Platypus are hard to come by in the wild. The story tells you how to find not only Platypus but many of Australia’s endemic animals around Cairns. There is more Cairns than the great barrier reef, so go out and explore the rainforest.
This was my 6th trip to Cairns, and I had visited the rainforest many times by myself. We would rent a car and self drive through many forests.
This time, I took an organized tour with Paul and his Wait a While tour. And guess what: I saw more animals in one day than I had seen in all my previous trips combined. Not only did we see animals during the day but the tour continues after dinner with a spectacular night rainforest walk
The tour lasted about 9 hours full of discoveries and recreation. From the lush green surroundings to the friendly animals, everything was just magical. There were some Australian animals that I had never even heard about! Here is all that happened along the course of this fantastic tour.
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Getting picked up at my hotel
I had just had stepped out of my hotel room at the Shangri-La Cairns when Paul, the tour guide, picked me up at 2 pm. He introduced me to the other five passengers on the van who were my mates for the day’s adventures. At first, I was apprehensive as the weather was very cloudy. However, Paul told me that cloudy weather was better because the animals hide away in their shelters during hot days and love to come out in the cloudy weather. This was enough to get my hopes high for the tour.
TIP: if you are in Cairns on a rainy or cloudy day, it is the best time to experience rainforest tours and encounter animals
Starting our animals encounter with the Wallabies
We began our animal sighting with hundreds of Australian wallabies hopping around merrily. This was something very Australian in nature as whenever we hear about Australian animals; the kangaroos come first in our mind. This first stop was also great to practice using ou binoculars. Each person on tour is given a pair of binoculars, which is a prerequisite to watching small animals that often are high up in trees.
Tasting green ants
The tour held more surprises for me than I had initially imagined. Our group was offered to taste green ants, and I had never in my entire life dreamed of eating an ant! However, I took the risk and was surprised to find out that the ants tasted quite good. If I have to describe the taste, I will go with something lemon-ish in nature.
Driving up to the tableland
Most of the tour happens in the table-land which is about 1-hour drive from Cairns through a very curvy road. The 19 km long road had more than 200 turns in it. That’s almost too many turns for 19 km, isn’t it?
I almost got car sick and was happy when we arrived in the Danbulla State Forest to see the Cathedral fig tree. This tree is a gigantic fig tree that is over 500 hundred years. It makes us feel very very small in comparison.
The first enthralling Australian creatures that we saw nearby was the Boyd’s forest dragon. This was a lizard with spiky head and exciting patterns all over the body.
Encountering the elusive platypus and the tree kangaroos
The two most extraordinary animals that we encountered where the tree kangaroos and the platypus.
The Tree kangaroos were up in a tree at the entrance of the tea factory. They are small and adorable and were busy feeding when we stumbled upon them.
The Platypus was a bit harder to find. We did check a few ponds before we finally saw one. They swim on the surface to breathe every 3-4 minutes, so once you have found one, it is easy to follow it. Those animals are incredible. Our platypus stuck around with us for a good 30 minutes giving us plenty of photo opportunities.
The food during the Wait a While rainforest tour.
After sunset, Paul took us to to the Yungaburra hotel. We had a choice between 5 main courses.
The food was great, but the atmosphere of the pub was the best. It was an old countryside pub with so much character. We had excellent dinner sharing travel stories between tour participants. After this relaxing dinner, it was time to get back on the road for the rest of the tour
Walking in the rainforest at night
As the night took its cover, the green forest got a whole new appearance and feel. The transition of the day into night in the Cairns rainforest is something I loved a lot about this tour.
While it was at first a bit scary to walk in the forest without light, Paul made sure we were on smooth pathways and roads. The night also made green and copper possums to come out of their abodes. We saw them too, and I was glad that we had binoculars with us to enjoy all the sights.
And let’s not forget the sound. Somehow, all those creatures seem much louder at night.
Who is the Wait a While rainforest tour for ?
This tour is effortless and would fit everyone from Children to the Elderly. The walking is limited and was always on accessible footpaths.
Conclusion
Overall, the tour was engaging and fun, which kept us active throughout the day ( and night!). I recommend it highly. It is the best possible way to watch animals in the wild, and Paul is a great guide.
Don’t miss this tour if you are in Cairns.
To book the wait a while rainforest tour, check out their website.
Happy platypus seeing…