G'day loyal family and friends,

I officially HATE early mornings! To be fair our day didn't start that early (08:00) but the routine of getting up early, re-packing your bag, checking the room and the lugging our huge bags and extra's down to the bus is really starting to get boring.

Ok rant over, so we left sunny Emu Park early with a long day of driving ahead of us. Nikki and I were the only people on the bus so we had plenty of room to spread out. Once fueled from the traveler's staple meal supplier (McDonalds) we headed south for 3 hours to a town called Bundaberg. For those who don't know, Bundaberg is famous for one thing - rum. We stopped at the distillery and took the walking tour around the building showing you the history of the brand and how they make their rum. Half way round you got a chance to smell the rum at different stages in the distilling process and I am 90% sure if we hadn't had breakfast we would have been drunk from the smell alone. Once the tour was completed we got a chance to taste a couple of their final products - being the kind and thoughtful travellers we are, we thought it rude to turn down such an opportunity and headed straight for the top shelf premium golden reserve ($90 per bottle). It was really nice and easy to drink over ice without any mixer. Nikki decided to try the chocolate flavored rum which is a replacement for baileys - incredibly sweet but again drinkable.

After our fun at the rum factory we again headed south another 3 hours to our next destination of Rainbow Beach and the gateway to Fraser Island. We checked into our room and after a long day, grabbed some food from the bar, ate and then crashed for the night.

After a much deserved lie in, we got up and headed into town to see what Rainbow beach had to offer. The town is very small and based right on the coast. We grabbed some food from the local shop for dinner and headed back to hostel for our Fraser Island trip briefing. We sat and watched some government films about safety on the island, rules and what you can and can't do. The trip was self-driven in off-road 4x4 cars with the lead car driven by our guide. Once the driver's licences were checked we were divided into 3 groups of 8 (the cooking, eating and travelling groups). We were only aloud a small rucksack for 3 days on the island so we spent the evening packing and sorting before cooking dinner and heading to bed.

Our first day started a 07:30 outside the hostel packing our cars for the trip with our camping equipment, food for 3 days, toilet facilities, bags and clothes and cooking equipment. Once packed and happy, we boarded our Toyota land cruiser and headed for the ferry terminal over to Fraser Island. We were in the lead car with the guide so everyone was following us. All the cars managed to get on the ferry without getting stuck in the sand and after 20mins we were on Fraser Island. Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world, over the years trees and wildlife has evolved to survive here forming a tightly packed forest surrounded by beautiful beaches and cliffs. We drove up the shore line on the hard sand between the water's edge and the dunes. It was very strange with the car sliding all around over the loose sand but great fun. We were dropped off at the start of the walking track to Lake Wabby and told to walk to the lake (approx. 2.5km) while our guide Kev headed to the campsite to drop the trailer off. The walk was stunning, up though the forest before appearing on the top of a sand dune. The lake wasn't visible from the top, tucked away below the tree line but after a short, sandy walk the lake appeared seeming just to branch of from the side on the dune. We all walked down to the water's edge, a couple of people swam but the water was cold to say the least. After an hour we headed back down to the beach where Kev was waiting to take us to camp to grab some lunch. We arrived at camp which was situated just behind the fore dune within 10m of the beach. We separated into our groups to make some lunch (sandwiches / fruit / cereal bar) before Kev gave us a serious speech about DINGO's. We were camping in the middle of dingo territory and would have to be very strict on what we could keep in our tent. We were told to be careful of all rubbish and walking off alone was forbidden. Most people think dingoes are wild dogs, more scared of people than we are of them so they keep well away. Unfortunately the dingoes on Fraser Island have become accustom to humans and now related humans with food! The dingos on Fraser island are 100% pure bread and act a lot like wolves (not cuddly like meggy). We were warned not to have anything food based or fruit based (shampoo/make-up) in the tent because they WILL come in your tent and get it. We also had to lock everything away at night including rubbish so they couldn't rip into bags and steal food. Once all the girls were petrified and everyone was fed we headed inland to a couple of lookouts showing the fantastic views the island had to offer. Before long we were back at camp setting up tents and playing rounder's on the beach when the sun started to go down. Nikki and I cooked steaks with potato salad and salad for dinner while another couple did the washing up. During dinner was our first encounter with a dingo, stealth fully coming within 1m of the cooking area before being spotted and sent back into the bush. Once food was eaten, washed up and locked away in the trailer we sat as a group drinking and chatting the night away. After a couple of hours we headed to bed very on edge about what was lurking in the bushes around our camp. In the end both Nikki and I slept with headphones in the blank out the noises from the forest constantly making your heart race.

