Long Way Down Under – Part 2

This is the second instalment of the ‘Long Way Down Under’ – a brief chronicle as me, zoomz and Ash-kun trek our way around Australia. On this leg we make tracks from Brisbane to Cairns. If you missed the first leg – Sydney to Brisbane – you can find it here:

• Long Way Down Under – Part 1.

After leaving Bris-Vegas we headed straight for Australia Zoo. Ash-kun was desperate to see crocodiles and, to satisfy such an urge, what better than to hit good ol’ Steve Irwin’s place.

From the perspective that Australia Zoo was the brainchild of one man, The Crocodile Hunter, it is an impressive wildlife park. However, I couldn’t help but feel that since Steve Irwin’s passing this place had turned into a Steve Irwin shrine. Everywhere we looked there was an image or picture of our dearly departed with his arms outstretched in his signature stance. Not that I am saying that this is bad. I just came to the park for the wildlife, not for the Steve Irwin memorial.

Next stop was lunch in Caloundra with a good family friend, Smithy and his missus. Followed by an overnighter in Noosa around a pizza oven with the Batista’s on their picturesque property.

Eventually, we made it to Hervey Bay, our launching point for a Fraser Island escape.

The next day we sailed across to the largest sand island in the world, Fraser Island.

After receiving our dose of dingoes, wallabies, sea eagles, goannas and various other mammals, reptiles, amphibians and birds we made tracks to Bundaberg. Not only was there was a rum distillery that we needed to inspect, we had to call in and see some family – the Floyd’s.

The Floyd’s took us for a drive out to Degilbo (near Biggenden) to show us the final resting place of Dinah Giddins (our great-great grandmother).

Back on the tourist track… we called by Daydream Island on the Whitsundays for a few days.

Back to the mainland we landed a tacky photo of the Big Mango in Bowen.

And the Big Gumboot in Tully.

Tully is a small town in Queensland about 140 kms south of Cairns. It is claimed that Tully is the wettest town in Australia with an average rainfall of 4,000 mm.

En route to Cairns we were passing through the township of Babinda (just outside of Cairns) and were fortuitous to cross a raging torrent, my namesake, the Giddins Creek.

We arrived in Cairns and for the first hour the sun shone brightly. Then for the next four days it rained, and rained, and rained…

Subsequent instalments of our adventure can be found here:

• Long Way Down Under – Part 3
• Long Way Down Under – Part 4
• Long Way Down Under – Part 5

1. Long Way Down Under – Part 3
2. Long Way Down Under – Part 1
3. Long Way Down Under – Part 5
4. Australia at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics
5. Long Way Down Under – Part 4