The Great Sandy Island

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Once we landed in Brisbane we drove four hours north to Hervey Bay. The first mileage sign we saw showed Cairns as 1699kms from Brisbane. Eric felt relief that we were not driving that far. Instead, it was less than 300kms to Hervey Bay. HB is a small seaside community, reminding us a lot of South Florida, particularly with the architecture of the one level brick homes. We did not see much of the city itself, but took a nice dip in the bay. Because the bay is sheltered from the ocean by a very large island (aka the Great Sandy Island, or Fraser Island) the water is not only luke warm, there are no waves, no wildlife (no marine stingers either!), and it was unbelievably shallow. We walked at least 150 meters into the bay and the water still was just above my knees. In the distance there was a “swimming lane” with at least a couple swimmers going by. We thought it must be deeper out there, until one swimmer needed to rest, stood up, and the water was up to her waist.

Our accommodation was nothing spectacular for our three nights in HB. The best thing to note was the AUD$8 jugs for happy hour, from 7-8 each night, and all night Friday. On Friday night we finished off two jugs, and may have had a third, but there was a Traffic Light Party at Beaches Backpackers that night. Guests were asked to dress based on their availability, wearing red for “I’m taken,” green for “looking for love,” and amber for in between, I guess “I could be persuaded.” There were not many attendees despite the balloons and decorations, and I felt like a guest at a party where none of the invitees made an appearance. But, a small group was drinking beer and watching tele on the big screen until the music started. This was the first time we truly felt old at a hostel. Prior to Beaches we had seen families with young children and retirees to balance out the age gap. At Beaches, though, hip hop music videos were blaring on the tele, disco lights were in full swing, black lights were turned on, and a smoke machine was in effect. It was our cue for the old, married couple to finish their beers and head to bed. No matter, we had a big day ahead of us starting in the morning.

The sole purpose for our visit to HB was to use it as a launching point to Fraser Island. Fraser became a World Heritage listed site in 1992, labeled as the largest completely sand island. It is a mix of young and old rainforests, with vegetation growing straight from the sands. We signed up for a two day trip, with camping accommodations. Now, for those of you who know us well, we are city folk, through and through. I went camping once during high school with my family. I was not supposed to go but was grounded by my parents before their camping trip with my brother and sister, so they made me go with them as punishment. It really set the tone for the entire camping experience. Part of this trip is, of course, No Fear, but the other part is forcing ourselves out of our usual comfort zone. We have lived in cities for the past 12 years, and our holidays are generally to cities or towns, with no hiking, camping, or wildlife that is not in cages or behind a fence. We wanted to get a broader range of experiences, particularly as we head into SE Asia for several months. I have to get over my fear of wildlife, particularly of the flying and eight-legged variety.

Our hostel offered two options, and since we waited until the last minute to book, we did not research heading out onto the island on our own. The first option was a three day self drive 4WD rental. We would be placed in a large SUV with nine other travelers from Beaches Accommodations. They provided the camping gear, but one of the fellow travelers drove, one navigated, we set up our own camps, and would prepare our own food. The setting up the tents and cooking our own food thing aside, the biggest drawback was the nine other people in the car, for three days, and wondering who would drive. Kerri at Beaches informed us that usually the person who is over 21 drives the car, which implied there was generally only one person over 21 in the lot. So, it would have been Eric and I, with Eric most likely driving a group of drunken teenagers around a sandy and difficult to navigate island. We saw this in effect at least once on the island (but it was 8 drunken guys and one young woman in a white truck with no air conditioning). We had also read about the problems with inexperienced 4WD drivers often getting stuck in the sand, and spending a greater part of a day digging out. We saw this on the island at least once as well. The other option was not that much more expensive, but was for only one night. It was a group tour in a purpose built vehicle, meaning giant four wheel drive bus, or MAN, that can get over the sand dunes on the island without getting stuck. They would drive us around with commentary and information on the island, the flora and fauna, etc. The tour came with meals and permanent tented campgrounds. Now you’re talking. Sign me up. We must ease slowly into this whole “out of our comfort zone” thing.

The Frasier Island Company Tour

Our driver and guide, Kieren, picked us up a little after 7am. We toured greater Hervey Bay for about an hour, picking up other members of our group, giving us a great tour of HB. Our group consisted of travelers from Britain, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Sweden, Austria, the Netherlands, and even Luxemburg. We were the sole Americans on the bus, and as Kieren later informed us, only the third couple he has met from the States in his five years working with the company.

