Travellers' notes welcomed here
I reckon that there are 2 things one must do at the Great Barrier Reef: white water rafting and scuba diving (or snorkeling if you can't dive). Afterall, the beauty of Cairns lies in its rainbow-hued corals, gushing rapids and world heritage rainforests.
There are basically 3 rivers at Cairns with different grades of rapids that will cater to differing appetites for adventure, time and budget. We went for Tully River because it offered a full day of rafting with rapids to grade 4. A 'watered-down' (no pun intended) option will be the one at Barron River. By this, I mean a half day tour and rapids to only grade 3. In contrast, North Johnstone River challenges with rapids to grade 5 and takes 2 days to complete. Needless to say, the cost of your rafting adventure will be proportionate to the duration of the expedition.
Perching precariously on the side of the hardy looking rubber dinghy, I tried to anchor myself as best as I could with my feet. Not that it was much use as I later found out. The adventure started innocently enough with a calm stretch of the river. Our guide gave our six-member team a brief lesson on the fundamentals of white water rafting. "Over left"; "over right" and "all down!" seemed to be the only vocabulary that we needed to know for the next 5 hours.
Soon enough, we heard the roar of our first rapid. I guess you can say that nothing quite prepared us for what was about to come. There were sharp rocks that jut out threateningly everywhere and the strong current made the gushing water seem well, white. Then, through a series of clumsy "over left" and "over right", we managed to weave miraculously through the maze of rocks for a big splash at the foot of the rapid. phew*, and what would have happened had I fallen out, I wondered.
And that was the first of 45 rapids at Tully River.
Disclaimer: all prices and details of tours are subject to change by the vendor. The author shall not be held liable for any inaccuracies in information provided herewith.
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