OK I thought before I leave the Far North I would give a quick update as to what is around this area - especially as I've been acting as a tourist for the past couple of weeks whilst my family have been over, so here it goes......
We travelled 4 hours in the car up over the Palmerston Highway to the Tablelands where we travelled through countryside which is a mirror image of all things British, even down to the good old fresian (SP!) cows grazing on the hill tops, until you come across some things that can only be found in places with warm climates such as banana plantations and tea fields.yes you read correctly we purchased a bag of freshly grown tea from the side of the road from a farmer who grows tea....nice taste to top it off :D
Onwards to Ravenshoe and it changes to more scrubby looking Aussie landscape - Ravenshoe is Australia's highest town incidentally. As we drove out towards Mount Garnett we past the amazing termite mounds and stopped for a yummy late breakfast at the roadhouse in Mount Garnett which is owned by my friends sister and is the most down to earth place you could ever visit.....tea in a mug which you pour yourself and the milk is in the fridge along with all the other drinks for sale, then a great Aussie fry up or if you prefer try the club sandwich as it is to die for!
Past Mount Garnett we had to travel an hour before reaching our final destination of Undara Lava Tubes. The accommodation was awful as far as what they offer you in regards to their camp kitchens and seeing as that is all that is there if you do go take EVERYTHING as you will need it! We ended up upgrading ourselves to stay in the railway carriages which had been converted and they were very very comfortable and worth the extra expense. We could sit out on the veranda and have the fabulous grey kangaroos coming to our doorstep or the hundreds of birdlife eating from our feet, something is very magical about being invited into their home.
That night we all went on a wildlife at sunset tour...not so much wildlife but the sunset over the bluff was fantastic and helped with a complimentary glass of champagne to wash it all down with.
The following day we opted for a half day tour of the lava tubes and I have to say it was an amazing experience. The sheer size of these tubes and the walking tracks that lead you through the various tubes all left very much to nature (so bring your walking boots or even better hiking boots in some cases!) The guide gave us a great insight as to how these monstrous tubes were created but allowed us to view everything through our own eyes as though we were the first people ever to have entered the tubes. I was speechless at the sheer size of them. The last tube and the largest was the best of all as you can see all the various species of bats - I think we counted 5 different species on our tour.
Afterwards we all stopped at the base of the volcano for a quick cuppa and biscuit and headed back to camp.
In the evenings you can meet up with various guides around the campfire for a talk or for a sing song depending on which guide was there. The first night we had Tim talking about the Cane Toad which is very interesting and amusing. The second night we were singing along with Levi and his ego which was highly amusing especially as he started with "knock knock knocking on heavens door" which was a shock and nice change from ging gang goolie!
After our stay there we decided to explore the tablelands further and what a treat they offer you. We visited the Tineroo dam which creates the playground for many Queenslanders holidays as they all escape the humid weather and head to this man made lake during most holidays. Then off to Atherton where my daughter wanted to visit the crystal caves which we thought were proper caves and found them to be a shop full of crystals so at first we were very disappointed until we filtered through the shop and found at the rear of the shop you can pay to enter the crystal caves. They were man made but housed the most amazing crystals in a fake cave scene. The kids loved it both young and old! and if you do go to Atherton make sure you try to spot the owners car which looks like something out the Flintstones parked out the front of the shop!
Back in the main shop we were able to choose our own geodes and were able to break them open for the first time revealing what beauty had been concealed inside for many years. Both my daughters now own their own geode and both of them are totally stunning.....well worth the expense in my opinion just for the excitement as to what you will find inside!
So that was the first part to my touristy bit in the Far North, I'll post some more when I get a chance.
Sasha :)