Cairns

14 - 18 June 2025

We left Etty Bay and decided to make our first stop Eubenangee Swamp just north of Innisfail. There is a walking track that meanders along the river before climbing to the top of a grassy hill for a view of the swamp - one of the most important wetlands in the Wet Tropics of Queensland. 

Fabulous views of the swamp after a bit of a climb

After our walk we decided that Bramston Beach would be a good spot for lunch as we were already half way there. We found a nice park where we had a picnic and then went for a short walk on the beach. 

We arrived in Cairns and set up at a caravan park that we have stayed at several times before. Although it is about 20 minutes from the Esplanade the grounds and adjacent creek have lured us back a number of times. Unfortunately the weather forecast had changed to include a day of very heavy rain.

On Sunday we drove to Catanna Wetlands and walked along many of the tracks. This is always a good spot for birding, and a lovely place to go for a stroll. There are a number of bird hides, as well as tracks around the lakes and through the grasslands. 

You know you're in Far North Queensland

We had chosen Cairns as our destination so I could attend a medical appointment which took up all of Monday morning, then it rained in the afternoon. On Tuesday, when some very heavy rainfall was forecast we decided to take a chance and go into town to visit the spot where an owl was likely to be seen, as well as to go to the Esplanade. We met up with a couple of local birders who were more than happy to share their knowledge of the owl's habits, including exactly where it would most likely be seen. It wasn't in residence that morning, but Mick was hopeful he might be able to spot it on a future visit.

As it was morning tea time, we drove down to the Esplanade for ice-creams at our favourity gellateria. From there we went for a bit of a walk and spotted a couple of Nankeen night-herons. Mick didn't have his camera so we had to walk back to the car to get it. Fortunately one of the birds was still there and happily obliged by posing to have it's photo taken.

The rain had held out and we were able to get out again in the afternoon to pick up some more supplies for our journey into western Queensland. We set off on Wednesday morning, which was Mick's birthday, with a plan to stay somewhere with a pub where we could have dinner and a couple of drinks to celebrate. 

We left the caravan park and before heading "up the hill" towards Kuranda, drove down to have a look for the owl again - and there it was, just waiting to have it's photo taken. Mick figured that was a good birthday present. From there we finally left Cairns, on our way to stop off in Ravenshoe.

Etty Bay

 12 - 14 June 2025

We chose to go to Etty Bay because we had the car booked in for a major repair at Toyota in Innisfail, and because of cassowaries. Mick has lots of photos of this magnificent bird, but he is always chasing the perfect shot. We left Atherton after lunch in the park and drove down the Palmerston Highway, arriving in Etty Bay mid-afternoon.

We pulled up at the caravan park reception and as I stepped out of the car, there was a cassowary only a couple of metres away from me. Naturally Mick grabbed the camera while I checked in. Eventually he was able to drag himself away long enough to set up camp.

The welcome cassowary

We realised there were two cassowaries active in and around the caravan park and beach and spent a lot of time trying to photograph them. One was more than happy to come right into our camp - looking for food. Feeding cassowaries is strictly forbidden, but that doesn't stop them helping themselves to whatever they can find.

On Friday morning we drove in to Innifail to drop the car off and pick up a hire car. On the way we saw a young cassowary on the side of the road  but didn't stop for photos. On the way home from Innisfail we drove down to Mourilyan Harbour for a look. There's not much to see, but we did see yet another cassowary on the side of the road on our way back. That made four for the trip - most times we have only seen one.

A spectacular moonrise was an added bonus

We were only going as far as Cairns then next day so took our time packing up, in between photograpy sessions. We left around 10:00 and headed north.

Yungaburra - Bonadio's RV Park

 8 - 12 June 2025

We spent our last morning in Ravenshoe finishing the packing and readying the spare bedroom for the next guest - a friend of Rob and Cheryl's who had travelled with them back from Karumba. We finally left after lunch and made our way over towards Atherton, still not sure which spot to choose for a 4 night stay. In the end, economics won out and we headed to Yungaburra to stay at Bonadio's again. We enjoyed our last visit and the price was much more reasonable that the "high season" charges at the caravan park in Atherton.

