The rain continued most of the night and the forecast was for torrential rain all day Knowing that we wanted to get to Bundaburg if possible for that evening we set off straight after breakfast We didn't know whether we would be able to go because this was the location of the terrible floods we saw just before we left the UK We stopped for a picnic lunch in the van hoping that the slip road into the lay by was still there by the time we wanted to leave! What we actually had to do was bump our way over a low kerb to get out as the rain was eroding into the tarmac as we watched! The rain continued on and off for most of the afternoon and at times the road was surrounded by rivers of water on both sides We only found out later that they had closed the road just after we had made it through! What a sight though as we crossed the bridge into Bundaburg hundreds of houses either gone or half gone and sheets, curtains etc all hanging at least 25 ft high up in the trees :-( Poor people , it is still in such a mess They said it was the first time in the history of Bundaburg that the water had reached those levels Now the water has subsided and you can see the area that it covered it is impossible to imagine how!
All I can say is thank you to whichever guardian angel saw us through because we made it to the famous turtle beach Mon Repos at Bundaburg to see if there was any activity that night We all had to wait from 7 00pm and anytime up until 2 00 am whilst the rangers patrolled the beach for hatchlings There are 3 types of turtles which use the beach the rarest being the flat back turtle which is the only turtle indigenous to Australia There was only one nest they were waiting to run and guess what? ...... They had waited for us:-)))))))) We were walked out in the dark on to the beach and collected quietly into a group around where 3 little hatchlings were already out of the nest They had been helped as the eggs had been laid in a grassy part of the dunes and were having trouble getting to the surface As soon as we sat down we saw another make its way to the surface and immediately start trying to get to the sea As it is a conservation area all hatchlings are weighed and checked before they run if possible and so after about 10 minutes of watching them and the head marine biologist explained the life cycle etc they were taken to the lab We were told if we were quiet we could wait to see if tonight was going to be the night for more to run .....they explained that it is a bit like waiting for a baby , they come when they are ready ! So we sat and hoped.....after about 20mins the sand started to twitch and it was like a little vulcano erupting These dear little turtles all piled out of the hole in a frenzy and in less that 2 minutes 26 more turtles were running about the caged site which was only about 24inches across ...what a privilege it was to be there :-)))) The rangers then let us touch and look at the new born turtles which were just so perfect We were then taken to watch one of the rangers empty a nest which was of a loggerhead turtle The hatchlings had all run earlier during the evening and they wanted the check the numbers and make sure there were no hatchlings left at the bottom There were 114 empty eggs and 6 which hadn't either fertilised or developed Hats off to the rangers who painstakingly move eggs which are too near the tide line and measure and count everything to ensure they do everything possible to protect these ancient mariners 20 years ago they put lots of laws in force in the area and they are delighted to announce that the numbers are for the first time on a slight increase after Australia had lost 86% of its flat back turtles!
We were then told that they were going to let the little turtles run that had hatched earlier but the heavens opened and I mean opened! It was a like a tropical monsoon on the beach and we laughed our way back to the van where we got into our pyjamas and that was where we stayed lol Good luck little turtles xxx
The good news was that the sex of the turtle nests is determined by the temperature of the sand where the nest site was and all 30 of ' our ' flatback turtles were female :-))) so in about 35 years time hopefully at least one of them may be back to their birthing beach once again xxx

Stop press we are now stranded in the floods at Gympie Queensland ! We are in Macdonald's car park and using their free wi fi :-))) More rain again tomorrow too! Will keep you informed xxx