Blogs from Queensland, Australia, Oceania - page 1320

Zaterdag Vandaag de etappe van Tennant Creek naar Mount Isa. Lang! en heel veel zwoot! 650 km gereden in extreme hitte. je ziet in de tussentijd 1 benzinepomp en 2 boerderijen. Het weekend hebben we doorgebracht in Mount Isa. Immers, onze bankpas zou hier op het postkantoor liggen en die ging pas maandag weer open. Een nieuwe tijdzone! Er was niets aangegeven maar we waren ervan overtuigd dat we de klok anderhalf uur vooruit moest waardoor het tijdsverschil met Nederland negen uur zou worden. 's avonds wilden we ff stappen en al snel bleek dat alle kroegen er om 22.00 uur sluiten. Wat een kutzooi! Maar een taxi-chaffeur wist ons te verblijden. Er is Octoberfest in de Buffs. Dat klonk erg goed, echter het zou $10 kosten. Toch maar ff kijken. Daar aangekomen sneakten we er ... read more

We have just been to the Whitsundays and it was basically 'hotter than hell' (our most used phrase of the week!). Luckily, we spent most of our time on a boat with sea breezes and air-conditioned cabins- sheer luxury. We spent 3 days and nights cruising around the gorgeous tropical islands and visiting the best dive and snorkel spots. Many of the coral 'bommies' were so high that they almost reached the surface fron 20 metres below, so were good for snorkelling. The coral and fish life were so colourful. I also got to use my diving certification for the first time since leaving Thailand. For the first dive I was pretty nervous, but everything went ok. Someone else on the trip ran out of air though and had to sprint to the surface - a ... read more

The following is a combined multiple journal entry detailing my weeklong holiday in Noosa November 15, 2000 I arrive in Noosa in a cloud of soup. All good. Great Location. The beach is really close, as are the shops. There is a movie thearter close by. I saw Snatch today. It was another incredible triumph from the creators of Lock, Stock, and 2 Smoking barrels. So far this hostel, Halse Lodge, has a little more of a party atmosphere than I expected. And here I was thinking I was going to get a relaxing, laid back surf holiday. I don't mind though. It definitely has a different vibe as compared to the hostels in the Northern Territory. The hostel does however go into severe lockdown at 11pm. The doors lock, the lights blink out, and the ... read more

We spent a couple of weeks with our three youngsters in the relative warmth of North Queensland. First stop was Great Keppel Island off the coast of Yeppoon. We landed at Rockhampton, and nervously boarded a small six seater aircraft for the short flight out to the island. Eight year old Scott was then very much into anything airborne, and had been salivating for several weeks at the thought of a trip in a small plane. Nine eleven was still a year away, so we probably weren't all that shocked when the pilot asked him if he wanted to take the controls for a few minutes mid-flight. I think Scott knew a bit too much about what could go wrong. He politely declined. No problem thought the pilot, we'll get five year old Emma to fly ... read more

Mt Tibrogagan 27 May 2000 One of the larger Glasshouse Mountains, 364m from the base and so steep you need to use both hands and feet to haul yourself up. I went up with a group from work, climbing early so we could have a champagne and chicken breakfast at the top. We hung around the top a little longer to let the bubbly wear off a bit. As we were about to descend, a guy in a lycra suit came jogging up then jogged back down again. And we were scrambling down on our backsides. We passed several groups but some had started around lunchtime. A storm came over and people were stranded on the mountain. Like Mt Beerwah, this one is also very dangerous when wet. Mt Cooroora 05 Aug 2000 Located near Pomona, ... read more