The mighty Barron River is a great place to go fishing and its free. The Barron River winds its way across the Atherton Tablelands, through Lake Tinaroo and down the Barron Gorge, over the Barron Falls, before making its way to sea, between the Cairns Airport and Machans Beach. For keen anglers, the Barron River is home to most tropical river and estuary fish species, including grunter, jacks, bream, trevally, salmon and even the occasional barramundi. There are many places you can drop a line, including the old Kamerunga Bridge, which is upstream from the Captain Cook Highway in the small suburb of Stratford, or on the sand flats at the mouth in Machans Beach.
Cattana Wetlands is an 80 hectare reserve, which was rehabilitated from degraded land into a nature conservation park by Cairns Regional Council. The site was originally a sugar cane farm, before it was used as a sand mining quarry and finally was purchased by the council to protect the 30 hectares of remaining lowlands rainforest on the site. As a part of the rehabilitation works, council has planted over 10,000 native plants and undertaken extensive weed removal which has enabled water bird populations to flourish. Cattana Wetlands is open every day of the year from 5.30am to 7.00pm and can be accessed from the suburb of Yorkeys Knob or via Dunne Road in Smithfield.
Although not strictly at the Cairns Beaches, the Mangrove Boardwalk at Cairns Airport is on the way to the beaches, as you drive north from Cairns city. There are two separate walks here, a northern walk, which is 700m long and includes a viewing tower and observation platform by a saltwater creek and the southern walk, which is 600m long and has a viewing tower over Cairns city and the inlet’s seagrass beds. These comfortable and easy grade walks, allow you to explore Cairns’ mangrove system, with 11 different mangrove species visible alongside the boardwalk. These walks are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week but are not lit, so you should visit during the day.
Palm Cove is Cairns best beach for tourists. It has previously been awarded the prestigious Australia’s Cleanest Beach title and is a long, golden stretch of sand, bordered by swaying palm trees with views over the Coral Sea. The best thing about it? It’s completely free. Although Palm Cove is home to an array of prestigious, five-star resorts, hotels, spas and restaurants, the beach itself is free. As is the jetty, which is a great place to hang out with the locals and drop a line. So, take your time, stroll the golden sands, pull up some sand under a palm tree and cool off in the waters of the Coral Sea. If you get hungry, you can choose to get takeaway fish and chips and eat it on the beach, dine alfresco overlooking the water or enjoy some contemporary cuisine in one of the many establishments that line the waterfront.
