David Attenborough described the Daintree as ‘the most extraordinary place on Earth.’ The Daintree is a lush tropical rainforest with some of the rarest plants in the world, and it’s rich with the Indigenous culture of the Kuku Yalanji people.
The Daintree Rainforest is home to some of the world’s most unique and rarest plants and animals.
Tightly rooted into the Daintree Rainforest is 50,00 years’ worth of Aboriginal culture and history. The Kuku Yalanji Aboriginal People are spiritually and culturally bound to the land of the Daintree Rainforest.
The wildlife is almost otherworldly and extraordinary, and the cultural fabrics of the forest consist of practices that have dictated the lifestyles of the Aboriginal people for the entirety of the time they’ve lived here.
The cycles of weather dictated their lifestyle. Indigenous inhabitants of the land have been here for 50,000 years. The traditional country expands from Mossman’s south, up to Cooktown.
What happens in a smoking ceremony?
Smoking ceremonies are a way to cleanse the space. Native plants are dried and then burned, and the area is cleansed of all the bad spirits. Normally, tree bark peels are used in this process.
The smoke is said to have healing properties, so that when it’s burned off, it will cleanse the area of bad spirits.
If you do a walking tour around Mossman Gorge, you might be lucky enough to experience this interesting smoking ceremony. Then, your dreamtime walk will show you the enchanting Daintree rainforest and how Indigenous people have harnessed its power to thrive in their communities.
Traditional plant uses in the Daintree are fascinating. They’re used to make bush soaps, involved in creating ochre paintings, as well as used for ceremonial practices like energy cleansing.
Take a tour
See the Daintree for for yourself! Take a tour around Mossman Gorge, where you can do a Dreamtime walk with an indigenous guide, who will demonstrate and explain how the rainforest is used as a means of food, medicine and shelter.