Atherton (cont.)

Wednesday 10 July

Since arriving in Atherton there has been showers throughout day and night. This has meant our camper trailer is very wet and it has sprung some leaks in the stitching in the roof and walls. When the boys awoke in the morning we decided to go and get them a new tent as theirs has been leaking as well. After finding the camping store we found a great 4 man tent so they would have plenty of room and we upgraded our lighting as well. We also bought some wax to waterproof the seams of the camper trailer but it cannot be used until the canvas is dry.
We have decided to have a quiet day today and let the boys recuperate after a busy schedule so far. Linda drove into Atherton with Tom to get some groceries and while there she took Tom for his first driving lesson. From all reports he did quite well and enjoyed the experience very much. Linda, Tom and the car came back all unscathed so we will be off again in the near future for the next one. Only 119 hours to go until he can go for his P's!

Thursday 11 July

Today we rose early to drive to Kuranda for the Scenic Railroad, Skyrail, and Tjapukai Experience. Once there, our day started with the Tjapukai Experience. The Tjapukai are the native tribe of the area and this part of the day was about learning about the way of life of these people.

Tom learning to throw a boomerang

We learnt about their story of creation, their dance, weapons and bush tucker, had a lesson on throwing spears and boomerangs, and some information and performance on the didgeridoo. While learning to throw the boomerang our instructor told us that if you catch one of your 2 throws you get to keep your boomerang. Tom threw his first boomerang and nearly managed to catch his first attempt but on the second was successful. He is now the proud owner of a traditional boomerang. Go Tom!

From there we took the short walk to Skyrail - a gondola style ride that took us up to Kuranda. This is a very impressive attraction that is a unique way of looking at a rainforest. We later learnt that even though there is over 30 poles up to 320 metres tall with massive concrete footings, only 4 trees were killed in it's construction. The towers were all brought in by a couple of Russian helicopters to minimise damage to the rainforest. The rest of the plants that were in the way of the building of the footings were transplanted.

Making rock candy

At the end of Skyrail we spent some time looking at the local shops and markets in Kuranda. Declan and Thomas were particularly interested in the rock candy shop. They were making cherry candy while we were there and giving out free samples. I think the boys enjoyed more than their fair share and we bought them a packet of mixed rock candy each.

Kuranda Station

After a large scone and milkshakes for afternoon tea we made our way down to Kuranda Station for the Scenic Railway trip back down the mountain range. The scenery along the descent through the mountain range is spectacular and the information about the construction of the railway line, bridges and tunnels is quite remarkable especially considering the lack of machinery at the time it was built.
The waterfall at Barron Gorge, which the train stopped at for a few minutes for photos, was running quickly because of  the amount of rain that the area has had and for the rest of the trip it kept coming.

Barron Gorge

Once we arrived at the bottom of the range we took a short bus transfer back to our car and then drove back through the rain to Atherton where we ordered delicious pizzas for dinner. It was quite a long but enjoyable day.