Today we had the chance of a lifetime – that being the opportunity to hold a koala bear. They’re so cute and squishy!! Well, at least this one was. I’m not sure one out in the wild would be as friendly. We’ve heard that the bigger ones (up to 4 feet tall) are actually pretty mean. They wouldn’t think twice about clawing you to death.
Being able to hold a koala is a rare treat, holding one when it was awake is even rarer (They sleep 22 hours a day).
Their fur is really soft. On their bottoms they have a cartilage plate that allows them to sleep in a sitting position for long periods of time. This is pretty firm but still covered with the soft fur. You can see from the pictures that they do have really long claws which allows them to hold on tight to the trees. Their hands are actually made up of 2 thumbs and 3 fingers. How would that be?
This experience was so cool. I’m not sure where it would rank on the list of cool things we’ve gotten to do but it would definitely be near the top!
The koalas were the main attraction at the park. In addition to these there were other neat animals. Here’s a few we saw.
There were lizards all over the park, both in cages and out walking free.
Crocodiles having a lazy morning in the sun.
friendly kangaroos
(they were real – they look stuffed but they really were alive).
Long-necked turtles. They looked like a turtle with a snake for it’s head. Kind of creepy.
This lovable animal is the Common Wombat. The kids thought it looked like a furry pig. It’s in the Macropod family with the kangaroo and koala. They have pouches and long claws. The thing that sets them apart is they are a burrowing animal. They dig a hole the exact diameter of their body.
This comes in handy if they are attacked by predators (dingos and other feral dogs). If this were to happen they’d jump down head first into their hole and then plug the opening with their fanny. Their backside is made up off a really hard cartilage plate like the koala. The caretaker told us it could take a significant amount of damage and they wouldn’t even feel it.
This wombat is named Poppy. The lizard in the picture decided a while back that he was going to live with Poppy. He’s moved in and now drives other lizards away. The caretaker said he is free to move around the park but he doesn’t. He just stays here with Poppy. Poppy doesn’t seem to mind, she’s even willing to share her food with him. Kind of funny.
This Kookaburra wasn’t actually in the park but outside in the village. Kookaburras are one of the animals that are famous here (like the kangaroo and wombat – you see them on t-shirts and other things). This one was pretty friendly. We saw him eat out of someone’s hand. When I asked if I could take a picture the gal who was feeding it started to tell me about one she had fed one at home. She said she made the mistake of feeding it a piece of steak, after that it wouldn’t settle for anything else. This kookaburra liked cheese.
As we were leaving the park we saw this van. We thought it was great. How could you not be happy driving around in this van?
Before leaving Kuranda (which is situated about 15k above Cairns) we took the opportunity to go and see Barron Falls. The falls were gorgeous. You could see the falls from the top or take a long ramp down to the bottom of the falls. It was a great day for a hike.
This is a view from the hill as we headed down the mountain back to Cairns. It’s a beautiful area. The Saints here call it heaven.
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