After a couple of lazy days in the Town of 1770 we hopped on the Greyhound down to Hervey Bay. There isn't much to do in hervey but is the main place people come to to get to Fraser island. Our trip had to be put off slightly because of the rugby so we ended up having a couple of extra nights and watching the rugby semi-final at 5am in the hostel kitchen. It was definitely worth getting up for even if there wasn't much of an atmosphere!

We did our Fraser trip on the monday after meeting the rest of our group at 6.30am for a briefing and to organise drivers, shopping, alcohol and camping gear. The ferry left at 10 so we had a frantic few hours trying to get everything sorted. Fraser Island is the world's largets sand island and the home to the purest breed of dingoes. You are unable to swim in the waters off fraser because of the strong undertow and the sharks!

Day 1 - Niall was chief driver and drove us safely to camp via beautiful Lake Wabbi where we had our first and only dingo experience! The lake was really nice and set amongst sand dunes, we had about an hour here so were able to cool of in the water and catch some sun. After a bit of off-roading in our 4x4 jeep we made it out onto the beach to head for base camp by 4pm. before you start they give you a map and strict timings to stick to because of the changing tides. Once we got to camp our camping experience paid off as were able to put up our dome tents in record time and then as a group we cooked up a huge feast at the bbq's. Drinking games and a crate of beer later we all headed to the beach to watch the stars. Due to such a clear night and no lights on the island the stars were out in force and really beautiful to see.

Day 2 - Will took the wheel for a day of beach driving. First stop was Indian Head lookout point. A bit of a steep walk to get to but definitely worth it for the views and especially as we got to spot dolphins and a family of humpback whales swimming by. After this we trecked along the beach in the scorching sun to the champagne pools - a bitter disappointment as there was no champagne in sight just overrated rockpools which we couldn't really swim in. After lunch in the jeep we then drove further along the beach to see the Maheno wreck - a great big rust bucket which we don't know much about and don't think will be there for much longer. We got some good pics though and then headed to the creek which we can't remember the name of! It was really pituresque and we were able to paddle but other than that there wasn't much else to do. That evening we cooked a group spaghetti bolognaise and toasted marshmallows which were followed by more drinking games.

Day 3 - Charlotte drove today and probably chose the worst day of driving. We had an early start as we had to pack up camp and had left by 7am. We started off beach driving which was going pretty well until we hit some soft sand and Charlotte hit the brakes - not recommended apparently!! In slow motion we did a 180 degree turn and nearly tipped! It was a bit like the Fast and the Furious!! Charlotte bravely drove on for it only to happen again! So Niall then hit the wheel for the rest of the beach driving and then Charlotte took over again for the off-roading taking us safely back to the ferry - phew!!! On Day 3 we visited 2 stunning lakes which were quite similar to Whitehaven beach as the sand was really white and the water really clear and blue. The first lake was lake Birrabean where we spent a couple of hours here swimming. The second lake was the most famous one Lake Mackensie but we got there just as a sandstorm hit so we weren't able to enjoy it as much as the other but we still got some good pics. We finally made it back to our hostel in Hervey Bay around 7ish, there was no damage to the vehicles thank god! We loved Fraser, it was a really cool experience driving a 4x4 along the beach with the sea right beside you. Would definitly recommend it for others to do. Check out our pics!!

After spending the night after Fraser in Hervey Bay we headed to our first big city in a while - Brisbane. We spent 4 nights here at Palace backpackers right in the centre, it was so much fun and got to meet up with friends (Niamh, Anna & Fiona) that we had met earlier up the coast. Saturday night was rugby final so we had a big night/morning ahead of us. We started off drinking in the hostel bar and then all got a minibus to the Valley (an area of Brisbane) and then headed back to an English pub just round the corner from our hostel where they were showing the rugby at 5am. It was a bit of a messy night as muchos alcohol was consumed, there was a really good atmosphere in the pub between the English and South Africans. Despite us losing it was a really good night. It was a try!!!

We managed to squeeze in a bit of sightseeing in between our nights out. There isn't that much to see in Brisbane but we did make it down to the river. After hanging out with our Irish friends we were invited to drive down the coast with them in their hire car, Rosie as far as Byron via Surfers Paradise.

Monday moring we packed all of our stuff into Rosie and made our way down to Surfers Paradise and got to drive around the Indy Car track as the races had been held the day before - very cool!! After numerous detours we eventually made it to our hostel which was slap bang in the middle of the track and right on the beach. We hit the beach straight away which was really nice and a really cool skyline even if surfers is slightly overdeveloped. That night for charity we signed up for a bar crawl for Breast Cancer. This cost us $25 which included free punch, bus ride into town and then a free drink and entry into 3 bars. We couldn't really afford to drink in the bars after our free drinks so we did the classy thing and went to the bottle shop and bought ourselves some cheep cans of vodka mixers and drank them outside! It was like being 16 again!! Not that we did that at 16!!! It was a really good night, we had a really good laugh even if it was a bit of a con but it was for charity at the end of the day!!! The next day was just a beach day and decided not to surf as the waves were out of control!! That evening was a quiet one...dvd and bed!!

The next morning we headed further down the coast to Byron Bay via Coolangatta for lunch - a really nice spot. In Byron we checked into the Arts Factory - a kind of hostel for hippies but was really cool and set in grounds out of town. It didn't take us long before we hit the beach and checked out the waves. That evening we redeemed our free drink at the hostel bar and watched the live entertainment for a couple of hours which was a guy on didjeridoo then followed by a fire show. The next day we hired surf boards and went to the main beach where the waves were pretty poor but we all still had fun trying to stand up. When it clouded over we all drove up to the lighthouse and also Australia's most easterly point. This has amazing views looking back over the bay and out to sea. We then wandered over to Tallow beach to watch the real surfers at it! That night was party night so we hit cheeky monkeys with cheap food and drink vouchers - see pics for beer and champagne. Another fun night had by all dancing on the tables!!

The next day we chilled on Tallow beach and then went back to the hostel in the afternoon and tried to nap through a massive thunder storm. Once the rain had subsided we headed out for fish and chips at the world's best fish and chip shop called Monger's. The food was fab and after this we went and watched the waves for a while sat in Rosie singing along to music - good fun!

The next day was our last day so we decided to give surfing another go, the waves were much better this time, a bit too good maybe as we're still aching now! After a full day on the beach we went out again for fish and chips and a few farewell glasses of wine before getting on the night bus rather tipsy! Its just the two of us now but we're meeting up with the others when we're in Melbourne for the races and Great Ocean Road! Bring it on!

The night bus took us to Newcastle which is 3hrs north of Sydney and the place to stay when visiting the Hunter Valley. Our first day there was a bit of a wipe out afer the night bus so we booked our wine tour for the following day. The tour started at 9am, we had an hour drive til we got to Hunter Valley and by 10am we were drinking champagne at the Peterson's Champagne House. The tour included a visit to a champagne house, a chocolate shop, 4 wineries and a lunch stop where you could also sample local cheeses and try out the ice cream and sorbet. We had a really good time and our now fully-fledged wine connoiseurs!!! And we've stocked up on bargain pink champagne for the races!!

We're now in Sydney.. will update you all before we leave here to go to Melbourne!!

Lots of love us xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx