Mossman Gorge:  From Palm Cove, we drove the Captain Cook Highway north through the town of Port Douglas to the town of Mossman.  From there, we continued to the Mossman Gorge Centre.  The Centre is located in the Daintree Rainforest, a World Heritage listed site.  It is the largest continuous area of tropical rainforest in Australia.  Further, the Daintree Rainforest is the oldest, continuously surviving rainforest on earth and is believed to be over 135 million years old. 

            After reading information provided at the Centre, we took a shuttle bus from the Centre to the heart of the gorge.   From there we first strolled along the “Baral Marrjanga” which in the language of the indigenous Eastern Kuku Yalanji peoples means “Track of the Elder or Boss.”  It was a boardwalk to the Mossman River Lookout. Since it was only the beginning of the rainy season, there wasn’t much water in Mossman River.  However, it was used for swimming by the locals.

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	The lush environment of Mossman Gorge
	It's very lush with lots of vines
	The boardwalk to the Mossman River lookout
	Being the dry season, the mighty Mossman River is just a trickle
	A lone fish circles this pool
	Another view showing more boulders than water

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            Next we walked to the Rex Creek Suspension Bridge.  We crossed the bridge and then took a 2.4km circuit track through the rainforest enjoying the lush green environment with its sounds and vivid colors.  We took a rest break at Wurrumbu Creek.  After spending about 3.5 hours in this beautiful but very hot and humid setting, we caught a shuttle back to the Centre where we collected our car and returned back to Palm Cove.

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	The Rex Creek Suspension Bridge
	A view of Rex Creek from the bridge; again, more rocks than water
	A view of Manjal Nimbi Peak, roughly translated to "Mountain Holding Back."  The large humanoid rock represents Kuburri who came to the aid of the Kuku Yalanji when persecuted by an evil spirit Wurrumbi. Kuburri holds back the evil spirit.
	Fern Baskets high in the forest
	You get some perspective regarding the size of the boulders and trees when you see Ed in the center of this photograph
	Lindy beginning a trek up hill on the circuit
	You don't want to fall on this small plant with huge thorns on its trunk
	This is one big tree with huge roots
	Some colorful funghi
	A view up into the canopy
	Ed by a giant Fig Tree
	A group of beautiful ferns illuminated by sunlight
	A huge twisted vine
	A final glimpse into this beautiful setting at Mossman Gorge

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            Barron Gorge National Park:  Just beyond the town of Kuranda (see below), we visited Barron Gorge National Park. The Park is part of the traditional lands of the Djabugay Aboriginal peoples.  In 1998, the Park became part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area.  We took the Budaadji Canopy Walk – an elevated boardwalk to see Barron Falls.  The boardwalk is named after the Djabugay ancestral spirit “Budaadji” – a Giant Carpet Snake who the Djabugay believe created the Barron River, the gorge and “Din Din” (Barron Falls).  The walk was really beautiful with huge trees and vines everywhere.  Also, due to the damp environment there were lots of mushrooms and other tropical plants.  The highlight of the walk was seeing Barron Falls.  There wasn’t much water present in December but the Falls were nevertheless impressive.  It was amazing to see how the continuous flow of water, especially during rainy season, has etched through the rock and forged Barron Gorge. 

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	Ed hanging from a vine on the Budaaji Canopy Walk
	Here's a closer view of that huge vine
	Looking down at huge roots on the forest floor
	Some funghi growing on a tree
	While walking on the forest floor, we saw this amazing tree! Quite the bend!
	A male Wild Turkey - amazingly, it posed for a photograph
	We found this group of Fiddlehead Ferns
	A female Wild Turkey; again, it wasn't shy
	The trickle of water is Barron Falls; however, you can see how powerful it must be during rainy season given how the gorge has been formed

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            Kuranda:  Kuranda is a small village surrounded by tropical rainforest and adjacent to Barron Gorge National Park.  It’s 1,000 feet above sea level and accessed via a very winding, steep road.  Kuranda was first settled by Europeans in 1885 (originally it was home to the Djabugay peoples).  It is considered a bit cooler and less humid than the coast (you couldn’t prove it during our visit!).  In the 1960’s it was known as a “hippy community” and the alternative lifestyle led to the production of lots of arts and crafts.  These are now found in the Kuranda Markets – a scattering of booths and small stores selling handmade items. We enjoyed spending time there, in particular at the two tourist attractions described below.

