Enjoy the Cairns region from up on high when you jump into a helicopter with the guys from Skysafari, Port Douglas

I love helicopters. I particularly love the wee, bright yellow machines that Bradley King, the director of Skysafari, flips through the air with the greatest of ease.

I loved it so much that I now want to learn to fly one! Bradley said he’d give me a job once I got my pilot’s license' which was nice of him.

The joy of seeing Cairns and the Port Douglas region from air comes from the ease at which visitors can see just about everything and many things that would take a whole lot longer to see by car.

On a trip from the Skysafari ground just outside Port Douglas north of Cairns, we flew over the village of Port, up the coast skimming over cute little beachside townships and west into the rainforest covered hills of Mossman and beyond.

Skysafari is a personalised air touring company.

They can create packages, tours and trips that are specially suited to people’s particular tastes.

Interested in fishing?

Then get Bradley and his partner, the lovely Za Harricharan, to design a four-day trip up to Cape York to some of the best fishing spots; they’ll even organise the catering.

Looking to make your proposal just that more spectacular than anyone else’s?

Why not take your beloved for a heli trip to the outer reef where you can indulge in a romantic dinner for two on a deserted coral cay?

You don’t have to head to Port Douglas either, the company can pick you up from Cairns or they can be your personal transport out to Green Island.

Skysafari tours include hard to reach locations in Cape York and areas over the Great Barrier Reef and the tropical rainforest.

The helis are either the Robinson 44 Clipper II helicopter, carrying 3 passengers plus the pilot – this was the sexy little sports heli I flew in – or the Bell Jet Ranger 206 allowing for 4 passengers plus pilot.

All the pilots and ground staff are local which means that they’ve got a number of 'secret' spots up their sleeves.

Bradley took us for a scenic trip over the magnificent Mossman Gorge, and around a beautiful waterfall that would take hours and hours to reach by foot.

The company also does more usual helicopter work like passenger transfers, aerial film work and photography, aerial survey, sling operations, feral animal control, power line and pipeline inspection, mineral exploration, surveillance and incendiary dropping.

However it’s the scenic tours that really get them excited.

Bradley knows a lot about the Cairns region and can explain everything from the ancient agricultural skills of the local indigenous tribes to the various habits of birdlife in the region.

Helicopter tours aren’t exactly cheap, they start at about $365 per person, but it certainly gives visitors a unique experience of the Cairns and Port Douglas region.

It’s also really fast. An hour long trip by car can be translated into 15 minutes by heli – more time to spend indulging in the fantastic environment.

But it’s the pure joy of flying through the air, peering down at the ground as emerald and sapphire shades flash by, that makes a trip by helicopter a ‘must do’ activity while you’re visiting the tropical north.

Skysafari Helicopter Tours, Port Douglas Microlight Air Field, Port Douglas, +61 7 4099 3666 or email admin@skysafari.com.au

Share this article