Exploring Around Yungaburra -- September 19

There are 2 famous fig trees around the area –the Curtain Fig and the Cathedral Fig, and I went to see both of them.  These trees started out as a fig seed dropped in a branch of a host tree.  The fig grows around the host, dropping the tendril roots downward forming a strange structure of roots going down to the ground.

There are 2 crater lakes nearby – Eachem and Barrie.  I saw an interesting vehicle parked by Eachem with a couple sitting under an awning.  The vehicle contained everything but the kitchen sink – no, I take that back, it did also have a kitchen sink.  The couple was from Germany and they bough the vehicle equipped to completely live out of.  They come to Australia for about 4 months and travel around the country living in the vehicle.  They then go back to Germany for a year or so and then return for another trip segment after storing it on a local farm.  There were also some scuba divers going out into the lake.

The area is famous for its waterfalls.  I stopped at six different ones.

There is an unusual crater called Hypipamee.  It is a sheer ledge hundreds of feet high, ending in a pool of green covered water.  While walking back along the trail I saw a large (about 5 feet tall) colorful bird called a cassowary in the forest about 30 feet away.  These are an endangered bird and very rare to see in the wild.  They have a nasty disposition and people are warned not to get too close to then or they will attack.  He was curious about me taking his picture but just stayed in one place.

The countryside has a lot of dairy farms around along with many rainforests.  The roads are up and down, winding, and very narrow – a real challenge to drive on.  Spent about 10 hours out exploring and was pretty tired when it was over.