Morning
Different Camera
We toured around the local streets and found a spot overlooking a cane field. We can't see the sun pop up over the sea but we will certainly be in a good spot to see the sun and moon line up with us and cast the shadow that's creating all the fuss.
Back to the house for breakfast and then up the highway still keeping a weather eye out for potential viewing spots. The really really good spots will either be closed off by police or have already been claimed by people living in their self contained vehicles.
We had been posed a challenge by our friend Jack who asked about a mountain stream and swimming hole just off the highway. The only place we could think of was Mossman Gorge. We drove down the main street of Mossman and pulled in for a coffee. While we were there, a couple of local fellows sat nearby. It was a bit of fun very discretely listening to them talk. They had the true North Queensland manner of speech - finishing off their sentences with "ay".
Next was a look at Mossman Gorge. We'd been here many years ago and remembered the bush walk through the rain forest to a swimming hole. What a surprise to be greeted with a fully developed tourist centre. Overcoming our initial hesitance, we ventured inside. We were greeted by a lovely lady from the local aboriginal community. She patiently answered our questions about the new centre. It turns out that the community have been waiting about 20 years to have something that they could call their own. The new centre is being staffed and run by the local people. It opened in June this year. All access to the gorge is by the centre's busses. A small fee of $4.80 per person gave unlimited access to the gorge by bus for the day.
Visitors Centre from the car park
We made use of the shuttle service to take us to the start of the walks. The walk is no longer along the forest floor, we were suspended above by walkways. It was enjoyable, this different perspective to view the forest. Following the path, we found ourselves at the swimming hole that we remembered from way back. The water was clear and we could see the Jungle Perch swimming in the shallows.
Fig tree which grows fruit from the trunk
A tiny spider we saved. It got tangled in Clint's beard.
There's a fair crowd around at the moment. It's pretty obvious that there are a lot of people here for the eclipse. Normally it wouldn't be long before the crowd moved on and the surroundings would only resonate with the sounds of the forest. Not so today, we tried to move between groups as best we could so that we could take in the beauty of the place.
Jungle Perch in the clear water
The Mossman Gorge Swimming Hole
Brush Turkey struttin'
Fungi and mosses on the Forest Floor
Someone done some gardening?
The walkway construction had raised our curiosity. We could see that there was water piped along the structure with taps every so often. The surface we walked on squeaked under foot and wasn't slippery. All was revealed at one of the signs. The surface we were walking on was recycled plastic. It's resistant to rot and termites. The taps would have been access for cleaning the surface with water blaster to clear away mold and mud.
Time to head back to the centre. Our driver was a local fellow who was happy to talk about how the new centre is changing things for them. Their children are learning about tourism, they have a tourism school for other aboriginal youngsters to come and learn. The standard Toyota coasters are being replaced by electric busses. When the fleet is in place, all visitors regardless of which tour operator will be required to use the electric bus. This is seen as a further step toward reducing emissions and giving their rainforest a chance to survive. He also told of us of how after cyclone Yasi, a cassowary had hatched a clutch of chicks nearby. One of the chicks had been separated from the brood. Our driver has a photo of him holding the chick in his hands, not realising it was a cassowary chick. A very special experience for him.
Back at the centre, we had a look at the souvenirs, decided not to buy anything as I had my trinket from yesterday. We instead had a coffee and shared a sandwich from the cafe. Again the cafe was staffed by people from the local community. Everyone we encountered was helpful and seemed happy.
The new centre looks to be a great boon for Mossman and the future of its indigenous population. It might have been 20 years in the making, but the timing now seems right.
Time to turn back south. We could have taken a circuit through to Mareeba, but decided to check out the availability of the roadside pull-ins. Sure enough, more campervans were setting themselves up in the vantage points. This was only early in the afternoon, hate to think what it will be like later tonight.
This wouldn't be bad as a vantage point.
Back to our accommodation and we've set our plan for tomorrow. Pack the car tonight with as much as we can, then set ourselves up early at our vantage point. We’ll just have to take our chances with the weather. BOM reports are not encouraging. From here we will head south hopefully in front of the majority of the crowd.
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