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Detailed travelogue on Australia and New Zealand
Detailed Travelogue on Australia and New Zealand
Larry2006-05-27 03:23:16
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a World Heritage Area, meaning most of the land was now protected.
However, the people that owned property and houses BEFORE it was declared a
World Heritage Area are still permitted to live there. The government is
allowed to bid on their property (in hopes of buying it to preserve more
rainforest) but those that have the property either want to continue living
in the area, (I can see why -- it's beautiful), or sell it to a private
party at a much higher price.
In the late afternoon, we stopped at Mossman Gorge on the way back into
Cairns, a large stream with boulders and some fast-moving water. A lot of
people went in swimming, riding the strong current downhill, but I just
looked around the area. There's a rickity wooden bridge over the gorge that
asks that no more than 10 people be on the bridge at the same time.
The next day was Great Barrier Reef day. The Quicksilver boat left from
Cairns, with a stop in Port Douglas to pick up passengers. (Years ago, Port
Douglas was as bustling a city as Cairns was. After a while though, most of
the activity moved to Cairns, and Port Douglas became a quiet little town up
the coast -- that was, until recently, when Sheraton Hotels opened a huge,
lavish resort and golf course there. President Clinton stayed at this
resort when he visited Australia in 1996).
There are a lot of tour operators that run tours out to the Great Barrier
Reef, but I chose Quicksilver because of some recommendations, and because
their "platform" out on the sea is right above a great section of reef. As
soon as the boat arrived, the first thing I did was get the snorkel gear and
fins (provided) and jump right in -- before everyone else (and their oozing
suntan lotion) did. They rope off the area you're allowed to swim in (since
you're in open water), but it was more than enough. Scuba was an
...
See photographs from:
Australia Gallery
,
New Zealand Gallery
