Fraser Island

So I just got back from a 3 day camping trip on Fraser Island - the world's largest sand island - and what an experience (in more ways than one!). It was a self drivd trip so, in two groups of about ten people, we hired 4 wheel drive trucks and camping equipment. Despite the fact that everyone was in their 20's or 30's it felt so much like a school trip - but I will come to that bit last!

First I have to talk about the part of the trip that effected me the most, which much to my surprise was the driving! Now apart from a brief period just before I was old enough to start learning, I have never wanted to drive for three reasons: 1) It's far too expensive, 2) Being very much a city girl (at least till now!) I have never felt the need, and 3) Me behind the wheel of a car sounds like an extremely dangerous idea. However, after three days of off road driving, one of the first things I want to sort out when I get back to England is some driving lessons. Once on the island there were two types of driving - once on the sand along the beach - which created such a sense of freedom; and the second in the rainforest, on crazy offroad tracks. Driving on the offroad tracks was so much fun as just a passenger that it must be incredible to actually be behind the wheel. We were flying over massive bumps and being thrown around so much, it was like being on a rollercaoster. One girl's seatbelt came undone and she went flying so high that she hit her head on the ceiling! It is quite dangerous from what we heard in the briefing - broken feet (that get crushed under the seats) and broken backs are far from unheard of!

Just the bouncing around and free spirited driving on the beach made it an awesome experience, but there were a few little problems that made the driving all the more memorable. The first sign that spelt out the nature of the rest of the trip happened as early as pulling out of the car hire shop - think long, loud beeping of horns and cars swerving out the way - if this was happening within seconds on the normal road, was our first driver up to driving on the island?! Well we made it in one piece to the ferry, first in the queue. About ten minutes later we were called forward to reverse on to the boat. So we positioned the car in place, ready to go, but then nothing, except the sound of the gear stick desperately being fumbled about. "Could the first car please reverse on to the ferry" - sounds over the loudspeakers. So now the two guys in front are both pulling the gearstick this way and that, as the ferry loudspeakers keep repeating their orders and the men on the ferry are frantically waving their arms at us. Before long, the person in charge of the loading comes up to the car: "What seems to be the problem?" We couldn't find reverse! It was the most embarrassing thing ever. When we finally found it the whole queue behind us cheered!

This wasn't the only problem we had with the car - the back door got stuck, so the 8 of us in the back seats (two benches along the sides, like an army truck) had to climb in through the back window! Also there were leaks by the drivers feet,at the broken back door and in the side windows, so every time we went through water we all got drenched - but it's all part of the experience I say!

We didn't get into any major disasters - only two near misses: On our second day we all woke up a bit too late and spent a bit too long eating breakfast, so by the time we got to the beach to drive to our destination, the tide was already coming in, and we had twenty mintutes to get off the beach before it was considered a danger zone for driving. Only problem was that we had an hours worth of driving ahead of us! So we put the best driver in the driver's seat and sped as fast as we could along the beach. By the time we were half way we already had the sea biting at our wheels, and were considering the possibility that we would have to somehow get the car up on the grassy bank and wait four hours for the tide to go back out, but we made it all the way in the end!

The second near miss came when we were on our way to catch the ferry back to the mainland. With an hour before the ferry left, we came across a broken down car blocking the narrow track that led to the barge loading point. We sent the boys out the car to investigate and help, but one of the tyres had come completely off, the sand was too soft to jack the car up to put the spare tyre on, and the front wheels were too far down a dip the even attempt to push the car out the way. The only other way to the ferry was to go round the the entire island - a four hour drive! Unless we thought up another plan we would be stuck on the island. So we began to reverse back up to the last junction to see if we could work it out. Before we reached the junction we found a track labelled "No entry, one way only". Frim looking at our map we thought that if only this was two way we could probably just make the ferry, if we drove fast. And so there was only one thing to do - reverse the wrong way down the one way OFFROAD track as fast as we possibly could. A slightly scary experience! But luckily we didn't meet any other cars, and made the ferry.

I was so glad I went on the self drive trip rather than the guided tour, as it was really half the experience - but now a bit about what we actually did and saw on Fraser Island: We had heard that our first day on the island may be our only day of sunshine, so we headed to probably the most famous part of Fraser - Lake Mackenzie. The water here was so beautiful - completely clear at first, then turquoise, and then a rich shade of blue in the middle. It was lovely and warm, and at the shore line it got deep at just the right angle so that you could lie down in the water. The sun was shining, making the water sparkle and keeping us very hot, but then there was a cloud behind us and a strong breeze blowing light rain drops onto our sunbathing bodies, providing a perfect refreshment. We had our lunch at the picnic area here, and no one could help noticing all the signs warning us about the dingos. Funnily enough on our drive to our next destination, we saw a pack of dingos trotting along the beach. They were really cute - just like small dogs.

