Well I have just got back from Fraser Island and am having a chilled out day in Hervey Bay before heading to Brisbane tomorrow.

Tour Day 1 - We got picked up at 8am (must be a record) and got taken to the Ferry we needed to catch to get to Fraser Island. The other side we were met by our Ranger and the 4x4 bus that would be our transport for the next 3 days.

The first stop of the day was at Basin Lake. We had a short walk up to the lake, which was a perched lake (i.e. on top of a hill) and it was a fairly small lake with a greenish colour - very pretty.
After spending half an hour at the lake we walked to Central Station (which is bascially a picnic area) for lunch and then did a further walk along one of the creeks in the forest. The creek was really strange - when you first saw it, it looked really cloudy but you soon realised that it was just extremely clear water running over sand.

Our final stop of the day was at Lake McKenzie - amazing - perfectly clear lake which was just so beautiful. Despite it not being the warmest day we all went in for a swim - a must (especially as it is supposed to make you 1 year younger each time you swim in it) - and it was surprisingly warm!

After a swim in the lake it was back to the resort and our lodge for a warm shower before our buffet dinner at the Dingo Bar!

Tour day 2 - today was beach day, spending most of the day driving along the beach up the length of the island.
We got really lucky on our way to the first stop of the day as we saw a humpback whale in the ocean!!! Its still really early in the season so you only see the odd one, but we got to see the spray of water and the hump of the whale, which we sat and watched for a while before carrying on to Eli Creek.

Eli Creek is the biggest out flow of water to the ocean and we got a bit of time to have a paddle in the creek which again was really clear water.
We then headed on to the Maheno shipwreck, which is just what it sounds - a huge shipwreck on the beach that is now all rusty. It was really impressive actually.

The next stop was at the Pinncacles, which are coloured sands that have formed some interesting shapes over the years.
After a photo stop at the Pinnacles it was on to the Champayne Pools which were amazing. They were basically like huge pools formed by the sea, and the sea continues to crash over the edges which creates a jacuzzi type effect - really cool, and of course we all had to go for a swim!

After lunch we drove to Indian Head which is a large rock the juts out into the ocean. We climbed to the top for some amazing views, but unfortunately there was no sign of any of the marine life that you can often see from this lookout!

On the way back to the resort we had a stop at Red Canyon, which was similar to the Pinnacles by the promonent colour was red, and also at Stonetool Blow lookout where we got to see one of the active sand dunes that have helped form the island.

Tour Day 3 - On the final day we visited 2 lakes. The first of these was Lake Wabby. We walked to the lookout first which is one of the few places you can see sand dunes, a lake, forest and the sea in one place. We then continued down to the lake which is an emerald green colour right on the sand dune.

After an hour at the lake it was time to walk across the huge sand dune and through the forest back to the beach and the bus.

After lunch it was time of visit Lake Birrabeen. This I think was my favourite lake. The water again was really clear and there were some long grasses growing up out of the lake. It was not particularly warm today but I was determined to have a swim with a few of the others and the waters were so shallow you could walk out really far and look back at the beach which was really cool.
The water was surprisingly warm once you got used to it to and I have to drag myself out of the lake to get back on the bus and back to the ferry for Hervey Bay.

Fraser Island was really amazing and the scenery so varied and with the beauticful fresh water lakes to swim in all year round I think I may have to plan to re-visit at some point!