Life in the Daintree Rainforest

Rain, rain and more rain!!!!

2010-09-22T17:16:00.002+10:00

To say it has been a wet year would be quite an understatment... some locals say it has been the wettest year of the last twenty! Zoe and i are certainly looking forward to some dryer weather soon (definately makes mowing our massive paddock up front alot easier) however to see the Daintree in the rainy season is magical, especially when the sun starts to come out and all around you the steam/mist rises from the forest floor -truly a spectacular sight!

Fred the resident Cassowary!

2010-09-22T17:10:00.002+10:00

Fred -our resident Cassowary came by for a visit today! He visits once or twice a week but its always something special when he arrives. Theres not many in the wild these days... some put the population numbers as low as 1,000! Our big boy has been visiting for the last couple of years. He makes his way around the cabins, the pool, up the driveway, parking lot and eventually disapears.

Sometimes our guests are very lucky and he decides to hang around for a while, posing for pictures... He is quite active at this time of the year 1) because it is mating season and 2)because the amount of fruit and seeds falling from the surrounding vegetation is high in number and for him must be an incredible feed!

It truly is something special when our guests who visit from all over the world get a chance to see a Cassowary! just one of the many special jewels of the Daintree/ Cape Tribulation area... :)

A Birds Life

2010-09-05T10:33:00.002+10:00

Its a beautiful time of the year here at the Wilderness Lodge... All our cabins are full! we have people staying with us from England, the United States, Victoria, Queensland, Switzerland... but when you listen to the noises outside the cabins, its not people's chatter and laughter you here -its an amazing chorus of birdlife; Paradise Kingfishers, Metallic Starlings, Sunbirds, Scrubfowls, Bowerbirds and Cassowaries -its beautiful! thoroughly enjoying the Daintree!

Nick and Zoe

Newest member of staff

2009-07-11T22:02:00.004+10:00

We would like to welcome, ENRO, he is our newest and hightly valued member of staff. We expect he will work very hard and hopefully take an hour or two off our working hours!

Welcome Enro!

Enro has already proved his worth tonight, one of the busiest nights in the start of the season by coping with 18 people for dinner. Well done Enro!

He managed to clean and deliver shining plates, glasses and cutlery within under 3 wash loads! Fabulous job!

Enro has been specially chosen for his ability to reduce power consumption and only uses 10litres of water. He is able to finish a wash load in under 10minutes!

We look forward to many more successful morning breakfasts and dinners spent with Enro! Thanks mate!

Improved Ranking on Google!

2009-06-13T14:55:00.005+10:00

We had a wonderful couple come and stayed with us a few months ago. They run a small bed and breakfast and an animal rescue centre just outside of Marysville in Victoria.
Well, they were nice enough to help me with our rankings on Google and Duncan gave me some little tips that would help.
I only made the few changes last week and already we have shot up to page 2! I was very excited as we never ranked at all until page 20! That was for the term "daintree accommodation". Well, I just wanted to say thanks again to Duncan and Georgina!

If you are looking for a remote and beautiful spot outside of Melbourne, why not check out their spot?
http://www.kingbilli.com.au/

Meet Susan

2009-06-06T14:47:00.002+10:00

Susan is our little Padimelon. She is a soft cudly and delicate little thing and of a very motherly nature. She has just recently had a little one called Tom, who is already scappering around behind her. Padimelons have a spare one, just incase so Susan has now got a new Joey, still in the pouch. We have named the young one Trisha.
Trisha is very cute and delicate but also quite naughty.

Susan will often be spotted around our house in the late afternoon and early morning. She is enjoying the Porcelain fruit at the moment, which is filled with grubs! Extra tasty.

She is very shy and skittish so you would be lucky to spot her.

Meet Monty - The Python of course!

2009-06-06T13:50:00.003+10:00

Monty is a sweet and delicate member of our family and nothing to be afraid of! She doesn't bite and is very discreet and well behaved. She comes from a long line of Pythons and has been on this lodge longer than most of the owners put together.

Once you meet Monty, you will hopefully feel differently about snakes as I have too!

Monty likes to live under and above the restaurant. She isn't spotted by many of our guests and is quite aloof when she does. She is completely disinterested in what we are up to and I can guarantee you has no interest in your cabin either!

