Week 13- Lakes, Laughs, and Luxurious Laziness!

 

My thirteenth week on the road began with an early morning pick up by coach, before a ferry from the mainland of Australia to Fraser Island, where I would be spending the next couple of days. This isn’t just any old island- it just happens to be the largest sand island on Planet Earth. Years ago, there was no island here, but over time, thousands of tonnes of sand has been blown up the east coast of Australia by powerful winds from the Pacific Ocean. Much of this sand has been deposited (left) in the same place and resulted in the formation of Fraser Island. As I looked at the huge amount of trees on the land, I couldn’t believe that this island was made entirely out of sand: it is the only place on our planet that rainforest grows on sand. My transport around the island for the next few days would be a special 4 wheel-drive bus that was well equipped to dealing with the very tricky business of driving on soft sand that took the place of roads! Our driver, Jess, who was an extremely tough Australian woman who had spent her life working on farms and on cattle stations, told us that the golden stretch of sand that we could see where the land met the sea, not only acted as a beach but also as a motorway for the buses and 4 wheel-drive cars that travelled throughout the island! I have certainly never been on a motorway where waves are crashing down beneath the wheels of my car!

My transport over the next few days!

The ‘motorway’!

As we travelled down 75 Mile Beach (Bet you can’t guess why it’s called that?!), we were confronted by the sad sight of hundreds of lifeless, small, black birds that had gotten into difficulties during a recent storm and washed up onto the beach. Although this wasn’t a very nice thing to see, this was nature and there was nothing that humans could have done to stop the situation. However, there were some other animals lying on the beach that we could help and prevent from happening. These beautiful turtles often end up dying because of the pollution that arrives into the sea, such as plastic bags that the turtle mistakes for its food, jellyfish. We have talked a lot about littering and pollution at CRC, and our platinum Eco Award proves what a fantastic green school that we are and what caring children you are, but please remember how important these issues are to you and future generations on Earth.

Help protect our marine life!

At our first stop of the day, we took the chance of introducing ourselves and I discovered there to be Norwegians, Germans, Danish, English, Swedish, Koreans, and Taiwanese amongst my group. We were stopping off at Lake Mackenzie, which was a beautiful blue lake with a certain type of sand that could be rubbed on skin in order to cleanse it. Despite it being a purely sand island, there are several lakes, and creeks on the island, with some containing perfectly clean water that is suitable for drinking- it was ideal to sip after being in the hot sun for so long. After a little dip in Lake Mackenzie, it was time for a spot of lunch, where we were rudely interrupted by the laughing cries of some kookaburra birds sitting on the eucalyptus trees above our heads! When we finished our food, we set off on a walk through the rainforest so that we could appreciate the nature that surrounded us. Jess told us all about the different trees and plants, how they have grown and how important each is to the ecosystem of Fraser Island.

One of the kookaburras ‘laughing’ in the trees!

Jess taught us all about the island.

Later at dinner, we realised that the date was the 31st of October, also known as Halloween. As we had no costumes with us on the island, Jess decided that she would give out a black bin bag each, and that we had to design our own costumes using them. After an hour’s preparation, we came onto the catwalk to show off our creations. I had a rather pathetic caveman costume and headband on, but the star of the show was an English lad who had somehow designed a Superman costume complete with a cape and a large ‘S’ on his chest using sticky tape! Then it was time for a dance-off in full outfits! The best dancer award was never in doubt, as a South Korean man called Li showed off some moves that our Thushi would have been proud of! Don’t worry though Thush- he still had a long way to go until he was as good as you!

The kind of moves I was pulling off… Ok, maybe not!!

Our second day started with a long drive back down the beach towards a viewing point known as Indian Head. On our way, we were regularly stopped by backpackers who had got their rented 4WD vehicles stuck in the sand and needed help to dig the sand/push the car to safety. The viewpoint gave a magnificent overview of the beaches on either side of it, as well as giving a fantastic view out into the Pacific Ocean. Later that morning, we had the chance to go tubing, which involved sitting in a large rubber ring and floating slowly down the creek from up in the forest towards the sea. Luckily, the water didn’t take us all the way into the ocean as there are so many sharks roaming this area for food! That wouldn’t have been such fun!!

Yet another car stuck in the sand!

 

Overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

One of the views from Indian Head.

After some light lunch, we had a bit of a surprise as we were told that we could have an optional flight over the island on a six seater plane. The plane was tiny with a propellor on the front of it, and the pilot told us that it was a unique opportunity as it is one of only two places in the world where airplanes are allowed to take off and land on sand- I had to do it! I sat in the back with two other passengers as the pilot started the engine and built up speed down the runway/motorway/beach! Before I knew it, we were soaring above the air into the ocean, and then spinning back in the opposite direction to take us over the island. As the centre of Fraser Island is filled with so many trees, you can not access the more remote parts without several hours walking. Only from the air could you understand the size and uniqueness of the island, literally a birds-eye view of the lakes, forests, and sand that make up this special place. It was an amazing experience but soon it was time to land back on the golden sand to the delight of the rest of the passengers watching from the nearby sand dunes.

What I was trusting to keep me safe!!

My view out of the window of the plane!

Back on safe ground with the pilot!