The sun rose on our second day on Fraser Island and both Nikki and I didn't have the best of nights sleeps, if it wasn't noises outside waking us it was the uncomfortable ground we were lying on. Anyway, we got dressed and headed to the cooking area to prepare breakfast, as we cooked the night before another couple cooked today, scrambled eggs. It was a good start to the morning and after making sandwiches for lunch we boarded the cars and headed on our way. Our first stop was Champagne pools, the safest place to swim in the sea off Fraser Island. The champagne pools are some large swimmable rock pools based on the ocean's edge where the tide washes over the rocks to fill the pools. Most of the group went for a swim to wake up, with a few of us climbing into the furthest pool, closest to the ocean. As the waves crashed over the rocks they ripped through the shallow pool before crashing into the larger pool behind us. It was fun trying to standing while the currents try to sweep you off your feet and into the larger pool. After this, me and few others headed across the rock pools to find some fresh oysters for a mid-morning snack (Nikki stayed with the girls sunning herself on the beach). We found a few small ones and after cracking them with a stone we all got a chance to eat one. Once we had finished we headed back to the beach, collected the others and headed back to the cars. We then drove to Indian Head look-out, a high cliff which extends out into the water. From there we got some amazing views out to sea where we saw whales, baby sharks, large rays and dolphins. Once we had all the photos our cameras could hold we headed back down and drove to our lunch spot inland situated next to a small shop. We all grabbed some lunch (Ham/cheese sandwiches) and then headed down the coast to the shipwreck of the Maheno. The Maheno was the titanic of its day, with marble surfaces, gold taps and all the trimmings. Unfortunately after it was decommissioned and the sold to china for scrap metal it ran aground during a storm while under tow. We did the typical tourist things, take photos and have a look around before heading 1km down the beach to a fresh water stream the meanders down the mountainside before escaping the forest at the shoreline. As a group, we walked up the hill to a small set of steps which entered the water. From there we floated down the river until appearing back at the shoreline, it was fun floating along looking at the plants and birds as we wound down the hill. Back at the bottom, we dried off and drove to a 'waterfall' just down the beach. When I say waterfall, I really mean head-high stream off water falling off a cliff not the magical thoughts you get when someone says waterfall. Following a quick wash we headed back to camp for the evening dinner and entertainment. To blow off some steam after a lot a driving we all headed down to the beach for a game of football and once we were successfully tired, it was time for dinner - stir fry with chicken and rice. Compared to the night before our evening was pretty tame had a few drinks, talking between ourselves and generally enjoying each other's company. After a while, slowly people headed to bed leaving a few guys (including myself) chatting until the early hours of the morning hoping the alcohol would help our night's sleep.

Our last day on Fraser Island started at 07:00 and after a better night's sleep than our first night. Our first task was breakfast before breaking down the camp and repacking the trailer with all our kit. Once this was done we headed to the beach where we dumped the trailer near the track entrance and headed inland to one of 34 perched lakes in the world. Lake McKenzie is formed on a bed of sand and leaf mulch that over time as compressed to make a very fragile but dense layer preventing the water from escaping. The lake is 100% rain water with no tributaries leading in to it so people who swim in the lake have to very careful not to contaminate the water. The lake was stunning, perfectly clear with only very few fish breaking the surface. The surrounding scrub land pinned back by a small strip of white sand around the water's edge. Again the sand here is nearly as pure as Whitehaven Beach we visited previously, 95% pure silica. A few of us braved the cold water (including myself) and truly got to experience the clarity of the water. We swam out maybe 50m off sure and you could still see the bottom, if you sank down to touch the bottom around 5m deep you could easily see the persons face below you. It was an amazing and relaxing place to be. After a quick dry off, we grabbed a quick lunch before heading back to the ferry to the mainland and Rainbow Beach. We nearly missed the ferry but after a bit of beach rally driving me made it with seconds to spare. The ferry only takes 10minutes and before long we were back the Frasers at rainbow (our hostel for the night). Our last task on the trip was the clean the vans and kit before heading back to the hostel and checking in. I think the first thing on everyone's mind was SHOWER!! In the evening we went to the bar for dinner (cheap $10 meals) and to meet up with the guys from the trip. We all watch the Olympics and caught up on how we had done over the last few days. But bed was calling and after two very uncomfortable nights, a real bed was a real treat. We both slept like kings knowing that the following day we would be up at 08:00 to head south to Noosa.

From Fraser Island with Dingo's

Ben and Nikki x