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Here we are in 1770, the only town to have a name that's a number...FACT! The town derives its name from being the place where Captain James Cook first came ashore in 1770 (after Botany Bay in Sydney) in what is now the state of Queensland. Pretty cool eh? And its also a great opportunity for some HILARIOUS conversations. Observe..
'I went surfing in 1770'
'Crikey, that's a long time ago. You should try it again sometime'
It is definitely mine and Lara's favourite place on the East coast to date. A lot more sedate than Noosa or Byron, with the type of backpacker scene we like best..chilled, friendly and with a goodish surf. Unfortunately, it is definitely on the rise so I am glad we came here now. Apparently the council is strictly defending its 9m maximum new build height but we will see! Cool Bananas is the best hostel we have stayed in to date with sofas, a tv and a kitchen which closes 3 times a day to be cleaned. Sweet! Luckily the weather has picked up too which means that we have been able to do some really cool stuff. All the activities here
are organised by the locals so there is much less of a touristy feel than some of the other places we have been / will go in the next few days.
As a result, the last few days here have been some of the best we have had in Australia. We spent yesterday cruising around Agnes Water on mini harleys which was awesome, before tucking into some wedges and a beer as we watched the sun go down. There is no feeling quite as exhilirating as whacking a bike up to 80km per hour going downhill with the ocean panning out below you. It really reminded us of Asia and is a great way to end things on. But with the weather so good it seemed almost stupid not to do one of the other activities on offer. So, WE FLEW A PLANE, ACTUALLY FLEW A REAL LIFE PLANE WHICH GOES IN THE AIR. ME, LARA ORR FROM LONDON! When we arrived at the airfield and saw the 2 seater jambiroo it was a lot smaller than I imagined. Obviously, Andrew had to go up first. It was the first flight of the day and I was not willing
to risk my own life or limbs, and rightly so. Only 3 minutes after take off the plane had to land as their was not enough air speed. Luckily, Bruce, the pilot was used to hysterical women and on landing I declared that I want a pilots license. A BIG step forwards considering that normally every small bump in a 747 sends me into near cardiac arrest. We will remain to see what happens when I get on the aeroplane again. It really was awesome though. Flying over the coast we had THE most amazing views of the area and the reef and he even managed to pull a few stunts such as simulating zero gravity where you float in the plane, pulling from side to side and up and down. This was all before he let me take control. Yes I flew a plane and moved it up and down and left to ride and then round a corner (of sorts). Cooooool! Although Andrew's ride was a lot rougher than mine there was still too much wind to land it on the beach and let us take off unfortunately. Maybe we will try again tomorrow.
It is still
pretty cold here and after the heat goes out the sun it is time to don the jumpers and run inside. We have finally managed to watch Wolf Creek before leaving Australia too which is cool. You could not see a more gruesome film and boy am I glad that we left watching that until AFTER we gave back Berryl. If you are planning to backpack round Oz in a camper DO NOT WATCH IT. YOU WILL DIE. We also managed to see those hairy diving wops whack Germany out of the World Cup. We were convinced that we would be able to watch loads of the footie on the East Coast but have not seen ANY England games and have only managed to watch Italy kick out Australia and then Germany. The time difference is a bitch.
Next stop up was Myella Farm. As Lara had never ridden a horse before she had decided it was something that she wanted to try before coming home. BIG MISTAKE. Although Andrew is somewhat of a pro and horseriding came back like it was only yesterday he had last dismounted, it did not work out so well for Lara. She climbed
onto Stardust no worries but when we stopped for a break up on the land surrounding the farm he threw a bit of a spaz and just as her last foot was in the stirrup he started to freak. She was pretty calm after that but it all went horribly wrong after tea. She decided given the last episode to enlist the help of one of the workers who was holding the reins as she climbed on. Just as she sat down and before the reins were given back the horse freaked again and started bucking and jumping around. It is a miricle she stayed on by holding on with her her hands and I think the owners were more than a little concerened that she would fall and get trampled. In fact considering it was the first time she had been on a horse everyone was impressed. Instead, she looked like the rodeo pro and with only mimimul screaming and crying the horse settled again and we rode back. It was all pretty surreal and I think the lack of tears and freaking out from Lara was mainly due to shock. She said she had flashbacks to those bucking
bronco's at the fair and was determined to stay on longer than Ben did (remember his attempt gash?) It would not have been a good look to be coming home in a wheelchair like Christopher Reeve, if not a body bag. Last of the dangerous sports I think!
We also managed to ride trail bikes around a dirt track. It was bloody easy. Motorbikes with gears are a piece of piss and I even managed to stand up. Even Lara did not fall off which is a surprise given her last attempt at riding a quad bike with gears. In fact she was the first to be up and off. So, we need a plane, a motorbike for work and then another for trailbike riding......long christmas list. Give the horses a miss though.
The visit here was short and sweet and asides of the surf and a bit of sunbathing we have to move on. With only a few days left to travel up the rest of the coast its onwards and upwards to sail the Whitsundays. The days are flying by now.
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