Fraser Island

Yet again another very early start... Destination Fraser Island for a 4x4 safari.. The largest sand island in the world, apparently!
Day 1 - It was down at the bar in the hostel by 7, ready to be put into groups and sort yourselves out. Luckily a group of chinese people didnt turn up which meant instead of 10 people per jeep it was now only 8. As I was not driving it was up to me to purchase all the alcohol and all the food supplies we would need for 3 days!! The alcohol was the easy bit, the food however wasnt. I had 20 mins to buy all the food we were going to need for 3 days for 8 people, it was just like supermarket sweep without the perma-tanned Dale Winton.
Once I'd purchased all the supplies I rejoined the group just in time for the main man from the 4x4 company to give his "Dingo Aware" speech!! Supposedly if you are attacked by them you should 'fight back aggressively'. Interesting strategy!! With that in mind we headed outside and loaded the jeep. The minute we pulled out on to the road to begin our adventures the rain started to fall.

We made our way to the ferry terminal then over to Fraser. I was expecting at least some tarmac roads on the island but I was very much mistaken. The minute we left the ferry it was dirt roads and 4x4 all the way. The weather wasnt heping much either as it was still pouring down, but thanks to Farmer Phil's expert driving we managed to make our way through the rainforest and across the island to our first stop, Lake Wabby.

Lake Wabby and a massive sand dune

The lake has a massive inland sand dune on one side and the eucalyptus forest on the other with beautiful emerald green water. As the weather has improved a little bit on our trek down to the lake a few of us went for a dip. On the walk to and from the lake we came across a couple of these spiders on either side of the path, i think they are called Golden Orb Spiders and it's about the size of my hand!!

It was back to the van and change of driver. In the hot seat this time was Katie, or should I say Colin McCrae! Oh dear..... Despite the fact we got to the camp site safely a number of us in the back had turned a little white and the seats a little brown!! After a talk about the campsite rules from the ranger it was time to set up the tents, although not before we'd cracked open a few cold beers... With suprising ease we managed to erect our tents and it was down to the cooking area to prepare din dins. Luckily for me, as I'd done the shop earlier in the day i was allowed to sit back and watch with a beer in hand.. Once we'd all eaten it was time to relax, get to know each other and enjoy ourselves. After plenty of drinks and a few humourous drinking games it was lights out at the campsite, so some of the team went to bed while the hardcore (whores of the hops!!), went down to the beach to continue the drinking.

Clockwise from Me, Lyndsay, Wren, Phil, Tim, Katie, Becky and Jo

Et moi, Lynz, Wren and Goldmember

Day 2 - Amazingly I was the first to rise the next morning and was tucking into my rice crispies before anyone else had risen. It was a race to beat the tide this morning as we had to get to the north eastern tip of the island to a place called Indian Head. The only route up there was the beach so we couldnt be late. It was Tims turn in the drivers seat this time and he did very well not to get stuck in the sand at any stage unlike numerous others!

We parked up at Indian Head steering clear of the dingo a couple of yards away, then took the long walk along the beach to Champagne Pools. These pools were supposed to be really nice little pools on the rocks created by the outgoing tide to paddle and swim in. However we were there when the tide was in so they were absolutely rubbish and kept getting hammered by huge waves. A bit dissapointed we headed back to the 4x4 for some lunch and waited for the tide to go out so we could go back down the coast. Luckily the weather had finally broken and was turning out to be a really nice day so it was time to baste up and catch a few rays.

Maheno ship wreck

As we had plenty of time on the way back we stopped off at the Maheno ship wreck to take a few piccies then to a really cool little place called Ely Creek. This a little fast flowing creek which flows out onto the beach. The water is absolutely crystal clear if not a little cold but we spent the next hour or so paddling up and down it like little kids at a water park!! When we'd had enough we went back to the 4x4, dried off and headed back to the camp where we continued with our eating and drinking from the previous evening!!

Day 3 - Yet again, another early morning, and we had to pack up all the tents before we headed out. We had to catch the ferry back to the main land at 4pm and we had alot to get in. First on the agenda was Lake Boomanjin. The weather again could only be described a changable, one minute warm and sunny, the next over cast and peeing it down!! When we arrived at the lake it was a bit rubbish so we made a swift return to the 4x4 and headed out to Lake Birrabean. In contrast to the previous lake, Birrabean was really nice with amazing white sandy beaches and amazing blue water, plus it was deserted which was nice! A few of us got in for a really enjoyable swim then we headed for the most famous of Fraser Islands lakes, Mackenzie. Once we arrived it began to pour down so we made some lunch in the back of the 4x4 and waited for the rubbish weather to pass. Mackenzie was just like Birrabean but a bit larger and alot more people. After a hour of messing around it was time to head for the ferry and the end of our 4x4 safari..

Lake McKenzie

Noosa Heads, Australia