Queensland Outdoor Activities

Cairns owes its tourist town status in large part to its warm winters and proximity to the Great Barrier Reef. At night, travelers stay in town and drink at local pubs, but when the sun comes up, the crowd dies down. From the break of dawn until early evening, the town empties as tourists head outside the city limits to enjoy thrills, bumps, and spills for reasonable prices. Activities can be booked through hostels or any one of the dozens of tourist centers in Cairns . Most companies offer free pickup and dropoff. Booking isn’t necessary, however, to enjoy open-air markets and bountiful outdoor dining.

Cable-Skiing.  Cable Ski Cairns offers waterskiing, wakeboarding, and kneeboarding sans boat. Beginners are readily welcomed. (Off the Captain Cook Hwy. ☎07 4038 1304; www.cableskicairns.com.au. Open daily 10am-6pm; $34 per hr., under 16 $16 per hr., full-day $68.)

Cycling.  Bandicoot Bicycle Tours offers a day of cycling, wildlife-spotting, swimming in a volcano crater, and relaxing in the tablelands above Cairns. Guests enjoy trips to waterfalls, giant fig trees, and swimming holes. Lunch, tea, tropical fruit, and cold water are included. (☎07 4055 0155; www.bandicootbicycles.com. Trips depart M-F 8am, return 5:30pm. $99. Free pickup. Cash only.)

Bungee Jumping. You may know it as “bungee” but to AJ Hackett, it’s “bungy,” slang in New Zealand for “elastic strap.” This wild Kiwi knows a thing or two about the sport—ask him about bungy jumping off the Eiffel Tower (and getting arrested for it), then sign up for one of his (legal) Australian jumps. Try one of 16 styles of jumps, including one that requires jumping off of a speeding BMX bike, if you’re feeling adventurous. Night bungy or parabungy (combination of parasailing and bungy jump) on request. $125 gets you a jump, transfer, certificate, and T-shirt. $5 insurance fee. (☎07 4057 7188 or 1800 622 888; www.ajhackett.com. Open daily 10am-5pm.)

Fishing. Fishermen can cast their own bait, then tow the line with Fishing The Tropics, which runs its 6m boat around the Great Barrier Reef, in the Cairns estuary, or in the Daintree River. (☎07 4058 1820. Reef $215; estuary ½-day $85, river full-day $170. Both include lunch, full bait, and tackle. Book ahead.) VIP Fishing & Game Boat Services offers similar packages, along with others featuring fly- and shark-fishing, or black marlin-hunting from June to December. (☎07 4031 4355. ½-day trips around $85, full-day around $160.)

Parasailing And Skydiving. This is your chance to parasail 300 ft. above Trinity Inlet. North Queensland WaterSports (☎07 4045 2735) offers parasailing and jet skiing from $199. Skydive Cairns, 82 Grafton St. (☎07 4031 5466 or 1800 444 568), runs solo and tandem jumps. (Tandem: 9000 ft. $210; 14,000 ft. $295. Solo: 14000 ft. $45). Reservations are recommended, but not necessary.

Whitewater Rafting.  Foaming Fury offers a portage-style rafting trip that begins with a hike through dense jungle to the wild rapids of the secluded Russell River. (☎07 4031 3460. $130, includes lunch.) They also lead tamer trips down the comparatively gentle Barron River. However, that’s where most rafting tours operate; be aware that it can become crowded on busy days. R’n’R Rafting offers several options, including multi-day and family packages. (☎07 4035 3555, 24hr. reservations 4041 9444. ½-day $98, full-day on Tully River $155. $25 levy fee.) Raging Thunder Adventures boasts similar trips, including combination packages that offer activities like ballooning, bungee jumping, skydiving, and reef trips (24hr. reservations ☎07 4030 7990).

Motorcycling.  Cape York Motorcycle Adventures (☎07 4059 0220; www.capeyorkmotorcycles.com.au.) leads truly adventurous dirt-bike safaris. On their two- to eight-day trips into Cape York, Darwin, and Broome, you can ride through river crossings, along the ocean, up mountains into the rainforest, and across national parks. Enjoy a significantly cheaper adventure if you own your own bike. (2-day $848, 5-day $3400; camping and meals provided.)