Hervey Bay & Tour of Fraser Island

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Trip Start Feb 13, 2008 Previous
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  Fraser Island, Australia
Friday, March 21, 2008

Got on a Greyhound Coach at 8.00pm on the Monday night. Am moving more than a 1000 kilometres down the coast tonight - travel time 13hours and 20 minutes. Got down to the coach station nice and early. The heavens opened and it absolutely tipped down as the coach arrived. Just getting my luggage loaded got me soaked through to the skin. So that was a nice start of the journey !! However coach wasnt too busy, as the majority of people waiting seemed to be getting on the north bound coach that was leaving at the same time.

Arrived after getting a few hours broken sleep at just past 09.00am. Courtesy bus was waiting to take me to the Palace hostel I was staying in on Tuesday night in Hervey Bay. Another good hostel, this time they were all self contained units with own kitchens and living rooms with private rooms off them. Managed to chat to a group who had just got back from Fraser Island the night before, they were raving about it saying they had had an amazing time

Attracts many Tourists

. There were bout 12 people staying in our unit. The local Dominios Pizza does a deal with the hostels, so we got a shipping order of Pizza and had beers delivered from the Drive Thru Bottle shop ( That is such a good idea !! ) so that was the night food and entertainment sorted for $15 a piece.
I decided to book a guided 2 day/ 1 night Tour of Fraser Island, as getting short of time now and still quite a bit more I want to do in Oz. So went to bed about 01.00am knowing I had to be up and ready to be picked up by 07.30am the next morning.
The company I have booked the tour with is called Cool Dingo ( www.cooldingotour.com ) They are 18 to 35 year old specialists. Hope the aftersun cream is doing the trick so no one notices!!!!
Get picked up in the morning feeling slightly bleaary eyed, and taken to the Urangan Boat Harbour ready for our 08.45am ferry to Fraser Island which takes 40 minutes. Mercifully the water is very calm today so the Catamaran makes smooth progress. We are met at the Jetty by the Ranger who is going to be our guide over the two days, we then get on board our special 4x4 coach ( similar to the type I had been on in the tour I did of the Northern Cape in New Zealand ) We are taken to the Kingfisher Resort which is where our Accommodation is going to be that night. We are told to travel light with a minimal overnight bag and day pack ( Mine doesnt feel that minimal due to the beers and Bottle of Red I have in it - I have been warned there are limited chances to shop on Fraser, so the one shop in the resort is rather pricey !

Chamagne Rock Pools

! )
There are 25 of us on the 40 seater coach, so there is plenty of room. We start our Tour by heading towards Basin Lake. Fraser Island is quite unique as the island is formed of sand ( rather than rock ) the whole Island has been designated a Heritage site by the government, so it is fiercely protected against any development of any sorts. There are only a small number of privately owned properties on the island. There are no proper roads outside of the Kingfisher resort, just sand tracks ( For more info see www.fraserisland.net ) Once we start off in the coach you realise the need for the 4 wheel drive, as the sandy tracks get quite steep and narrow - No ordinary car would get very far on this island. The island is also famous for its population of Wild Dingoes. There are about 200 who roam free around the island. There is a fence around the resort built especially to keep them out of there. We are told by the guide that is does not work though ( as we find out later !! )
Our first stop is at Basin Lake. The surprising thing about this is when we have to walk about 10 minutes to get to it from the coach, we are walking uphill ( and not down as you would expect to when you are heading towards water ) These lakes have a special sort of name as they are highly unusual, but cant remeber it at the moment. Apparently there are only about 80 such lakes in the world, and 40 of them are on Fraser island

Fraser is a National Park

. We get to have a swim here, then move on to a place which is called central station. This got its name as previously it was where the cutting down and logging of the forests was controlled from previous to it gaining its World Heritage status in 1992 ( No logging was done for 12 months previous to this as this is a precondition of its new status ) We had lunch here, it was buffet style unpacked by our guide, and it was really very good, with lots of fresh salds, meats and cheeses. During the course of the day there are a couple of bushwalks, and we get to walk through the forests by Wanggolba Creek which is really beautiful. The last place we visited that day was Lake McKenzie which is a fabulous huge fresh water lake, which was great for swimming in. We then headed back to the resort to our accommodation. Once again the accommodation was self contained units that were dotted about in the forests. The standard of them though was first class. I ended up sharing a lodge with 3 Italian and 2 German girls, and two Canadian lads called Andrew and Doug who I became firm friends with of the two days. We visited the overpriced shop to reload on alcoholic supplies. The three of us bought 24 cans of XXXX beer to warm us up before dinner in the "Dingoe" bar. It appears my Canadian friends are well versed in the art of beer drinking - must be something in that name "Andrew" !!!  Dinner was Mexican themed buffet style and was absolutely excellent. We returned to our lodge after Dinner to finish our beers sitting on the front patio which looked out into the forests

Rock Formations

. Only when we had done this at about 22.00 we returned to the Dingoe bar in the resort. On the way back though we had the company of a Dingoe that came trotting past us - Hayden our guide was right - the fence doesnt work !!  While at the bar that evening we also had a visit from a Dingoe, though he was chased off by a member of staff. They are Pure Asian Dingoes that were bought over to the Island hundreds of years ago. No dogs are allowed on the Island, as the intention is is to keep the breed pure.
Day two we are up for breakfast just after 07.00 which is once again excellent, and we are back on the coach for 08.00. Today is based mainly around the beaches. It is heavily overcast today, but still very very warm.
We spend a big chunk of the day driving along 75 mile beach ( Not actually that length, a bit like 90 mile beach in New Zealand ) the drive accross the island is an experience. The seat belt is a must if you actually want to stay in your seat. We drive along the beach and visit the shiopwreck of the Maheno. We get to climb up the Indian Headland for excellent views along the coastline. We also get to wade through Eli Creek which is a fantastically clear fresh water stream, and swim in the Champagne Rockpools. this is an excellent location, I have suggested to the guide that they should supply a glass of Fizz here, to accompany its namesake !! It stays very hot and humid all day today, but the sun hardly peeps out from behind the clouds

Sand Filled Forests

. By the end of the day though a lot of us agree thatit was probably a good thing due to the amount of time spent on the beach without shelter.
We end up back at the resort for 5pm. A really enjoyable day, but very tiring. We get to shower etc and get another really good dinner - Italian tonight - Pizza, pasta etc Delicious.
We then got the 8pm ferry from the Jetty at Fraser Island back to Hervey bay. The ride back at night was quite special too, with virtually a full moon, a now clear sky. One of the lads pointed out the star constellation called the Southern Cross. A perfect end to a great two days. I have absolutely loved Fraser Island, it has been the highlight of Oz so far, though I still think I have some of the best bits to come. Am back to the hostel to pick my main luggage up. I am getting the 01.25am bus from Hervey Bay to arrive in Brisbane at 06.05am Friday morning. Wish I could have had longer on the Island, if anyone is planning on coming to the east coast of Oz, then this place is a must. It is certainly unique...........

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The beach is the only highway here !!!	The Pinnacles	The Shipwreck of the Maheno	This is very rare!

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