Fraser Island
Trip Start
Nov 23, 2006
1
13
18
Trip End
May 29, 2007
Fraser Isand,Airlie beach-whitsundays,townsville, Australia
Monday, February 26, 2007
Next day we had to get up fairly early cos we had to get to the backpacker hostel for 8am to check the vehicle out and get going on our nice lil trip,there was 9 of us in our group we had 2 germans,1 austrian,1 irish and 4 english.We were a bit gutted at 1st cos 1 of the other groups had 4 swedish birds in it but our group turned out to be really good and we had a blast! we went to the supermarket before we got on the ferry to load up on food for the next 3 days.
We had the worst start you could possibly think of,our accelerator pedal cable broke and we couldnt get on the ferry,we called the mechanic out and he sorted it all and we got the next 1 so it wasnt to bad.On fraser isalnd there arent proper roads its all sandy dirt tracks and beach driving which is really cool,bit bumpy at times-especially in the back! we headed for our 1st spot which was lake wobbie a fresh water lake in the middle of sand dunes and jungle,had a dip there cos it was absolutely boiling.Stayed there for an hr or so then headed to our campsite,we had the funniest german ive ever met in our group called Dominic he was a big david hassolhoff fan and kept singing (get out of my car) he was hilarious over the next couple of days and had everyone laughing the whole time with his weird humour! He also had a face like a teddy bear and just made you wanna give him a big hug.
We got to our campsite and pitched up our tents,the germans were taking the mick out of us for how slow we were at putting our tent up,those germans are very efficient! its in there blood us english like to wait til the last minute til we finally do it! started cooking the food and drinking wine and beers-it was only 5:30 when we started drinking,a nice early start! we didnt stay at a proper campsite that had shower and toilet facilities we stayed on a small bit of grassy land 20meters from the beach,no showers for 3days,harsh! but it was still wicked,there were 2 other groups who were with the same company we booked with and had the same itenery as us.They stayed at the campsite aswell and had the same route as us over the next 3days,we had a game of footy on the beach and carried on drinking,got hammered and had a good night,cant remember to much cos i was well hammered!
Woke up with a hangover next day! had to get up at 6am to head over to a place called Indian heads a cliff edge point where if you look below you can see all sorts of creatures like sharks,stingrays,dolphins and fish.i think i saw a few sharks and stingrays.Josh and Els saw some dolphins.really cool view and we were the 1st to get there so that was good.We had to park the van on the beach at indian heads cos we wernt aloud further than that point,we made our way on foot along the beach to the champagne pools,doesnt look like a long walk but took ages,it looked like every step you took the cliffs in the distance were moving further away!
The champagne pools are pools that are surrounded by big rocks and fill up with seawater when the tide is up! if you stand up right behind the rocks when the tide is up the waves splash against the rocks and bubble over and looks like champagne bubbles,hence the name champagne pools.messed about there for a few hrs then headed to our campsite,saw a few dingoes hanging around or van before we left,Dingoes are basically wild dogs and scrounge about looking for food,we got told not to feed them and you can get quite a hefty fine if you do.You've gotta be a bit weary around them to,apparently they can get quite vicious,the best thing to do is stay still and calm!
On Fraser island your not supposed to swim in the sea either cos its shark infested,you dont need to tell me twice im shit scared of sharks! we headed to the camp site and pitched up our tents and stuff and got the footy out and made a lil tennis court in the sand and played some football tennis,a game weve been playing quite regularly! went to a place called elie creek that leads down to the sea,its a fresh water creek,pretty cool.
went back to the camp site and got the drinking going again,on the way back we stopped off at the sipwreck on the beach-pretty cool rusty ship! when we got back we started a drinking game (ship comes into the harbour) im sure everyone is familier with the game back at home.none of our group had ever played it and it was quite funny at some of the answers they were coming up with.in 1 of the rounds it was venomous animals in australia and dominic the funny german came up with an emu! every1 laughed there head off,he was saying ( oh leave the stupid german alone) in his funny accent! got a great video of him drunk talking loads of nonsense about david hassolhoff and the A team!
