Hervey Bay and Fraser Island The last few days started with a quite relaxed time round the pool and then showering and going out for dinner. We had to choose the meal option for our trip to Fraser Island (fish or steak) and we had chosen fish so we decided to have a steak dinner the night before! We were recommended a place where on a Thursday they do a $10 steak , the restaurant was right opposite the beach so as the sun set we had a superb meal. An early evening due to an early start as we were being picked up at 7.40 for a two day trip on Fraser. For those that don't know, the island is one of the heritage listed sites and is a huge sand island, nothing but miles of sand! Due to this our little camper wouldn't make the journey as they only let 4x4's go onto it. As we didn't want the hassle of trying to negotiate the terrain we decided on a planned tour. (we saw so many people getting stuck on the beaches, thank god we did a tour!) There were only 24 people on this particular one so it was quite intimate. The vehicle we were picked up in was well I can only describe as a 4x4 dumper truck, which made for an exciting ride! We were taken to the island on a small ferry where we would be driven straight onto the beach. Think of the Normandy landings, without the bombs and gunfire, and you're not far off!! Chris, our tour guide, was very witty, had a great sense of humour and very sarcastic which made the trip light-hearted and funny. Our first stop was a walk through one of the rainforests, it was amazing to see such a vast amount of trees all grown just from sand! After a stop for lunch we were given the chance to take a flight over the island, for $75 you could go on a small plane (only 8 seats) and get the opportunity to see the island from a very different perspective. So ten minutes later and we are sitting in a plane waiting to take off down the beach! It was amazing, the flight was very smooth and we got to see just how huge the island is, approx 120km long! It took us over the next few sites we were due to visit so it was great to have an aerial view. After a very smooth landing we were then taken by Landrover back to our group which was situated at Eli creek. The island has numerous freshwater creeks and lakes where millions of litres of water flow into the sea on a daily basis! The creek was lovely and it was amazing to be drinking fresh water but only be inches away from the sea. After a couple of scenic routes we were taken to our camp site for the evening. A great little lodge where permanent tents were erected for tours like ours. It was a great little spot and was a lot bigger than our little van! After a hot shower the group all nested round a big table for dinner. Our group was very interesting, we seemed to have a couple from every nation, Korean, French, Canadian, Argentina, Dutch and Danish! This made for varied conversations and like us everyone was doing some kind of touring and it was great to share experiences! The next day and we were going to do some trekking through the sand dunes which ended up at a clear lake where we could swim with the turtles. Again a lovely place and we were given some time to relax and soak up the atmosphere. We then picnicked on the beach and once again were taken to another lake, this one however was called a perched lake, a lake that had been formed only by rain water, above sea level, hence the term "perched" like a nest. This gave the lake a certain PH which meant that anything gold or silver could be polished with the very fine sand! So we now have very new looking wedding rings!! Once we had soaked up the last of the rays we headed back to the beach for the ferry. We were going to do a three day tour of the island, however I have to say I'm glad we didn't, it's very tiring and must admit all the sand was getting a bit much! I think we are going to have sand in certain places for a long time!! So back on the ferry and we sat and watched the sun set over the sea and was ready for a good nights sleep and a very hot shower!!Today we sit in an internet café in Bundaberg. We have had a lovely lunch and have visited our first dive shop for a possible dive in the morning. A really nice guy called Dan who will be taking us out on our own tomorrow which will be great to find our fins again! Also at this time of year in Bundaberg the turtles are laying their eggs and they come onto a certain beach at night ,so tonight we have booked ourselves in on a sighting of them. Very David Attenborough styli and we can't wait! Will tell you more about both that and the dive in the next blog!Thanks to those who have left messages for us on the site, it's really nice to get them every time we log in! Take care Lou and Pete x