|
|
     
 Everything
is so new and a little scary in the alien world of scuba diving.
What if the air regulator fails? What about buoyancy? I could sink
like a stone with these cumbersome weights tied around my waist.
But before I can panic, the magic moment arrives. A giant sea turtle
glides past, peering at me with casual interest. I float in the
clear blue water, transfixed by the creature's silent and sudden
appearance. After a few seconds face-to-face, the turtle turns away,
the blue light dancing upon its mottled shell. It drifts back towards
the edge of the Great Barrier Reef, yet still so close that I feel
I could reach out and touch its gently sweeping fins.
Then it hits me - THE CAMERA! I'm holding an underwater camera in
my right hand and have just missed a chance to take the photo of
a lifetime. I guess it is a common mistake by the first-time diver,
but never mind… I'm quickly learning that photo opportunities are
not hard to find in this part of the world - north Queensland, in
Australia's tropics.
If you do not fancy the Great Barrier Reef, there is always the
incredible sight of the Daintree Rainforest crawling down the mountains
and meeting the blue ocean, the two separated only by a band of
perfectly white sand. Or maybe you would prefer a short drive up
those mountains into the Atherton Tablelands, a gorgeous green vista
filled with hidden waterfalls and swimming holes.
Northern Queensland is a paradise the likes of which you are unlikely
to find anywhere else, and it has the perfect climate to match.
The region has long marketed itself with the slogan: "Beautiful
One Day, Perfect The Next". However, it is not so beautiful when
you ignore the bright yellow warning signs which seem to pop up
at every turn. They usually feature comedic pictures of stick men
being attacked by crocodiles or odd-shaped creatures resembling
giant squids.
Vinegar to relieve jellyfish
stings
The world-famous crocodiles
lurk in the watery estuaries that characterise the zone where rainforests
meet the sea. They usually emerge from their hiding places in the
riverbanks when a drunken tourist decides to ignore the signs and
take a swim… but don't expect to see the prehistoric killing machines
when you pay $30 for a crocodile tour.
Another great danger of the area is the box jellyfish which inhabit
coastal waters. The name does not sound perilous enough, so the
harmless looking creatures have been renamed "marine stingers".
Stinger is certainly easier to pronounce than the scientific name
(chironex fleckeri), but it still does not convey the agony that
these creatures can inflict. An encounter with a jellyfish can be
as deadly as one with a crocodile, and a thousand times more painful.
Yet, in an almost quaint touch, small bottles of vinegar can be
found on most Queensland beaches to be used for the relief of screaming
victims. Seems like a cure that your mother would recommend, yet
a splash of vinegar really does lessen the pain.
Stingers make almost all of Queensland’s beaches a no-go zone in
the summer months, but you have nothing to fear when in the deeper
waters of the reef. Oh, and just in case you think it is only the
animals that are out to get you, you might want to watch out for
stinging trees. Simply brushing a heart-shaped leaf on one of these
innocuous-looking plants will result in hospitalisation and a pain
that comes back to haunt you for months, perhaps years, after your
one careless mistake.
All these perils are easily avoided if you pay attention to the
signs and listen to the tour operators - but I still think I will
steer clear and stick to the sea turtles.
Book Queensland
Hotels here
|