Well the first couple of days in Byron Bay were a wash out - literally! We got there early afternoon and found a well-located campsite close to both the town and Main Beach. We ventured out into the rain to explore and it's chilled out, hippy vibes were very apparent. One afternoon, in between showers, Dave rented a bodyboard and headed out onto the waves, whilst I did the Lighthouse trail. I saw another wallaby, went to the most Eastern part of mainland Australia, saw Cape Byron Lighthouse and walked through rainforest back to town… That night we headed out on the town and had a few drinks - the people in Byron (locals and visitors alike) were so friendly and would strike up random conversations with us… I had a very interesting chat with one lady from the Outback, Glenda, who was very spiritual (apparently she had the spirit of an Emu!) and loved Byron Bay so much she was finding it hard to leave and make the 15-hour drive home!

The other rainy day we took the campervan up into the hills to a place called Nimbin, which is a hippy place where buying, selling and smoking weed is common place. We had a wander around and went to the Hemp Embassy and Nimbin Museum, which was more a place for random artwork promoting weed and anti-police attempts to control drug use there. It was bizarre to say the least, but we were glad we went to experience it and it was a welcome break from the rain!

The following day the weather finally turned(!) and we had glorious sunshine all day J Dave had booked a surf lesson so headed out onto the waves - I'm told he was the best in his class so he's looking forward to practicing some more on our travels. I just lazed on the beach, enjoying the sun and warm sea (a bit too much - I still have the sun burn to prove it!). We joined the locals for some mid-afternoon drinks as it was a Sunday and enjoyed some live music by the sea - good times!

After 4 nights in Byron Bay, we headed up the coast. We stopped off in Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast for a picnic lunch by the beach - it was odd seeing so many skyscapers next to long sandy beaches… We then headed to the Sunshine Coast - our first stop was Mooloolaba - our caravan park was right by the beach and town so we explored both as soon as we got there. I also went to my first every surf club - it was fun (and cheap!)

After a very wet night, we went to the Australia Zoo. We spent all day there and made sure we saw everything we wanted to… The highlights were definitely getting to hang out with some kangaroos (including feeding them!), patting some koalas, feeding the elephants and the tiger show, where they did all sorts of tricks! It was such a fun day, which went so quickly J We also learnt a lot about Steve Irwin's vision of conservation through education - he really was a funny, passionate guy and that still comes through from the zoo itself.

We had planned to have our second and last stop on the Sunshine Coast as Noosa - however when we got there, the weather was so bad that after a look around in the rain (and cup of coffee in the surf club to warm up!), we decided to continue up the coast to Hervey Bay. We were glad we did - the weather was certainly better and the beach was beautiful.

Next stop - Airlie Beach!