Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE DAINTREE
The Daintree represents many things: a river, a rainforest national park, a reef, a village,
and the home of its traditional custodians, the Kuku Yalanji people. It encompasses the
coastal lowland area between the Daintree and Bloomfield Rivers, where the rainforest
meets the coast. It's an ancient but fragile ecosystem, once threatened by logging and de-
velopment but now largely protected as a World Heritage Area.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Daintree River to Cape Tribulation
Part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, the region from the Daintree River north to
Cape Tribulation is extraordinarily beautiful and famed for its ancient rainforest, sandy
beaches and rugged mountains.
The length of Cape Tribulation Rd is scattered with places to stay and eat. There's no
mains power north of the Daintree River - electricity is supplied by generators or, increas-
ingly, solar power. Shops and services are limited, and mobile-phone reception is largely
nonexistent.
The
Daintree River ferry
(car/motorcycle/bicycle & pedestrian one way $13/5/1;
6am-midnight, no bookings)
carries people and their cars across the river about every 15 minutes.
Cow Bay & Around
Sights & Activities
On the steep, winding road between Cape Kimberley and Cow Bay is the
Walu Wugirriga
range and the Daintree River inlet that are especially breathtaking at sunset.
9171;
www.daintree-rec.com.au
;
Tulip Oak Rd; adult/child/family $32/16/78, valid seven days; 8.30am-5pm)
takes
you high into the forest canopy with its aerial walkway, including climbing up a 23m tower
used to study carbon levels. A small theatre runs films on cassowaries, crocodiles, conser-
vation and climate change. The (included) audio guide offers an excellent Aboriginal tour.