No sun? No worries!
18 days in the land down under.
18 days in the land down under.
Queensland, Part 2
For our other six nights in North Queensland, we moved down to Palm
Cove and the Melaleuca Resort—a small hotel complex just across from
the beach with self-catering accommodations.
The resorts “suites” are one-bedroom apartments—ours had a queen-
sized bed in the bedroom and a sofa bed in the living room. Importantly for
us, it also had a washer and dryer, which we used extensively. This helped
us pack lighter overall—a real challenge when organizing a trip to multiple
climates. It also had a full kitchen, equipped with most everything we
needed for breakfasts and a few dinners in. We hit the nearby Cole’s on
our first night there, and we were pretty much set for the week. The
grounds are lush and well maintained, with a nice (albeit chilly) pool. Even
though the bedroom window was on the backside of the building, we could
still hear the waves at night—nice! Dedicated parking is provided under the
building. The location, just across from the beach, is terrific, with many
restaurant choices within five-minutes walking distance to either side.
Proprietors Sonya and Robin provide lots of helpful advice and can assist
with booking activities. It’s not really posh accommodation, especially
compared to some of the more upscale resorts, but it’s a solid value. $227
for a one-bedroom ocean-facing apartment.
We also visited Port Douglas on this trip. It is also a nice town—a bit bigger
and more spread out. We really liked the intimate size and nice beach at
Palm Cove.
Our “big” activity from this spot was a day-trip to Lizard Island with Daintree
Air. We booked this several months in advance, and of course you can’t
really predict, nor do much about, the weather. As it turned out, the weather
was iffy the whole time we were in the area—including this day. The
morning weather wasn’t bad, and our trip went out with the three of us and
five other passengers. The flight up along the coast and rainforest was
pretty clear all the way to Cape Flattery. We took tons of photos.
The Lizard Island “airport” is a small, open-air waiting area with a couple of
benches, next to a relatively short runway that cuts across the island
between two mountains. The sky was relatively clear when we landed, but
not so when we left later in the day. In fact, we could hear one pilot passing
over in an attempt to find the runway. From the airport, it is about a 15-
minute walk to Watson’s Bay, where we snorkeled—although, there is no
obligation to go with the group; Greg will provide directions for anyone who
wants to go off to other beaches or for walks on the island. We saw a few
fruit bats but, alas, no lizards.
In addition to the views from the air, the second big attraction of this trip is
the snorkeling, and it is a superlative experience. The giant-clam garden
and the Nemo garden—both in the middle area of Watson’s bay—are out
of this world. Once we landed, Greg turned from pilot to snorkeling
instructor and patiently waited as we became reacquainted with the skill of
keeping water out of our masks and tubes. We had several extended trips
into the water at Watson’s bay, followed by a very nice and filling boxed
lunch on the beach. This also gave us a chance to try out our new
waterproof case for the Canon A80—not necessarily an easy task as you
kind of have to guess what you’re aiming at, and often the fish move away
too quickly.
Unfortunately, the cloud cover only got thicker, and we were not able to see
the reef from the air on the return trip. Even without that, this is an
experience not to be missed, and a real highlight of our trip. All equipment
and fees are included in the A$590 p/p price.
The other major outing was a snorkeling trip to the outer reef with Calypso
Charters. We waited until we were in the area to book this. Our preference
was a smaller boat, such as Wavelength (Port Douglas) or Ocean Spirit
(Cairns), but Robin suggested that with the weather and the winds, we
might be better off on something a bit bigger. He was right. We ended up
going with Calypso from Port Douglas at $160 p/p. We drove ourselves to
Port Douglas to avoid the pick-up/drop-off fees, which would have added a
bit to our total.
On this particular day, Calypso sent out two boats—one with those just
snorkeling, and one with those who would be diving. Our boat carried
about the maximum, 60 people. Wetsuits, equipment and flotation aids are
provided; a “reef tax fee” is paid separately on the boat. We visited three
locations at Opal Reef, the first of which offered the best look at coral and
fish. The second was a bit deeper, and Calypso provided a “guided” tour.
During this stop, Allie and Marisa came close to a fairly good-sized reef
shark, though Marisa was too startled to turn on the camera. The primary
attraction of the third location was Marvin, the enormous Hump-Headed
Maori Wrasse who has been meeting the boat for a number of years and
has become something of a mascot. Calypso provides coffee/tea in the
morning, a buffet lunch and bar service on the way back. We enjoyed a
long chat with Sara and Francesco, a honeymooning couple from Milan, on
the 1.5 hour trip back in.
All in all, Calypso does a nice job, although we would probably have
preferred a small group. At each stop, all 60 people are donning wetsuits
and fins and trying to get into the water at the same time. We got kicked in
the face a few times, particularly as everyone was just off the back of the
boat trying to get a look at Marvin. Also, snorkeling in choppy, open water
takes a bit more concentration than snorkeling in, say, calm coves in
Hawaii, so it helps to have a little space.
We learned that it is pretty hard to judge the conditions on the outer reef by
what it’s like on shore. We got pretty much what we expected the day we
went out—clouds and moderate winds. A few days later, we were in Port
Douglas again on what seemed to be a much nicer day there. We
happened into the Calypso store at the wharf and commented to the clerk
that this would have been a better day for us to go, and she replied, “Oh, it
was absolutely horrid out there today. They’re back in already” (this was
about 3pm, whereas our trip didn't arrive back in port until 4:30pm).
Next: Queensland, part 3
See all of our photos on Webshots
our travels
home
contact us
For our other six nights in North Queensland, we moved down to Palm
Cove and the Melaleuca Resort—a small hotel complex just across from
the beach with self-catering accommodations.
