Australia - East Coast

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We flew in to Proserpine via Brisbane, Proserpine being the nearest airport to Airlie Beach which is the gateway to the Whitsundays. Proserpine airport is a bit bizarre, it has an outdoor departure lounge and baggage collection area! Presumably they don't get a lot of rain, however the day we arrived was an exception.

We caught a shuttle into town and booked our accommodation and excursions through the local visitor centre. The staff there were very helpful and we managed to get a lovely studio apartment overlooking the bay and a cut price deal on a 3 day/2 night sailing trip.

Our sailing trip departed the following day so we stocked up on alcohol and disposable underwater cameras, packed our 2 little carry bags each, which was the sum total of our luggage allowance, and reported for duty down at the harbour. Here we were issued with our stinger suits (we were in the middle of jellyfish season) which is basically a cloth wetsuit. Phil's query as to why the suit didn't extend to cover feet and hands and what stops them stinging you on the head was never satisfactorily answered!

We were then ushered aboard Enid, a beautiful twin mast wooden yacht built in 1966 and raced in 5 Sydney to Hobart events. The accommodation below was open plan, and to say it was cosy would be an understatement. The bedbugs were a very unwelcome discovery that night and many on board sought refuge on deck, unfortunately it started to rain in the early morning so everyone came back down below. The rain meant the hatches had to be closed so the heat soon became quite unbearable and we were constantly scratching at bugs both real and imagined. The poor accommodation and ventilation were a major downside of the trip, as well as a somewhat dour and uncommunicative skipper, and it put a dampener on what would otherwise have been a fantastic trip. The food on board was pretty good and plentiful and the group we were with were a good bunch.

We sailed around the Whitsundays for the three days occasionally stopping to snorkel and swim. We could see jellyfish in the water all around the boat so we entered with some trepidation. The snorkelling was very good though and we soon put the possibility of a deadly sting to the back of our minds.

We jumped off at South Molle Island for a swim in the resort’s pool and a bush walk up to a lovely look out, we also spent a morning on Whitehaven Beach. Our first night back on mainland we all met up at the local backpackers pub for a meal and more than a few drinks, all in all we had a great time, the bedbug bites soon faded away.

The next day we caught a flight to Brisbane and checked into the Kookaburra Inn for 2 nights, more Backpackers than an Inn, but it was comfortable enough for our needs. They only had 2 single rooms for the first night so Phil had to put his mattress on the floor in Laura’s room, we probably broke all the fire regulations in town but Laura wasn’t too keen to spend a night on her own.

Phil spent most of the next morning trying to hire a campervan, unfortunately every single hire company was sold out. He then tried a few hire car companies and eventually managed to get an Opel Corsa from Europcar, it was their only car left in Brisbane! What a nightmare, fortunately we had a tent, not as comfortable as a campervan, but cheaper than B&B.

We spent the rest of the day looking around Brisbane, scouring the dollar shops for cheap camping equipment. We managed to get all the chairs, cutlery and crockery we needed for under $100. In the afternoon we caught a ferry to Southbank and visited the markets. Phil almost wet himself when he saw a woman go by pushing a Toy Pom in a custom made pink pushchair. Later on we saw her again, she had her own stall and was selling the things! Sans dog of course…

Leaving Brisbane we headed north to Noosa Heads for a few days and after pitching our tent at the camp site just out of town (the one in town was full) we headed to the harbour for fish and chips and then on to the look-out over the heads. Whilst at the look-out we bumped into an Irish couple who had been living there for a few years and we mentioned that we hadn’t seen many kangaroos in the wild. They recommended a place 20km out of town so off we set in search of wild life.

This turned out to be a bit of a wild goose (kangaroo) chase and for our troubles we got caught in a tropical storm on our return. The wind, rain, hail, flying trees and bark were terrifying and we were lucky to get back to Noosa unscathed. At one point Phil had to get out and clear a path past a fallen tree, getting soaked in the process. Ironically we had to brake pretty hard to avoid hitting a kangaroo on the way back!

The next day we visited the Noosa Heads National Park and walked along the coastal path stopping occasionally to watch the surfers do their thing, which seems to involve an awful lot of sitting around. We were also lucky enough to see a koala. Noosa is a great place though the weather could have been kinder to us.

Continuing south we next hit Surfer’s Paradise, what a place, it’s one long stunning beach lined with high rise apartment blocks that are so close to the beach that they block out the afternoon sun! It is 100% holiday resort and a very popular destination for Australian holidaymakers. We stayed at a camp site called Miami Park which says it all really! Phil braved the water for a bit of bodysurfing, but the waves weren’t at their best that day.

Whilst in the area we decided to visit Sea World, we spent most of the day there and had a great time. There is a lot to see and do and we were particularly impressed with the dolphin show.

