Cairns Round up!
Hi everyone!
Welcome back. I’m finally getting around to writing about my three days in Cairns and the beginning of my East Coast adventure.
Leaving Adelaide came with a real mix of emotions. On one hand, I was so ready to start moving again and explore more of Australia, but I also felt a wave of nerves. Adelaide had become my base and it felt a bit like I was starting the solo-travel journey all over again.
My day started at 3:45am to catch a 6am flight to Sydney, where I had a few hours to kill before my connection up to Cairns. Aside from the moment I realised I’d left my headphones behind at the hostel — an annoying (and expensive) mistake — the whole travel day went smoothly. I arrived in Cairns in the early evening, tired but excited.
I was lucky enough to have one night of overlap with two friends I’d made during my first week in Australia. Seeing familiar faces in a completely new place felt so comforting, and it was such a nice way to ease myself into a new city with ready-made friends to share dinner with.
Days 1 & 2 – Uncle Brian’s Cape Tribulation & Atherton Tablelands Adventures
My first two days were spent on the famous Uncle Brian’s tours, exploring some of the most incredible landscapes in Far North Queensland.
Cape Tribulation & the Daintree Rainforest
Day 1 started with a croc-spotting river tour where we managed to see two female crocodiles and a tiny baby. It isn’t a great time of year to spot them as they spend most of their time underwater rather on the banks but I felt lucky to have seen a few but I would have loved to have seen a few of the big boys!
From there, we headed deep into the Daintree Rainforest, the oldest tropical rainforest on Earth — estimated to be around 180 million years old, making it even older than the Amazon. Walking through it feels like you’ve stepped into another world: towering fan palms, ancient ferns, and a stillness that feels quite surreal. The addition of Jurassic Park playing in the background definitely added to the feeling of being in a film! We also headed to Cape Tribulation which was just as stunning and is where the Daintree Rainforest meets the Great Barrier Reef.
Atherton Tablelands – creeks and waterfalls
Day two was the Atherton Tablelands, and it was a packed day predominantly of creek and waterfall swimming!
One of the swimming spots was at Josephine Falls, where we slid down a natural rock waterslide — it was so much fun but, as always, the side you don’t see on Instagram: One of the guys on the tour was incredibly hungover… and ended up vomiting in the creek. Nothing says “immersive rainforest experience” quite like that. Best believe we were out of there like a shot!
At Millaa Millaa Falls, the postcard-perfect waterfall where everyone gets their hair-flick photos, we learned there was a catfish that actually bites people. After hearing that, I absolutely did not get in the water which I’m glad about as the little bugger bit about 5 people in the hour we were there! Despite not swimming it was absolutely amazing to see in person and we then headed to Lake Eacham which is a volcanic crater lake. It’s a popular swimming spot even though there’s a known freshwater crocodile living in there. Apparently they’re harmless… but all I know is that technically, I can now say I’ve swam in croc-infested waters, which sounds much more hardcore. Our final stop was at the the famous Curtain Fig Tree, the enormous curtain-like roots said to have inspired the scenery in Avatar.
Day 3 - Snorkelling at The Great Barrier Reef!
Snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef is such an iconic bucket list thing to do and it was an incredible day from start to finish. Even now, I’m still buzzing from the colours, the wildlife, and the sheer surreal beauty of being out in the middle of one of the world’s most iconic natural wonders.
We set off early, heading towards Michaelmas Cay, a tiny sand island surrounded by turquoise waters. The main snorkelling spot allows you to actually go onto the beach but due to North winds and cyclone season, we ended up swimming behind the Cay. It did mean slight less variety in what we saw- no turtles or reef sharks unfortunately but even so, beneath the surface was still another world entirely. There were hundreds of multicoloured fish, starfish and pastel coloured coral. I feel so lucky to have seen that with my own eyes. It does make me want to try scuba diving but I decided against it this time around as I didn’t want the pressure to affect my ears as I had my skydive coming up!
I had an absolutely amazing 3 days in Cairns and one of the highlights was speaking to so many other solo female travellers who have all experienced the same feelings I have since I landed. I am completely blown away at how easy it has been to make friends and the best part, you tend to see the same friendly faces at different parts along the coast too. Even after a few days I feel like I know more people in Australia than I do back home.
This one has been a long post so thank you for making it to the end if you’re still here!
Much love
Rach x
