With the rest of the crew off shark diving, Joe and I had an open day to explore Cairns. We decided on a rainforest adventure in Barron Gorge National Park that included several types of transportation throughout the day.
We had selected the ticket option that would pick us up directly from the DoubleTree via car and take us to the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway. Along the fifteen minute ride our driver gave us some info and tips for the day ahead. Once we arrived, we used our online booking code to grab our tickets and get in the very short line for the cable car. Each car fit six people, but most of the time it was just Joe and I.
The first stop took us ten minutes to Red Peak Station, which was simply a short boardwalk with some cool views.
The next stop was fifteen minutes away and took us to Barron Falls. It featured a lovely view of the falls, but it was under construction at the time so there wasn't much to it.
We had booked a special ATV tour at this station but we were about an hour early. Instead of sitting with all the bugs we decided to take the cableway back to Red Peak and back to Barron Falls. Technically this isn't allowed, but they (sort of) let it slide. Once back, our guide Ellen from Kuranda Rainforest Journeys was ready for us. She taught us the ATV basics before starting the tour. It was definitely the highlight of the entire day and I'm so happy we spent the extra money to do this. She was extremely knowledgeable and we were really happy to be the only ones on the tour. We even met the gigantic cassowary bird that absolutely loved fruit.
We were back on the skyrail for another ten minutes before reaching our final stop of Kuranda. This was an actual village that had a lot to do. I really wanted to hold a koala so we headed straight for Kuranda Koala Gardens, a pretty basic small zoo. Since Queensland is the only area you're legally allowed to hold a koala, this was our chance!
After our koala cuddles we lunched down by the train station before jumping on the old school, non air-conditioned, train toward Cairns. It was a two hour journey that dragged on a bit. But it featured some ground-level rainforest scenery, waterfalls and 90 degree turns. While I wouldn't need to do it again, I'm glad we got the full experience.
Overall our trip to the rainforest was fun, but exhausting. Joe and I both agreed the highlight was the ATV tour and would recommend that to anyone considering doing this full day rainforest adventure.
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