Later on at the campsite we found out about the rest of the wildlife. Firstly (and to me most terrifyingly) we heard about the all the deadly spiders on the island and were given the advice to shake out all clothes and shoes before dressing, and worse, to always check under the toilet seat before you go to the toilet - as the deadly spiders like to hide there!

Secondly (and most annoyingly) were the bloody horse flies! These were massive - at first I thought the were moths, as they were as big as any of the biggest moths you will see in England. And even worse, they would follow you and attack you like there was no tomorrow. At any one given time on the trip you were bound to see someone flapping around like a mad person due to these horrible pests.

Another dangerous animal we had to watch out for were the snakes. Every now and then we would come across a notice board listing all the snakes in the area, and though some of them were harmless, at least half were poisonous. Before I went on this trip I heard a story about a guy who got really drunk there one night and forgot to close his tent. The next morning, he woke up to find a python peering curiously into his face, from a grand distance of 3 inches away!

Moving on to the sea - we couldn't go in it basically due to all the dangerous animals in there waiting to eat us!

Now about my favourite animal in Australia so far, and I'm surprised I haven't mentioned these amazing creatures so far, as I have been seeing them since I left Sydney. Bats. At sunrise and sunset they fly around in their swarms, making a complete racket! Although I have only seen them from afar they seem to be the most beautiful and fascinating creatures. Unfortunately they are two fast for my camera to capture them.

And finally the mysterious drop bear....this creature looks a bit like a small koala bear, and lives in the trees. You need to be carefull not to linger under trees, as these bears will drop out onto people's heads to steal food, but they are very agressive, and will tear at your hair and scratch your face....I later found out that this infamous creature was nothing but a myth, created to scare us foreigners!

Anyways, on with our trip - our next stop was the island's shipwreck. This whole wreck was once a Japanese cruise ship - now it is nothing but a rusting metal shell of a ship, washed up on West coast of Fraser Island, and slowly being eaten away by the sea. It was quie interesting to look at the ship, imagining what it once was, imagining the fatal storm throwing it about, then seeing the destruction that is still taking place. I'm not sure how long it will take, but before long, there will be nothing left.

That night after setting up our tents and eating our bbq dinner, we set off to the beach with a few bottles of wine. As soon as we got there we found ourselves in silence gazing up at the breathtaking sky. I have honestly never seen so many stars in my life - not only was this in the complete wilderness, but I think I am right in saying that there is a hole in the ozone layer right above Australia (at least global warming has some advantages!). I seriously felt like I was inside an astronomy book or a planetarium, it was incredible. You could even see the glowing white cloud in a band surrounding hundreds of stars, which is the famous feature of the Milky Way!


The next day we woke up to the sound of torrential rain. Not the best thing to be hearing on a camping trip, yet we wouldn't let this stop us. We piled in the car and headed off to Indian Head - the highest point on Fraser Island. After racing against the tide, we parked our car at the bottom and proceeded (in our flip flops) to climb up some very slippery rocks to the top of the cliff, where we could look out to sea. People often spot sharks, manta rays and turtles gere, but the day was so overcast that we could see nothing. What we could see in the other direction however, was miles of sand dune and rainforest.

As we headed back down ready to make the 5km walk to the Champagne Pools, the rain for heavier, but we put our belongings in the car and decided to brave it. After just a couple of minutes we were so completely soaked through that we may as well have jumped fully clothed into a lake. It was quite ridiculous really, but it was still really warm and we found it hilarious, so I think it was probably more fun that way! We got to the Champagne Pools, which were giant rock pools, shallow enough to sit in, by the sea. Even with the weather how it was, you could see that they were a creamy "champagne" type colour, but I imagine on a clear day, they would be beautiful.

We went back to the camp early that day, as by the time we had walked the second 5km back from the Champagne Pools we were pretty fed up of being soaking wet. The afternoon was spent huddled in a bbq area of the campsite, eating immense amounts of warm food, drinking goon (cheap boxed wine, infamous in Australia) to try and warm up, and feeling generally pretty damp, despite wearing every last piece of dry clothing we owned! That night the majority of our car (except an older couple and a girl we didn't get on with) went into one tent with our torches, continued to drink the remaining goon and told silly stories. It really reminded me of being 15 again and it was great fun!

Thankfully the rain stopped for our last day, as taking the tent down in the rain would have been an absolute nightmare. So joyful at the the idea of no rain, we headed to another lake - Lake Wabby. This lake is slowly being swallowed up by the sand dunes, which are being blown further into it by the wind. So this too, like the shipwreck, will before long be gone. We had to walk 2km over the sand dunes to get to the lake in the first place, and it was such a dramatic (if physically exhausting) walk. It was like being in the desert, but then if you looked to either side you could see the rainforest! Bizarre! Then finally at the top of one of the dunes we saw the beautiful blue-green lake below us. So we ran down the steep bank and straight into the water. Then, if you know me well you will understand, a shocking thing happenend. I - the girl who is terrified of flying objects (i.e. balls) coming at her, who closes her eyes while playing ball sports and who gets nervous when she sees people playing football near her - I played frisbee. This has never happened before.

