Coolangatta 15th Jan - 21st Jan.

Coolangatta is the first town of the Gold Coast, about an hours drive from Byron Bay and right on the Boarder of NSW and Queensland. Surfers Paradise is usually the backpackers stop on the Gold Coast, but again popular with Aussies and very busy this time of year, we (i'm currently travelling with a girl, Katie) decided to stop here instead and i'm so glad we did. It is absolutely beautiful here, the beach is stunning with huge crashing waves breaking all along the coast. From Coolangatta you can see right up the Surfers Paradise which is only about 20km up the coast.

We decided to hire a car for 3 days so we could get up the coast and in land a bit. On the first day we took the car up to Surfers Paradise. It was quite similar to Bryon Bay, lively, lots of shops and a lovely beach, but also so maybe tourists around. The town had a bit more about it than Byron but definitely didn't have any of the peace and quiet that Coolangatta offers. We spent a couple of hours at Surfers before heading slowly back down the coast, stopping off at the beaches along the way.

Day 2 in the car and we set off to Surfers for Sea World, exactly what is sounds like! The park had various sea life including dolphins, penguins, sharks and even a pola bear. There were a few rides and a small water park also. We spent the day at the various shows on offer, the sea lions and the dolphins being the highlight of the day. Although both were entertaining and definitely very cute, the sea lions in particular could not match up to when i saw them out in their natural habitat on Kangaroo Island.

Day 3 in the car and we took off inland. Not really sure where due to the lack of map and my terrible sense of direction but we first ended up at some rock pools surrounded by green rolling hills and bushy dense trees. There were places to paddle as well as sunbathe and jump from the rocks into deeper pools. Further down the road we hit Springbrook National Park. We walked a short while up the track to find similar rock formations and people jumping from the rocks. The trees were taller here but with wetter grounds surrounding them. We turned back on ourselves and headed further north. We found a dam nestled away up a small, thin track surrounded by huge cliff faces and trees. The dam was huge, but quite a beautiful sight really.

Our intentions were to leave on the 19th for Brisbane but as we both love it so much here we've stayed an extra 2 nights. I spent a bit of time at the beach in the lovely 35 degree heat. It's quite windy down by the beach, this creates the stunning waves and i imagine what makes the Gold Coast known for its great surf. We took a walk into town and up to a place called point danger, a place where the waves are huge and crash against some pretty dangerous rocks. The surf is great here but very dangerous. A giant compass stands tall above the rocks here too. We spent time around Coolangatta itself. A reasonably sized little town with a good number of shops and plenty of restuarants and cafes along the beach front. It really is so peaceful here but with enough life to keep you entertained.

We leave for Brisbane tomorrow and i will be very sad to leave.