Its August and our anniversary plans are in disarray. New South Wales is in lock down our theatre show cancelled and no plan B. So we divert our attention north where travel is permitted and choose Cairns as it is as far away from Sydney as a commercial flight could take us. Kerry has promised to let her girlfriend Sally know when next we are travelling and Sally wants to come along. We book accomodation at Palm Cove about 20 mins drive north from Cairns airport where we pick up our economy car – a small Skoda. Our apartment will not be ready until 2.00pm and its 8.30am. The weather has not been kind, its grey and there is rain in the air not quite falling though so its humid.
We drive north with the idea that we will take the Sky Rail to Kuranda for the morning and return by bus. We had booked the passage on the Sky Rail but arrived so early that there was concern we would have to wait in the coffee shop. Covid has devasted Cairns and its tourism. There were none of the usual crowds pushing and shoving and we walked straight on to the next cable car. The trip to Kuranda carries you up a steep slope draped in forest with views back to the coast. Yorkey’s Knob is clearly visible and the canefields spread north and beyond.
Leaving the coast behind the humidity builds as we passed way above the floor of the forest with crows nest ferns and staghorn/elkhorn ferns adorning the trees. There is stop on the way and we dismount to have a look. A timber walkway takes us around the forest and past giant red cedars and a view of the valey which is astounding.
The path to Kuranda is cross by Barron Gorge and the Barron River. As we approach the gorge I notice that the Kuranda train has positioned itself for the passengers to take photos of the gorge and that the train is a diesel not the traditional steam train. It is still humid and spots of rain appear on the windows. The station pulls into view and Kuranda awaits.
As we come towards the platform a camera takes a photo of us so as we move towoard the gift shop we are greetes by the image of the three of us smiling into the camera lens. Despite my doing my best to disuade Kerry from buying the souvenir photo, we walk out with our memento. Whilst in the shop we learn there is no bus on Sundays that returns us to the Sky Rail station below. I visit the Rail station to enquire about the return journey (the station is beside the Sky Rail station) and we decide to take the Sky Rail back. The train returns to Cairns and the return journy on the Sky Rail is half the price of the single journey on the train.
As I said tourism is dead and no more evident than a walk past vacant shops in Kuranda. Kuranda always seemed to be like a giant gift shop for tourists and with no tourists the small businesses are closed down everywhere. A single troubadour is performing on the street, didgerdoo in hand and outstretched hat for the scheckles from the tourists. Essentially we walked the street, stopped at the church which is an extrordinary example of a bush church, and had a coffee in a local shop. We could walk unmolested as there were so few visitors.
So we return to the Sky Rail passing some unusual bushes. The return trip was uneventful and our hire car awaited our return. Palm Cove next stop.
glendon1954 