Emmy woke up sick with a runny nose and a cough and ants in her bed, but she toughed it out as we all got ready and headed to breakfast, which was not at the posted 7:00am. We enjoyed a chance to get online and catch up with the world while we waited. When breakfast opened at 8ish… Kate and I enjoyed avocado on toast and the others managed to eat something off the meager menu before we hit the road.
Our first stop was Cow Bay Beach where, during a blesses break in the rain, the girls posed for pictures “beaching” like Ken from the Barbie movie. We meandered and found a swing over the water and enjoyed the magnificent mangrove trees and foliage. Crocodile warnings kept us from getting close to the water. The rain returned as we got in the car to begin our rainforest exploration.
Cadbury Favorites- samples of yummy chocolates unique to Australia from Whitney and Ryan kept everyone happy in the car.
The going was rough due to cyclone damage everywhere. We took several little walks in the pouring rain only to find that the path was closed or impassable do due the cyclone. We headed up the road toward Cape Tribulation only to learn that the road was closed. Daintree was a bit of a disappointment, until I saw a skinny animal running down the road. It turned to cross just as Emmy and Greg saw it, discussion ensued; dingo or someone’s dog. No one was sure.
We were pretty excited but trying to keep it down because Lily was pretty bitter she had missed it. Gratefully the delightful Madja Boardwalk was still open, and we wandered in the downpour enjoyed the exotic plants and straining our necks in efforts to spot tree kangaroos. Emmy did see another musky kangaroo rat but that was it animal wise. Still the walk was amazing and one of my favorite parts of the day.
Kate’s food list included Daintree rainforest ice cream, so we stopped for a pre- lunch snack. I tried the mango kulfi, mango with some spices, but everyone else kept it pretty tame with mango sorbet, strawberry, and chocolate coconut, but really you can’t go wrong with mango sorbet- the ice cream was delicious. We chatted with the employee while we ate, she was from Rosario here on a holiday work visa (like most of the employees on the reef boats). While eating another couple and their private guide showed up. We had run into this couple at the boardwalk and one of our earlier thwarted hikes. Greg started chatting with them and their guide and he asked the big question…dingo or dog? They guide guessed dingo based on location and our description. Much rejoicing (whining from Lily).
We forgot to take a pic of the ice cream so this will have to do.
With the rain coming down and most of the trails closed Greg consented to go to the Daintree Discovery Center, which turned out to be pretty amazing. We got audio guides and started down the boardwalk in a light rain. The guide taught us a ton about the rainforest and the cassowary bird. They had a tower that took you to the top of the canopy, we wished we had brought our binoculars to look for tree kangaroos, but no luck. But we did luck out with a break in the rain while we took in the view. I loved seeing the trees from that different perspective, the flowers, seeds and vines all looked more vibrant from the top of the world.
We watched a movie about the aboriginal peoples’ relationship with the rainforest and took in the slightly creepy moving dinosaurs while we learned that the Daintree is the oldest rainforest on earth. There was one other short boardwalk we hadn’t checked out, but we were getting hungry and thirsty, Kate insisted so we started down the new path when the rain turned torrential - we quickly abandoned our new trail and booked it back to the main building.
We were soaked when we reached the center to pick out some lunch from their meager options. It was one of the worst meals of the trip for sure. Lily picked out a ham, cheese, and pickle sandwich only to discover that the “pickle” was just a few chopped up pieces in the mustard spread. She was pretty unhappy about it.
The Vegimite crackers shaped like Australia were surprisingly good.
Greg had started showing signs of Emmy’s cold and dealing with some back pain. That combined with the limited trail and road options we decided to head back to our place and take a nap. Kate and Lily huddled together in bed to listen to their story before falling asleep.
After a lovely nap we got back on the road in the pouring rain and caught dinner at Daintree Siesta for a surprisingly delicious dinner. My Thai Beef Stir Fry was one of the best things we ate the whole trip. Everyone loved their food and the vibe of the place with the Jack Johnson music, foosball and no Wi-Fi sign. After our meal we headed back to Madja boardwalk to do some spotlighting.
Silly face - but happy girl eating chicken nuggets.
We were all excited and optimistic that the night life would be visible to us with our headlamps. Nothing came out to play except for a green tree frog on the handrail, a large moth, and a crab. It was a bit disappointing, but still fun to enjoy the rain and the forest in the dark. 
On the way home we stopped at a beach to look for crocs, but we all agreed that looking for crocs on foot at night is creepy - we didn’t look long. But of course, we did find leeches in the car - Emmy had the biggest one so far. Kate entertained us on the way home with classic “would you rathers” like…nose ring or tongue ring, nipple ring or belly ring, rat tattoo or turd tattoo, tattoo of a cat eating cheese or a rat eating cheese, tattoo of your choice on your neck or my choice on your leg…We did manage to see a bandicoot (or possibly some other marsupial) run across the road. Our overall experience in Daintree wasn’t so great when it came to animals, but the trees, rain, and general experience were unique and worth the trip.
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