crystal cascades and the game of life

First off, I need to thank my seven loyal followers. Though small in number, rest assured that you all have great taste. I hope you all keep tuning in. Also, I was psyched to hear about the Colby football team taking down Bates and Tufts. Wish I could have seen it.

I’m creeping up on a month in Cairns now and I’m starting to feel the itch to move on. Cairns is fun but it’s getting old. It’s the same scene at every club, every night. Not much variety. It’s tough to argue with a steady paycheck but I’m beginning to feel like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. And there’s only so many times you can run into Ned Ryerson. I figure I’ll spend a couple more weeks here, buy a used car and steer south.

I posted my first batch of photos on facebook yesterday. Not my best effort but there’s a few good ones. The three spots in the album are Port Douglas, Crystal Cascades, and Ochre Beach (where I spend the night with some friends). Port Douglas is a day-trip tourist spot that offers streetside shops, cafes, and a nice beach. Not much there, but a pleasant way to spend an afternoon if you’re looking to take a walk or lie on a beach. Crystal Cascades was much more interesting.

It felt like I was walking through a cross between a rainforest and a New England stream with water holes and small falls. Five of us walked up stream on a paved path, passing several swimming pools and falls until we came to the final waterfall. It looked like a small gorge, with two steep rock faces on either side of a narrow but deep pool of water. Towards the end of the pool were two waterfalls that fed the entire stream. There were some good sized fish in there too. Made me wish I brought my fly rod.

The main attraction in Crystal Cascades, apart from a scenic overlook, is cliff jumping. On either side of the gorge there were places to jump at varying height intervals. Luckily, there was a group of local teenagers who showed me the spots that were safe, and of course, the highest one.

It was on the opposite side of the pool, and I had to climb a rope in order to scramble up the first few meters of rocks. At the end of the rope, I had to navigate the rest of the way on my own. It took me at least five minutes to get up to my spot, and that was the first time I looked down. It wasn’t comforting. I really couldn’t tell you how high it was, but the scene from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid came to mind. But I couldn’t walk away from it at that point. Besides, climbing down was a hell of a lot more dangerous than jumping. I took a small rock out of my pocket because the local kids told me that it was best to break the surface of the water before jumping. This was probably for the best, because when jumping from that kind of height, and without much room for error, the hardest part is forcing yourself to actually jump. Once you throw the rock, within a few seconds you have to jump. So I dropped the rock, and followed it down to the water. It was worth it.

I swam back to my group and got a few high fives. I was sure to lift my leg when high-fiving. This was one of the rules of the “Game of Life”. One of the reasons I like spending time with people from different countries is being introduced to their kinds of nonsensical games, contests, and different ways to have fun. These people were from the UK, and recently introduced me to the game of Life. As a participant in the game, you may never use the word “mine” and upon giving or receiving a high-five you must lift a leg. Failure to do so on either account results in ten push-ups, to be completed immediately. Of course, you understand, as I previously wrote the word which shall not be spoken, I did not actually speak it, so I am exempt from said push-ups.

Ten push-ups really isn’t a hefty penalty, but it’s more the shame of having to complete them while your friends look on and make fun of you. It goes without saying that it’s best to catch your friends off guard in very public and therefore humiliating places. I’ve seen push-ups done in supermarkets, nightclubs, and sidewalks. I was determined to never be caught. I resolved to be on guard at all times. This game feasts on the dim-witted and the abent-minded. I knew I would be OK.

On the walk back to our car, one of my friends was carrying my camera because he had been taking some pictures of me on the rock ledge. He examined the camera and said, “Hey this is a pretty nice camera, whose is it anyway?”

Ten push-ups later, I discovered the game of Life sneaks up on you.