Skip to main content

Yorkeys Knob here we come!

Tropical Far North Queensland - Yorkeys Knob, Cairns to Port Douglas 70kms

Where the reef meets the rainforest
It's the July school holidays and we're joining the Melbourne exodus in search of some winter warmth. We've used some long forgotten Air-miles and will support the local economy by staying local... Well not that local! The three and a half hour flight to Cairns will transport us to palm trees, banana plantations, tropical rain forests, Four-mile beaches and the Great Barrier Reef.

Our eldest Wren-let is not with us, Beanz has returned to Europe and is currently studying Apartheid in South Africa before traveling to Rwanda to learn about Genocide. What an incredible degree she is piecing together and what an amazing time to be completing the Seeking Justice course - my Twitter feed, set to CNN and BBC Breaking News is full of daily updates on Nelson Mandela's health...

So it is just the four of us that front up at the Qantas Lounge having somehow arrived way too early for our flight. As the kids have got older it becomes more and more difficult to stretch the accompanying visitor allowance to get a gaggle of leggy teenagers into the lounge, but today they wave us through with a flash of a Gold card and a cheery "Good Afternoon Sir". I tweet a thank you in grateful recognition from my comfy seat, a good use of the free Internet connection methinks, as we settle in to enjoy the facilities...Gotta love Qantas xx


A nice way to start the holiday!
Cairns is one of those regional airports where you can pick up the keys to the rental car, whilst keeping an eye on your baggage arriving on the carousel, have a quick chat with the desk about the best route, and still be on the road quicker than the time it takes to reach the Arrivals Hall in one of our main capital cities...

We're heading to Yorkeys Knob about 10 minutes north from the airport, named after a colourful Pioneer called Yorkey and the knob-like hill he purchased in the 1880's... At least that's the story I heard and the one I'm reporting... As we drive down the main esplanade the place appears deserted. We are delayed by stopping to allow a baby echidna shuffling across the road, a safe passage. Clearly disorientated by the bright lights of the headlights, the little spiny anteater turns in circles... We suspect he has been extremely unlucky with his timing tonight, it is not a high traffic road... We wait patiently to ensure our prickly friend is safely off the road before continuing on...
Looking down to Yorkeys Knob beach
We are staying at A Villa Gail Bed and Breakfast. Never looking much further than the first page of the Trip Advisor recommendations, (A Villa Gail is top of the list) our booking was confirmed after speaking with Gail, who was so friendly and clearly loved having guests to stay that we couldn't wait to meet her.

It was Gail's suggestion to book us in for dinner at the Yorkeys Knob Boating Club and Half Moon Bay Marina and we relieved to arrive to find the car park full and the restaurant packed... So this is where everyone is! We promptly ordered a nice looking pull apart loaf to keep us going, and forgave them the hour wait for dinner... Sitting out under a massive shade sail, on a balmy July evening surrounded by incredible boats, it was a lovely way to start our holiday.


Yorkeys Knob Boat Club
Tim's foot was flat down on the accelerator of our little Budget rental car as we drove up millionnaires row to the top of the world. A Villa Gail is perched at the top of the bluff with spectacular views overlooking the sea. There won't be many places that you will greeted as a long lost friend when you arrive at 10pm at night! We were shown to our own apartment in the grounds, and after checking that the TV reception worked for Wimbledon, we decide on an early night, falling asleep to the sound of the water below. With the alarm set for 5.30am to see the dawn break...



On top of the world...

5.30am was a cloudy start to the day and sunrise not as spectacular as it may have been, but joy of joys, Andy Murray was still playing his semi - final at Wimbledon so all was not lost...


Dawn over the Coral Sea
Later that morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast on the verandah looking out over the Coral Sea towards Green Island, Double Island and the Arlington Reef.


A yummy breakfast with a great view!
The drive to Port Douglas along the Captain Cook Highway is one of the most beautiful ocean drives in the world, where the reef meets the rainforest. We stop off in the aptly named Paradise Palms for a coffee... And can't wait to see what the next few days brings...


Paradise Palms Golf course


Little Wandering Wren


 













Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Autumn Spice and everything nice!

Hey, what ever happened to Summer? I hope yours was lovely, mine was pretty amazing! It feels like my whole year has whizzed past in a flash, how about yours?  I've had a year of saying "yes" to everything offered to me. It has been exciting to put it out to the Universe to see where I should be. We feel very fortunate to be able to do this in my husband's early years of retirement. I'm just back in Asia from the US. I never feel my year is quite right without seeing British daffodils in the Spring and a pumpkin and the leaves turning in Autumn. Yay, the world nailed it this year, thank you.  Read on to find out what happened when my ultimate yes occurred on a trip to Montana to meet Ruth, an IG friend. I know Bloggers will smile and not be at all concerned, we've been meeting up around the globe for years, haven't we...?!  But let's just say some of my family and friends were, you're doing what?! But first some Little Wren updates! France I had so...
14 comments
Read more

Taipei Adventures, naked - moi?!

I have to tell you all about my little adventure in Taipei recently, naked at the Hot Springs! I can't believe that I have never been to Taiwan, I certainly urge you all to go if you ever get the chance. For me, I loved the combination of influences of two countries I enjoy.  Street views from Downtown Taipei The Chinese left some interesting historical influences and stunning architecture, which combined with a Japanese legacy and efficiency in transportation, makes Taipei an easy place to visit, with so much to see. Nowadays, Taiwan has emerged as a thoroughly modern city, I loved my time there. It felt exotic and safe until I had to get my kit off. It was a spur of the moment decisions to join my husband on his Taiwanese business trip, prompted by the delay in the arrival of our furniture into Bangkok, and ‘no room at the inn’ where we had been staying. Given that I’m commitment and fancy-free in Thailand; there’s no job, no kids, no dog and absolutely nothing in ...
Post a Comment
Read more

L'eau de toilette....

Our meals at The Serai were a huge part of the enjoyment of our stay. Lunch & dinners are marathon five course events...We tried not to over-order but even when we cut back to try to pace ourselves, Chef would send out little treats for us to try... If one person expressed an interest in a particular dish, we all got it.... Whenever someone ordered something we all got it.... ...although sometimes it took a quite a few attempts... 'Can you do oats, no milk?' .... 'Can you do ginger, hot water and some lemon, no milk?' We have an eclectic group of tastes from Miss ' Extra spicy ' to Miss ' Not too spicy ' through to Miss ' Vegetarian, no dairy ' , myself as ' Miss Recovering, extra careful and just wants soup. ...and even Miss India herself who every now and again just orders chips... So we can't leave without saying a huge thank you to the Chef for the best food that we have had so far.... We hear conflicting reports about whether th...
Post a Comment
Read more