Rain, Rainbow Beach and more Rain

After spending a nice couple of days relaxing in Agnes Water. The Oz Ex took me down the road to a quaint little place on the East Coast that goes by the name of Rainbow Beach. Home to probably more backpackers and holiday homes than actual residents, it feels fractured and un-centered. The main business in this town is four wheel drive hire for those intrepid explorers that want to gallivant along the sands of Fraser Island. Though Fraser can also be reached from Hervey Bay, it is Rainbow that is closer and more synonymous with the World's largest sand island.

The town is spread out and has about as much character and charm as a lamppost, with everything closing a little after the sun has set. Still for a couple of days it shouldn't be too bad.

Well event conspired so that I'd have to wait 4 days before I could get out to Fraser. 4 days of walking and drinking and reading and eating and reading and drinking, anything to pass the hours. But the hostel was nice and the people were friendly, so the time just flew by.

Down on the beach, there is little to suggest the name of the town was inspired by the colour of the sand, still I'm told that it is. The beach though is a nice place to spend a couple of days. The surf reminiscent of the north coast of Devon and Cornwall, but with more beached 4x4's. The Aussies do seem to have a thing for actually using their four wheel drive vehicles for what they're meant to be used for (as in not the Chelsea school run). So all day there are Jeeps and land cruisers belting along the sands. Not all of them make it back off the beach though.

So the days rolled on and eventually it was time for the Fraser Island introductory talk. This is the first glimpse at the group that you will spend the next 3 days couped up inside the 11 person Land Cruiser. After the mandatory instructional DVD about the natural beauty of Fraser and dangers of the wild dingos. We split into 3 groups, 2 of 11 and 1 of 10, after getting to know my group over the insurance forms we embarked on the shopping expedition. Everything you eat and drink has to be bought off the island. Which meant one hell of a shopping list. I strategically left the organisation and decision making to the others in my group and did my own snack shopping.

What followed was probably the most surreal couple of days I have had the pleasure of living. Not only is 75 mile beach used by offroaders but also by light aircraft and the occasional UFO. The surf is too rough and shark infested for any swimming so the nice beaches are actually by the lakes inland. The mud tracks go on forever when you're sitting past the rear axle holding on to the badly shaking door with nothing but a broken seatbelt to secure you to the seat.

The food we cooked was of a better quality and more balanced than anything I've eaten so far down the east coast. Nothing can beat a good burger or hotdog, especially when camping on the beach with dingos for neighbours. Still they didn't seem to complain when the drinking games got lewd, rude and crude, but it's funny just how late 8pm can seem when the sun goes down at 6. It's also funny how after a night of heavy drinking you can be wide awake at 6 the next morning ready to load up and ship out.

Heading inland it started to rain. Then it continued to rain and after a while it kept raining. We arrived at lake McKenzie, where it was also raining, for some much needed breakfast. In the rain, the waters of the lake seem positively warm, swimming in the rain gets you wet and keeps you wet all day no matter how well you dry yourself. I am now an expert in being cold and wet.

So maybe we didn't quite stick to the itinerary which was only a suggested plan anyway. And maybe we crashed a campsite for the second night but we were rewarded the next morning with beautiful skies of blue and a sun of gold. Back we went to lake McKenzie transformed by the sun into a pool of paradise. The white sand merged into the light blues of the shallows and then into the dark blues of the deep.

All too soon it was time to break camp and head back to the ferry, unload our personal effects at the hostel and return the bitch back to where she came from. The trip was a blur, 3 days blended by rain, bumps, friends, fun and eventually the sun.

All that remains is to thank our drivers who did battle with vehicle and Island alike and won, and the great guys and girls who rode with me for a truly different experience.

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