Six months on and we’ve well and truly settled into Troppo life here at Clifton Beach, Far North Queensland. We appear to have survived the ‘Big Wet’ (wetter than normal by all accounts), unscathed and thankfully unflustered. Honestly, not nearly as bad as it had been made out to be.

We’re two Cyclones down – well, one direct hit and one near miss – so I guess we’re considered seasoned locals. We now don’t bat an eyelid at heavy rain, a passing electrical storm or a raging near cyclonic wind, having experienced what a Cyclone can actually bring, pretty much nothing compares. We know the drill. We’ve earned our Scout badge. As of now, towards the end of April, the weather seems to have settled down and the rain has eased up – now mostly confined to the odd shower at night, if at all. Though we did raise an eyebrow a couple of weeks ago when the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) named a new Cyclone out in the far north eastern Coral Sea, Paul. Now, wouldn’t that have been apt if we’d ended the wet season with Cyclone Paul. Thankfully, Paul fizzled out at sea. 

Dawn here in the tropics is pretty spectacular, the sun rising rapidly over the Great Barrier Reef, creating a shimming silvery line on the horizon. Double Island is just off the coast of Palm Cove with tiny Scouts Hat Island sitting nearby, attached by a shallow reef. There are kayak tours at sunrise most mornings that paddle out to the reef to see sea turtles, fish-a-plenty and small reef sharks. I’d love to do this but I think I’ll wait for the winter months when the stinger season is over. All the beaches here have stinger nets from November thru May, offering ‘some’ / ‘moderate’ (in the words of the Lifeguards on patrol) protection from the jellyfish that emerge from the mangroves during the summer months – the dangerous, potentially deadly (of course) Box Jelly Fish and Irukandji. But the beaches have plenty of swimmers, despite the caution, drawn to the 30-degree bath-like water. But to give this all some perspective, of the many millions of people that visit the region, a particularly bad year may yield just 50-100 stings requiring medical treatment, though I think I’ll wait for those months without an R (May June July August) to be on the safe side. 

Croc sightings are a rarity here, but there are plenty of signs warning people (in multiple languages) to be ‘croc aware’, with FNQ, the natural habitat of Saltwater Crocodiles. So, it was a surprise to all one recent early morning to find a juvenile croc swimming within the stinger nets at Palm Cove. Once discovered it was quickly removed but a much larger adult was spotted a few beaches away… so a sobering realisation that we share this beautiful place with other more formidable creatures. 

I can be found most days mooching around the garden. Tending to the never-ending Banana crop and, thanks to months of rain, mowing the lawn at least once a week in an attempt to achieve golf course green perfection. I’m in my element. There are so many amazing plants that I’ve discovered in the garden (and still discovering), plus I’ve been adding to the collection, seeking out some plants that I’ve always wanted to have but of course never had the space….Lipstick Palms, Pagoda Flowers, Desert Rose, Orchids-a-plenty, Giant Elephant Ears, Ixoras, Finger Limes, Spiral Gingers and even Dragon Fruits. My inner-nerd has surfaced and I’ve created a garden plant database with over 70 tropical species! There’s also a fantastic local network of fellow gardening nerds who give away, sell and swap plants, so I’m now forever on the hunt for that next tropical beauty. 

We’ve also become avid bicycle riders. We bought a couple of his and his bikes so we can cycle across to Palm Cove for a morning coffee – when it’s too hot and steamy to walk over that is. It’s a glorious ride in the relative cool of the morning, along the Captain Cook Highway cycle path and down into Palm Cove. Coffee at our favourite café, Garage, facing the beach and the swaying palm trees – which, if you believe Condé Nast, was recently voted the ‘Best Beach In The World’!!! 

https://fb.watch/rCZHa3FFUB

Not surprisingly, we’ve had a steady stream of visitors from Sydney, which I imagine is going to increase as the southern winter starts to bite. We’re assured by locals that ‘winter’ up here is glorious. Expecting daytime temps in the mid to high 20’s and nights in the high teens and low 20’s. It’s also the dry season, so lots to look forward to.