I woke up to the sound of heavy rain on the roof of our Eco-Lodge, not a good sign! Our 4x4 tour was scheduled for 7.45am and the weather looked set to stay miserable for the whole day. We lived in hope that things would improve anyway...
I'm quite disappointed because so many people had told me how amazing the tour of Fraser Island is and in particular, how cool it is to be able to drive yourself. However, our tour was a guided one in a big truck with a driver guide and about 25 passengers.
The tracks around the island are very bumpy in general and we were thrown around in our seats an awful lot, I nearly head butted the window a good few times! The rain was relentless throughout the day and at times it was heavier than I'd ever seen, but we were taken to the most popular spots regardless - including Eli Creek (see yesterday's photo), Rainbow Sands, the Maheno Shipwreck and the beautiful Lake McKenzie. The weather doesn't look too bad in this photo of me in Lake McKenzie - not sure how I managed that!
It was fun to be driven along the beach, and at times, through the sea and over rocks. The main resort on the island has a relatively recently installed electric fence around it to keep the dingos out. I'm glad about that - we saw one roaming around whilst on the tour and I definitely wouldn't fancy bumping into one when on my own! There are warning signs all over the place to beware of dingos, although there are pictures of them all over Fraser Island postcards and they are still very much part of the attraction.
I hadn't realised, but we are now apparently in the rainy season. As the day went on, the tracks became streams with several little lakes across them. As a result, our ride just got bumpier! By the time we were heading back to the main resort, via the part of the track they call "the Rollercoaster" things got very hairy indeed - one side of the track had been completely washed away and the driver reckoned it will all be shut tomorrow until the tracks are repaired. No one is being allowed to camp on the island tonight because of the weather.
The trip was interesting, but naturally, we are all very damp and disappointed that we didn't see the beautiful, sunny Fraser Island we'd seen photographed on all of the postcards.