After a night’s rest, it was time for our last day on the island before we returned to mainland Australia. It started with a sighting of some dingoes strolling down the centre of 75 mile beach. Dingoes are the wild dogs that live in many parts of Australia, and are related to the wolves that live in Asia. We watched from the safety of the bus as they wandered around searching for food and drinking some of the water from the creek. There are around 250 dingoes living on Fraser Island and they are believed to be the purest breed of dingo in Australia. Later, we stopped for some photos at a boat wreck called ‘Maheno’ that had washed up on the beach in 1935! It was fascinating to see this structure that had served the New Zealand navy all the way back in World War One.

One of the many dingoes roaming Fraser Island.

The Maheno ship wreck.

 

In the afternoon, we headed through a forest towards the centre of the island, to the amazing spectacle of a huge area of golden sand stretched out in all directions- we could have been in the Sahara Desert! Just beyond the edge of this sand was a perfectly blue lake with catfish swimming around in the still water. For the next few hours, we swam, tried out paddleboarding (standing on a surfboard and using the paddles to float around in the water), played with a football, and generally had a laugh in each other’s company. I had made some good friends, gained some amazing experiences, and had some unforgettable memories to take away with me.

The lakes on the island were beautiful!

Someone paddleboarding considerably better than me!

After a short ferry back to a place called Hervey Bay, and a ten-hour overnight coach journey, I arrived at my next destination of Airlie Beach. This would be my gateway to the Whitsunday Islands, which are one of the most iconic images of coastal Australia. I couldn’t wait to get here as I had heard so much about this part of the world. First though, there was the very important event of Cardiff v Swansea in the Premier League. Unfortunately, because of the time difference between the UK and Australia, there was nowhere that was open to show the game at 3 am!! I awoke early the next morning to some bad news: Cardiff had beaten the Swans 1-0! Never mind, we will beat them at the Liberty!! Fortunately, my day did get far better as it was time to start my cruise in a catamaran around the Whitsundays. I would be joined by a man from Pontypridd in South Wales, Richie, who just happened to be the travel agent who had booked my cruise, and had decided to join me for the next few days! Later, we would find that there would also be a mix of Scottish, Irish, English, Australians, Americans, Canadians, Germans, Chinese and Swiss people at sea with us. Our boat was called ‘The Pride of Airlie’, and would be our transport for the day, while at evening we would be staying at a hotel on a private island with its own swimming pool, golf course, and tennis court. The atmosphere was brilliant on the catamaran and it wasn’t long before everyone felt like old friends, rather than strangers who had met only a few hours ago.

The Pride of Airlie.

Where we would be staying in the evenings- South Molle Island.

We arrived at the resort after several hours floating around some of the 74 islands that make up the Whitsundays. Along the way, there were beautiful, golden beaches in all directions, as the sun beat down from the cloudless, blue skies- it was idyllic! We were given a quick tour of the resort before spending a little time chilling out by the swimming pool as the sun was setting for the evening. Soon, it was time for dinner with the group, where our guides informed us that there would be karaoke for the rest of the night. Now, I have already spoken about how bad my voice is, as well as moaning about out-of-tune singers in my last blog. So, you can probably guess what happened next?! Richie was very keen to show the rest of the group some traditional Welsh singing, and somehow managed to convince me to sing a duet of ‘Delilah’ with him. I’m not sure that Sir Tom would have appreciated our version of his classic song, but it was a good laugh and I must say that I rather enjoyed myself!

Our swimming pool on the island.

I wouldn’t say that our version sounded exactly like the original!!

 The second day of my Whitsundays experience involved a long day of sailing on ‘The Pride of Airlie’. While we were travelling, some people took the chance to sunbathe, some decided to read their books, whilst others such as myself just chatted away as we sailed past the breathtaking scenery. Later that morning, we were given the opportunity to snorkel at the side of the boat. Due to the fact that there were so many small jellyfish in the water, we had to wear a stinger suit that would protect us from the marine creatures. We saw some large turtles popping their heads out of the water, along with some tropical fish, before returning onboard. After some lunch, we headed to the most famous point within these 74 islands- Whitehaven Beach. I had seen so many pictures of the white sands of this beautiful beach, but could scarcely believe that I was setting foot on it myself. It lived up to its hype as one of the best beaches in the world, and we spent the next couple of hours relaxing in this wonderful place.

I won the fancy dress competition!!

Whitehaven Beach.

Before I knew it, it was the third and final day of the sailing trip, and after a scenic walk to the highest point of the island that we had been staying on, we headed back to our boat. We returned to where we had started our trip, Airlie Beach, in the late afternoon. That evening, our tour group got together for a farewell meal. Although I had a few more days left to relax in Airlie Beach with some friends, most of the group were heading off in different directions on the following day. This had been one of my favourite groups of people to tour with as everyone had got along so well and had such a cracking laugh together. We had a great send-off as we ate our meals, before playing a couple of card games over a few drinks- it was the perfect way to end a brilliant week! Now though, the countdown to my departure from Australia was on…

The view from the highest point of South Molle Island.

Highlight of the week: It had been such an amazing week, and I had some fantastic memories of the past seven days. Overall though, it is all of the people that I met that I’ll always remember when I think about my trip up the east coast of Australia- they had made this such a memorable and special journey. As I wrote earlier, these people had started the week as complete strangers, and ended it as good friends.

Lowlight of the week: Cardiff City 1-0 Swansea City. 😥

If there are any comments or questions, don’t forget to email me at mrgcrc@hotmail.com
I will do my best to write back to you! Have a great week everyone!