Day 1
Fraser Island is the biggest sand island in the world at 120km long and 15km wide. It is sculpted from wind, sand and surf, the striking blue freshwater lakes, crystalline creeks, giant sand dunes and lush rainforest. It is the only place where rainforest grows on sand and it is now a World Heritage site.
We were part of an ever increasing 4x4 holiday drive.
We got up at 6am to go for our 6.30am briefing. No one could understand this ridiculously early start as our ferry crossing wasn’t until 10.30am!!! Fortunately we had a good, fun group so everything was done quickly, organised and in a fun way (otherwise it would’ve been depressing lol!).
We learnt from an early stage that the two guys running our group of 40 (the lead drivers) were going to treat us like school kids for the duration of the trip, which immediately put all our backs up, so we just permanently took the mickey! Lol!
We finally got in the car and onto the ferry for 10.30am, and while waiting for the ferry to start its journey, three dolphins were spotted not far from the ferry so it was a nice start to the trip!
The ferry to Fraser Island was 40mins and once we got onto Fraser Island it was straight into 4x4 mode for the whole 3 days, woop woop :) driving on sand was a lot of fun :)
Our 1st destination on the island was the Central Station (funnily enough right in the centre of the island) which was the link to Invisible creek. Invisible Creek is called this as the water is so clear, when you look at it, it just looks like the rainforest floor!
We got back in the 4x4 and headed to Lake Wabby. We parked on the beach, had some lunch and then made the 2km walk through the rainforest and over sandblows (enormous dunes created by wind-blown sand) but when we got to the lake, it was worth it. It was beautiful with weird clear/green/yellow water. There were massive catfish swimming around in it too. Chris and Richie decided to go down the sand dunes on their heads to get to the water lol! We all quickly jumped in for our first dip of the day. We spent a good hour splashing around, then had to trek back to the cars as we had to get to base camp before dark.
The mahusive sandblows!
Now, the only way to get to our base camp from where we were was a good 30min drive along the beach. But our lead drivers had read the tide wrong and we got to a certain part of the beach where the freshwater and saltwater had met and had formed a churning pool of very deep water. One of the lead drivers made his way through it without telling anyone how to go through as we had to go one car at a time. Chris was our driver at the time, and decided to go second. He went as close as possible to the sand bank but the water was coming over the bonnet (which was a good 3-4feet high) and with a bit of speed, was coming up over the windscreen and the roof! Awesome fun, until we saw the lead driver’s face, we were in a lot of trouble. Before he had time to tell us off, the next car was making its way over, and he was frantically trying to stop them, but to no avail!! Last to go was the other lead driver, who if it wasn’t for his reckless driving, we would have all lost our deposits on our cars, as he drove through even worse than all of us!!! Lol! and below are the pictures to prove it!!!!!!!!!
One of our 4x4 cars trying to get through, and the size of the problem!!!
And the idiot lead driver who did us all a massive favour lol!
The Mahena Shipwreck which used to be a passenger liner that was blown ashore by a cyclone in 1935 and has remained there since!
During this whole day, our little group in our car had all gotten pretty friendly and we decided over dinner that a few drinks were needed in order to ‘bond’ further lol! Naomi can’t remember how she got back to the tent that night!!!
Day 2
So with very sore heads, and with a very early morning wake up call, we were on the road by 8am again, heading to the Champagne Pools. On the drive on the beach there, just like it was something that happens everyday (which it does here) an aeroplane landed next to our vehicles as we were driving along! Totally surreal!
On the beaches, wildlife were given right of way, so we had to avoid the bazillions of birds that were chilling in the wake.
The Champagne Pools offer the only saltwater swimming on the island. When the tide is right, the pools bubble up like champagne, hence the name. Only problem was, when we were there, the tide was at the wrong stage, so we didn’t see the bubbles :( but there were tons of fish to keep us occupied anyways.
It was then Naomi’s turn to drive up to Indian Head for views over the north east part of the island. Fortunately the weather was good, so we saw a lot of wildlife, including many birds, stingrays and whales from a distance. It wasn’t until we back down on the beach that the whales started having there fun, while we stood mesmerised watching.
Stingray and pretty bird
Next stop was Eli Creek, a beautifully clear creek that ends in a big freshwater pool and that you can float along (if you can brave the cold water).
Then onto Lake Allom which is renowned for its turtles and its tea tree oil. The lake is surrounded by tea tree plants and so the tea tree naturally soaks into the water and is very good for your hair and skin. Once again Team E had to be the first to take the plunge. There were 2 obstacles here though, the turtles and the icy coldness of the waters. Also there was something strange about the water, almost like its density was a lot thicker than usual. It was a very deep lake and we struggled to tread water for 10mins!
Then it was time to head back to base camp. Our feast for the evening was sausages, steaks, and burgers with potato chips and it was awesome! Meant we had set our stomachs for a good ole game of THE CIGARETTE PACKET GAME :) we had to bring it out. And as usual, frivolties were a tad on the wild side and here are the pictures or should I call it evidence lol!
Chris became horsey everytime someone had to drink and had to piggy back us round the camp fire!!!! Best rule ever Andre!
Before we said goodbye to the cigarette packet, there was some fun with a spider who was trying to get involved in the game lol!
Gemma on form :)
Matching outfits! Aren’t we cool lol!
And at the end of evening, spooning without sleeping bags!
Day 3
An even earlier morning (6am for goodness sake, and on holiday!!!) and even bigger hangovers…… we headed off once again, with Chris being the designated driver as he was the only one in a fit enough state! Lol!
We had one pitstop before heading to the ferry :(
We spent the morning at Lake Birrabeen which is lined with fine, white sand. Not as fine as Whitehaven beach but still good. The water was also very clear. All the girls decided to have a good exfoliating session!
Don’t open your mouth when exfoliating with sand, really doesn’t taste good!
And then it was time to head home :( apart from having a great time on Fraser Island, we had formed a great bond in our little team, Team E!!! So much so, that we all ended up in our room when we got back to the hostel later on having a DVD session before the Stephs’s headed off!
End of another great trip!
Thanks to the fab Team E! Miss you all!
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