DAINTREE RAINFOREST

The Daintree is an area of ancient tropical rainforest spanning 120,000 hectares, making it the largest portion of tropical rainforest in Australia. Over two days, we will visit several quiet nature trails that offer unique opportunities to experience the natural scenery and endemic wildlife within the National Park.

Private property access increases our chances of encountering a wild Southern Cassowary, one of our major target species for the area.

Sunrise at Cape Tribulation Beach is optional for the early riser. The day continues with guided photography nature walks through Jindalba, Maardja and Dubuji boardwalks. After lunch is the hottest part of the day, so while the wildlife is less active, take advantage of a swim in one of the many freshwater rainforest creeks that epitomise the tropical rainforest. As the sun goes down, the day is not over! After we have enjoyed an outstanding evening meal, it is time to consider adventuring into the nocturnal world.

Daintree and Cape Tribulation wildlife sightings may include the Southern Cassowary, Eastern Osprey, Boyd’s Forest Dragon, Papuan Frogmouth, Green Tree-Snake, Saltwater Crocodile, Wompoo Fruit Dove, Shining Flycatcher, Ulysses butterfly, White-lipped Tree Frog, Bennett’s Tree Kangaroo, Striped Possum, Azure Kingfisher, Little Kingfisher and Australian Scrub Python.

Two night’s accommodation at Daintree Heritage Lodge

Our day begins early for a two-hour private boat cruise on the beautiful Daintree River in the dawn light. Observing wildlife on a quiet, clean, solar electric boat with zero impact on the environment is a huge advantage for wildlife photographers. We have a 99% success rate for spotting crocodiles, excellent bird watching opportunities and other wildlife possibilities such as snakes, frogs and fish and bats.

Daintree River wildlife sightings may include the Great-billed Heron, Little Kingfisher, Azure Kingfisher, Black Bittern, Shining Flycatcher, Radja Shellduck, Black-necked Stork, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Saltwater Crocodile, Spectacled Flying-fox, Green Tree Snake, Eastern Water Dragon, and various butterflies.

After the cruise and morning tea we leave the coast and head towards the Port Douglas Hinterland through the township of Julatten. On this journey you will observe the transition in our surroundings from tropical rainforest to open savannah. Our wildlife destination for the afternoon is Granite Gorge Nature Park.

The big drawcard at Granite Gorge is the rock wallabies. This colony is an endangered species that is unique to the Mareeba area. This is the only place where you can feed them in the wild so not surprisingly, they are quite reliable. The wallabies are cute, gentle, and easy to get up close to. We might also make our way down to ‘Wallaby Rock’ just a short walk below the entrance, to view the sunset.

Overnight accommodation at Mareeba Motor Inn

We begin our morning exploring a few local areas around Mareeba with hopes of viewing Australia’s heaviest flying bird, the Australian Bustard, and maybe an Emu or two.

A trip back into town to collect our luggage before beginning our drive along the famous Savannah Way towards Undara Volcanic National Park. On the way, we pass through Ravenshoe, a historic timber town that’s also the highest locale in the state (920m above sea level), and home to Queensland’s highest pub, a great lunch spot!

Before reaching our destination, Undara, we’ll pass through Forty Mile Scrub National Park. Despite its less-than-poetic name, the park features ancient volcanic flows, giant bottle trees and plenty of birdlife. Easy to discover on a walk while stretching our legs.

At Undara Experience we will immerse ourselves in an authentic outback Queensland experience, home to an abundance of incredible wildlife from many different species, and the oldest Lava Tube systems on Earth!

After checking in to a turn-of-the-century Queensland Rail carriage at Undara Experience, we’ll be heading off on a guided Sunset Wildlife Tour with one of the Undara Savannah Guides.

We’ll travel through the Savannah bushland, identifying native wildlife and bird species. Then, after a small walk, be rewarded with spectacular views from the top of the Sunset Bluff to enjoy a sparkling wine and nibbles as the big sky sunset dips below the horizon and sets over the volcanic plains below. We’ll then be taken to Barkers Cave on dusk as thousands of microbats emerge from the lava tubes looking for food.

Wildlife opportunities might include several species of micro-bat, kangaroos, and wallabies such as the Rufous bettong, Northern brown bandicoot, Swamp wallaby, Whip-tailed wallaby (pretty-faced) and the Antilopine wallaroo. Bird species may include colourful lorikeets, cockatoos, owls, and emus in the Savannah bushland.

