You may not realise it, but actually there seem to be several 'Cairns' in Queensland. Read the tourist brochures and fly in to Cairns (1) and as you are whisked off to an island, strapped into your helicopter, or inserted into a wetsuit, you might think that Cairns is only about what you can so on the water and underwater. Up here, the reef reigns supreme and coral is king.

Which is fair enough, as this watery paradise - after all, the Great Barrier Reef has 900 islands, 2900 individual reefs, and covers 344,400 square kilometres - is one of the world's major tourism drawcards. It is estimated that it gathers around a billion dollars a year from tourist pockets.

Located in the appropriately named Coral Sea, this northern part of the reef makes Cairns a popular cruise ship destination. Its wharf area has been designed for visitors: gardens, cafes, photo-worthy views across the bay and ready access to the town itself. More of the latter shortly.

Let's just talk about the reef, though. For those who love getting under the ocean's surface, this is a playground par excellence. The list of sea creatures is lengthy so let's abbreviate it a little: thirty species of whales, dolphins, and porpoises, large populations of dugongs, more than 1,500 fish species including the clownfish (think Nemo), seventeen species of sea snake, and six species of sea turtles come to the reef to breed, attracted by the fifteen species of seagrass beds.

Then there's around 125 species of shark, stingray, skates or chimaera, close to 5,000 species of mollusc and forty-nine species of pipefish and nine of seahorse recorded, as well as at least seven species of frog.

And all that is without yet speaking of what the reef is most noted for: coral. Four hundred coral species, both hard corals and soft, inhabit the reef. For the 'honeymoon season' be at the reefs in the inner Great Barrier Reef for spawning during the week after the full moon in October, or the outer reefs in November and December.

If you're also interested in seeing other wildlife, there are saltwater crocs in the mangrove marshes on the coast, and 215 species of birds (including 22 species of seabirds and 32 species of shorebirds) an estimated 1.4–1.7 million birds that use the sites to breed.

However, turn left when you leave your ship, or ask your taxi driver from the airport to drop you in town, and you meet Cairns (2). It's a busy place - in a laid-back country way - a tropical town, several hours by plane from Sydney, and a numbing 2500 kilometres by car. Although in Queensland, it is still 1700km from Brisbane, the state capital.

It never set out to be tourist-central, as it is now. As with many Australian country towns, Cairns was founded in 1876 to service the miners at the newly discovered goldfield at the Hodgkinson River, further north.

If history is your thing, spend some time in the museum which charts the town's background from the earliest people through to explorers, settlers, miners, loggers, and then as an important port and centre for agriculture (sugar cane is a major crop), a vital training and supply base for Allied troops during World War II, and finally host to thousands of visitors annually. It's been quite a ride for this rapidly growing town, currently with a population of over 140,000.

After that, you will need a coffee, and here again, Cairns is well up to the mark in providing what its visitors need. This was at Rehab Cafe....

... a popular and casual spot with enough witty signs and objects to keep you entertained while you enjoy a (very good) coffee, or two.

As you'd expect, the inimitable Captain Cook beat other colonists to this area, mapping what he called Trinity Bay in 1770. No doubt members of the local Walubarra Yidinji looked on in wonder as he did so. They still recognise their indigenous property rights and Cairns is known in the local Yidiny language as Gimuy. Perhaps this could be called Cairns (3) as the aboriginal heritage is still strong here. 

If you happen to see a strange pyramid-shaped hill south of Cairns, ask your guide to tell you the aboriginal legend. Obviously this unusual natural feature of the landscape has caught people's interest for thousands of years.

In the waterfront area, there are a number of sculptures and plaques, like the one above, which honor the heritage of the original people of this area. Read these and realise that culture in this country did not begin in the 18th century.

In the 1930's, the Cairns waterfront was a bustling hub of activity and colourful characters, becoming known as the 'Barbary Coast'. The heritage-listed Barrier Reef Hotel is the last remaining pub left from this era, and a well-named reminder of the city’s colourful history.

Much more recent is the waterfront board-walk promenade and a three-kilometre Esplanade Walking Trail.

Massive banyan trees shade the gardens alongside the Cairns Foreshore Promenade.

.. and adjacent to both is a 4,800 square metre saltwater lagoon.

Never far away, though, is the water and the hint of islands just waiting to be discovered.

Yachts, pleasure boats, helicopters are always on hand to whisk the visitor away to enjoy it all.

But there is yet another side to Cairns. This fourth dimension surrounds the town and is the lush and fertile hinterland where tropical plants and crops thrive, providing an added element of surprise to visitors. For it is here you can find almost anything edible that you'd expect in Bali, for instance, as well as cooler weather produce on the ranges.

If time is short, you can see most of it at these markets, open daily. Once operating as a sort of 'car-boot', 'truck tray' market, a while back the producers graduated to this large building that offers a cornucopia of everything that is fresh and in season.

 

Proudly parochial, many things are named according to their provenance...

....and you can expect to find almost any type of south-east Asian tropical fruit, like this jackfruit...

... as well as hell-hot chillies....

...lusciously sweet pineapple....

.... and even critters like this. Those who try crocodile for the first time, usually respond that 'it tastes like chicken', but there is a certain thrill, I guess, to eating something that, in the wild would almost certainly eat us!

Australians are not known as particularly adventurous eaters, but for those that are, there are menus in town which can satisfy the desires of the most daring omnivore. For a polished take on bush tucker (indigenous Australian foods) visit Ochre Restaurant, a favourite in the town for over twenty years. 

So it's obvious that those who come to Cairns with an open mind and a healthy appetite will certainly agree with this local slogan.

On our last visit to the region we took a food trail tour to the Atherton Tableland, a couple of hours drive up the Great Dividing Range from the coast. Here the temperature was about ten degrees cooler, making it ideal for dairying and other activities. It was here we met the friendly model cow at the top of this page at a cheesemaking dairy in Atherton.

The Yungaburra Pub is the ideal watering hole for walkers who come to see the immense curtain fig tree, or simply to immerse themselves in a lifestyle that is disappearing - that of a true-blue Australian country town.

Across the street, we found a Bring Your Own sign on the local cafe. If you have never heard of this, it means you can bring your own alcohol to enjoy with your meal. In city restaurants, it would mean wine only, but out here, beer is fine.

Not too far away is the lakeside teahouse with good fluffy country-style scones and jam and cream - served with a pot of tea (or coffee) of course.

The twisting mountain road from the tableland rewards visitors with views like this, way across the suburbs and sugar cane fields to the coast.

It would be difficult to find a place with more to offer. Tropical plants and produce...

...sea and hinterland, with a magnificent side-serve of the world's greatest living reef.

Cairns International Airport already welcomes many visitors directly from overseas. On May 30, Silk Air a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines begins direct flights to Cairns.

More information on Cairns.....

(Text and images: Sally Hammond; Video: Gordon Hammond)