We stayed in Rainbow beach for a few days before we went to Fraser Island. Rainbow beach was pretty small, just a small strip of shops and a gorgeous long beach. We chilled out and went on a free walk provided by our hostel. After a short walk through the bush we were stood at the bottom of a MASSIVE sand dune! Walking up it was exhausting as every footstep you sank into the sand - felt kind of like the gladiator travelator. Once we had recovered, we realised the walk was well worth the view. We could see all of Rainbow beach town and some crocodile looking mountains in the distance. At the top we did some sand surfing..the climb wasn't so bad but I wasn't very stable coming down on the board. We also had a lesson in boomerang throwing....although we could get it to return in our direction - we couldnt catch it. I ended up with a massive bruise after being hit by someone elses boomerang!

We trekked to the other side of the sand dune and looked over the sea and cliff tops. Apparently there are over 70 different colours of sand but we didnt count them. Our guide collected a few colours and made a rainbow picture from sand. For sunset we made out way back to the other side. It was by far the best sunset we had seen in our travels - not a cloud in the sky. The sun disappeared in a blink and we made our way back to the hostel.

The next morning we checked out and made our way to the 4x4s. We had to check all our equipment and food before loading it onto the roof rack. After some checks and driving intructions we made our way to Fraser Island. Simon was the first driver and got stuck in the sand as soon as we got to the ferry port. He got out pretty quickly though. We followed the other 4x4 over the gritted track to the other side of the island. The car infront went over a big bump and noticed something dripping so stopped to check. All their beers had burst so they had to drink them before they went any further!! Si noticed that something had split in our goods and thought it tasted like oil. It wasnt until we unloaded it that evening that we realised he was tasting washing up liquid! yum!! The group infront set off again, but when we tried to follow we had no power. Left stranded the guys checked under the bonnet as others tried to get some phone signal. A few of us went out in search of a camp site but found no-one. Thankfully a tour bus was passing and ficed the problem for us.

We carried on along the track to the beach. It was so long and gorgeous. Driving along was a bit scary as the combined weight of passengers and lugage made every turn feel unsturdy. Si did a fab job and enjoyed it even though he thought we made flip at any second. Our first stop for the day was Eli Creek. We didnt know what to expect. It was basically a small stream leading to the sea. We walked along the bridge to the furthest point and then walked through the knee high creek back to the beach. There were lots of families enjoying the sun watching their kids body boarding down the creek. we had some ham salad SANDwhiches and made our way to the Mahino wreck. It was the first shipwreck we'd seen and although rusty, it looked good. Our next stop was the pinnacles (which look better than the photos show). They were massive sand pyramids made from various colours of sand.

After the pinnacles we made our way down south to camp behind a sand dune on the beach. Thankfully the tents were easy to set up. We had loads more sand with tea - slightly annoying! There were no toilets or showers or anything!! Everyone stayed up drinking and messing about on the beach all night.

Sunshine woke us bright and early the following day. We had breakfast and a quick wipe wash in the tent before packing up and making our way to Lake McKensie. We travelled south along the beach and then onto an inland soft sand track. Although the 'road' was bumpy, we made a good start but got stuck at some crossroads as the sand became even softer. Si ended up reversing around the corner and driving at speed.

After a few more bumps we made it to Lake McKensie. From the carpark we had a short walk before we arrived. The lake was crystal clear and the sand golden. We all left our things and went for a swim in the fresh water. We lay on the sand and swam about in the water before having a bbq. It was probably our favourite part of Fraser Island. The place was stunning! We left and drove to find another place to camp for the night. Si couldn't decide where to set up the tent. Finally, he was happy with his third choice - men!! The guys went off to play football and the girls had a visit from the wardens. They told us that dingos would be around the camp searching for food so we had to make sure everything was securely put away. At dusk we spotted our first of many dingoes. Although we were told that they were aggressive and had previously ripped tents open, they ran away when we flashed torches at them. They seemed pretty harmless.

On our last day we went to Lake Wabby. We washed all the pots and pans in the sea before we trekked 30 minutes. It was exhausting in the heat. The walk led us through the trees on a gradual incline. The lake was situated at the bottom of a large sand dune. It wasnt anywhere near as pretty as Lake McKensie. We stayed for a short while, mainly under the shade provided by one tree.

We headed back to Rainbow beach over the soft sands. After unloading and checking the equipment we headed back to the hostel. Despite numerous dodgy noises and bangs the car had recieved, we werent charged. It was so nice to use a toilet again, have a shower to rid ourselves of sand and to eat a sand free meal!!