Queensland Adventuring

Fan palms fill the Daintree.

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For more information on Tropical North Queensland, go to www.destinationqueensland.com. For more information on the Daintree, visit www.daintreevillage.asn.au. And for general info on Australia, go to www.australia.com.

BARRIER REEF
Despite the plethora of experienced divers that flock to the GBR, it is also a good place to learn to dive. But be warned, this introduction will spoil you for diving in the lakes back home. All the outfitters in Cairns and Port Douglas offer certification classes at all levels, plus introductory programs to give novices a taste of the sport. If you're not PADI or NAUI certified, the smartest approach is to enroll in a program at home, do your classroom and pool work at the local YMCA, and make your "final exam" open-water dives on the GBR. You're not going to want to spend your time Down Under studying.

The drawback of dayboat diving on the GBR is that there's only time for two or three dives daily. Liveaboards (yachts equipped for sleeping, eating, and diving) offer multi-day excursions farther out in the Coral Sea; here, large pelagics roam, the visibility is clearer (up to 200 feet), and you can get in five or more dives a day (depending on how deep you go). The trade-off is that there's more marine life in the shallower waters of the reef. And on day dives, you get to spend time with your non-diving companions without imprisoning them on a dive boat.

DAINTREE
You have lots of options on places to stay here—everything from hostels to upscale lodges. A couple of the best are Silky Oaks Lodge (www.poresorts.com.au/silky/default.htm) and the Daintree EcoLodge (www.daintree-ecolodge.com.au), where you can get that massage.

Jowalbinna is a five-hour scenic drive from Cairns, or a quick hop on one of the regular small-plane flights from Cairns or Port Douglas. Pilots always give passengers a spectacular birds-eye view of the Great Barrier Reef, the World Heritage Rainforest, and the desolate Outback en route to the camp. Lodging is in 12 primitive cabins and a 24-bed dorm, with dining in an open-air pavilion.

RAFTING
If you want to try your hand at some Aussie whitewater, hit the Tully, which thunders out of the interior through gorges lined with rainforest toward the town of Mission Beach, south of Cairns. The rapids are Grade 4, the equivalent of Class IV rapids. Local outfitters offer all-day trips in guided six-person rafts or two-person rubber kayaks.