After leaving Magnetic Island we drove down to Airlie Beach, where we had hoped to do a tour of the Whitsunday Islands, and hopefully do some snorkelling and see the barrier reef. This was where our plan was thwarted as there was torrential rain all the way down to Airlie Beach, and for about 5 days after, all the way down the coast! It was quite annoying and disappointing, and we felt quite frustrated that we had come all this way and couldn't see what we had looked forward to seeing. We weren't the only ones who seemed fed up - in Airlie Beach there were lots of people wandering round in the rain, looking upward at the sky and probably wondering if they had come to the wrong country! Tours of the islands were still going ahead, but we decided to come back another time, when the weather is better and we can see the islands and the reef when it looks its best.

We had more rain as we made our way to Mackay, where we caught a flight to Brisbane. Though we had rain there too, we did manage to see quite a lot of the city. We went on the Brisbane Wheel, the city's version of the London Eye, which is situated on the south bank of the river. We saw a lot of the city and the surrounding area. We explored the south bank area afterwards, and had a look at the Sunday markets that take place there, selling clothes, art, jewellery and much more.

We left Brisbane after a few days and drove north a few hours to Hervey Bay in preparation for our trip to Fraser Island. We were picked up by our tour guide the next morning, and caught the barge to the island. As Fraser Island is made of sand, and the terrain is very rugged, the only way to explore the island is by a 4x4 vehicle, so our tour guide Shane loaded us onto a massive 4x4 tour bus which took us to Central Station, the old timber logging area of the area, where we were able to do a rainforest walk along Wanggoolba Creek. After an early lunch we had a long bumpy drive to Lake McKenzie, a beautiful freshwater lake with crystal clear water and white sand, where we spent a lovely few hours relaxing and swimming. The weather turned out to be lovely, after having had so many days of rain, so we were so happy!!! There are lots of lakes on Fraser Island, and it is recommended that you swim in the lakes instead of in the ocean, as the currents are so strong and unpredictable.

After a good night sleep, the next day we had an early start and did a 2km bush walk to Lake Wabby. We started the walk at about 9am, but it was incredibly hot and very hard work. We walked over a very large sand dune, and eventually got to the lake where we had a lovely dip before an early lunch.

After lunch we headed to 75 mile beach, on the eastern side of the island, for a drive on the sand, up to the shipwreck of the SS Maheno, a former cruise ship that was caught in a cyclone in 1935 and beached on the shore. The wreck is protected and climbing on it is not permitted, and although a lot of it is rusting away, it is still quite an awesome sight. We drove further up the beach to Indian Heads, a rocky outcrop that you can climb that gives spectacular views of the island, and where you can spot wildlife in the sea. We spotted a dolphin in the clear waters below, though it is not uncommon to see whales and sharks too.

We finished our tour of the island with another dip in the water, this time in Eli Creek, which is situated right next to the beach, and flows into the sea. On our way back to catch the barge to the mainland we spotted a dingo, a type of primitive dog that is native to Australia, out the window of our bus. On Fraser Island there are lots of dingos, and they are something of a symbol of the island. It can be hard to spot them though, and they can be quite aggressive especially when they are in packs, so caution is recommended if you do happen to see one. We had spend our trip looking out for one, but to no avail, so we were pleased to have briefly seen one on the way back, albeit from the safety of our bus.