Blogs from Eungella, Queensland, Australia, Oceania

Having returned to Hervey Bay after spending three glorious days on Fraser Island, Linda and I were dismayed to realize that we were by now already three-quarters of the way through our two-month road-trip - leaving us with just two more weeks of adventure on the open road before our rental campervan was due back at the Wicked Campers depot in Cairns. It seems the longer the holiday, the more dreadful the thought of that holiday coming to an end... But since our trip hadn't yet reached it's conclusion, we packed early (Thursday 19th November) and followed the main road west out of Hervey Bay until we eventually re-joined the Bruce Highway; only to then turn off less than an hour later and take the Isis Highway straight into Bundaberg, where after stocking up on groceries ... read more

After the rainforests of the far north, we headed south down the coast through endless sugar cane plantations with occasional mango orchards and water melon patches. In Mission Beach we stayed for a couple of days in a hostel, set on a hill in the rainforest with a great view of the coastline. We walked some of Mission's 10 miles of sandy beaches amazed at how beautiful and undeveloped it was. Mission has a population of only 4000 - these far flung towns are really just villages. Further south, we stopped at Airlie Beach (pop. 3000) so that we could sail out to the Whitsunday islands. These 74 islands are largely owned by the National Park and are a pristine wilderness. We stopped for lunch on the largest island on Whitesands, yet another impossibly white 5 ... read more

Mercredi en quittant Carnarvon Nat Park on se dirige vers le nord et on s'arrête dans la région des "gemfields" cad des mines de pierres précieuses. Premier arrêt à Emerald, la plus grosse bourgade qui ne doit pas son nom à la pierre verte mais à la couleur de ses verts pâturages!! La ville n'a que 112 ans et pas grand chose à voir, on fait juste une photo de l'énorme reproduction du tableau de Van Gogh "les tournesols", histoire de continuer notre collection de Big Things. On s'arrête quelques km plus loin à Sapphire, qui cette fois doit bien son nom aux saphirs dont le sol est chargé, pour passer la nuit. On tombe à nouveau sur un couple de jeunes Suisses Allemands, pour la 4ème fois!! Pourtant on ne fait pas exprès!! Au matin ... read more

Friday last week I ventured from Yeppoon to Mackay to visit some friends from Adelaide. The long drive, which took 7hours in total including a stop along the Bruce Highway for lunch and a arvo nap in the back of Iris, was quite pleasant and scenic. The central coast of Queensland has quite an earthy appearance to it, with a real outback feel at times, ever reminded though that the coast in not far away if need be. Along the way I also had to give Iris a bit of once over as her oil light flashed at me, reminding me that I have not been attending to her as regularly as I should have of on this already 6000km trip of mine. Arriving in Mackay, I went straight to my friends Karen and Michaels place ... read more

Z samego rana wyruszyliśmy w dalszą podróż, podjeżdżając po drodze do obelisku ustawionego niby na Zwrotniku Koziorożca, a tak naprawdę przed centrum informacji turystycznej w Rockhampton; zwrotnik przebiega niezauważenie parę kilometrów na południe od miasta. Potem zwiedziliśmy jeszcze The Capricorn Caves, wapienne jaskinie odkryte i zbadane niemal 130 lat temu przez Norwega o nazwisku Olsen. I tam przeżyłam pierwsze bliskie spotkanie z pająkiem, konkretnie Huntsman spider, często spotykanym w tych okolicach i niejadowitym, za to sporym i włochatym: siedział sobie na ścianie jaskini, mniej więcej na wysokości oczu, i nie wadził nikomu. Przeciskając się później przez wąskie i mroczne korytarze, cały czas się zastanawiałam, czy za chwilę nie przeżyję jeszcze bliższego spotkania z którymś z jego kolegów lub koleżanek… Duże wrażenie (choć na mnie o wiele mniejsze niż pająk) zrobiła na nas j... read more