This time the park was quite full but we found a good spot in the lower section, facing the rainforest. Once again we went down for the animal feeding and this time, the leaf-tailed ghecko showed itself. Later we wandered about looking for night creatures and were rewarded with a green ringtail possum high up in the trees. We didn't get to see the platypus, mainly because we didn't try very hard.

We went to check on the progress made on our new home and had a talk to the neighbours. They have been working hard to clear weeds from the bush down by the creek, so it looks like we'll have a bit of a job to do when we finally move in. 

One evening we went down to the Curtain Fig tree to see if we could spot the Lesser Sooty owl, and again we heard it but didn't get to see it. It seemed to stay very still and quiet, and out of sight, until we turned off the torch then it would fly over. 

One afternoon we drove to Millaa Millaa Falls. Mick was hoping to get photos of a kingfisher but it didn't oblige. It was a nice afternoon out anyway.

Millaa Millaa Falls is a photographers' favourite

While we were at Bonadio's we had to have a gas leak repaired and also an upgrade to meet the new compliance regulations. Leon was happy to come to us and did the first part of the repair while we were at Bonadio's but he needed a part to finish the job. As it was our last morning there, he agreed to meet us in a park in Atherton to finish the job. That wouldn't happen in the city!

Once the gas job was done, we moved on to Platypus Park for lunch then drove down the Palmerston Highway to our next stop - Etty Bay.

Ravenshoe - House Sit

 30 May - 8 June 2025

We left Yungaburra to drive to Ravenshoe where we would be house sitting for a few weeks. We met Cheryl and Rob at Merluna Station on Cape York in 2024, and it turned out they might be looking for house sitters in the future. We exchanged contact details and stayed in touch catching up with them in Atherton, at their home in Ravenshoe and then  at Lake Cargelligo in western NSW. When we returned to the Atherton Tablelands we firmed up arrangements to look after their home, three sheep and Lexie the dog, so they could go on a caravanning trip. Unfortunately for them their plan to head south along the Birdsville Track was stymied by record rainfall which closed that route for many weeks. Fortunately for us, they changed their plans and headed off anyway.

It didn't take long to settle into a routine and to get to know the area. We've been visiting the Tablelands regularly but haven't spent much time in this part. On one excursion we went down to Tully Falls. There are two sections of Tully Gorge National Park - the Tablelands Section accessed from Ravenshoe and the Tully Section accessed from Tully. The road to Tully Falls is signposted to advise unwary travellers that it does not go to Tully township, and also that it is not suitable for caravans.

After days of rain we set off on a beautiful sunny day and arrived at the falls picnic area in time for morning tea. After marvelling at the view we headed off on the short rainforest walk, only to have to turn back when we came across a lot of vegetation that had fallen across the track. Although we probably could have crawed through, we were very wary of leeches after the recent rains, and also rainforest ticks.  

We've now visited both sections of Tully Gorge National Park

On our way back home we stopped at one of the creeks just because we could. There are a number of places to stop, and heaps of trailheads for some serious hikes in the area. We didn't go walking, but did stop to take some photos of the creek.

Charmillin Creek - one of many on the Tully Falls Road

On another day we took the car into Atherton for a service and spent the day visiting our usual spots - Lake Eacham, Lake Barrine and Hasties Swamp. It wasn't hard to fill in the day. We stopped at Hasties Swamp a couple of times on our way to and from Atherton and we lucky enough to spot the resident platypus one day. 

While we were staying in Ravenshoe we didn't do as much sight-seeing as we though we might - mainly because we just enjoyed having a "home" for a while. We took the opportunity to attend to some business in Atherton, as well as to do some repairs and maintenance on the camper trailer, including removing mould from the canvas, and re-waterproofing it. Having access to a large shed and tools made the jobs so much easier. It was also a real treat to have a "proper" kitchen for a while.

Autumn leaves in the yard

Nothing beats a drink by the fire on a cold night

After almost 6 weeks Rob and Cheryl returned from their travels and we packed up to leave. Our next week was planned out to fit in some medical appointments and also to have some repairs done to the car.