February 19, 2015
On the evening of February 15, we
slowly navigated out of Sydney Harbor.
February 17 we entered the famous
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, located in the body of water known as the Coral
Sea. It covers an area of 133,000 square
miles, and contains 2900 individual reefs and more than 900 islands. It is officially the world's biggest single
structure made by living organisms and is a World Heritage Site. Historically, this area was extremely
difficult to navigate and there are many shipwrecks in the area. World War II sites and many lighthouses all
are maintained and protected by the Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.
Once we entered the Great Barrier
Reef Marine Park we were advised that water usage and consumption is severely
restricted. We were asked to conserve
water through the length of time spent showering and while brushing teeth or
shaving, etc - OH, and no complimentary laundry!
Onward north past the smaller
townships of the far north of Queensland, Australia to Cairns. We are closely watching the formation of
Cyclone Marcia off the coast, but the Captain assures us we are in good shape
and we are also watching the cyclone near Darwin.....
Finally reached our berth early
morning the 19th, to gorgeous sunshine.
Since we have seen most of the area sights on a previous visit (snorkeling
at the Great Barrier Reef, Kuranda Railway, Katoomba, Rainforest Skyrail and Tjapukai
Aboriginal Park) we opted to stay in Cairns and visit the city and the
delightful esplanade.
Cairns is a small, tropical city,
nestled between the Coral Sea and the mountains of the Great Dividing Range. The temperature remains fairly constant year
round, warm to hot, always humid and the rainy season is November to May, but
we missed it today.
The waters in the area are known for
their tropical reef fish; i.e., red emperor and coral trout, large tiger prawns
and freshwater barramundi. Crocodiles
are farmed too (no swimming) mostly for their skins but some restaurants
feature CROC burgers!!!
We set sail at 5PM back through the
Harbor Channel and out to the Great Barrier Reef heading north to begin our
trip to Darwin, the last stop in Australia.