Had a good night and got hammered again,i got talking to the austrian guy who was called gerrard,he was quite quiet and could only speak some english.it was quite funny later in the night he just turned to me and said in his thick austrian accent we Austrians do not like silly germans but theses 2 germans are okay.he said it with a smirk on his face,well funny! Had to get up early again at 6am hungover again,our destination was lake Mckenzie,one of the biggest lakes on the island.We were the 1st to get there,it was a massive fresh water lake with a white sandy beach surrounding most parts.we messed about there for 3hrs or so flipping and diving in the water and playing some footy tennis- Germany V England.we won the 1st 1 and they won the 2nd.really chilled out place and a real soother,we were really lucky with the weather aswell it was boiling every day.it had been pretty shite weather last 2weeks.We got in the van and headed back to the barge to lget on the ferry back to hervey bay,got back at about 3ish and straight away got a shower it was mint! it felt good to finally be clean! all in all we all had a blast and i'd definetly do it again and recommend you guys back at home to do it if you come to Australia,its a must see!
Whitsundays.- We left Hervey bay on the 28th of feb i think at 8am in the morning to make our way north on the east coast to our destination of cairns,the road trip took us about 11hrs to get to Airlie beach,we were gona break the journey up a bit and stay in rockhampton but changed our mind when we got there,it was a redneck cowboy sort of town with loads of weirdos,we went and visited the colenel for a zinger tower and drink and saw about 5 or 6 weirdos in a matter of minutes and decided to get the hell out,we stopped in Mackay to fill up petrol and thought about staying but it was like a ghost town,everything shutting really early so we just kept going.im glad we did cos now we can relax a bit with only a short drive now to cairns.
Airlie beach seems really cool,lots of bars and clubs and its full of young backpackers up for a good time,we went out on our 2nd night and smashed it hard on the wine or GOON as they call it out here before we went out and had a wicked night,next morning els was in a state and suffered really bad with his hangover,it was quite funny seeing him in that state,he was near to death! and was a begging us to kill him to put him ot of his misery! we also met up with his cousin amy whos travelling on her own for 18 months(fair play)
Earlier that day before we got hammered we booked ourselves a 3 day 2 night sailing trip around the whitsunday islands,our boat was called the BOOMERANG a really cool boat,there was about 18 of us on the boat including the crew.we set of at 2pm on the 2nd of march,This is the starting point of the great barrier reef so we were hoping that we were going to see some cool stuff and have a good trip! The food was really good,the weather was awesome-really sunny and boiling hot we were really lucky with the weather considering how unpredictable it can be up here,1 minute it rains the next its sunny,its bloody annoying! we done quite a bit of snorkelling in 3 different places around the islands,saw some really cool fish and coral,the coral is amazing alot better than phi phi in thailand,its untouched and is like a different world.after we got out and back on the boat on our 3rd bit of snorkelling on the 2nd to last day we saw 3 dolphins swimming about where we had just been snorkelling,i would of loved to of still been in the water when they turned up it would of been good,im sure i would of freaked out aswell suddenly seeing 3 dolphins turn up,cos from a distance when they show there fin out of the water they do look a bit like sharks!
We also went to whitehaven beach a really beautiful sandy beach,we played the irish at footy and it turned out to be a draw,we went for a dip in the sea aswell,you have to wear a stinger suit whenever you go in the water cos of jellyfish.There was a lot of banta between the english and the irish during the trip which was good and as you can imagine a lot of drinking aswell.1st night we played loads of drinking games and drank lots and lots of GOON! the last night it was crazy probaly 1 of the funniest nights ive had since leaving England we played loads of drinking games,every1 was so hammered.2 aussies, a girl and bloke who know our crew came over from another boat and the girl said that weve heard that your a bit of a quiet boring bunch and interrupted our drinking game by trying to start another 1,we were not happy with her comments so we all got roudy and started chanting and singing at the other boats that were nearby and chanting at her it was so funny,she got slated and couldnt take it! during the games we played there were rules such as no right hand drinking,no pointing and no swearing if you did then you had to down your beer or cup of goon! it got messy! but was a hilarious night.loads of other stuff to tell you about the night but i'd really have to go into detail to explain how funny it was,i just dont have the time!
