The East Coast in a Hippy Camper

Oceania » Australia
May 15th 2009

Published: May 16th 2009

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Convict

Roos ready to rock

Kangaroos that is

Well here we are again. After a long recess(ion) we're back and full of the joys of Spring!

Having spent a fantastic month making our way around New Zealand we jumped across the drink to see what their bigger neighbour and rival had to offer. It turns out there's quite a lot and at the end of our time here we see that we'd need considerably longer and a lot more cash to see it all. We arrived into Melbourne and checked into a hostel in the area of St Kilda. Firstly we were surprised by the amount of Irish in Melbourne and although we had been forewarned we still gasped at all the county colours we saw throughout the city. Vicki didn't realise so many GAA teams existed. There were quite a large number of people who had come to Australia and hadn't left the hostel since arriving. One clever buck had been in the hostel for a year and had never seen outside of St Kilda. He was heading home within the next fortnight! With this in mind we were keen to get on the road and our first task was to find some wheels to begin our

Just Vicki and the Road

The Great Ocean one

adventure. We searched around and finally settled upon a dinky white van with flowers, much to Vicki's satisfaction. Along with bringing us up through the country the van would also turn out to be home for the next two and a half months. Like lightning it moved and like thunder it sounded and when we saw other Hippy Camper vans on the road we would intiate the age old secret greeting of the wave

We made our way out of Melbourne and under advisement we headed south to a stretch on the track called the Great Ocean Road and with a name like that who'd miss it? It turns out the advice was sound and it was entirely worth it. The scenery was out of this world and with the sun glistened sea constantly on our left we were pulling over for pictures every hundred meters. Mostly we camped out by beaches, lulled to sleep by the sea and woken by the sounds of cockatoos screaming at each other and the sun beaming through the van, producing an effect not dissimilar to a sauna. We picked up a child's fishing rod and began honing our skills. Throughout the trip

Sea Arch

Great Ocean Rd

we passed many hours by a river, lake or puddle hoping for something to jump onto the hook. It was at least a month before we caught something. We were whiling the time away on a pontoon and Vicki was practising her technique of eating sweets while barely holding the rod and in no time there was a bite. This was a decent effort and with some help from a local gutting it we had bream fish for lunch. For the remainder of the trip Rodney the rod was unsuccessful in catching any more fish

We were keen to get into surfing mode and our friends, Brad and Zoe duly obliged. We met these guys in Ecuador close to the beginning of our South America trip and took them up on their invitation to stay with them when we got to their neck of the woods. It turned out to be well timed because another Irish couple who completed the Ecuadorian sextet (that's not what we were called) also made their way down at the same time and we hung out for a few days. We were treated to a traditional Aussie BBQ (during which Conor acquired a taste

Lovely

Great Ocean Rd

for kangaroo meat), plenty of beers and to top it all off, our first taste of surfing. They were very good to us and set the bar very high for Aussie hospitality which was really appreciated. It was generally agreed that surfing isn't as easy as it looks but we had a great time attempting to get the hang of it. Not surprisingly, Brad and Zoe were pros and made it look effortless. We were disgusted!

After we left Brad and Zoe we were on the road again and spent a number of nights in National Parks along the way. The parks here and public facilities in general are quite impressive and although they're a little basic and it's not exaclty champagne camping, we really got a sense of what that part of the country is about. We have been constantly surrounded by the local wildlife much to Conor's enjoyment and interest and Vicki's dismay. We were warned about some of the dangers and that of the dominant male kangaroo in particular if he feels threatened. One evening we encountered one of these bad boys blocking the way to the bathroom. When they stand up straight they can be

