AN AMERICAN tourist who lost $US40,000 ($53,000) after being assaulted and robbed on a bush track in Edge Hill says he holds no grudges against the people of Australia but just wants his money back.

Cairns police yesterday issued an urgent warning to all employees at currency exchange bureaus across the Far North, urging them to be careful when accepting US dollars.

The victim, John Markewicz of Washington state, said he was walking along a path just north of the Botanic Gardens when he was pushed to the ground by two young men on pushbikes and his backpack, which contained the currency, was ripped from his shoulders.

Mr Markewicz, 56, gave chase, and later found his backpack and towel, but his cash, his passport and phone were missing.

The two assailants were also nowhere to be seen.

Mr Markewicz said he was holding the cash because he had originally travelled to Australia to purchase a boat and sail back home across the Pacific Ocean via Hawaii and other islands.

Mr Markewicz said frustratingly, he had recently abandoned his plan after he failed to find the right boat for the right price, and was due to purchase a flight home that afternoon.

“I wanted to take the boat home, moor it, live on it; a lot of people do it there,” Mr Markewicz said.

He said he felt no animosity to Australia after the attack.

“It can happen anywhere – I feel safer here than in Honolulu,” he said. “There are bad people everywhere – it could happen to anybody.

“Just give it back.”

Disorientated after the attack, Mr Markewicz did not get a good look at his assailants, only able to tell police they were young men and one was blond.

Detective Sergeant Sheridan Heaton urged all currency exchange workers to contact the Cairns CIB on 4030 7139 if they had any suspicions regarding US dollars.

“He’s chased after them and found the backpack and towel on the track but nothing else,” she said.

Because the thieves also stole Mr Markewicz’s passport, he will now have to travel to Sydney to collect a new one from the United States Consulate.