Day Twenty Four - July 30th, 2013
Hervey Bay
Elly woke early to Skype with his family (who probably think I'm the laziest person alive due to the fact that I'm never awake at the ungodly hours necessary to communicate with the UK). I had the best sleep I've had the whole trip, and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast. We decided to explore the bay by car, and drove down to the port. We had a look at the boats, and discussed our options for Fraser Island. We've come to the decision that as the trip would be a minimum of $300, and we have already been to Stradbroke Island, we will forgo the beautiful (yet touristy) Fraser, and save our money for the Whitsunday's.
We needed a new spare tyre for the Landy, so went to a couple of auto shops to find one. We were told at the first that we need a rare size, and that we might have trouble finding it. We headed to a Bob Jane T-Mart, and voila! Not only did they have them in stock, but they had a second hand one for the fraction of the price. A quick consultation with Angus over Whatsapp who gave us the green light to get the used tyre, and we paid the $80. The tyre still has 70% of its tread - very good for a spare! We left the wheel at the garage for them to fit before we leave Hervey Bay tomorrow. The helpful guy also checked over our existing tyres and told us they're in good condition. We'll rotate them before heading into the outback.
Back at the campsite we had some leftover pizza for lunch, and decided to have a look at maps/guidebooks to settle on our next stop, now that we're skipping Fraser. Ben and Megan got back from their whale watching, and we left the boys to their planning while we went to our respective tent/camper for a nap. I emerged to find Elly with a long list of stops, and engrossed in conversation with Andrew. To put you in the picture, this guy's diary made up part of the first Lonely Planet Guide to Australia. He knows his stuff and we've been soaking up the information. He suggested that we hire our own boat in the Whitsunday's and sail it ourself seeing as Elly has more than enough experience being competent crew certified. Something to think about as it will be much cheaper and we can plot our own course.
We set off for a run (me slightly before Elly) and followed the path by the water. Suddenly the sky was full of shrieking dark shapes - the bats were out in full force! The smell is slightly overwhelming! I've not seen so many in one place since we were living in a farmhouse which had hundreds of small protected bats in the roof. They used to shoot out at nighttime, and we always loved watching them. I ran into Elliot on my way back and we fell into stride together (me having to put in rather more effort than usual). Once back at the camp ground, I stopped at reception to ask for a key to the fridge. The lady at the desk looked at my red face and berated me for running to hard. I said I had to to keep up with my boyfriend. "He should slow down" she said. I had to inform her that 'slow down' are not words in Elliot's vocabulary.
A quick trip to Woolys and we were back for supper. Unfortunately all of the hobs were being used, so we retrieved our trusty gas cooker from the car. There are only two tables in the kitchen area, both of which were full. There were two couples on one, and a French family on the other. As we were plating up our food, we saw that the family had got down from the table, but left it littered with all of their plates etc. With nowhere else to sit, we thought the mum would clear the table at least a little to give us some room. Instead of doing that, she continued to retrieve one item at a time from the table to wash up. We ended up having to eat half our meal stood up before the whole table had been cleared. I hate it when people don't enter into the spirit of camping and share with one another - if you want your own space, stay in a hotel! Anyway, our dinner was nice and I got chatting to an Irish couple (Connor and Kara) who have just emigrated. Elly selflessly packed up the car so we have less to do tomorrow morning while I was talking, and joined in once he was done. Although we were just talking in normal voices with absolutely no rowdiness, and it was only 9.40pm, the door to a camper van opened and the mum of the French family glared out at us. Funny how it changes when the shoe is on the other foot! With our conversation disturbed, we all headed to bed. Sometimes I really hate being stuck with strangers - I think tonight is one of those times.