I had heard a lot about Uncle Brian’s tour and how good it was, so on my return to Cairns I got myself and a couple of mates booked onto it. We were picked up from the hostel around 8am and were thrown straight into a full on 12 hours of laughing, joking and messing around. While also being informative. Our driver and guide Brad introduced himself and Gus the bus to the tour group (about 15 people), and then we were on our way, out of Cairns and into the Queensland countryside.
The first stop was Babinda for a short walk through the rainforest, next to the huge boulders where the water flows through coming down from the mountains. We stopped for a refreshing drink and Brad showing us how to pick up a green ant without squashing it, put it’s backside on your tongue and it tastes like lime.
Next up was Josephine Falls. A refreshing mountain swimming hole, with a great slide down the rocks to plunge into it. After messing around like big kids for a while, we took a walk up to the top tiers of the falls.
We stopped for lunch at a cafe up in the hills surrounded by farmland. The food was excellent, the view was brilliant, and very importantly for an Englishman, there was as much tea as you can drink. After catching a calf that had decided it would rather hang around with backpackers than stay on the farm, and handing it back to the farmer, we got back on Gus the bus and headed off for more swimming.
Milla Milla Falls, the shooting location of shampoo and beer commercials (not at the same time). Freezing cold water, but you just have to wade in as fast as you can, swim like crazy to get under the falls and out onto the rocks behind.
After the freezing cold waters of Milla Milla, the next stop was like jumping into a giant warm bath in comparison. Lake Eacham, a volcanic crater lake. About an hour before sunset we drove to a creek to try and spot the strange creature that is the Platypus, the best time of day to try and spot them. We saw the grand total of one for about five seconds, but hey I’ve still seen it, another tick on the Aussie wildlife list.
We had a stop for refreshments, and whats more refreshing than a cold can of beer, and then we all hopped back on Gus for the winding drive through the mountains. Brad had us singing, dancing and playing daft games all the way back to Cairns.
The first stop was Babinda for a short walk through the rainforest, next to the huge boulders where the water flows through coming down from the mountains. We stopped for a refreshing drink and Brad showing us how to pick up a green ant without squashing it, put it’s backside on your tongue and it tastes like lime.
Next up was Josephine Falls. A refreshing mountain swimming hole, with a great slide down the rocks to plunge into it. After messing around like big kids for a while, we took a walk up to the top tiers of the falls.
We stopped for lunch at a cafe up in the hills surrounded by farmland. The food was excellent, the view was brilliant, and very importantly for an Englishman, there was as much tea as you can drink. After catching a calf that had decided it would rather hang around with backpackers than stay on the farm, and handing it back to the farmer, we got back on Gus the bus and headed off for more swimming.
Milla Milla Falls, the shooting location of shampoo and beer commercials (not at the same time). Freezing cold water, but you just have to wade in as fast as you can, swim like crazy to get under the falls and out onto the rocks behind.
After the freezing cold waters of Milla Milla, the next stop was like jumping into a giant warm bath in comparison. Lake Eacham, a volcanic crater lake. About an hour before sunset we drove to a creek to try and spot the strange creature that is the Platypus, the best time of day to try and spot them. We saw the grand total of one for about five seconds, but hey I’ve still seen it, another tick on the Aussie wildlife list.
We had a stop for refreshments, and whats more refreshing than a cold can of beer, and then we all hopped back on Gus for the winding drive through the mountains. Brad had us singing, dancing and playing daft games all the way back to Cairns.
