I don’t mind telling you I’m an adrenaline junkie. If you like to get your heart pumping, you can’t miss white-water rafting on the Tully River with Raging Thunder. The Tully has a guaranteed "raftable" flow every day and today I was in for a treat. The power plant upriver had four turbines open so we had some big water coming downriver. It’s classified as a grade four river and it’s full of great rapids. I was teamed up with travellers from Scotland and England. We were placed under the guidance of Vinny, who happily granted our request for a full-on ride.
After getting the basic instructions down: forward, backward, get down, hold on, etc. we started our voyage. Easing into a few smaller rapids we soon found ourselves shooting down some grade fours and I knew it was going to be a good day! Just before lunch I chose a rather inopportune moment to forget to hold on. Vinny gave the command and apparently he meant it. I ended up swimming a grade four rapid. What did we learn today? Listen!
We stopped for lunch and swapped stories with adventure-seekers from the other rafts. I got to meet travellers from Germany, the UK, North America, and Australia. Now this is a cool way to make new friends.
The afternoon brought heaps more fun; Vinny decided we were all too dry and taught us how to flip the raft on flat water. Before I knew it four hours had gone by and I was on the bus headed back to Cairns. I was very tired from rafting and had a nice nap on the bus — a great way to end the day.
The adventures were almost over, but no holiday in Tropical North Queensland would be complete without a visit to Blue Sky Brewery in Cairns. I loved the open-air layout and I even got to meet Blue Sky’s Brew Master, Hayden Mokaraka. He’s been brewing for ages and is a host like no other. In no time at all, we had three pizzas on the way along with two sampler paddles of Blue Sky’s numerous beers. Both pizza and beer were excellent and after a quick refill Hayden led us back into the brewery to see where all the magic happens. Good food, great beer, friendly staff… what could be better?
On our last night we chose Gilligan’s Backpacker Hotel & Resort. Now I’ve seen my fair share of backpackers in my day, but Gilligan’s is something completely different. They’ve got a huge range of rooms, TV lounge, pool, three bars, live music, kitchen, laundry, gym, game room, and much more. Plus it’s in a great location with plenty of shops, bars, and restaurants well within walking distance. And if you want to meet other travellers — there are heaps of them here.
Don't forget — you can download a PDF copy of our Best Adventure Itinerary if you'd like to follow in our footsteps.
Rafting on the Tully River
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