            BirdWorld (Kuranda):  We enjoyed spending time in BirdWorld  - home to the largest single collection of free flying birds in Australia.  There is huge netting which keeps the birds inside a tropical rainforest environment but they are allowed to fly freely within the compound.  The birds are not only from Australia but also from other rainforests such as the Amazon.  BirdWorld presents some great opportunities for photography.  While some of the birds are shy, others enjoy sitting on guests’ heads or shoulders.  One cheeky bird actually took the button off the top of Lindy’s baseball cap!  And, no, we didn’t get it back.  (All birds are native unless otherwise noted.)

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	The amazing Cassawaree!  This is Australia's heaviest bird weighing between 60-70 kg (132-154 lbs). Now that's a heavy bird!!
	A beautiful pair of Major Mitchell Cockatoos
	This colorful bird is a Fig Parrot
	The amazing King Parrott
	This Sun Conure is native to Columbia
	A Macaw from South America
	A male Eclectus Parrot
	This beautiful bird is a Green-checked Conure from Columbia
	This Banded Rail is enjoying a nice sunbath
	Lindy with that cheeky Eclectus Parrot
	This is a beautiful Peaceful Dove

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             Australian Butterfly Sanctuary (Kuranda):  The Australian Butterfly Sanctuary is another great place to spend time.  It’s an aviary that serves as home to numerous beautiful butterfly species.  The Sanctuary also houses a caterpillar breeding nursery.  You can take a guided tour to learn about the various stages of development of the caterpillars until they emerge as butterflies.  Photography is a bit tricky as most butterflies are constantly on the move but it’s worth the wait to get a chance at capturing one of these graceful creatures.

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	This guys is a Cairns Birdwing Butterfly catepillar
	Here's a male Cairns Birdwing Butterfly
	This female Cairns Birdwing Butterfly isn't nearly as beautiful as her male counterpart
	Look carefully to see this Ulysses Butterfly caterpillars
	In the center is the bright blue Ulysses Butterfly
	In this snap, there's a Ulysses Butterfly (lower right) along with two male Cairns Birdwing Butterflies (top right and top left)
	A Cruiser Butterfly
	An Orange Lacewing Butterfly
	An Australian Lurcher Butterfly
	A Ulysses Butterfly cruising by Ed
	This lizard has made the sanctuary his home too!

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             Lake Barrine:  Lake Barrine is located on the Atherton Tableland, a fertile plateau which is part of the Great Dividing Range, found inland and southwest of Cairns. It is one of two lakes in Crater Lakes National Park.  Its elevated position makes it very different from the lowlands tropical rainforest.  Lake Barrine is a natural crater lake that is about one kilometer in diameter.  No streams or springs feed this beautiful lake; it is filled only by rainwater.  Amazing!   

            Lake Barrine is famous for its Bull Kauri trees.  These ancient pine trees can be over 50 meters (180 feet) tall and have a girth of 6 meters (19.5 feet).  They truly are huge and very magnificent!  We enjoyed walking among these giants!  They are found only in a small area of the Atherton Table between altitudes of 600-1000 meters (1,969 – 3,280 feet).  It was definitely worth the drive there to enjoy the setting and the rare Bull Kauri trees.

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	The beautiful drive up to The Atherton Tablelands
	The pristine Lake Barrine
	Looking up through the massive Bull Kauri Trees
	Ed by the massive Bull Kauri Trees

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             Curtain Fig National Park:  Also located on the Atherton Tableland is Curtain Fig National Park.  Its main attraction is a huge fig tree whose aerial roots drop about 15 meters (50 feet) to the forest floor to form a “curtain.”  The tree is about 50 meters (165 feet) tall and is estimated to be 500 years old.  Access to the Curtain Fig is via an elevated boardwalk.  Photography is a bit challenging given how huge this tree is but you certainly get the idea from the photographs below.

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	For some perspective, Lindy is the tiny figure in front of the Curtain Fig
	Another view showing a bit more of the top of this Curtain Fig

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