We arrive at the park in South Mission Beach. We chose this park from the Oz guide book because it is known for having Cassowary sightings. The woman who checks us in says that there has been a Cassowary with chicks hanging around the campground lately at various times of day!
Cassowaries are 4 to 6 feet tall and have knife-like claws on their feet that are up to seven inches long. They have been known to disembowel humans with one kick. Cassowaries have a 3 to 5 inch tall growth on the top of their heads, called a casque, which is used to produce low, thrumming sounds for communication in the rainforest. I’ve heard these sounds from Cassowaries in the captivity. It’s an otherworldly sound as it is so low it’s on the edge of frequencies humans can hear. There are only 1000 to 1500 of these huge, prehistoric birds left in Australia.
We find our spot and set up the Trakka for our stay. Setting up consists of parking, putting up the awning, pulling out the fake grass rug to keep from dragging dirt inside and setting up the camp table and chairs. Oh yeah, and popping a couple of brewskis.
A lovely older Aussie couple wanders over and confirms that they have seen the Cassowaries. I’m getting more and more excited!
It’s dinnertime, so I take some cobs of corn down to the camp kitchen to shuck the husks off for our dinner. The kitchen is an open-air shelter at the end of the driveway where we have parked. The only amenities are couple of sinks and counters. On the other side of the driveway is a grassy area. With my back to the lawn, I wash and shuck the corn. When I gather up the cleaned cobs and turn around to return to the Trakka, there is a large Cassowary standing on the other side of the driveway staring at me. He’s less than 10 feet away, so I freeze.
Several thoughts fly through my mind:
1. A Cassowary! I’m looking at a Cassowary!
2. He’s looking very intense.
3. He’s not looking at me, he’s looking at my corn!
4. I’m not supposed to feed wildlife.
5. He could kill me for the corn!
6. I‘d better get out of here!
I hold the corn very close to my body and hunch over it to try to make the corn invisible and start to walk quickly back up the driveway to the Trakka. After a few steps, I look back and he’s FOLLOWING ME! He’s just trotting along after me, a couple of feet past my elbow.
Crap! What now? Drop the corn and run or just keep walking? I decide to just keep walking and hope for the best. As I’m getting closer to the Trakka I think, “If he’s still behind me when I get back to the Trakka I’ll ask Bruce if I can keep him because he followed me home”. This makes me giggle hysterically for a second. I rush around the side of the Trakka and look back, and the Cassowary is nowhere to be seen. I put the corn in the van and slowly creep back down the driveway toward the grassy area. There he is, and he has a chick with him! Wait, maybe this is a Mommy! I run back to the Trakka and grab the camera, hoping for a picture. I get one shot before they disappear into the bush. My heart is about to pound out of my chest from an equal amount of fear and elation. Be careful what you ask for. My childhood dream came true but I almost had a cardiac event in the process!
June 15, 2003 – We see the Cassowaries again this morning on the lawn area between the parking spaces for the caravans. There is an adult and two chicks. I try to take some pictures, but the adult starts to come for me like she wants to eat my camera, so I back off.
Quite a crowd of other campers assemble to see the birds. One of the men in the crowd tells me that the adult is a male, not a female. He explains that the female lays the eggs, then leaves the rest to Dad. He sits on the eggs for about 50 days and hatches the chicks, then feeds, protects and trains the chicks for another 7 months. The female moves on to lay eggs in other nests for other males to care for. Smart girl…
Since I’ve now had my Cassowary sighting we decide to move to the other caravan park in Mission Beach where the camping spaces are larger. The park is also closer to town and the beach.
In downtown Mission Beach we email from an internet café, buy some cassette tapes for the long road trip ahead and also pick up a couple of tropical sundresses and a swimsuit. I’ve been warned that it is hot, hotter and hottest as we head farther north so I want to be prepared.