So that was the awesome trip that was Fraser Island, and I really did have so much fun. However, I said at the beginning that I would write about the ridiculous drama that went on between the two cars, that made things feel like a school trip. It all started when one girl from the other car tripped over one of our tents, and my friend Lucy laughed. This was the beginning of the end. The girl who tripped over went completely mental, calling Lucy all sorts of things. Then that night there was an arguement between these two, shouted from one tent to another, with poor Lucy being told how immature and stupid she was. By the next day the whole campsite had heard a ridiculous and totally fictional rumour, involving Lucy's supposed sexual endevours. It was ridiculous, and quite upset Lucy, but we put it behind us and took no notice of the girls in the other car who were now ignoring us.

Now the girl I mentioned earlier who we didn't get on with had suddenly begun hanging round with the other group, which fair enough if she got on with them better, but then, every meal time, as soon as food was cooked she would reappear, take a plate of food and disappear with it back to the others. Then she would return, dumping the dirty plate with us, and disappear again. Whenever we were loading the car, cleaning up, or doing anything that involved work, she was no where to be found. Now this annoyed everyone, and led her to exclude herself from our group, but it was no major deal. What really pushed it too far and brought the awkwardness between the two groups further on, happened on the last day, when we cooked her breakfast and she as usual came to dump the dirty plate, smugly put it down and return to the other group laughing. Unfortunately for the peace, the two groups were close enough together for us to hear her comment about us basically being her slaves and doing all her work for her.

By this point we refused to have her in our car, so we swapped her for two Swedish girls that were being left out in the all-English other car. This new group clicked much better than the previous one, and we ended up having a much more pleasant last day. By the time we returned to the hostel, the two groups were not only completely blanking each other but were loudly making very bitchy comments in each others direction. It was absolutely ridiculous, but still the drama had yet to escalate! I hadn't been directly involved up until now, but I soon would....

That night our group went to the bar in the hostel, and got quite friendly with two members of staff - one French, one Welsh, and their local friend. After the bar closed and everyone else had got out the way, the staff invited us to the pool, where we all jumped in (goon in tow) and had a pool party. Before long we noticed girls from the other group peering round the corner at us. When they realised that we had spotted them, one stepped forward and gave us a lecture about how much trouble we would be in, but we ignored her. Then, every now and then we would see one run past and take a photo! Very bizarre - but I assume as some sort of evidence?! Well whatever, we didn't care, until in the end they came and crashed the pool party, so we left and carried on partying in the staff quarters.

Now Lucy and I left for five minutes with the staffs' local friend (Brett) to buy some sweets from the nearby petrol garage, and when we returned all hell had broken loose! The girls were crying, the boys were violently pacing, everyone was shouting (all from the other group I should point out - our group sat watching from the sidelines) and the security guard was on the phone to the police! Apparently, the French member of staff had hidden their clothes from the pool as a joke, but the joke backfired when they all got upset. Before long, the poor guy had been turned into a crazed lunatic who was trying to rob them of all their passports money and phones. The story kept getting worse and worse by the second with more stories about this guy being invented. Now apparently he was groping all the girls in the pool, was on ecstacy, and had always set out to steal their belongings, rape the girls and fight the boys. At this point I stepped in, seeing as the police had been called, to try and calm them down and set things straight. I had talked to this guy a lot in the bar earlier and could see that he was a perfectly decent bloke, not a crazed psychopath like they were claiming. He hadn't been groping girls in the pool because for the entire time the other group was in the pool I had been sat on a sun lounger talking to him, and I told them I was willing to tell the police this. And thirdly we was not on drugs, that was quite clear, he was just very drunk, as shown by him telling me his life story and falling over numerous times. He didn't mean anything maliciously, it was just a drunken prank gone wrong.

After explaining this to them, the girls went ballistic. All of a sudden I was the one on drugs (which I wasn't, and wasn't even particularly drunk) and was "gurning my face off". This shocked me a little, and just added to them showing how stupid they were. Luckily when the police arrived and talked to everyone, they saw the whole thing for what it was, could tell quite obviously that no one was on drugs, and knew immediately that the other group was drunk, being ridiculous and making things up. This led to an arguement between them and the police, until the policeman in charge came along and put them in their place....something that ended in everyone watching loudly applauding the police!

What ridiculous going ons! Well after this, Lucy and I actually couldn't bear to stay in the hostel with those idiots pacing up and down fuming about what had happened, so we went with the local dude, Brett, and stayed up all night watching stupid films and playing remote control cars.

So there we have the eventful story of the Fraser Island drama! But one good thing came out of it all....I made friends with the guy Brett, who let me come round his house the next day to watch an Australian episode of Neighbours!!!! For me this was about a year in the future, and very exciting. Yes I am incredibly sad!