Wednesday, November 12, 2014

The Atherton Tablelands


Staying in Port Douglas, we were quite close to Mareeba and Coffee Works which Dunc was dead keen to get to. Rather than take Bertha back up the incredibly steep hill to the tablelands, we figured wed pop up in the RAV for a day trip. We had intended to combine a trip to Coffee Works in the morning with a trip out to Mossman Gorge in the afternoon, but that was before we got up there. There was so much to see!

We started by calling in past the Golden Drop mango winery, for a tasting for Dunc. Not my thing, but he liked it enough to buy a bottle or two. We then headed straight to the coffee place, knowing that they also had chocolate and milkshakes for the kids. Mareeba was a little further than expected, and the children were very much in need of morning tea when we arrived, so we shuffled the usual arrangements and started with our tastings and free milkshakes BEFORE doing the tour of the museum.



It was wonderful! They had HEAPS of coffees, but also some teas and lots of yummy chocolate flavours. We were given little plastic cups for the chocolates, and each took it in turns to go and fill up ALL four cups. LOL. My favourite chocolates were the chai ones and the peppermint ones, Lexie liked the white ones and Angus was happy to eat anything. Dunc was the only one to really like the chilli!

With Duncan buzzing on his many coffees, we wandered through the museum, learning all about where coffee has come from, how it is made, and the many many different machines that grind, roast and brew. We grown-ups were truly fascinated, and the children were kept amused filling in the quiz in their activity books.

Sated and toting our delicious purchases, we decided to scrap Mossman Gorge and check out more in the tablelands. Dunc was pulled over for a Random Breath Test and we were somewhat concerned that there would be a low reading considering the many wines and spirits he had tasted earlier in the day. But in fact the coffee had negated all alcohol and there was no alcohol detected (I know because I asked!) We headed to the Curtain Fig tree for a short walk in the forest and the hopes of spotting a Cassowary. No luck on the bird front, but the fig was truly breathtaking and a highlight for sure!


We then decided to pop past the local dairy to grab some cheese, and happened to get there at milking time – yippee! It was really interesting to see it done the usual way, having only ever witnessed the super automatic robot way down at Pyanganna in Tassie. We watched the two guys working for quite some time, much to Lexies disgust – she didnt like the smell.




We were all tired out by this stage, and the kids were desperate to get back to the pool for a swim. Thats what happens when theres a waterslide involved!

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