The Marrdja Boardwalk, Cape Tribulation

by Lisa Morgan (subscribe)

Usually if you've seen one, you've seen them all. However, the Marrdja Boardwalk in Cape Tribulation provided us with a pleasant surprise.

The scenery and vegetation changed so much on this 45 minute walk, it kept us captivated right to the very end. This is an impressive accomplishment when you have children with short attention spans.
Not far into the boardwalk, we came across a fig tree which had completely enveloped another tree. Over the years, the original tree had rotted away, leaving a hollow, patterned fig tree behind. This was the coolest, and smallest fig we have seen to date.

One of the most beautiful things about the Daintree is the many forest streams and creeks tinkling away over pretty rocks. As pretty as it all looks, it would not be wise to go swimming on the coastal side of the Cape Trib road – there are crocodiles after all. Oliver Creek was one such creek that we saw along the boardwalk.

An interesting feature of the 1.2km Marrdja Boardwalk is the mixture of rainforest and mangrove side by side. We saw the familiar coastal mangroves, recognisable from our time in Cairns. However as we delved further into the mangroves, we began to see species we had not seen before. Cannonball mangroves for instance, in fruit. At one point, after an information plaque told us a particular species was able to rid of its excess salt via the underside of leaves; the kids started licking leaves to see if this was true.

The Marrdja Boardwalk can be found just past Thornton Beach which sports a cafe that cooks awesome food and has a friendly atmosphere, but is a bit on the expensive side. Look out for their lunch specials!

To see other free walks available in the Cape Tribulation / Daintree area, visit the Cape Trib website.

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Why? For something different in a boardwalk

Where: Cape Tribulation

Cost: Free