Day 10: 18/6/13
We were up around 7:30 this morning but we didn't go until about 9. Other groups cooked scrambled eggs which took a while to cook and clean up after. We just had cereal though, those of us that actually ate breakfast.
We drove along thr beach then for a good while. The lead driver stopped at one stage and said over the walkie-talkie that there were whales in the ocean that we could see from the beach. First we could just see water squirting in the air and then you could see a black shape coming out of the water. It was pretty cool but it would have been nicer to be much closer.
We drove to Indian head then, a main headland on the island. We parked on the beach and then climbed up to the top of the cliff. You could see beaches either side of the headland which were really pretty. There was a sheer drop from the cliffs then down to the ocean. You could see water spraying out in the ocean and apparently there were whales, dolphins and sharks out there. I could see shapes could couldn't make out any particular fish, so it could have been anything!! I did see a turtle swimming down at the bottom of the cliffs. It was red, compared to the big brown one I saw in Cairns. It looked tiny too in the bug ocean, but it probably wasn't small at all. The views there were really good so we spent a while sitting there.
After that we only had to drive about 10 minutes to the next place but it was through soft sand. Ell was driving and she didn't give it enough accelerator so we got stuck!! There was another car stuck in front of us in the left hand lane so we were supposed to go on the wrong side of the lane. Ell forgot that when she took her second attempt and in her efforts not to hit the car in front of us she got stuck again! Two of the lads had to get out to dig a bit of the sand out so we could reverse out again and then she got it up lane!! It was spinning a bit out of control on her though- she just about kept it on track! We had to park on the beach and walk up to the next place as we weren't going to be able to drive there.
The champagne pools were the next sight we had. They were rock pools set into the sea. I put in my swimsuit this time with the intention to go in but it was absolutely freezing. I walked in it first and couldn't manage to go in fully!! Only a few people from our group went in and noone stayed long! Noone was expecting the place to be this cold! It was okay if you sat in the sun but wasn't even that warm then. I would have liked to have worn long trousers and socks and shoes instead of shorts and flip-flops!!
When we could back to the jeep I and a little heart attack for myself as my camera wouldn't turn on. For the last two days there's been sand everywhere and sand had gotten into the camera. When I turned it on the zoom bit would come out and go straight back in again. I think there was definitely some sand in the way of the zoom part. That put me in a bit of a bad mood, even though my iPhone takes pretty decent photos aswell. That was low on battery though and wasn't going to last a full day.
We went for lunch then and had wraps. There was a dingo walking around between the picnic tables. The lead driver said it was okay to eat with him there so obviously it's tame enough.
We then drove to Eli Creek. This was a creek sailing out to the ocean. They had built a bridge across it and a walkway along it so you could view it properly. There were steps down into the creek aswell and you could float all the way to the sea. Again, some of our group did it, but most of us were at the top of the steps shivering and couldn't even think of going in! One girl commented on how the trip would have been really good in the summer and she's right- it's all a out jumping into water but when you're cold and there's nothing in the water to see or do, it seems pointless! There are loads of creeks on the island and this one is the biggest. They've nicknamed it hangover creek as its supposed to be refreshing when you float in it!
I kept messing around with the camera all day hoping to get the sand out of it. I held the zoom bit out before it could go back in and wiped off the sand. Then it wouldn't go back in! I pushed it in and then it magically worked!! I'm sure I've probably done damage to it but as long as it keeps working until the 28th of July I'm happy!!
We went back to the campsite after that. Again it was pretty early so we had the while evening to do nothing. The guys that cooked the dinner with us yesterday were in a strop with the other guys as they hadnt done any of the work. They wanted to leave dinner to them tonight. They had been smoking weed in the jeep most of the day, which was really annoying, so I knew there was no way they were not going to cook dinner. The other two guys wouldn't give in and kept saying they had to do it. Eventually I just said I'd cook the dinner but once I got the stuff out the two that had been pissed off just jumped in and started taking over so I let them at it. It was steak, potatoes and onions tonight. We decided to use the eggs aswell as there weren't many potatoes and onions. Half way through they changed tactics and decided to make an omelette with the ingredients so I ended up with a plate of mush- but it tasted pretty good!
Half the guys from our jeep stayed in the tent again. Then the guys spent age cooking. Most groups sat all together to eat and when they were at the campfire. But we didn't really have a group to sit together! I joined another group that I'd been chatting to a few times. They were mostly girls and mostly English and Welsh. They were easy going and a bit of a laugh. Two of them got drunk on the first night and vomited in the tent. They found a rat in their tent tonight so they hadnt had much luck!!
There were loads of Irish around tonight in the group that had just starte today. I was talking to a guy from Cork and two girls from Mayo that were all traveling together. They said there were lots of groups of lads over for the Lions rugby tournament. There were a whole group of lads with Ulster rugby tops and other gangs from Cavan, Tipperary and Dublin.
I got really tired around 9 and was a bit pissed off with my group anyway so I didn't bother drinking or anything. Even though there were lots of Irish around they were all already in gangs and there were almost too many people around to start making a conversation. So I went to bed! If I had had a normal group of people in my jeep it would have been fine, but I didn't!
I woke up around midnight to go to the toilet and our lead driver had brought out a guitar and was singing at the campfire. It probably would have been good craic if I had stayed up. Oh well!