The MAN took us to the ferry, where we departed the MAN, walked onto the ferry, and then Kieren glided the beast onto the center of the ferry. The 35 minute ride to Fraser was slow, peaceful, and not much happened. We did, however, see a giant turtle float by the ferry. The captain suggested we keep our eyes open for dolphins, but no such luck. As the ferry neared the island, the captain specifically requested that we reboard the MAN to be ready when we land. Once on the bus, we are on our way. About 99.9% of the roads on the island are only sand. Some are reinforced with the some wood, and one area we drove through had a paved road. Some of the roads are even one way, often leaving one vehicle either pulled to the side, or as was the case with our bus, reversing back the way we came numerous times. We started our rocking motion along the sand road to our first stop. It was not a smooth ride. I soon fully understood what a purpose built vehicle meant, and understood why the brochures we read all promised seatbelts. We were lucky to snatch the first seat behind Kieren, which may have drove him up the wall with all of our questions, but gave us the full view of all the dips and hills in the sandy landscape. I guess the one benefit of being second on the bus at 7am - prime seating.

Our first stop was Central Station, named for the original timber station that was housed there. There was a booming timber industry on the island from the late 1800s until 1991. When the timber industry left, they picked up all of their buildings and moved them off the island. What was left was a little park area, with picnic benches, much like a rest stop only surrounded with forest. After getting a brief introduction to the island, and a quick kookaburra sighting, we were off on our first hike - only about 35 minutes or so through a rainforest, traveling along a freshwater creek, but humid and hot. We were all sweating profusely and completely drenched at the end. No significant wildlife sightings, other than bugs and some lizards, but the forest itself was beautiful, with the tall trees reaching straight up to the blue skies. The water in the creek was so crystal clear you could see down to the sand bottom and everything in between. We saw some buggies and lizards and importantly were introduced to the most troublesome pest of the trip - huge meaty biting horseflies. These guys were each about the size of a dime, buzzed around our legs and face, and were a general nuisance. Kieren told us if you caught them and squeezed their rear you could smell something sweet. I did not try. Eric killed one with his white baseball cap and there was definitely a smell, and a black smear on the brim. (Remind me to accidentally leave that hat behind when packing up our bags at some point; it is nasty.) As we all gathered near the MAN at the end of the walkway one of the group, a young girl shrieked and yelled for her traveling companion to remove a bug that had landed on her. That was a theme of the weekend for her. Poor thing seemed way more afraid of winged creatures that I was - Australia, and in particular a camping trip onto a virtually uninhabited island, may not have been the best idea for her.

After our first mini-hike, we slowly wound our way to the east side of the island, and towards the beach. The island is roughly 124km long, and ranges from 27km wide to only 5km wide at its narrowest point. With less than 200 inhabitants, Fraser is the epitome of pristine beach environment. Now that it is protected as World Heritage site, there will be no significant increase in inhabitants and no more building. We made it onto the beach and started to head north towards Eli Creek for our first swim on the island. The MAN shared the beach, which is also the main “highway” of the island, with other tour buses and dozens of 4WDs soaring in both directions. The beach highway is actually part of the state highway system, and has a maximum speed of 80km. It also is an airplane landing zone.

Returning to the theme of the Australian hostile environment, the ocean off of Fraser is inhabited by about a half dozen shark breeds, marine stingers, and wicked nasty currents and rip tides, so no swimming allowed. I think this is what makes the island so unique. If a beach this beautiful were more accessible to swimmers, I am convinced it would no longer maintain its pristine nature. We saw a group of about a dozen travelers swimming in the water, ignoring the warnings. Kieren said “stupid buggers.” In fact, we later heard that the captain of Air Fraser flew over head, saw some mean looking sharks, and warned the swimmers. They, of course, ignored him. Listening to all of this information was fascinating, but all I wanted to do was ask Kieren to stop the MAN so we could get out. I really wanted to take in the scenery and not just blow past it. Little did I know that there was a lot more scenery just like this to see - 75 miles of beach looking just like it. We passed our first dingo as we sped down the beach, so I could add that to my list of Aussie wildlife. We stopped at Eli Creek and walked upstream from the beach to float back down. What I thought most unusual was the sound our feet and sandals made as we walked through the beach. The sand had a unique coarse consistency which made our feet squeak loudly as we walked. I have never heard anything quite like it. We waded up Eli Creek behind most of the group. Unfortunately, the water level was fairly low, which meant it was quite difficult to float back down. But, refreshing nonetheless.