Two night’s accommodation at Undara Experience

One of Undara’s iconic experiences is the bush breaky, served daily at the Ringers’ Camp. Walking distance from our accommodation, a truly unique and memorable breakfast, as you sit on logs surrounded by bush, toast your own bread on the campfire while bacon and eggs are sizzling on the barbeque. Enjoy a freshly boiled pot of billy tea under the watchful eye of the resident Kookaburras, Currawongs, and Magpies

Our morning activity is a 2-hour guided Archway Explorer Tour. The ultimate introduction to Undara’s lava tubes will have us take a boardwalk through the hollow lava tubes that formed the remarkable archway structure.

On completion of the tour, we will return to Undara and have the remainder of the afternoon to relax by the accommodation, by the pool or the bar.

Another opportunity to head down to the Bush Breakfast before collecting our luggage and departing for the Atherton Tablelands.

The Atherton Tableland region of the Wet Tropics is a true mecca for nature and wildlife enthusiasts, and hence, we will be based in the Tablelands for 5 days. Our hosts will be the Chambers family at Chambers Wildlife Lodges.

The lodge, spread across 20 acres of lush tropical rainforest is perfectly positioned on the edge of the Lake Eacham National Park. Chambers Wildlife Lodges not only entertains a myriad of local endemic species, but the lodge is also within a proximity to all the locations we’ll be exploring over the coming days.

Four night’s accommodation at Chambers Wildlife Lodge

In the higher altitudes of the Tablelands vine forest, we are sharing our oxygen with extraordinary Marsupials and Monotremes. Our guides showcase their local knowledge and facilitate memorable moments with the Lumholtz Tree Kangaroo and the Mainland Platypus. These engendered animals will be the initial focus of the Tablelands.

No Western people had seen a tree-kangaroo until 113 years after Captain Cook landed in Australia. They had remained undiscovered for so long due to their remote, tree-canopy habitat in the rainforest. Furthermore, they are solitary animals and incredibly difficult hard to spot. In fact, some considered them mythical creatures, due to their elusiveness.

The infamous town of Yungaburra has been the delight of many visiting wildlife photographers. With several mountain streams populated with the Australian Platypus and no time constraints, the odds are in our favour for that perfect shot of a Platypus emerging to breathe.

The rainforests of the Tablelands provide habitat for a diverse array of other marsupials, reptiles, invertebrates and over 320 species of bird. Iconic bird species include the Victoria’s Riflebird, Golden Bowerbird, Tooth-billed Bowerbird, Atherton Scrubwren, Bridled Honeyeater, Pied Monarch, Bush Stone-curlew, Black-faced Monarch, Red-backed Fairy-wren and Forest Kingfisher.

During our time on the Tablelands, we are likely to visit wildlife hotspots such as Hasties Swamp, the Curtin Fig National Park, Malanda, Lake Barrine, Lake Eacham and Hypipamee Crater. The region is also famous for it’s food and farming production, hence we will enjoy exciting local produce while dining in the region.

Lake Eacham and Lake Barrine are two popular geological attractions, both formed when rising lava was pushed against ground water, resulting in explosions from the heating of these underground streams. The resulting craters of Lakes Eacham and Barrine were formed around 10,000 years ago and reach a depth of 65 metres. A visit to Lake Barrine provides us with a high likelihood of seeing a Red-legged Pademelon, Musky Rat Kangaroo, Snapping Turtle, Giant Eel, Eastern Water Dragon, and Saw-shell Turtle.

A wildlife and photography tour in North Queensland would not be complete without at least one session Night Spotting for nocturnal wildlife. The Tablelands boasts several ideal locations with night spotting. These excursions can be optional for all guests.

Night spotting on the Tablelands may include sightings such as the Boyd’s Forest dragon, Leaf-tailed Gecko, Chameleon Gecko, Scrub Python, Lesser-sooty Owl, Barn Owl, Wood frog, Northern barred frog, Green-eyed Treefrog, Lemuroid Possum, Green ringtail possum, Herbert river ringtail possum, and many invertebrates.

On our final day together, we take a good look at our wildlife highlights of the trip and dedicate this time to finding any specific critters that evaded our gaze.

We often return to Cairns by lunchtime to experience the iconic Cairns waterfront and esplanade.