A Simple Day By The River
Sunning ourselves in a secret locals spot in Cairns, Australia
Wherever you go, whatever you do, always get to know the locals in the area you’ve just touched down in. They will be able to guide you to peaceful, secluded spots like this one.
A twenty minute drive outside of Cairns, after some four wheel driving over dusty paths, we arrived at Mulgrave River. Still waters, mountains surrounding you and nothing but the sounds of the birds singing in the trees.
We’d hit the jackpot here.
To get to the bank in the middle, where we were going to bask in the glorious sunshine, we had to wade through the river. An idea I was not impressed with.
I can be a bit dramatic at times and can quite often need a little encouragement that it’s not dangerous/I can do it/I won’t be eaten by crocodiles, and thankfully, the group of friends I had up there did just that.
Well, most of the time.
The cool water lapped against our waists as we tried our hardest not to get our bags wet. As we got nearer to the bank, the current became surprisingly strong but we made it without any dramas (as we always do).
We lay down our towels and marvelled at the beauty all around us.
Trees towered high, small fish would make the odd little splash and the sun beat down onto our sun hat covered heads.
When we were too hot to lay there, we trotted back down the bank to float in the crystal clear waters. There were smooth stones covering the river floor for the most part and you could see your feet gliding along the bottom which made it easier to avoid the sharper looking pebbles.
We had taken an inflatable mattress with us and used this to drift downstream, all thinking how happy we were to stumble upon such beauty.
We left the water to dry off in the sun and cook the steaks we’d bought on the way.
Fed and watered, I lay down for just a second and awoke an hour later, slightly confused.
We had a visitor to our spot in the form of a toad. Tiny and kinda adorable, this little fella hopped around us all before scrambling back down to the water.
As the sun began to show signs of disappearing behind the mountains, we decided to head back. This time we had our water taxi (air bed) to guide us from one side to the other.
We arrived back to Cairns just in time to watch the sunset from the hostel balcony as the Flying Foxes began to wake. I wish I’d managed to capture a photo of these Jack Russell sized bats but by the time I’d turned my camera on they were hanging upside down, camouflaged by the leaves in the tree.
Another day perhaps.
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