Into the Rainforest

Early the next morning, we were picked up from our hostel to begin our journey north to the Daintree Rainforest. Apparently, this rainforest is the oldest in the world because it has experienced the least amount of change over millions of years (no major earthquakes, hurricanes and other assorted natural disasters). It is also the only World Heritage site that is adjacent to another World Heritage site because Cape Tribulation (where we were staying for the night) is known as where the Rainforest meets the Reef.

So we were off for another adventure, and along the way, we had a very important stop at a Wildlife Sanctuary. The bus pulled into the parking lot, and I could feel my heart race. This was one of our biggest goals for our Australian Adventure. We got to the front door, were given our ticket and through the doors we went! Our excitement was so high that we barely stopped to glance at the Cassowary, an endangered, large colorful bird that lives in the rainforest. Endangered or not, this is not what we had come to see. So we followed the map's directions to the part of the sanctuary where our moment could happen. And when we got there, it was better than I could have imagined. It was time to hold a koala.

But first, we were introduced to a crocodile and a snake. We were able to touch both animals to get an idea of what their skin feels like. The snake was smooth, like a new purse (sorry PETA, but it's true!) The crocodile was so hard. This animal is literally a living dinosaur, and the only reason it hasn't evolved over time is that is hasn't needed to. That's how tough their skin is. So once the croc and snake were safely back in their habitats, out came Glenn the koala. Those of us who were going to hold him were given a run down of koala-holding guidelines:

* Cup your hands together and the handler would place him in our hands and place his claws on our shoulders.

* Keep your arms strong because if he feels like he's about to fall, he'll claw into us to feel secure.

* Don't let him touch your face with his.

* And smile!

The rules seemed easy enough (just as many as sky diving, and I seemed to have done that alright!) So when the trainer was putting Glenn into my arms and he leaned toward my face, it was only natural that I lean back with a little fear in my eyes!

Fortunately, Glenn retreated, and he and I were able to settle in to a lovely photo shoot.

The koala was heavy, almost like holding a young toddler. His fur was soft, but maybe not as soft as you would expect. His claws are definitely serious; though they didn't hurt my skin, you could definitely see how they could! Overall, it was everything we were hoping for out of a koala-holding experience.

The rest of the day was fairly leisurely. We stopped along our trek at Mossman Gorge, an area within the rainforest has nice walking paths and an area where you can swim (if you're into swimming in a gorge). We also stopped along the way to take a cruise along the Daintree River to go crocodile spotting. In Australia, there are two types of crocs, known as the "salties" and the "freshies." The "salties" are the ones you need to fear and they tend to live in areas along the river. So we jumped onto the boat to seek out the crocs and other animals.

Along our journey, we saw two crocs. The first was a female, who was definitely a large creature. She was sunbathing along bank of the river. It didn't take much to imagine what she might look like if he were to spring into action and attack something. Fortunately, she didn't. And though I thought the first croc was big, I had no idea what to expect when we turned the corner and saw the second croc. He was HUGE. Huge probably doesn't even begin to cover it, but let's just say that just the width of his back was enough to make me cringe. And what does he eat? Cows. Hopefully that gives you an idea of how big he actually is.

Shortly after we finished crocodile hunting, we arrived to our hostel for the night, P.K.'s Jungle Resort. P.K.'s wasn't as nice as the rest of our hostels, but fortunately it was only for one night. Upon check in, the woman at the front desk told us all about some nighttime rainforest walks we could do on our own as long as we had a torch (flashlight). The problem was that by the time we arrived, the tide was already too high and parts of those walks would have made us potential food for our crocodile friends. So rather than risking it, we decided to hang out, grab some food at the hostel restaurant and then head to bed early. Fortunately, we were okay with this plan because there is really nothing else to do on Cape Tribulation. The only downfall to missing out on a night walk was we didn't get a chance to see any of the cool nocturnal rainforest animals, like tree frogs. But in the end, avoiding a run in with a crocodile seemed like the better plan.