We arrived back to Airlie beach on the 4th of march and decided to head off straight away up towards townsville,me and els wanna do some dives around magnetic island just of the coast of townsville,theres supposed to be some really cool dive sites to see,2 shipwrecks! which should be wicked-hopefully see some cool stuff when were down there.On our roadtrip up to townsville we thought it was about time to get a video of us on the roadtrip up to cairns,its been along time waiting but weve done 1 and its coming soon! im sure you'll love it fans,its dedicated to you from us 3! a bit of J-T (sexyback)
We eventually booked our dives,we went for 2 of them today the 6th of march over on Magnetic island,our ferry was at 9 oclock in the morning so Mother wallin woke us up made our beds,made our breakfast and told us specifically not to talk to strangers-kidding that didnt happen! josh had a nice relaxing day to himself to potter about and do nothing,whilst us navy seals done our business!
It only took about 20mins to get to magnetic island on the ferry,we then caught a bus to the backpackers resort ( X base ) cool name eh? to do our 2 dives.really cool hostel with loads of young people about and in general a really cool island,to bad we havnt got enough time to really spend some time there! we met our guide and then got briefed on our dive,i was a little nervous cos it was only our 5th and 6th dives.we got all kitted up in our stinger wet suits,they were nice and tight and fitted our bodys perfectly unlike josh in his suit on the whitsundays trip were the stinger suit was hanging off him,he looked like a 4 legged spider!he could of fitted another 3 people in his suit! we set up all our gear,done a buddy check and were set to go.On the dives we done in Koa toa we done the dives off a boat this time we done them from the beach!
Our dive was only about 8 metres but it was really good just to get back into the swing of things,saw some pretty cool coral and a few fish,the visability was about 4-5metres which is pretty good.our 1st dive was about 30 mins with a 10 minute interval at the surface and our 2nd was about 25mins,even though we enjoyed it we both agreed that we saw much better coral and fish when snorkelling off the whitsunday islands,still it was really good to get back a bit of confidence and more experience for the next 2 dives we are doing the next day at the yongala shipwreck which is alot deeper a massive 28 metres,scary stuff eh?! cant wait im hoping we are gonna see some wicked stuff,fingers crossed,anyways you will all know as soon as tommorrow,see ya soon!
woke up in the early hrs of wenesday morning at around 6ish to do our shipwreck dives,the company we were going with picked us up and took us to the harbour,Josh had the whole day to himself! we tried all our gear on to make sure it fitted,bcd,fins,wet suit and mask scuba mask-i lost my mask the day before,leaving it by the swimming pool and some little runt must of nicked it,i have a nac of leaving stuff about,on my trip since leaving England ive lost my jumper,flip flops,3 pairs of sun glassess etc im useless! i lose everything
There was about 15 people on our boat including crew and skipper (reese) a nice old boy.It took about 3hrs to get to the yongala shipwreck out in the middle of the sea,the ship was actually originally built in Newcastle England in 1903,Els gave a cheer when that was anounced! and voyaged from sydney to cairns for about 5 years before becoming a cargo ship from townsville to cairns in 1908,on its 99th voyage from cairns to townsville it sunk in 1911 a year before the titanic!
There are no stories about how it went down cos there were no survivors,150 odd people died most of them were crew.There very dangerous rough seas so they reckon it was hit by a cyclone.no one actually new were the yongala was until the 70's when the aussie navy were doing extensive sweeping of mines when they got a reading on the metel detecter thingy! good choice of words dont you think? thingy!!! but only since the late 80s have they dived there,its part of the national park and great barrier reef so your not allowed to fish there,dump rubbish etc.
