seen was a dead pig (not a piglet note), slung across someone's lap.

Honda is the recommended make here, and they just buzz around and look incredibly useful. The weather probably helps, but it is rainy season, so people are having to deal with downpours - just stick on a plastic cape and you're away.

So when we get back, don't be surprised if we're off to the Caister mod weekends.