June 8, 2025, 5:41 am | Read time: 7 minutes
Our author Anna Wengel (Chiodo) is currently in Australia and has visited the Daintree Rainforest. Located in Queensland, it is the oldest rainforest in the world. She shares her spectacular and eerie experiences there on TRAVELBOOK.
“Actually, crocodiles don’t jump into the boat, although…” A loud splash next to the boat interrupts the guide on the Daintree River in his storytelling. The man sitting closest to the splash jumps up, a mother grabs her child, and then there’s a moment of silence. It’s finally broken by the laughter of the previously startled man. Just a fish, albeit a large one, possibly a small shark, as the guide explains there in the Daintree Rainforest. But at least not a crocodile dragging one of us into the depths. That hasn’t happened in years.
We have already seen a few on this trip over the mangrove-framed river in the Daintree Rainforest. The rainforest is located in northeastern Australia, in the state of Queensland, and is the oldest tropical rainforest in the world: the forest is said to be more than 135 million years old. Since 1988, the 1,200-square-kilometer rainforest has been part of the Wet Tropics of Queensland UNESCO World Heritage site. Seventy adult “Salties,” or saltwater crocodiles, and numerous juveniles are said to live here according to an information page on the Daintree Rainforest, which the guide says is about 20 percent of the population that once existed in this region. After years of hunting crocodiles, which caused the population to plummet to an extreme minimum, a hunting ban was finally enacted in 1974. Since then, crocodiles here may neither be injured nor killed.
Crocodile Tour on the Daintree River
Crocodiles are the dominant theme in the Daintree Rainforest and its surroundings. Yet the rainforest itself is ancient and home to many other remarkable animals. Some are venomous, like the box jellyfish or the death adder. Others seem rather cute or fascinating–such as the tree kangaroo, the kingfisher, or the absurd-looking but by no means harmless cassowaries.
Overall, the dense forest with its palms, vines, and more than 3,000 plant species is home to 107 mammal, 368 bird, and 113 reptile species. But no, it’s mainly the crocodiles that are supposed to accompany my family and me today on our first exploration of the rainforest. And judging by the other travelers, we’re not the only ones particularly on the lookout for the giant reptiles and unable to fully relax.
We see three crocodiles up close in and by the river. One of them is a female lying in the water right next to our solar boat (cover photo). The guide estimates her length at about three meters. Nearby, there’s supposed to be a nearly five-meter-long male. It doesn’t show up, which doesn’t necessarily feel better. Especially because the guide repeatedly explains that crocodiles lurk unseen by humans just below the water’s surface and only emerge at the last moment to attack with a quick movement. They eventually drag their victims underwater and sometimes park them in a rock ledge or similar for several days before consuming them. I’ll spare the accompanying stories here. Just this much: There have already been several crocodile victims in the Daintree River. And: I hold my rather free-spirited child more often than usual today.
Also interesting: Alligator or Crocodile? How to Tell the Difference
Uneasy Feeling at Cape Tribulation
The boat ride is over after an hour, but the impressions and especially the guide’s stories linger for a long time. Particularly the repeated admonition that in regions where there are saltwater crocodiles, simply don’t go into the water anywhere. Not even into the sea. Not even to the edge. Not at all. That’s exactly what I think about when we arrive at Cape Tribulation a little later. We cross the Daintree River by ferry (49 AUD for a round trip, roughly 28 euros)–incidentally, the only way to cross the river–and onto the Cape Tribulation Road, the road that leads through the rainforest up to the cape.
For those who recognize the name Cape Tribulation: At TRAVELBOOK, we wrote about this beach a few years ago. In this text: The Dream Beach Where Everything Is Dangerous.
Upon arriving at the parking lot, a small path leads to the beach, where a sign warns of crocodiles in the area. It also says: “Crocodiles live in this area. Stay away from the water’s edge and do not enter the water (…).” It won’t be the last sign of the day. Next to it is a sign warning of jellyfish and another welcoming us to the Great Barrier Reef. The beach itself is an almost untouched dream. Hardly anyone is there when we arrive on the bright wet sand by the light blue sea. The rainforest nestles picturesquely against the beach and water, and I see what I had only read on signs before: “Where the forest meets the sea.” Cape Tribulation is truly stunning. And I’ve rarely felt so uneasy on a beach.
Dangerous and Stunningly Beautiful: Thornton Beach
The single-lane road through the most beautiful rainforest takes us back a bit, to another beach, which the guide hinted at in the morning and which I later confirmed in my research: Nearly ten years ago, a woman lost her life here. Dragged into the sea by a crocodile and eaten. Her friend tried to save her but, of course, couldn’t do anything against the animal.
Once again, I feel uneasy today as we walk past densely growing trees along a barely visible path to Thornton Beach. This beach, too, is a dreamlike postcard scene. It’s longer than Cape Tribulation, curving along the most beautiful tropical forest. Across the way lies a small, wooded island. Again, only a few people are around today. No one jumps into the water or even goes near it. Although the weather would be ideal and the beach looks more than inviting. And would certainly make for good pictures.
Ko Tarutao is Thailand’s Little-Known Island Paradise
This Is the Most Venomous Island in the World
The Dominican Republic, beyond the tourist enclaves
Increased Fear of Crocodiles
Exhausted from the heat and constant tension, we finally head home. Back on the sometimes narrow, winding road in the Daintree Rainforest, along a fascinatingly dense vegetated cliff. Past dense forest and, where it clears, views of the light blue water of the world-famous Great Barrier Reef. Past a wild boar by the roadside, numerous other crocodile warning signs, streams, and small rivers in the dense rainforest, always on the lookout for more crocodiles.
I return with an increased fear of crocodiles and a new insight thanks to the guide: Spiders, snakes, and the like may bite, but the saltwater crocodile is the only creature in Australia that aims to eat humans. That’s as reassuring as it is unsettling (and not 100 percent accurate!). But it changes the perspective at least a little. Even so, I still don’t intend to be stung, bitten, or accidentally considered prey by another Australian animal.
Hardly back at the vacation apartment, I can’t resist and start googling–a mistake, as it quickly turns out. The internet is full of crocodile stories from the area, some of them hair-raising. As beautiful as it is here and as much as I’ve grown fond of the Daintree Rainforest–one thing has never been clearer to me than now: I don’t want to live in a place where crocodiles are also at home.