Sand

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Murwillumbah is a small town about an hour north of Byron Bay and so has retained much of its charm. I was staying in a nice hostel by the river; unfortunately my first day was messed up a bit because I had to spend the afternoon in hospital. I had developed sores all over my feet and body which was caused by a bug which lives up your nose. As if that weren’t bad enough the doctor told me that it only usually effects aboriginal children, he said I was a very "special" patient - great! I think the doc felt sorry for me because they didn’t charge me for treatment.
The next day I climbed the largest caldera in the southern hemisphere, Mt Warning. It sounds very grand but it is only big by Australian standards, it measures 1156m tall. The trek passed through several kilometres of rainforest and ended with stunning views up and down the coast from the summit. We could see all the way down to Byron Bay and up to Surfers Paradise.
My next stop up the coast was Hervey Bay which is really just a stepping block to Fraser Island. I had signed up for a three day trip on a self drive 4x4. Fraser is the largest sand island in the world and has been kept almost pristine, they recon that most of the sand eroded from the east coast eventually ends up on Fraser. On day one we drove to Lake Mackenzie which is a huge body of crystal clear fresh water surrounded by fine white sand and a backdrop of rainforest, I can only say it was like swimming in a massive tub of Evian, quite amazing, tasted good too. That afternoon I had a go driving the 4x4, the sand tracks that crisscross the island through thick forest are tremendous fun to drive on & having a 4.2L engine under the bonnet wasn’t bad either. Over the next couple of days we drove up the main highway (a beach) stopping off at all the tourist spots like Eli creek and the shipwreck. All the work involved in camping each night combined with driving all day should have made it a tiring trip but I loved every minute.
On the evening of the third day when we got back from Fraser, I got an overnight bus up to Airlie beach from where I started a day trip around the Whitsunday Islands. These are a group of 74 islands near the coast which offer world famous sailing and beaches. I was transported on a massive motor boat (Ocean Rafting) which whizzed us around the islands for a bit of snorkelling, walking & beaching. We spent most of the afternoon on Whitehaven Beach which has the finest quartz grain sand in the world; I just liked the sand since it squeaked when walked on. That night I got another overnight bus up to Cairns. I am quite tired but still can't wait for my three day diving trip which leaves tomorrow.

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