Cockatoos ruining breakfast

In Lorne

well over 6 feet tall and they're nothing short of having a six-pack stomach and showing us the gun show. Needless to say we opted for the bush bathroom that night! On another ocassion we had just cooked one of our gourmet meals out the back of the van and Vicki was revelling in another of her culinary achievements with a glass of her favourite Morgan's and Coke when she felt a tickle at her foot. With the sort of spring a kangaroo would be impressed with she leapt up out of her chair and with a scream shot out of the tent area. The possum - Australia's silent assassin! That night was particularly traumatic for Victoria who didn't sleep much for fear of being eaten by a kangaroo and possum gang

Before we knew it we were in the infamous Sydney. Unluckily for us we didn't get the weather for our stay here but that didn't stop us from seeing as much of the city as we could. Even with the rain the Sydney Harbour and the Opera House were still a sight to behold and the behemoth of a cruise liner leaving the harbour only added to

Zoe carvin' it up

She makes it look so easy

the spectacle. We bought ourselves some fish and chips and sat in the rain eating cod soaking in the opulence of our surroundings. Another of the suggested activities to experience was the Sydney Aquarium and with the heavy rain outside the prospect of being indoors was even more appealing. It has quite an impressive variety of fish and the shark and manatee displays were somewhat memorable. Once again the unavoidable occurred! We were watching a bull shark cruise through the water subtly bearing it's teeth with a quiet awe and beside us we hear in the thickest Kerry accent, "Oh Jesus! He's mighty isn't he?!" and "Go on look at that lad. He's eatin' the other little fella." We could barely contain our laughter. There's no getting away from it. We Irish are everywhere!

As chance would have it Jason Byrne was doing a few shows in the Sydney Opera house while we were there. It seemed to us that the stars had aligned for us so we bought our tickets. He spent a lot of the time ripping into the Australians that the recession had finally gotten them too. It was a good gig and we laughed till

At least he looks the part

Right???

our faces were sore. The following day we met up with Vicki's cousin, Stephen who took us around to some other popular areas in Sydney like Bondi and Coogee beach which, although not so impressive in the rain, was still nice to see. Then off with us to the pub to dry off. With Sydney behind us we made our way to Palm Beach, the site of TV's Home & Away. Vicki was upset not having met Alf and the gang but it wasn't meant to be so we were soon on the road again

Coming up the Pacific Highway and staying in National Parks, Camp sites and Caravan Parks, swimming by day and BBQing by night it was a good time. While cooking up our dinner on the ubiquitous BBQs we would inevitably get talking to senior couples who were spending their retired lives travelling around Australia. They always had great advice on what to do, where to go and sometimes they would even donate a beer or two to the cause. Another tip on the local wildlife was not to leave your food unattended on the BBQs because the Kookaburra, Australia's largest kingfisher bird is a notorious

Ready for lunch

Vicki in the kitchen

thief and often nearly sets himself on fire stealing food from the grill. He may just be a bird but as far as Conor was concerned, that's what you get!

We made our way up the coast, stopping at countless beaches along the way and our next major city stop was Brisbane. Vicki's friend's, Conor and Claire had invited us to stay with them since it became known that we were going travelling and as we're not the type to turn down an invitation like that, it wasn't long before we met up. This was a great few days. Good fun, loads of good drink, great company and another memorable time. On Easter Sunday we went to Wet 'n' Wild, a water park with slides and rides to delight, excite and stimulite. We were like a bunch of kids running around the place trying to decide what to go on next. Claire took us on a boat ride and this turned out to be a great way to see the city and although we hadn't heard much about Brisbane it is certainly one of the best places we've been to. Claire and Conor kindly lent us their surf and

Milo & Squirms

Does it get any better?

boogie board and flippers for which to enjoy ourselves. With the van loaded up we headed down to Byron Bay. Having been galvanised by a surf lesson, during which we were both standing up (Vicki was dancing on her board) we now had the confidence to at least take the boards down to the beach and give it a proper crack. On one ocassion Conor was paddling (because that's what you do if you can't surf) around the sea out at Byron Bay and what appears but three dolphins. A big wave came through and they turned with it and surfed in on it. It was a spectacular sight and a real memory for the entire trip. There was however the split second where you think the worst as soon as you see a dorsel fin break the water's surface. Luckily no shorts were stained and nobody was embarrassed! Before arriving in Australia we had both considered ourselves relatively strong swimmers but coming here was like a slap in the face and a kick up the arse! The waves are nothing to be scoffed at and Vicki in particular had numerous injuries. She took many's the spill and in one