After the creek, we were hanging out on the beach, taking photos, watching the 4WDs speed by, and we saw one of the little 8 seater single engine prop planes landing just down the beach - Air Fraser. The captain came out to speak to Kieren and the group, offering 15 min scenic flights for AUD$70. Two members of our group jumped at the opportunity and the captain hung around talking the rest of us into it. Someone mentioned asking for a discounted rate. The captain offered AUD$50 if we could fill up the plane and in 10 seconds Eric and I had our hands raised, we grabbed the camera, and scooted off to the tiny little plane, barefoot. We all piled on board, and I noticed this was easily the first plane I boarded where all passengers were barefoot! The captain’s safety announcement consisted of “Everybody buckled in?” And, he turned on the plane, turned to head south, picked up speed and took off. This was easily one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I had never been in a tiny plane like this, and to have the experience flying over this island, complete with white sand, blue and green ocean, rain forests, lakes, and the most incredible sand dunes I have ever seen. Not to mention aerial views of sharks and rays swimming in the shallows just off the beach. It started to rain a little bit, and we hit some turbulence, which was a little scary. But, the pilot landed us safely back at Eli Creek where Kieren and the bus were waiting. Totally worth it!

I was on a bit of a high when we hit our next stop, the Maheno Shipwreck. Our captain flew us over the shipwreck, and Eric took a great photo. Eric and I looked at each other and thought “seen it.” Regardless, the shipwreck was pretty amazing. The ship was built in Scotland in 1905 and was sold to a Japanese company in 1935, who planned to use the ship as scrap. It was originally a luxury ship and the Japanese bought it with all of the chandeliers and other niceties. While the Japanese were towing the ship home, it was caught in a cyclone, which broke the towline. It washed up on the Fraser shore on July 9, 1935. At first, locals were raiding the ship stealing everything that could be removed from the ship. The Japanese got wind of it and organized an auction of the remaining items, which naturally the Australian government heard about and subjected everything to a customs tax. What was left was a rotting, oxidized steel hull that was used for bombing practice during WWII. Now, it serves only as a tourist attraction on the island, just at the edge of beach, allowing the waves to crash against the hull.

After the shipwreck, we continued to the north tip of the island, Indian Head. This involved a steep climb up volcanic rock to peer out over one of the highest points on the island. Indian Head was named by Captain James Cook, who seemed to name a lot of Australia, and also had a lot named after him. He named Indian Head after seeing the native aboriginal population, assuming they were “Indian” and named the north tip after them. Indian Head is one of the only three rock formations on the island, caused by volcanic rock formations. We climbed over some boulders leading down to the water’s edge, and took a brief climb up to the top of Indian Head. Although there were signs warning of the dangers of the cliff edge, and a picture of a person with a line through him, obviously saying, no person allowed on the edge of the cliff, because we had more than one person out on the cliffs, we must have been okay. Looking down to the water, carefully, we could see some large tuna, manta rays, and even some sharks. Then, when my back was turned, I see Eric cautiously walking out onto the outer most point, through a very thin walkway of volcanic rock, to peer over the edge. Kieren went out there, so of course Eric thought he could. I have to admit I was pretty nervous watching him walk out there and did not feel comfortable until he returned, and when he did, I called him a moron before we headed back to the beach. Feel the love. The views from either side of Indian Head were beautiful - the ocean on one side, and the curvature of a bay heading out to Sandy Cape, the most northern point, on the other. The bay, in particular, was amazing, showing the incredible variations of blue in the water, the white sandy beach, the dark green vegetation, and the dunes in the background. It was unbelievably peaceful.

