Blogs from Moreton Island, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, Oceania

We woke up early because this day it was off to Moreton Island. Moreton Island is located 75 minutes from Brisbane, and is one of the world’s largest sand islands (Fraser Island is the largest, and we will visit it later on). We headed off to Port of Brisbane where we took a MICAT ferry to the island. On the way there we saw dolphins jumping beside the ferry for a while and keeping us company, which was exciting because it was the first time we saw wild dolphins, it is a big difference to see them out in the wild than see them in a zoo. When we came to the island we had a lot of activities to chose from; snorkeling, swimming, hiking, fishing, sand boarding etc. We wanted to do all of it ... read more

Our trip back was taken via the inland road and our first stop was Charters Towers after turning off the coast road at Townsville and travelling south west for 90 minutes. From a chance discovery of gold in 1872 by a young Aboriginal horse boy, Charters Towers soon turned into a bustling metropolis, which in its heyday boasted being the second largest city in Queensland. At the height of the gold rush the town included 11 crushing mills, 65 hotels and one of the very first regional Stock Exchanges in Australia which still stands proudly today. There are many old buildings which are magnificent and also heritage listed. It was also a significant allied military base in World War II as there are some 30 concrete bunkers dotted throughout the hills around Towers Hills close to ... read more

Hannah and I woke up at the crack of dawn this morning and got ready for a massive day out on Moreton Island. We took the local bus to a rundown hostel down the road where we waited to be picked up by the tour company. Eventually a beaten up 4WD stopped and our tour guide with his long dreads came out and met us, it was going to be an interesting day. We introduced ourselves to everyone in the 4WD as we drove towards the marina which was a good hour away. We had been told that this tour includes lunch which led us to believe something will have been prepared or waiting for us when the time came. However on the way to the marina our tour guide stopped at Subway and picked up ... read more