O Reilly's Rainforest Retreat

The giveaway is in the word RAINforest !

This is our fourth visit in about five years. A retreat in Lamington National Park, a place with a lot of history, an enviable position at the top of a plateau and a playground of rainforest to make anyone jealous. Our visit this time, booked months in advance, aimed to introduce birding friends from across the seas to the joys of Australian birds. The weather decided to play its own game and we drove up late on the Friday in the driving rain. As the rain eased off it then became a question of dodge the toad. They were massive and passive and dotted all over the tarmac. 

We set off the next morning on a 10 kms walk. The rain had abated for a while but we took our rain jackets, tucked our trousers into our socks, put on our walking boots and headed off. The paths were wet and you might think our ability to see was reduced. Not so- the massive trees that line the paths had trunks whose colours popped out at us. Some of them even held hands. Trumpet fungi and orange balls hid here and there and the leaves glistened clean and bright in the emerging sunlight. 

As we descended further into the gorge we crossed some women on their way up- the river was a torrent and the crossing to our circular walk was no longer possible. We descended nevertheless and the rain poured down on us as if there was a little weather system just waiting to catch us. The women had warned us we would get wet and wet we were. We turned back and started the journey back up. Not too steep and not too tiring and as the rain suddenly strangely disappeared, others made their joyful appearance. There was a reason to tuck my socks over my trousers but I had not counted on the socks weave been thin enough to let these blood seeking leeches in. For them it was a field Day! We arrived back at the resort and they had wormed their way into our shoes and socks and we were picking them off our ankles and half way up our legs. There is a large yuk factor in leeches but they are relatively harmless, if tenacious. We put one down the toilet bowl only to find it a considerable time later making a valiant attempt to escape it. They cause haemorrhaging on a precipitous scale and as I joined friends on the deck for a drink and bite I left big puddles of blood on their floor. The after math was more annoying as when the blood was finally beginning to coagulate, the itchiness sets in maddeningly and furiously. You will be relieved to know that after a few days it does abate and the wounds heal up and of course we will be back. Perhaps this time we will wait for a drier forecast. 

The next day the skies were clearer and we were able to walk along another track near the Moran falls with wonderful views of the valley. The best moment was when I spotted a Paradise Rifle bird (Female) with a little morsel in its bent beak, a relatively rare sight, which we enjoyed for a while. The trade off was watching it and not pulling out the camera. You will be content therefore that I have found one for you to admire on this page. We will return as no trip is ever the same and that is what makes it unique.