Cathedral Beach - Roughing It

From Indian Head we retired for the night to our home away from home - Cathedral Beach. Cathedral Beach is a permanent beach community that is leased to the Frasier Island Company and is also used by Beaches Accommodations, our hostel in Hervey Bay, as their permanent Base Camp. I see the Beaches rented 4WDs as we pull in, trying to set up their camp for the night, and I am pretty excited I don’t need to set up a tent. We were totally spoiled by Kieren. He showed us each to our tent for the night, and then cooked all 24 of us dinner, including snacks, and appetizer of grilled kangaroo (does not taste like chicken, but more like seasoned, lean steak), and a full dinner of steak and fish, with ice cream for dessert. As Kieren started to cook, we set up our things in our permanent tent, which included, for the city folks, a hardwood floor, double bed, a light, and a table and chair. Just so you don’t think we were too spoiled, the rest of the tent was pretty traditional, including the zip enclosures and the bugs chirping in every different octave outside.

The island has more than 50 freshwater lakes and about 80 streams and creeks. There is also a large groundwater table under the island. Because the fresh water reservoir under the island is so expansive, Kieren informed us that we could take as long of a hot shower as we wanted because there were no water restrictions on the island as there are in most other areas of Australia. From what I remember, Kieren said you could take all of the water in Sydney Harbour, multiple it by 30, and that approximates the amount of water under the island. I would have spent forever in that shower attempting to wash away all of the island sand if it were not for the creepy crawlies in the ladies’ shower area!

While waiting for dinner, someone noticed a giant spider hanging from one of the cabins behind our tent, which sent Eric on a scavenger hunt for every different kind of spider he could find. In the meantime, I tried to survive all of those giant biting horse flies, while spraying myself with insect repellant every 30-45 minutes. On the bottle it says the repellant lasts for up to 6 hours, but I just did not trust it. I started to calm down more as we started to chat with several members of the group. During dinner, we sat with our new British friends and Kieren and had a great conversation. Tipping customs, the weather, and Aussie sports, were just some of the topics discussed. Kieren was as interested in learning about the States as we were to learn about spiders, Footy, and all things Aussie. Kieren has never traveled to the States, or even outside of Australia. When I asked him if he were to travel where he would like to go, and he immediately answered New Zealand and Tasmania. When I reminded him that Tassie is part of Australia, he replied, “There is no bridge, so it is overseas.” He actually revised his answer to suggest Egypt or Rome, some place with a lot of history.

After awhile Eric and I retired to our tent, thinking we would read for a bit before bed. Instead, after changing into our pjs, just listening to the bugs attack our tent with the light on, we went lights out and prayed for the best. I did fall asleep quicker than anticipated, but woke up at the first sign of light, a little after 5am, ready for Kieren’s breakfast! I will note that the same young girl who shrieked on the first day outside of Central Station was freaking out about the bugs the entire time, including a perfectly timed shrill cry during breakfast as she fled from her tent. Classic. And I thought I was a city slicker.

Swimming Our Way Through Fraser

I survived my first camping experience in years and years. I know it was not as rough and tumble as a traditional camping trip, but for me, it was a proud moment. After packing up camp and saying a fond farewell to our fancy tent, we headed to the Colored Sands. The Colored Sands on the east side of the island look like large cliffs facing the ocean with various gradations of orange and red spread horizontally across the landscape. The sands contain minerals including iron oxides and clays. The clay holds the sand in the tall formations, and the minerals give the varied colors. They were breathtaking, particularly in the morning with the sun beating down directly on the cliffs.

From the Colored Sands, we continued south back towards Central Station to take a dip in Lake Wabby. Kieren told us the Lake was about a 1.8km walk from the MAN, and then about 2.3km back from the Lake through the forest. We started our trek right from the beach, sweating our way through jungle rain forest. Then, the walk turned to pure sand, and then into a large, uphill dune. A short 1.8km walk to a lake seemed much farther when trudging through sand, uphill, in the heat. But, the pure emptiness of the dune was entrancing. It was just our small group slogging up the hill with sand and trees as far as the eye could see. We hit a sign about .8km through the walk which read “Lake Wabby 1km over sand flows” further up the dune. Several of us could not believe it was still another kilometer, until Kieren joked that the next sign also said 1km to Lake Wabby. And, a few hundred meters down the way, what do we see, but another sign saying 1km to Lake Wabby. It was as if we were traveling in slow motion. The leaders of the group reached the top of the dune and the rest of us hoped that was it, and it was - other than the 35 degree decline from the top of the dune directly into the Lake. Kieren warned us that people have rushed down this dune to jump directly into the lake and have broken bones. We took it nice and slow, making it to the bottom. Not only were we hot and sweaty from the walk, but there were loads of biting flies at the base. This made us practically rip off our clothes to jump into the lake. The lake was remarkable, with a low ph, which was supposedly good for the skin. About 10 or so feet from the edge of the lake, the water became so deep Eric could in no way touch the bottom. It was great though, to float in the fresh, cool water, for about an hour, chatting with members of the group.

