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Published: July 25th 2008
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Oz
I feel quite at home here Firstly to finish my other blog off. The Whitsundays were beautiful most tours will take you to a long beach but this beach is the whitest cleanest beach I have ever seen. The weather was perfect and the beach was even more perfect. The boat we were on did not allow you to take bags with zips so had to take a bin liner worth of stuff and didn't get a photo, but trust me it's worth a visit. We then had the option of snorkelling or diving to be a trained diver, I went with the surprise choice of diving. There is a lot to see around the coral. The coral here was a lot more colourful than the barrier which was surprising. However, with the coral being so high you could easily do snorkelling. There are loads of boats to choose from most party people go for the Clipper which sleeps 55 drunks I went for the New Horizon which sleep 28 drunk and one family of four ooooppppps.
The bus journey to Rainbow Beach was uneventful on a day when it is someone’s birthday (hint hint) but arrived at Rainbow Beach and was lucky to come across three great people who I have spent many days with since. Gemma, Matt and the man that drinks more Goon and sleeps more on nights out than any other Tommy. They made my birthday a little more special so thanks guys.
Before leaving for Fraser from Rainbow you have to have a briefing this is essential before the tour can start, many hostels do this so make sure you arrive in plenty of time before your trip starts or you may miss out. I booked a packaged through Peter Pan which included accommodation and other tours so it made this part cheaper (result). We had a 4x4 hired between 11 people, of which only 6 people drove. Although I did not drive the first leg to Fraser I made up for it driving as often as possible I was voted the most reckless driver after Tommy and yet I was the only driver not to get us stuck or to hit a wash out so who knows. Fraser is great fun, the people from our hostel were all like minded and we had a hoot. We visited Lake Mackenzie which is the largest inland beach in the world (I think) also one of the nicest places you will visit. A 1/3 of the group decided to swim across the lake, and being competitive I gave them all a head start whilst I finished my beer before beating them all across. It was very funny seeing Matt because he was swimming in zig zag fashion. The next day we headed to Indian Head which gives you the best views on the island. We could see Whales and on other days people have seen Dolphins. Next to this are the Champagne pools although we didn't make this it was said to be fairly impressive but not as much as Indian Head but each to there own. We then went to Ellie Creak a nice place to stop but not breathtaking. The night was spent watching the stars and watching our group washing cutlery in the sea and letting go of the cutlery and watching it drift off into the sea, good job guys. The last day we headed to Lake Wabbe which is a good 45 mins trek from the beach, but well worth the visit another lake next to a massive sand dune which all the guys ran and somersaulted down some more gracefully than others.
The above is a MUST I cannot stress that enough. You can go from Hervey Bay to do this but the transfer is longer via ferry and some hostels limit where you can go, thus limiting your experience. I stayed at Dingoes don't let me influence you but actually do let me influence you.
From here I headed down to the National Park in Noosa this place is so picturesque. It has so many trees and so much natural splendour. It is a bit of a yuppie town a bit like Miami with expensive shops but the national park is worth visiting. This is the place I first tried surfing you can do it higher up the coast but here is a fairly good spot with not too much swell. I got on the board a few times as did Alex my roommate but our other roommate Paul had no luck preferring to Body Board on his Surf Board.
From Noosa I headed down to Brisbane. I didn't find Brisbane had a lot to offer mainly because I was only there for three days, and each day it rained. It had a good nightlife with many of the backpacking hostels having their own bars. From here I headed to Byron Bay this was great for surfing and other recreational activities. Byron is a really laid back place with a couple of trendy bars and some tacky clubs. There is a party every night like Cairns. There are a couple of surf sites but the waves do change drastically from day to day and a couple of times there were no waves after I carried my board for an hour to the best spot (apparently not good on that day). Worth a visit, but it might better to go with a surf company as they can drive you to some better spots so you don't have to worry about the walk.
If you like the idea of recreational activities outside the box go to Nimbin one hour from Byron. If you like cookies you'll like this groovy hippy town catch my drift.
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