Fraser Island!

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Hello again!!

We had a relaxing day in Rainbow beach, just chilling on the beach (which wasn't as nice because it was soooo windy) and by the pool with lots more German lessons (I've decided my back-up plan job will probably be a teacher hehe!) before our Fraser Island meeting that evening! At the meeting we watched videos about Fraser Island, how to deal with the dingoes (wild animals which look a bit like dogs - there are lots of them on Fraser Island and they do occasionally attack people for food), respect the habitat, get the 4WD out of sand if it gets stuck etc! Then we got split into 2 groups of 11 people, were given a vague shopping list and we went off to the supermarket with our group to get food for the weekend (which is really really hard when you have only just met because everyone just replies with "I dont mind" when deciding what to get!) which needless to say took ages! Luckily, we had a really great group... all English (I think) apart from 2 Norwegans! That evening we all had a few drinks together and bonded before getting up really early the next morning to pack up the 4WD and go to the garage for a briefing on how to drive it! I had said that I would do a bit of driving on the island but after listening to the briefing I changed my mind because it all sounded so complicated (different modes for driving on sand and concrete etc!)!

I never thought 11 of us would fit in the 4WD but we did and it was really fun! We got the ferry across to Fraser Island and spent the first hour driving on the bumpiest road I had ever been on.... Louise (the only other girl in the group) and I were at the very back and could not stop giggling as we were being thrown around on to everyones laps! ;o) Eventually we got on to the sand and arrived at Lake McKenzie early afternoon! The lake was absolutely beautiful... it was so clear and like swimming in Evian water.... yet there was a beach and it was sand at the bottom of the lake... very unusual (for us at least!) but very beautiful! I decided I wanted to try and swim across to the other side of the lake which did look very far, however, someone told me that I would never be able to .... and as soon as someone tells me I can't do something I immediately have to prove them wrong.. so I set off along with an English guy who told me he was a lifeguard so I decided I was in safe hands (however, half way across he added that he had been a lifeguard for a while when he was 15!!!)! It was waaaaay further than we thought and was very very tiring especially the way back, in total it took us over 2 hours! We did get scared a couple of times when (after it was too late to turn back) whether there were any crocodiles etc in the water, and did scream a couple of times at the sight of black things sticking out of the water up ahead which looked a bit like shark fins... but were luckily just birds! phew!

After we were allowed to recover for all of about 2 seconds, we headed to our camp site for the night and started cooking and setting up the tents, actually the boys did, Louise and I just sat around drinking wine! We then had yummy pasta and spent the evening chatting, playing cards and drinking a little too much wine i have to admit (and it turns out the cheap box wine in Oz makes you do silly things like lose your flipflops... i still miss my poor havianas ... we had been through so much together.. over 9 months of travelling! oh well... Fraser Island is a beautiful place for them to rest in peace!)!

The next morning we drove to another lake which we had to hike through the forest to... it was really cool, the lake was at the bottom of a really big sand dune, really pretty! We sat in the water for a while, playing frisbee and chatting while the fish nibbled at our feet! We then drove to a campsite for a late BBQ lunch before setting up camp on the beach! We saw a huge turtle paddling back out to see which was really cool! You have to be really careful on the beach though as the is covered with small jellyfish which can still sting you even though they are dead! When you are driving along the beach you can constantly hear popping sounds, as if you were driving over bubblewrap, and thats all the jellyfish popping as we drive over them! You also cant swim in the sea because there are lots of sharks! That evening was the same as the one before, lots of games and chatting (we had such a fun group) but this time i took a raincheck on the wine.... a decision i was very pleased with especially the next morning!

The next morning we got up early (you had no choice, as soon as the sun came up the tents became like a sauna and it was impossible to stay in them), had breakfast, chatted, had a walk along the beach and then packed up and headed to look out point on a cliff from which you could see sharks and turtles which was cool! I found the walk a little tricky though because the ground was boiling and i had no shoes! :o( After that we set off to the ship wreck site which was really cool... a massive ship still mostly in tact just stranded on the beach! I tried driving that time as everyone said a girl had to give it a go.... it was mostly OK apart from a maybeeee too sharp turn which might have resulted in a few screams and cries that we were on 2 wheels... i dont think we were though! Greg took a corner way to quick on the way back as well though and again, we might have been on 2 wheels, so at least everyone didn't just remember my little incident! :o) After the shipwreck, we went swimming in a stream that started further up a hill and came out into the sea which was cool.... although a bit too shallow to be honest and the current wasn't strong enough so we had to pull ourselves along!

We then headed back to Rainbow beach, gave the car back with luckily no charges, so our 2-wheelers obviously hadn't done the 4WD any long term damage! :o) We all had a BBQ together that night, said goodbye to everyone and then Greg and I left for Airlie Beach the next morning!!

Sorry again that there are no photos! :o(

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