Dubuji Boardwalk

Directions - From the Daintree Ferry, drive north along Cape Tribulation Road for 34 kilometres, turning right just before the Turtle Rock Cafe. The trail starts on the southern side of the car park at the small information shelter.

The Walk - Continuing with our Daintree Adventures after enjoying the Kulki Boardwalk, the rain shower that hit at the end of that walk was over by the time we backtracked the short distance along Cape Tribulation Road to reach the second of four planned walks. Next up was the longer Dubuji Boardwalk that would offer a taste of the mangrove swamps and tropical rainforest that the Daintree is well known for. With the grey conditions still lingering, we exited the car and made our way to the start point, hoping it wouldn't rain again.

Dubuji means "place of spirits" and the 1.3 kilometre loop trail allows you to explore the mangrove swamps and tropical rainforest without getting your feet too wet. The boardwalk is a feature of the whole walk and winds through large trees, spanning fronds and crosses seasonal creeks. The first section leading towards the loop section was pleasant, with the thick rainforest full of diverse plants ranging all the way from the forest floor to the dense canopy above. Happy that the cloud cover above was providing even lighting, I was making the most of it as we wandered past a large collection of Queensland Fan Palms. I was going super slow, as I like to do these days, while Caris was up ahead moving at a more normal pace. With plenty to see packed into a small space, I was enjoying photographing all the details while the lighting was good. Joining the loop section and heading anti-clockwise, the large trees of the rainforest eventually made way to pockets of mangroves that were partially flooded thanks to the recent rains.

It had been a relatively wet visit so far to Port Douglas, given it was meant to be the dry season, but that was all part of the fun. Spotting lots of fungi on the edge of the trail, the scenery was constantly changing as the boardwalk turns and pivots to keep things interesting. Noticing blue fruit on the floor, it turns out these were Blue Quandong, just one of many tropical fruits that grow here. Unfortunately it started to rain as we approached the finish, so Caris asked for the car key so she could rush back to the cover of the vehicle. It really started to bucket down, and I must have looked silly hunched over my camera to protect it from the weather. I didn't get too many photos from the last part of the walk but it was fun to be out, even through my shoes and socks were soaked through by the time we reached the car. To make it up to Caris I bought her a spinach and ricotta sausage roll and a hot chocolate from the Turtle Rock Cafe once we had dried off a little bit.