The resorts “suites” are one-bedroom apartments—ours had a queen-
sized bed in the bedroom and a sofa bed in the living room. Importantly for
us, it also had a washer and dryer, which we used extensively. This helped
us pack lighter overall—a real challenge when organizing a trip to multiple
climates. It also had a full kitchen, equipped with most everything we
needed for breakfasts and a few dinners in. We hit the nearby Cole’s on
our first night there, and we were pretty much set for the week. The
grounds are lush and well maintained, with a nice (albeit chilly) pool. Even
though the bedroom window was on the backside of the building, we could
still hear the waves at night—nice! Dedicated parking is provided under the
building. The location, just across from the beach, is terrific, with many
restaurant choices within five-minutes walking distance to either side.
Proprietors Sonya and Robin provide lots of helpful advice and can assist
with booking activities. It’s not really posh accommodation, especially
compared to some of the more upscale resorts, but it’s a solid value. $227
for a one-bedroom ocean-facing apartment.
We also visited Port Douglas on this trip. It is also a nice town—a bit bigger
and more spread out. We really liked the intimate size and nice beach at
Palm Cove.
Our “big” activity from this spot was a day-trip to Lizard Island with Daintree
Air. We booked this several months in advance, and of course you can’t
really predict, nor do much about, the weather. As it turned out, the weather
was iffy the whole time we were in the area—including this day. The
morning weather wasn’t bad, and our trip went out with the three of us and
five other passengers. The flight up along the coast and rainforest was
pretty clear all the way to Cape Flattery. We took tons of photos.
The Lizard Island “airport” is a small, open-air waiting area with a couple of
benches, next to a relatively short runway that cuts across the island
between two mountains. The sky was relatively clear when we landed, but
not so when we left later in the day. In fact, we could hear one pilot passing
over in an attempt to find the runway. From the airport, it is about a 15-
minute walk to Watson’s Bay, where we snorkeled—although, there is no
obligation to go with the group; Greg will provide directions for anyone who
wants to go off to other beaches or for walks on the island. We saw a few
fruit bats but, alas, no lizards.
In addition to the views from the air, the second big attraction of this trip is
the snorkeling, and it is a superlative experience. The giant-clam garden
and the Nemo garden—both in the middle area of Watson’s bay—are out
of this world. Once we landed, Greg turned from pilot to snorkeling
instructor and patiently waited as we became reacquainted with the skill of
keeping water out of our masks and tubes. We had several extended trips
into the water at Watson’s bay, followed by a very nice and filling boxed
lunch on the beach. This also gave us a chance to try out our new
waterproof case for the Canon A80—not necessarily an easy task as you
kind of have to guess what you’re aiming at, and often the fish move away
too quickly.
Unfortunately, the cloud cover only got thicker, and we were not able to see
the reef from the air on the return trip. Even without that, this is an
experience not to be missed, and a real highlight of our trip. All equipment
and fees are included in the A$590 p/p price.
The other major outing was a snorkeling trip to the outer reef with Calypso
Charters. We waited until we were in the area to book this. Our preference
was a smaller boat, such as Wavelength (Port Douglas) or Ocean Spirit
(Cairns), but Robin suggested that with the weather and the winds, we
might be better off on something a bit bigger. He was right. We ended up
going with Calypso from Port Douglas at $160 p/p. We drove ourselves to
Port Douglas to avoid the pick-up/drop-off fees, which would have added a
bit to our total.
On this particular day, Calypso sent out two boats—one with those just
snorkeling, and one with those who would be diving. Our boat carried
about the maximum, 60 people. Wetsuits, equipment and flotation aids are
provided; a “reef tax fee” is paid separately on the boat. We visited three
locations at Opal Reef, the first of which offered the best look at coral and
fish. The second was a bit deeper, and Calypso provided a “guided” tour.
During this stop, Allie and Marisa came close to a fairly good-sized reef
shark, though Marisa was too startled to turn on the camera. The primary
attraction of the third location was Marvin, the enormous Hump-Headed
Maori Wrasse who has been meeting the boat for a number of years and
has become something of a mascot. Calypso provides coffee/tea in the
morning, a buffet lunch and bar service on the way back. We enjoyed a
long chat with Sara and Francesco, a honeymooning couple from Milan, on
the 1.5 hour trip back in.
All in all, Calypso does a nice job, although we would probably have
preferred a small group. At each stop, all 60 people are donning wetsuits
and fins and trying to get into the water at the same time. We got kicked in
the face a few times, particularly as everyone was just off the back of the
boat trying to get a look at Marvin. Also, snorkeling in choppy, open water
takes a bit more concentration than snorkeling in, say, calm coves in
Hawaii, so it helps to have a little space.
We learned that it is pretty hard to judge the conditions on the outer reef by
what it’s like on shore. We got pretty much what we expected the day we
went out—clouds and moderate winds. A few days later, we were in Port
Douglas again on what seemed to be a much nicer day there. We
happened into the Calypso store at the wharf and commented to the clerk
that this would have been a better day for us to go, and she replied, “Oh, it
was absolutely horrid out there today. They’re back in already” (this was
about 3pm, whereas our trip didn't arrive back in port until 4:30pm).
Next: Queensland, part 3
See all of our photos on Webshots
our travels
home
contact us
Getting ready to land, Cairns
Australia home
Planning considerations
Sydney
Queensland, part 1
Queensland, part 2
Queensland, part 3
Red Center
Yarra Valley
Melbourne
Getting there and getting around
Planning considerations
Sydney
Queensland, part 1
Queensland, part 2
Queensland, part 3
Red Center
Yarra Valley
Melbourne
Getting there and getting around
Daintree coast from the air
Getting ready to snorkel, Opal Reef
Lizard Island
Giant clam, Lizard Island
Coral, Lizard Island
Onboard with Calypso
