Port Douglas Day 1

We woke up early after a warm night of around 21 degrees. It was nicer than a cold morning though.

After breakfast, Prue went for a walk into town and did a little shopping and then walked around to the Beaches Cafe.

While Prue did her walk, I went for a reasonable bike ride out to the west of the Captain Cook Highway and then returning on it and back into Port Douglas. It was a good ride in that I had a strong headwind going out but a nice tail wind on my return. I met Prue at Beaches Cafe for our first cappuccinos and my raisin toast. Then we returned to the Caravan Park.

  Later in the morning, we drove the 35 kilometres to the famous Mossman Gorge.( I suggest you read this link as it explains the area and walks that we did.) The weather was overcast and while we were walking through the Gorge the moisture drizzled down on us. It would have taken a long time to really wet us.

There were a lot of people around and we were lucky when we arrived to get a parking spot quite close to the entrance to the Gorge. On our return there was even an ice cream truck there. We did indulge our selves with an ice cream each. After the several hours walking it was most enjoyable.

As we returned to Port Douglas we did a quick drive through part of the town of Mossman which is a service town to the sugar industry and other farming operations. I suspect it is home to a little less than 2000 people.

When we did get back into Port Douglas we went into town and picked up a new rear light for my bike. Then a little later we did go again to get some items from the Pharmacy. While there we had an afternoon cappuccino for me and a soy chai latte for Prue.

On return to the Caravan Park I cleaned my bike and generally gave it a bit of a service. Prue did a load of washing. By then it was relax time.

As I have written elsewhere, I am convinced that Port Douglas is a far nicer town than Byron Bay. It is easier to get around, parking is free compared to Byron's costly parking. It is better laid out and the views are at least as good if not better. There are so many beautiful places to stop for a coffee or meal, too.

The people moving around appear to be a better mix but still include a lot of back packers, too. The drugged out minority are not evident around here like they are in Byron. Most importantly, the Cairns Regional Council manage a far larger area than Byron in a much more efficient way. They welcome development and improvement to the area and do not hinder development.