A little shaken up

After the possum incident

instance she was attempting to surf and somehow she managed to fall on her back onto the surfboard and then tumbled off into the water, bringing the board with her and injuring her stomach. Of course Conor was laughing out of concern and luckily we all lived to tell the tale! As the Aussies would say "She copped a fair bashing!"

We continued up the Sunshine Coast with the boards, Conor still persisting with trying to surf and taking any help on offer from the locals

Australia Zoo came highly recommended to us and with the name that the late great Steve Irwin had brought to it we couldn't miss it. The crocodile encolsures housed some seriously impressive beasts and the message about conservation they try to convey was not lost on us. Vicki finally got to pet a koala but this planted the seed of her wanting to take one home. We never managed to work out the logisitics of such an undertaking so it's still up in the air

Noosa Heads was the last major town where we could swim and or surf because of the jellyfish that appear in their droves further up the

Going for a piddle

On the beach

coast. With the warmer water there is also a higher risk of shark activity so we took full advantage in Noosa and rented surf boards for the final time. We spent a number of days at the beach and it was another highlight to add to the pile

As the time to leave Australia was getting closer and closer we continued to make our way up north through Central and Northern Queensland, stopping along the way at the various sights and towns like Rainbow Beach, Bundaberg, Airlie Beach, Townsville and Mission Beach. Before we knew it we had arrived in Cairns and although we had driven a huge distance since we got the van all the way down in Melbourne it still seems like only yesterday we arrived into Australia

The last of the big spenders, we made our way up to Port Douglas to get a first hand look at the renowned Great Barrier Reef. The trip up here where the rainforest meets the sea was quite spectacular. The entire area through northern Queensland is definitely worth seeing. We found a camp site that suited us quite nicely in terms of location and cost but it was

The road to Sydney

Does that look like Vicki?

a little too much like a hippy commune for our liking. There was a group of French beside us and they seemed to have some sort of allerfy to washing and wearing bras. Conor didn't have a problem with the latter but the smell soon became a little much. We said "Non merci monsieur!" and went on our way! We took a little trip down the Daintree river on an eco-cruise to go crocodile spotting and despite the poor weather we weren't disappointed. The largest was 5 metre long monster called Fat Albert. Conor was stupefied! We also saw some of his girlfriends, one of which cruised by us down the river, and a monster to be in the form of one of his kids on a river bank. There was plenty of other wildlife on the trip such as many birds, snakes and as usual Conor the Inquisitor was throwing questions out like it was a dying art. Great trip!

For our final trick in Australia we had been planning to see the Great Barrier Reef and we were between two minds as to whether or not we'd put our diving certification to good use. The price made

Vicki in Sydney

...with the rain

our minds up for us so off we went to snorkel around some areas of the outer reef. We threw on our anti-jellyfish stinger suits, donned our snorkel gear and were first in the water and last out. All together we were probably swimming around for about 3 hours but we both agreed that we could easily spend the day there. To our delight there was little or no difference between diving and snorkling as the water was crystal clear and the colours surrounding us were really something else. We saw all sorts of friendly crustaceans and too many fish to count, an octopus which Conor was a little afraid would spray Vicki with ink and an as yet unnamed flat, brown type shark thingy. The coral was amazing and it was a little like a disco with all the colours. All in all it was a great day!

Now we're back in Cairns, we've sold all of the travel gear that didn't come with the van and we're ready to see what we can in South East Asia. We didn't really have any idea about the vastness or variety in Australia and after two and a half months