I mentioned that we had a beautiful drive into Cairns, but there were a few difficulties, mainly caused by our being on the extreme outskirts of town. Our driver told us on pickup that we would have to pay another $16 each (which took every last bit of our cash), and although we passed all sorts of businesses and restaurants in Cairns, by the time we got to our location there was nothing nearby, and the office was closed.
After ringing the phone outside the gate several times, we were able to get a voice over the intercom directing us to a lockbox where we could get the keys. With the keys was a note asking us to come in during office hours the next day to officially check in. Unfortunately, our next day's excursion meant leaving before the office opened and getting back after it closed. Then, the following day we would have to leave for the airport before office hours.
We were worried about this, but the immediate concern was getting some food. There were two menus in the room, but one restaurant was closed Mondays and the other did not actually deliver to our location. We finally called Domino's, and that would be the first of many times we had to rely on them. (I got really sick of pizza. Domino's isn't that great anyway, and the cheese and toppings tasted funny there.)
Actually, most of the Worldmark locations were kind of out of the way. We have a friend who has a membership, so we got a good deal, the rooms were nice, and having laundry in the room was wonderful, but they are definitely better for people with cars.
I made one more foolish mistake, which was that I had not brought my e-mail confirmation with me. So far no one else had asked for one, and there did not seem to be any crucial information on it, but it would have been helpful. The bus that picks you up is taking people to multiple different tours, so that can help keep you straight. The rule ended up being that if I had it I did not need it, but if I did not have it someone would ask, so just always have it with you. Fortunately, we were on the manifest and it did not end up being a big problem.
So, yes, we had lodging and transportation and organization issues, but the boat ride was great. It was a nice little sixty-foot sailboat, and I have to say that our crew really knew what they were doing. They were fun and funny (Louise's orientation talk was a lot of fun, but still told you everything that you needed to know) and they really took good care of us. Moreover, it was just beautiful.
I have three different pictures posted that show water, and I'm still not sure that I have done it justice. It was this incredible blue green that just kept getting bluer. Our skipper Gordon saw me looking at the water about midway and told me that it gets progressively bluer as you get out. At first I thought he said aggressively bluer, and I like that-this is a really in your face blue!
I think I've stated before that I love being on boats, and it's still not getting old for me. I don't know a lot about them really, but he seemed to me that he handled the boat very well. This was especially evident on the way back. We were able to go almost the entire distance without using the motor, only trimming the sails as we got into the harbor. For most of that, we were riding at a 45 degree angle, and it was perfectly comfortable and fun. As cheesy as it sounds, my cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling so much.
The reef is about three miles out from Cairns. This particular cruise goes out to Pinnacle Reef, and you can either snorkel or scuba in the morning. They feed you lunch and then start taking people over to Green Island in the tender. How long you can spend on the Island depends on whether you want to go back in the water in the afternoon, but that is an option. Lunch is included, along with mornings snacks, afternoon fruit and cheese, and then they brought around a tray of cakes. This is good, as being in the water takes a lot out of you.
(One thing that was frustrating, but it was everywhere, is that pop and water are never included. Almost everyone gives you free tea and coffee, and a lot of tours, including this wine, also serve free wine, but never anything that we drink.)
In terms of our experience level, I had sort of snorkeled before in Hanuama Bay, but Julie and Maria never had. To further complicate things, Maria could not go in the water that day. This is where their exceptional service really came through. Louise towed Julie and another first-timer, Marie, around the water for pretty much the entire session. They held on to a life preserver and Louise dragged it around while pointing out fish. In addition, Gordon gave Maria her own private ride in the tender to use this periscope-type thing and view some of the fish for herself. He forever won her heart by calling her "sea kitten".
(Actually, he had already won both her and Julie's hearts by playing some Duran Duran and, when they mentioned their appreciation, letting us know that he has sailed on Simon's boat, Drum.)
I actually got towed a little myself. I jumped in the water and started waiting for Julie, and she just never came and never came, so I went to her. I had promised to stay by her, but since Louise had it covered, she didn't need me, and I could swim a bit on my own.
