Daintree Rainforest Tour
Sunday, November 05 2006 Filed in:
Must Do
Submitted by Steve Baile
At around 135 Million years old, the Daintree Rain-forest is one of the last remnants of the massive rain-forests that once covered Gondwanaland. The rain-forest was heavily logged in the 1800's and 1900's but fortunately sanity prevailed and in 1984 the region was World Heritage listed thus preserving it for future generations to marvel at its awesome splendor.
Neil Hewett - What he doesn't know about the Daintree is yet to be discovered.
While much of the once logged areas are slowly regenerating, it is possible to gain access to one of the original untouched old growth areas via Cooper Creek Wilderness. Neil and Prue Hewett own and manage a 160 acre piece of the Daintree and for a small fee take visitors on guided interpretive walks to discover the magic of this ancient forest.
I was fortunate enough to have Neil guide me on both day and night walks and it was a magical experience. By day the forest is cool and quiet with giant fan palms creating a gentle swaying canopy. By night the forest comes alive and we managed to find and film many small creatures including green tree frogs, a chameleon, stick insects, native rats, giant crickets, a Boyds Forest Dragon and sleeping birds. Growing up to 8 metres in length, Australia's largest snake, the Amethystine Python eluded us but they are regularly spotted on the night walks.
Tree frogs, fan palms and Boyds Forest Dragon
Neil is a virtual walking encyclopedia having spent the past 16 years exploring the rain-forest by day and night and his passion for the Daintree was evident.
If you love nature and want to see it close up with an expert guide then spend a few dollars and visit Cooper Creek Wilderness.
Steve Baile
More Information
Cooper Creek Wilderness
Neil & Prue Hewett
Website - www.ccwild.com
Address - 20km north of the Daintree river just across Cooper Creek
Phone - (07) 4098 9126
Email - walks@ccwild.com
At the time of writing . . .
2 hour day walks start at 9:00am and 2:00pm - $35 per adult / $25 kids under 14
2 hour night walks start at 8:00pm - $35 per adult (no child rate)
Walk and Cooper Creek Cruise packages are also available as well as options for dinner in the rain-forest.
Not recommended for children under 5.
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