While in northern Queensland, we journeyed on the Kuranda Scenic Railroad into the rain forest. This rail line was built between 1887 and 1891 to provide gold seekers access into the mountains and the lands beyond. In its day it was quite a feat of engineering -- climbing 328 meters through a thick forest. Even today for the railroad enthusiast it is a marvel with 37 kilometers of track including 15 tunnels, 37 bridges and requiring 98 curves including one memorable 180 degree bend to make the distance. For the average visitor, it is the captivating vistas of forest, the Barron River and its magnificent waterfalls, the coastline and the South Coral Sea that make the experience.
The scenery from the train was impressive but it paled to what we enjoyed on our return trip aboard the Skyrail, a gondola ride above the rain forest canopy with stops at the falls and its high point. From the gondola we enjoyed magnificent views in every direction. At one of the stops, a naturalist provided some interpretive information about these woods filled with trees some numbering over 400 years old, plants with healing properties and unusual and threatened species of animals.
Awesome is beginning to take on a new meaning for me here.
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