Because the yongalar is protected our guide said that he'd be surprised if you saw more fish at another dive site in one place at one time,he wasnt wrong there were a tonne of fish! we all got geared up for our 1st dive the waves bumping the boat from side to side making it quite difficult to get your stuff on,we were in groups 3 groups of 4,me and els were buddys,we made oue buddy safety checks,straps,tank secure,air,bcd,weights we made our steps of the boat into the sea and swam over to the rope ready for the descend,everyone in our group gave our okeay signs ready for descend,we slowly descended down the rope whilst equalising but there was something wrong,my legs were being lifted up to the surface and i wasnt sinking properly,my guide noticed that my weight belt had come off! it must of come off when i jumped in from the boat,just one of those things.so i had to ascend and go back to the boat to get another one els and the other 2 guys went with another group.
I got all sorted and descended with our guide who els reckoned looked like a spitting image of his cousin! and went down the rope.The visability was the best ive ever had,it was 20metres visability-you could see to the ocean floor nearly! i couldnt believe what i was seeing,schools and schools of fish everywhere a thousand times better than the snorkelling in phi phi and diving we done previously,me and els said to each other that we were starting to think would we ever see anything diving after our other experiences but it was finally worth while,i was swimming around with nearly every fish you could name and they were hugh! no joke it was like something out of finding nemo and sharktale,we saw little fish circuling bigger fish cleaning them off just like in sharktale the film.It was like an underwater city!
The ship was still intact,it still had the engine room and anchor etc,it was hard to regonise it as a ship cos of all the coral and plants growing on it.and fish around
it.on my 1st dive we were down there for about 30mins,my best spot were 2 turtles-i was in awe of them,they were eating away at the coral with me and our guide less than a metre away, looking hardly bothered that we were there chomping away at the coral before gracefully swimming away! soooooo cool! i was so excited with my adrenaline pumping with what i'd seen that id used a lot of air and had to ascend up the rope,we had to make 2 safety stops,1st one was a 5 minute stop at something like 10metres and a 2 minute stop at 5metres!
We had a 1hr interval before our 2nd dive to have lunch,the visability for our 2nd dive wasnt as good as the 1st dive,you could still see everything very clearly,the visability was 15-20 metres which is still amazing,least on this dive i could swim around with my buddy els.We descended down the rope into this fish haven again,once we got down there we just looked at each other and spread our arms out pointing to what we were seeing before our eyes,we were swimming with the underwater world,its almost unthinkable! it felt like we were floating on air.
We saw pretty much the same as the 1st dive except one creature,we were about 20metres deep when from below us near the ocean bed we saw this 2 metre bull shark just shoot off like a bullet-no joke it was sooo fast! it makes you wonder if you did come face to face with a shark you wont be able to get away from it that quickly! soon as we finished our dive we just couldnt believe what we'd witnessed,im so glad i done my open water course in koa toa because this is probaly the best experience of my life,i wish i could project to you guys back home what i saw with my eyes during the 2 dives cos words dont do it justice.
On our way back to townsville on the boat i just fell asleep exhausted from the bumpy waves and our diving experience.We got back to the van and just had a quiet one and moved on the next day up to Cairns.mother wallin told us about his joy joy day when we got back about his wander around town,his 1st time wet shave which he was over the moon about the results of his smooth baby soft skin and walk on the beach-he probaly knitted a jumper aswell!
Comments
Burn...
Hey Dan.. was looking at the pics of you guys on fraser island
wow.. aren't you burned.. haha.. you are not as tanned as elliot. yet, but hey keep working on it. Seems like an awesome tour around aus. But you will have fun in the States esp in Cali! Land of the Tan hotties. Take care! ~LIL~ xoxox