Lunch was spent on the boat eating a provided buffet meal. Right after lunch Bryan and I headed back to the mainland to meet our group and boat to ride out to the Great Barrier Reef for an extended snorkeling adventure. It was phenomenal!! Words and pictures can't even describe the ocean life and wonder we saw. We had alot of fun with an underwater digital camera we rented. Now, don't be surprised to see that alot of the coral is gray and looks washed out . . . it really isn't like you see in pictures. When coral is gray it is living so most of what we saw is living coral. Many professional photographers can get the color of the coral to appear when they are taking pictures by using the correct underwater lighting along with the sun hitting the water at correct angles . . . we definitely are not professionals!! But, regardless, the views were spectacular and amazing! Bryan and I are hoping to do this again before leaving Australia.
While Bryan and I snorkeled on the Reef John and Patricia took the boys in the semi-submersible boat (submarine) to view the Reef - and not get wet or have to jump into the ocean. You get to see the Reef from another viewpoint via the submarine which also provides amazing and unforgettable sights. (I later went on the submarine with Kaden while the rest of the gang went snorkeling off the shoreline again, so I was able to see the Reef from multiple angles.)
The day ended with Bryan, Evan, John, and Patricia missing the boat back to the mainland and having to catch a separate ride back. This left Kaden and I on the boat alone with a TON of stuff that we had hauled with us for the day. Although we road alone for the hour and a half trip back it wasn't as bad as it sounds because the rest of the gang rode a faster boat and actually beat us back to the mainland so Bryan was able to help get me and all of our stuff off the boat. Not really sure how I would have managed everything AND a baby on my own though!! You can see a picture in our slide show of The Big Cat heading back to the mainland as "the gang" passes us (and waves to Kaden and I) from their faster alternative boat.
On our final full day in Cairns we rented a minivan and drove up to the Atherton Tablelands. This area is located in the tropical mountains above Cairns so it was much cooler than previous days and we enjoyed the warm weather without the humidity. We visited the well-known Cathedral and Curtain Fig Trees, drove the waterfall circuit, and stopped to view several of the crops that are grown in this area.
Our flight back to Brisbane didn't leave until early evening so we spent the day down on the Esplanade in Cairns on the ocean front. They have some street side markets to shop at along with a very large swimming lagoon. There was also a GREAT park for Evan to play in that had a water play area, which was perfect for another hot and humid day!
Australian Education:
The Curtain Fig Tree was another amazing sight. We would just stare at the tree and wonder how it had transformed in the large "curtain" that we saw. Luckily at the end of the trek around the tree there was some posted educational information that taught us more about how the Curtain Fig Tree evolved.
The Cathedral Fig Tree had some additional interesting facts about it that we thought we could share.
- This fig started out as a seed that was only a couple of millimeters in size - equivalent to the size of a sesame seed.
- The Cathedral Fig Tree has a girth of 44 meters. This means if 24 people linked hands around the tree, they wouldn't quite meet together.
- The tree is estimated to be about 48 meters tall - equivalent to a building 5 storeys tall.
- The crown of the tree extends over 2000 square meters, which is the same area as two Olympic-sized swimming pools.
- It is estimated that the tree hold leaves that are 1000kg in weight (2205 lbs.), equivalent to the weight of a small car.
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