Our next stop found us in Byron Bay where we decided to settle for a few days. Byron is a great place full of weird and wonderful characters most of whom are struggling to leave the 1960’s behind. It does appear to be becoming more trendy than hippie but the die-hards are still plentiful and if you’re an avid people watcher, there’s no better place for it than sitting in a bar on the beach front.

We spent a morning sea kayaking looking for dolphins and turtles. We did see dolphins, but we had to keep our distance and the one turtle we could have seen was scared away when a couple in our group capsized in their enthusiasm to get a good look at it. We were a little disappointed with what we saw but it was nice to be out on the water.

Phil hired a boogie board and had a bit of fun in the sea, which was a little cool and probably explains why Laura couldn’t be lured away from her book.

We loved the relaxed atmosphere in Byron Bay and could easily have spent a lot longer there, but we had a rough schedule to keep and it was time to move on.

We intended to spend a few days in Coffs Harbour but our first impression of the place wasn’t good, so we stayed the night and moved on.

As Christmas was around the corner we decided to splash out on real accommodation and rented an apartment in Lake Cathie, near Port Macquarie, for 4 days. The apartment was a 2 bedroom affair with great views, close to the beach.

We visited a wildlife park where we got to pat koalas and feed kangaroos. Phil got a little bite on the hand when he tried to pull away from a kangaroo that apparently hadn’t finished eating, he had to put some food on the ground to distract it. We also saw cassowaries, talking parrots, possums, wombats and a stunning albino peacock.

Phil tried his hand at Hydro Golf, which turned out to be a driving range with targets in the middle of a dam with prizes for hitting them - fun but pricey.

Whilst driving through Port Macquarie, we spotted a Koala Hospital sign and decided to stop and have a look. The volunteer in charge saw Phil’s camera and offered to give us a guided tour inside the pens (when challenged he pointed to the camera and said we were press photographers). It was real treat and we were both smitten with the patients, some were burns patients, some had been hit by cars and others were suffering from a condition called "wet bottom". All the care and treatment is given by volunteers and we were very impressed with their dedication and care.

Christmas day was overcast which reflected our mood, we were missing our family and friends. We hadn’t managed to book a table at a restaurant for Christmas lunch so we had bought lots of food and booze to get stuck into. Sunset on Christmas day was spectacular and lifted our spirits a little, aided by a few G&T’s!

Laura has some family in Newcastle and we managed to catch up with them for a few days. Joe and Margaret are great hosts and made us feel very welcome. Their kids and grandchildren were gathered for Christmas and we all had a great picnic and swim at Nelson’s Bay and a trip to the Hunter Valley for a bit of wine tasting was most enjoyable.

Our time in Australia was rapidly coming to an end and we had just enough time to spend a night in the Blue Mountains before heading back to Sydney for the New Year. The Blue Mountains get their name from the blue haze given off by the eucalyptus trees.

There had been a lot of forest fires in recent weeks and the devastation was evident everywhere, many of the bush walking trails had been closed because the ground had become unstable. We paid a visit to scenic world and took a ride on the world’s steepest train, effectively a caged elevator with seats in it, accompanied by screams as opposed to the calm elevator voice one would prefer. Once at the bottom we followed a bush walk path and then took a cable car to the top, which is a much more civilised way to travel.

As we were only there for a day, we decided to see as much as possible and after stopping at the 3 Sisters lookout, Katoomba cascades, Blackheath, Evans lookout & Govett's Leap we decided to do the scenic drive indicated on our map.

No more than an hour said Phil! 3 hours later after decidedly non tourist friendly roads and road signs, yet more torrential rain and hail we made it back to our hotel! It was quite an adventure and we were very glad to make it back to relative civilisation.

The next day we found ourselves in Sydney. We checked into our hotel in Lane Cove, bought some booze and picnic food and headed for Cremorne Point down by the harbour for the New Year celebrations. There we met up with some of Laura’s GE work colleagues, Ryan & Becky, Nick & Kelly and their friends. They had staked their claim to a patch of ground overlooking the Harbour Bridge the previous night and none too soon as by the time we got there just about every square inch of ground was taken up by a chair, person, towel or any other item that would lay claim to a patch of ground big enough to stand on.

We had a great evening and the fireworks were fantastic. They do 2 fireworks displays, one at about 9pm for the kids and then the main one at midnight. The only downside to the evening was the 2 hours it took to get back to our hotel using 3 buses and being surrounded by people in various stages of intoxication ranging from mildly giddy to snot-flying drunk.

New Year’s Day was spent recovering and we rounded it off with a meal and a trip to the cinema to see The Queen.

Our last full day in Australia we had lunch with Ross and met up with Ryan & Becky for dinner to celebrate Becky’s birthday, it was good byes all round and off to Hobbit land…

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