I thought the snorkeling would be one of the highlights of the trip, but that part was not great. My mask did not fit well so I kept getting water in it, and then when I would try and get it out a wave would usually wash over me in the process, and the first time that happened I had my mouth open, resulting in a salty coughing fit.
At the Bay you just waded into the water, and it was pretty sheltered, so I find that works better for me. Here it was deeper, and there was more current, and I think that is probably better for scuba than snorkeling. Also, before I go again I should probably just by my own mask and get it fitted so I know it will be right. That being said, there is still just something magical about seeing those brightly-colored fish flitting about. Flitting out of camera-view, actually. I have no talent for underwater photography, and you will notice there are no fish photos here. You can wade into the water from Green Island, but that would mean you are staying at a very pricey resort.
One reason that we chose this particular cruise was because of the stop at Green Island. The book A Town Like Alice is a family favorite, and Joe and Jean visit the island in the book. At the time, it was just grass huts and beach, and a chance to go out in a glass-bottomed boat. I'm afraid that time is long past.
Now there is the expensive resort, with expensive restaurants and shops, and Marineland Melanesia, kind of a theme park (no rides, just crocodiles). It's pretty small, but the island itself is small. You can walk around the entire thing, and if you go, that would probably be the best use of time.
We had several errands that we were trying to accomplish. First off, we wanted to find a place to change clothes so that Julie and I would not be in our swimsuits for the rest of the day. We did find a changing room, so that part worked out.
We also needed to try and contact the office of our resort to work out checking in and checking out. We found a pay phone, and were able to work things out there too. We were going to need to leave a little bit of cash for phone calls (there was a charge for local calls pretty much everywhere), but we could put that and the key on the counter, and it would be fine.
That meant that the last errand was that we needed cash. I had $200 US that I was hoping to exchange, but the hotel exchange rate was highway robbery. Okay, we were at sea so I guess it was piracy. Regardless, I think that day it was $1.20 AUD to $1.00 USD, and they were offering something like $0.87 on the dollar. No way. However, there were also no ATMs. We ended up having to charge our drinks on the boat and wait for cash until we got back into Cairns, making small purchases to get change. Really, there just is not much in the way of amenities on Green Island, at least not cheap ones.
Anyway, at least we were dressed again, we had all seen the reef regardless of individual difficulties, and we could just enjoy the trip back. I already mentioned that it was a nice cruise, with good wind and water, but there was more unexpected fun with our crew. Gordon got a phone call, and his brother John (visiting from Glasgow) told me that it was the captain of the company's other ship (Ocean Freedom). He seemed more interested than would be expected, but he knew what was coming.
Louise started passing around the leftover cheese for ammunition, and we were warned to be ready to fling as the other ship came along side. I remember wondering if this was really going to happen, but in fact it was. Ocean Freedom met up with Ocean Free, and we threw cheese at each other.
Ocean Freedom had several advantages over us. They were bigger so they had a better trajectory, motorized so they could go faster and, with more passengers, they had more cheese and more cheese flingers. I regret to say this still did not prevent them from using the serving tray to launch the cheese rather than flinging by hand. I consider this to be cheating.
They took another pass before heading back to port. We came through okay. John took some cheese to the head, but was not badly hurt.
One other caveat about Cairns-the sun is ferocious. We applied and reapplied sunscreen and we all still got burned. For Julie and I it was definitely in the water. Maria had part of her face in the sun. It was funny because Peter told her she was halfway to lobster, and normally that would be that you are pink on your way to red, but for her, it was really that half her face was burned. Basically, you will burn in eight minutes, and they are not kidding. When we arrived at Ayers Rock the next day people asked if we had just come from Cairns.
In summary, loved our boat, loved our crew, the cruise company was good, but don't really know anything about Cairns, found Green Island disappointing, and still working out snorkeling. I will probably never try scuba, but you just never know.
http://www.oceanfree.com.au/index.html
http://www.worldmarktheclub.com/
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