Daintree
May 15, 2023
Accessibility rating: 8/10
Accomodation: 5/10 ** very dependent on your camping set up
Bathrooms: 7/10
Activities: 9/10
Highlights: Beautiful landscapes, vastly changing rainforests and warm weather
What to what out for: Crocodiles, some of the dirt paths can be muddy and the humidity. Definitely pack a fan or portable air con.
Ahh a crocodile! Well that’s what we expected after hearing how the Daintree is full of huge crocs. We however didn’t see any, much to my disappointment. (Disclosure statement: I would like to see a huge croc from a safe distance with little risk) Aside from the chance to see a massive dinosaur, it is one of the most WC friendly places we have travelled, as 3 of the 4 walks through the beautiful rainforest are WC accessible. Yay! Finally a destination that doesn’t have you sitting on the sidelines! These walks are stunning and you get to see the changes in the foliage and landscapes through the different parts of the Daintree. I’ll break these walks down for you below. First I will cover how to get to the Daintree. The road is suitable for all vehicles including caravans. The road can be a little narrow at times and windy but there are many caravans that make the trip. To get there you leave Cairns and drive north for 105km on the Cape Tribulation Rd until you get to the ferry, it cost $26 one way, $45 return and an extra $10 for caravans one way or $16 return. It is a short ride of a couple minutes and they ask that you stay in your car. I bet you are thinking ‘Gee thanks for telling me to stay in my car, of course I’m going to do that…’. Just confirming for anyone that is reading this and worried about being told to get out of their car, so calm your farm peeps. Side note though, the bathroom on the southern side, near the croc cruise building has accessible toilets.
Now children, gather around because it was at these toilets while eating left over HSP we warmed in our travel buddy I saw the beautiful WC symbol scattered on the map throughout the Daintree. Yes I did get excited and immediately was extra alert for the accessibility of the area, not to mention got the hiking boots ready. 10,000steps here we go. Actually, when adding photos to this blog post I realised I took more pictures of paths and toilets than actual tourist pictures. Oops. The Daintree will forever be remembered in my mind now.
Now, what are the other must do things to see while visiting the Daintree. Ice cream! There are 2 ice cream shops, both boasting interesting local flavours as well as all the classics. We went to both because well we were on a mission to explore the Daintree for all you lovely people. That’s what we told ourselves anyway.
We rated the Daintree Icecream Co and Tropical Fruit Farm over Floraville Ice Cream Factory. We found theirs to be more creamy and full of flavour, however they have different flavours so I’d go to both, plus it’s hot as up here. Ice cream is a necessity!
Both of these ice cream shops have gravel car parks, however it is a short wheel to the ice cream shop, about 20-30m. Both of the shops are concrete in their restaurant area. The Daintree Icecream Co has more parking so is more caravan friendly, if that is how you are travelling
We also went into the Discovery Centre, there are parts which are accessible, however a fair amount isn’t. For the cost of entry ($39) I don’t think it’s worth it as you get to see a fair amount of the rainforest throughout the accessible walks which are free. Oh my gosh! Change of topic and huge warning if you are like me and hate spiders. The Daintree has so many spiders! I actually feel like I’ve had exposure therapy after the Daintree and I’m actually less scared of them. We have actually come across a lot of spiders throughout Queensland, but Daintree took the cake. On the other side though, if you don’t mind spiders you will love the Daintree and QLD in general. They are so colourful in comparison to VIC. Well that seems like a big enough tangent, sorry all! If you ever meet me you will understand this trait of mine. Haha.
Walks! Here we go.
Marrdja
First one is called Marrdja walk or Noah’s creek. It is a 1.2km loop and they suggest 45min, we completed it in around 20min. There is a WC accessible spot right out the front of the entrance to the walk near the info boards. It is concrete from the carpark to the path as you can see in the pictures.
The hardest part of the walk is the start, they have done a great job of the board walks but the start has a fair decline, but if you are able to keep a firm grip on your wheels and have the back extension strength to keep yourself back you will be fine. If not, have someone hold the back of your chair. For all the electric WC, so long as you can keep yourself upright in the chair the chair will do the work for you. Hope I haven’t made you think, ummm you said it was WC friendly, now you are making it sound like an action sport. I assure you it isn’t, I just want you to know there is a decline at the start but that is the worst of it so don’t let it hold you back!
This walk was also my favourite, I won’t give it all away but you get to see such a change in scenery. There are also interesting boards with facts about the different aspects of the rainforest. There are a few inclines and declines but 90% of the board walk is flat and the incline and declines are not very steep. See the pictures and video of what the board walk looks like.
Dubuji
Dubuji is next up. The one has 2 options that take you to the beach, one being a shorter more direct route. The boardwalk on this walk is the same as the Marrdji walk. We took the long one on the way there and the short on the way back and found that well people are lazy and most take the short one, making the long one a little overgrown in places. It would be still accessible but you may have to push through some overgrown branches. The beach isn’t accessible but the sand is fairly hard so if you can handle the bump to get off the boardwalk you would be fine. Remember to be careful around the water’s edge for snapping dinosaurs.
There is also a bathroom which has a ramp but I tell you, you better lock the hubs because it is made out of wood that isn’t in good condition so is extremely bumpy (see picture). Basically what I’m saying is the bathroom is accessible but the ramp to it, isn’t. They tried!
This was my second favourite of the 3 walks.
Kulki lookout
Kulki lookout is the last one. This one is the least accessible but does have the best bathroom of them all. Instead of boardwalk it is concrete and a lot more narrow than the other ones. The last 40m is also a fairly steep incline, the view at the top is nice but I’d recommend someone help you push up the incline and on the way back down. I tried to take a picture of the incline however it doesn’t do a good job of showing the incline. Along this walk there is also an off shoot that takes you down to the mangroves. it unfortunately has a step going down to it, but you aren’t missing out on anything. What you see from the path is all you can see. At the start of the walking track, if you were to continue straight you will come to a few park benches and a few small steps of approximately 5cm tall, that takes you down on to the beach. If you can handle these, then you may be able to explore the beach. The beach, very much like the last is hard sand.
Thank you as always and let me know if you have any questions or places you want me to check out for you.
Over and out,
Sheree
Aus 4 All 