Tablelands: Wetlands, Wineries, Waterfalls, Wildlife and Weirdos (Sept 24 - 27)

After our night in Cairns, we were excited to get up replace our little white car with a camper van. Unfortunately, everything was booked up, so we ended up getting another car and making a reservation on a small camper for pickup a few days later in Brisbane.

We weren't too disappointed though, as the Tablelands awaited. We had heard this was a beautiful area from various Aussies, and were looking for to exploring it ourselves. We spent a good chunk of the day in Cairns, so we didn't set off until it was already getting late in the afternoon. We could tell the climate was changing as the road climbed higher, but didn't see the spectacular beauty we were expecting just yet.

We finally arrived at our first stop, Mareeba, a little after sunset, and quiet honestly didn't think much of this little small town. Stopping to eat a the local KFC before getting a room, we overheard some local teenagers talking about a fight and the word knife was mentioned a few times. Thinking these kids were probably more talk than anything, we headed across the street to grab a room at the local pub motel. We grabbed a pint before we asked about a room and were immediately chatted up by a group of completely inebriated Aborigines. This sadly is not an uncommon sight in Australia. This group was friendly enough though, and the bartender, a former bike gang member, kept them in line.

After we finished our pints, a nice lady who owned and managed the place with her husband showed us to our room. She was a genuinely sweet old lady and kept the place immaculate, but she added to our growing concerns as she told us that we needed to park the car around back in the gated area they lock up a night as break ins were not uncommon. Apparently, some local kids even blew up a car with a gas tank the year before.

At this point, we decided it would be best if we simply enjoyed another drink at our place and then went to bed. What a terrible idea that turned out to be! As we sat back down at the bar, we noticed one new gentleman with a "thousand yard stare" sitting against the wall. No sooner had we ordered our round than another character entered the room. I'll refer to him from here out as Sammy the Serial Killer. We've actually blocked his name out of our minds, but Tracy and our pretty sure that we got his occupation right. This guy was legitimately nutz. Hell, even the tough as nails bartender later told me that he hoped the guy never came back.

Sammy took a spot at the bar a couple of feet from Tracy and started blabbing. His bizarre smile, twinkling eyes and not stop maniacal laughing were an immediate give away, but the subsequent comments about loving English skin, travelling to the US in his mind and the "evocative" Aussie women were enough to cause Tracy and I to down our drinks and head to our room constantly looking over our shoulders and around corners.

If you know Tracy, you know she is a strong woman, but she was definitely freaked out by Sammy. My way of dealing with the whole episode was to crack jokes about Sammy and Mareeba which somewhat settled her nerves. In the end, we locked up the place tight and settled into an uncomfortable nights sleep.

Fortunately, tomorrow really was another day. We headed straight for the wetlands north of Mareeba where we saw an awesome variety of birds and enjoyed a short boat tour on the lake. After that, we stopped at winery that primarily used mangoes and had a tasting. The morning definitely did a lot to improve our opinion of the area and the little termite mounds on side of the roads decorated like people by the locals gave us a good laugh.

We made it to our next destination, Yungaburra, late in the afternoon, which was perfect for our purposes as we were hunting the elusive platypus. We stopped at a creek that was known for having them and began meandering along its banks with our eyes peeled. It took a while, but being the avid animal spotters we are, we soon spotted a platypus. It total we saw three that night, which apparently was very fortunate, as others there told us they rarely see them. We even saw a copper tailed possum climbing a tree as we were leaving.

After a short dinner in Yungaburra, we apprehensively grabbed a room at local backpacker spot. We were immediately put at ease though as the nature and vibe of the patrons was the polar opposite of our previous night's accommodation. We even stayed up talking to some of the people who were working and staying there. Tracy of course found the one English woman there, who had apparently moved to New Zealand while working for Green Peace, which set Tracy dreaming.

We woke up the next morning and set off again. This time however, we found the Tablelands we had heard so much about. The area was absolutely beautiful. It was an English countryside with pockets of rain and pine forest, a truly tranquil setting. As we drove, we stopped here and there to explore the many waterfalls and massive old strangler fig trees marked on our tourist map. This area had so much to offer that I can't detail it all, but I can say the Cathedral Fig took our breath away. We even found time in the day to stop for a cheese plate and tea while it was drizzling, which made Tracy feel right at home.

Before the day ended, we had descended from tablelands back to the coast and made our way, after much driving, to Ayr. We only stopped here as it was time to rest and we hadn't made it to Whitsunday as we had hoped. It turned out to be an interesting experience though as we stayed a working hostel that catered to people working on local farms. We had a drink while doing our laundry and watching some newly arrived Russians get completely smashed to a company of people playing bongos and guitars.