When she occassionally comes for a visit it is usually when we have few guests in house. She will lay herself along the bottom of th roof awning and wait for some little Marsupial or White Tailed Rat to venture past. She then moves with remarkable speed in catching it.

She will also have a good look around, by swaying over the edge of the roof. It is an amazing site to watch as she moves with complete precision and doesn't falter in her movements at all.

Very few of our guests have been lucky enough to meet Monty as she only comes out to eat, which is usually only every 3months. If you have seen her, lucky you!

Meet Boydie - The Boyd Forest Dragon

2009-06-06T13:34:00.004+10:00

Boydie is probably one of my favourites. He has such amazing features - just like a dinosaur.

We have two Boyd Forest Dragons.

There is the little one - Boyd Junior and Boydie. They sit on the trees and don't move... except when they see the occassional bug run past, then they move incredibly quickly, down the tree, grab the little morsel and then up the tree again.

They are easy to walk past as they simply don't move much and blend very well into their surroundings.

Boydie likes to live near Cabin 4 (Cedar Cabin). He enjoys his house as he can bake himself off the warmth of the tree and yet still gets to meet some guests at the same time.

His favourite meal would have to be the Christmas beetles. They have such a delicate crunch!- especially when there is two! ;)

He will eat just about anything though but prefers things with a little bit more crunch rather than the softer textures.

Boydie has only one major worry, that is the Massive Python living at the lodge. She doesn't come out very often but Boydie still can't help worry about it. He will try and make himself blend into the trees as much as he can and will even pick branches that bend to ensure he is not spotted!
Boydie has an amazing adaptation in that he gains his body heat from the trees rather than from the sun. Now, Monty (the python) uses heat sensor to find it's meals and Boydie therefore blends right into the tree, colours and heat alike!

Genious fellow!

Meet Phillip - The Brown Tree Frog

2009-06-06T13:23:00.004+10:00

Philip is our little brown Tree Frog. He is often found living in the restaurant dining area. He sits on the overhang between the windows and gazes our over the restaurant.

He has become our little weather gage and we usually know when it is going to rain, as little Philip then ventures our to find a mate.

He has amazing sticky feet and can climb up the window to his favourite little resting spot. If you spot him by day, he often has his eyes semi-closed and his head flat. Once you visit him again at night, his eyes open right up and he looks incredibly bright and awake.

Unfortunately, Philip has been known to have abit of a drinking problem and has been spotted on various bottles in the bar. This was him perched on the Drambuie bottle last year October. He seems to have got the situation under control for the moment as we haven't spotted him at the bar for a few months now.

We believe it has something to do with his new girlfriend..... Trisha.

Philip had been away for a number of weeks and every morning James and I would check if the little fellow was in his usual spot above the windows but.... no sign of the little guy.

So, then we decided to look elsewhere for him and discovered he was looking at moving. His little perched spot was just not big enough for him and Trish. We see them both now in their new home, above the windows, higher up in the roof lining. I believe the view must be fantastic!

We see less of Philip though....

Meet Fred - The Cassowary

2009-05-13T17:05:00.001+10:00

Fred is our resident Cassowary and has a very "special"nature about him. He is about 3years of age which we determine by the size of his casque on his head and his size. He is quite a curious and slightly strange fellow and enjoys the variety of guests that we have.
He will generally come round for a "sticky beak" when we have had some new arrivals - eventhough sometimes it takes him a day or two to register!

Fred was named as such due to his long claw like fingers (of which he only has three). ie Freddie Kruger - scaaaarrrrryyy!
Well, he is still a wild animal but has become quite accustomed to our guests and won't harm anyone. It is still advised to keep a safe distance though. (had to say that for insurance purposes!)

He has become very "special" to us for the strange things that he does. One early morning James was working in the office when he heard this strange tapping on the window behind him. Naturally he looked up and behold......... Fred had tapped on the window, then turned around and walked off. As if to say: "Morning"......???? how odd!

He has also been known to come for a sticky beak when we have had maintenance guys working on the boardwalks. He will come around and then watch them for a while, get bored and decide to sit down and enjoy the show. He is our personal assistant - checking the boys are doing the work properly! Poor fellow - must be lonely!

So, now you have some idea of how odd this little fellow is and perhaps through further posts might get to know him abit more.