The walk back was mostly unremarkable - another twisting and turning path through rain forest. The group staggered back, though, leaving Eric and I virtually alone on the path. This made the walk a lot more calming and quiet. The only strange thing was a large dead snake at the start of the path, with a frog caught in its throat. Literally. I am so glad we saw that going leaving the lake rather than on approach, or I probably would not have relaxed as much as I would have wanted. Kieren told us that years ago Cane Toads were introduced to the island to kill off the Cane Beetle, but the beetles hang high in the trees, and the toads could not reach them - a complete failure. Problem is that the Cane Toads are poisonous, so when snakes or other animals eat them, they die. There is one snake that has built up a resistance to the Cane Toad. Unfortunately, it is a poisonous snake that has learned to adapt to the Cane Toad. Interesting. But it will take some time for the picture of the nasty toad and snake combo, with the buzzing flies and the rotting smell, to escape my memory.

From Lake Wabby, we returned to Central Station for a lovely picnic lunch, and another quick walk, where we saw a freshwater eel. At this point, I am losing track of all of the wildlife we have seen on Fraser, specifically, and in Australia, generally. Then, it was off to our very relaxing last stop of the trip, to Lake Birrabeen, a fresh water lake with a high level of silicon in the sand. Kieren told us that the sand has some healing qualities, and if rubbed on your skin, it will make it incredibly soft, as if you had gone for a scrub at the spa. Well, whether it is true, or Kieren just told us to see how much we listen to him (a challenge, like smell the butt of the horse fly), all of the women and even some of the men from the group spent a great deal of time rubbing sand all over their bodies. I felt like I spent the entire two days on the island trying to not get sand in all my unmentionable areas and in my bathing suit, but here I was rubbing sand all over myself - just because Kieren said to. He is a powerful bloke. Kieren even took a swim with us, but, frankly, I did not see him rubbing the sand on his skin (maybe he was doing it under the water). It was a perfect end to the trip - a beautiful shallow lake, with warm water to float in. The weather had shifted, with a breeze and dark clouds starting to form. The lake felt warmer than the air above. The last few of us in the water worried about getting out. After drying off and regrouping, we left the lake, and the island behind, on a quite bumpy ride back to the ferry. We were back on non-sandy land, back to Hervey Bay. We said goodbye to various friends as they left the bus, said goodbye to Kieren, and that ended our trip to Fraser, and for the most part our trip to Australia.

We only had two more nights in Australia at this point. We spent our last night in Hervey Bay in the hostel, and we left our room at sunset to head to the Bistro. Hervey Bay is another bat haven similar to Port Douglas, with probably a thousand bats swarming overhead at dusk. When there were no cars careening by, you could hear the bats flap their wings as they flew overhead. The next day, we drove back down to Brisbane, spent the evening with a friend’s parents, and flew off to the land of the Kiwis.

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Photos

Central Station
Our first walk from Central Station with crystal clear water.

Eric and Kieren
At Eli Creek in front of the MAN purpose built vehicle

Air Fraser
On the "runway"

View of the water
And, we are trying to spot sharks.

The MAN below
This was our group waiting for us during our flight.

Maheno Shipwreck
From Air Fraser

The Captain and Eric
Once we were safely back on ground, or at least back on the beach.

Spanish Dude we Don't Know
This guy just walked in front of our photo of the Maheno Shipwreck. Usually we would delete something like this, but everytime we see it we laugh.

Indian Head
At the tip of Fraser

Camp Fraser
Our home away from home

Spider Man
Eric spent a decent amount of timing running around camp snapping photos of all of the nasty eight legged creatures.

The Dunes
This is part of the almost 2km walk to Lake Wabby through the hot and sandy dunes.

The Great Dunes of Fraser
You would never know that this one heads straight to a lake.

Lake Birrabeen
Our last swim on Fraser

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[Meryl Streep]

A dingo ate my baby!