Obligatory East Coast Adventure: Day 16

As well as rum and the worst backpacker accommodation ever, Bundaberg is also home to Mon Repos which is where Loggerhead Turtles come to nest when in season. It just so happened to be right at the start of the season so we booked ourselves some tickets at the Visitor Info centre and rocked up to look at a big turtle squeezing some eggs out of its minge. The things we pay to see. We were told to get down there before 7pm so we did and got savaged my mozzies, I swear everything in Bundaberg is out to get me. It was also bloody freezing and they told us that we might we here for hours before a turtle rocked up, that's even if we saw one, the welts left by the bloodsuckers and the potential hypothermia could all be in vain.

I think we were there for 10 minutes before they rushed in, a turtle had started crawling up the beach early tonight, we were herded to where she was and were grouped behind her. She couldn't hear us, our frequency is different to theirs and she couldn't see us so she began digging her little hole for her eggs, completely oblivious to the hoard of people stood gaping at her arse. Once she started laying that was it, she was committed. We were allowed to move around as the team measured her, checked for tags and wrote down stats then we were given a short window where we could take photos, not too many though, as the guy pointed out, one photo of a nesting turtle is pretty much the same as another.

And to be honest that would have been fine for us. We were cold and itchy and just wanted to head back and buy fish and chips from the van out the front but they wouldn't let us despite a subtle attempt to slink off into the dark, we were stuck here until she'd finished laying and gone back to the water. That's the last time I pay for nature, I'll stick to David Attenbrough shows from now on, at least you can watch stuff breed from the comfort of a warm room with a pizza and a drink.

Ok, obviously Bundaberg didn't set my world on fire, mainly because of the weather and accommodation I think but its definitely worth a look. The rum tour is cool and the turtle thing really is interesting, don't miss out on it just because I'm a miserable, cynical bitch without insect repellent.

written by

Koala Bear on November 15, 2007 from Bundaberg, Australia

from the travel blog: Sod Off Great Big Mission Round Oz

tagged RoadTrip, LovinIt and EastCoast

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