Hervey Bay is the stopping off point to get to Fraser Island - there isnt much else to report on the little town - a decent beach with lots of kite surfers, and a few travellers places, and more importantly the arrival of Price! Its great to have Nicky joining us for a few days for the ongoing drive down the East Coast of Oz, but before we head South we head North to Bundaberg and the Mon Repos Turtle Sanctuary, where we are promised new hatchlings scrambling down to the sea on their big journey. Its a really informative place with lots of info about where the turtles go, why they return etc etc, and there's a lot of expectation. We've to wait in the centre until we get called, and after 2.5 hrs we're starting to think that maybe none will show tonight. We've also managed to try the most disgusting snack food ever. Apparently the Aussies love a chiko roll, kind of indescribale but supposed to be cabbage and mutton deep fried. Its like the baton that the athletes use in the relay.
A-ny-way, back to the real reason, and these turtles. Super cute as you can imagine, we get to touch (not hold) them - they have amazingly powerful flippers, and then watch them find their way down to the water's edge and off on their journey. Think Finding Nemo as they get into the currents and head over to the Pacific. In about 15 years those females who have survived will return to Mon Repos to lay their eggs. Good Luck to them!
Next day we are up and out early and off to Fraser Island. Its the largest sand island in the world, so you have to be in a 4x4 to do a bit of off roading. Our time is tight to get down to Sydney so we have opted to go on a day trip, rather than camping overnight. That and the fact that it involves camping made our decision... So we pile onto a bus and are shipped around over bouncy sandy roads. There's a lot of interesting wildlife and nature around, and then we get to the main highway on the island, which is basically the beach! It a stunning drive with the Pacific Ocean waves crashing alongside us and dunes piled up on the other side. We stop at a creek for a swim, and also at a shipwreck for a photo, but as often with these tours, it all feels very rushed. Fortunately, there is an option to go in a 7-seater aircraft, and get a different perspective on the place, which is a real treat. The beach is the runway, and we take off over the ocean - probably the best take off in the world. Its amazing to see the island from the air, and watch how the sand dunes are moving. They're as big as the trees and moving along consuming the trees. Hard to imagine, but the forest basically renews itself every few hundred of years or so! Great flight, and a shame to get back on the bus. Then its time for lunch. Packed so much into the morning!
The afternoon is spent by Lake McKenzie, a stuning picture postcard freshwater lake in the centre of the island. Its just a shame that the weather has clouded over, so we dont get to see it in all its pristine glory. Still its nice for a swim before we head back onto the bus, and return to Hervey Bay. On the way back to our car, there is a field of kangaroos poking their heads up and peering as we pass by. We're off to Noosa next stop, and think that we've given Nicky a good couple of days introduction to Oz!
