George Hayward, 2012 North Queensland Sustainability student blogger, writes:

Learning the trade

The first thing on the agenda today was a trip to the Canopy Crane Research Station. After a thorough briefing of all the plants and animals on the site that could harm us (this is customary in Australia) we broke into groups and participated in tree measurement and analysis. The research we were helping with was that of reforestation, and we were measuring the trees’ size, health, and growth as part of a longitudinal study. It was exciting to have some real field experience as part of a research project that could make meaningful usage of our data. We also got to see a wild cassowary! It was just walking around nonchalantly – much to our relief. For all the times we were warned about them though it was cool to actually see one!

Breathtaking views

Afterward, we all got to go up into their state-of-the-art canopy crane. As one might infer, it’s a massive crane that operates along a lever arm which allows the crane to duck and dive among an acre of canopy! The views were breath taking and it offers a perspective that so few people ever get to see. I thought it was an incredibly serene atmosphere, as the chaos of the lower rainforest trees, vines, branches, and leaves suddenly disappear and everything becomes a green carpet of undulating hills. I was actually surprised to find out that they don’t do marriage proposals up there!