Australian Outback

Camping at Coolenden

Posted on August 7, 2016 by John Sear
The start of the Mintbush track
The Pajero returns unscathed!
The 110 Around Oz Defender exits gracefully
Face to face with a wandering wombat
Wombat visitor

Our friends Simon, Hilary and daughters (110 Around Oz) invited us for a camping trip down south of Sydney for the weekend. Having been stationery in Sydney for what seems like an eternity Xavier and I jumped at the opportunity to escape to the bush. An early start saw us heading south with minimal traffic, and within 3 hours we had headed inland from Nowra for the last few kilometres to Coolenden. The property is privately owned and given the recent chills of winter there were very few campers there.

Xavier and I checked out the Shoalhaven river that snakes around the perimeter of the property. Fast flowing and quite deep it is popular with kayakers and anglers alike, but way too cold at this time of year for a dip let alone a paddle.

Without the trusty Camprite trailer we had resorted to the other extreme, a tiny two-man tent, three poles that can be put up in a couple of minutes.

The weather gods were kind, and once the glowing sun sank behind the trees a roaring campfire replaced the warmth. With foil covered spuds in the coals, a pot of chili over the top, and the first bottle of red open the night was set.

The morning was overcast, threatening rain so Simon suggested we go for a drive. We packed up, and watched Satin Bower birds hopping around as we finished our breakfast.

As we turned off the dirt road onto Mintbush track and viewed a drop into what appeared to be a mud-bath I suddenly realised this wasn’t the Sunday drive I was expecting and I probably hadn’t prepared as well as I might have. Descending through the mud was fine but when Simon explained we’d return the same way I was left wishing I’d checked the winch was working ok. Dozens of dirtbikes ploughed their way around us as we negotiated the increasingly rocky descent. We negotiated the creek crossing then turned around before the track becomes known as Monkey Gum. With one hairy moment where I found myself leaning against the window to ensure enough wheels stayed in contact with road (two is usually enough to feel ok) the return was slow and steady, picking the path through rocks and washouts. The final mudbath exit proved easier than expected too. Two “souped up” cars made it look harder by getting temporarily bogged, and some aerial antics that must have hurt their undercarriage but we all exited gracefully and headed back for lunch and the return home. A very short but enjoyable weekend escape.

Categories: 4WD, Adventure, Animal Action, australia, Australian Outback | Tags: , , | 1 Comment

Coloured Sands

Posted on April 29, 2016 by John Sear
Sands from our trip

Sands from our trip

I found a bucket full of zip-lock bags in the garage at the weekend. Each bag was carefully filled with coloured sands from our trip.

The kids were excited to see them resurface, many of which had been squirreled into recesses in the trailer for some time. As we each only had limited space all got quite skillful at determining what they wanted to keep, and if required, tough decisions would be made to keep something or substitute it for a new arrival. Very precious finds would also be posted home every now and again!

The sands had made it and with some suitable jars a very attractive display resulted.

There is a saying that if you take sand or soil from a place you will be destined to return one day. Maybe that’s why so much came back with us!

Categories: Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Natural World, Photography, Travel, Travel Adventure | Tags: | 6 Comments

Flashback to Cape Levique

Posted on April 23, 2016 by John Sear
Bells Point
The shell window, Goombaragin
Goombaragin beach
Goombaragin Stand
Goombaragin beach
Driving with 110 Around Oz

As the weather deteriorates here in Sydney, with the arrival of winter imminent, our thoughts returned to those warmer places we visited last year as the temperatures started dropping. One of our favourites was a small eco-resort called Goombaragin, where we camped for a few days with two other families we had met on the road. Our hosts Cathy and John were very welcoming, showing us some of the local ways and putting on a communal campfire in the evenings for everyone. The area is magnificent to explore, and it is even safe to swim here from the beach. Heed the crocodile signs in this area though, particularly around the rivers and mangroves. It’s a rugged road from Broome but still relatively accessible if you drive carefully.

Look out for the Ardi festival around June, when many local artists from across the peninsula display their talents.

Categories: 4WD, Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Beach, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Natural World, Offroad, Photography, Road trip, Travel, Travel Adventure, WA, West Australia | Tags: , | 2 Comments

The most junior Ten of the Fifty Toes gives his 5 minute trip summary (#4)

Posted on April 16, 2016 by John Sear
Oscar watching a quokka
West Cape Howe cliffs
Tumby Bay Mackerel
Oscar looks through a tree!
Oscar and Wilma at the peak
Oscar on Uluru
Trying to fish on 1770 beach
Oscar on the fairway
Oscar’s big barra!
Rope fun at Nolans creek
Oscar at Fruit Bat Falls
Our $600 pearl
Oscar’s snorkel trumpet
Oscar drives the LARC
Oscar and Anemone fish (Nemos)
Oscar gives it a go
Oscar with school mascot Wilma (on tour)
Oscar in the falls at Lawn Hill
Oscar with Wobbegong Shark
Raptor domain
Rod breaking fish!

What were your three favourite places and why?”

  1. “Twelve Mile Lagoon in Lakefield National Park, Queensland because this was where I caught my first barramundi on my own. Dad helped me pull it up the bank but I caught it myself. It was 60cm long and tasted delicious”
  2. “Lake Wabby in Fraser Island, Queensland. We could run down steep dunes into the deep water and the water was lovely and warm. It was raining but I didn’t want to leave”
  3. “Swimming with Whale Sharks in Exmouth. I was a little bit scared of swimming in deep water at first, but when I finally jumped in I couldn’t believe how big and beautiful the whale shark was. They are the biggest fish in the oceans. People think they are whales because of their size but they are harmless giants that only eat plankton”
“What was the best thing you took on the trip?”
“Probably my fishing rod. If you don’t have any food you can use it to catch fish for dinner all you need is a lure or some bait. Unfortunately though I did break a couple of rods on the trip, one because a big bream snapped it, but I still landed the fish and ate it”
“What did you miss most, or just couldn’t take with you?”
“I missed Grandma while I was away. I really missed not having a bike, so we had to borrow other kid’s bikes off them whenever we could. There were lots of nice kids on the road who shared their bikes with us”
“Would you do it again?”
“Yes I would, because I would love to keep fishing and snorkelling on the reefs. I never get bored swimming or fishing.”
“How did schooling on the road go?”
“Great. I loved the work, especially the Maths books and I even got a Maths award from my teacher whilst on the road?” (Editors note – he had no problems finishing the work whenever he got it and was the model student. The other two were more of a challenge!)
Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Photos, Road trip | 3 Comments

Ten of the Fifty Toes gives a 5 minute trip summary (#3) – Navigator’s perspective

Posted on January 30, 2016 by John Sear
Relaxing in the hot springs
Raptor Domain fangtastic show
Amanda has a dance!
Nullarbor Links
Amanda in a prawn peeling comp at Tunarama
Goombaragin beach
Beach artist at work
Flies in WA
Amanda at Shell Beach
Warm enough for Amanda
Amanda and Roo
Too friendly!

What were your three favourite places and why?”

  1. “Hot Springs anywhere, Zebedee Springs in El Questro (WA) , Bitter Springs near Mataranka(NT), Katherine Hot Springs(NT) and Berry Hot Springs (NT), as I hate cold water and I could spend hours in these after a hot dusty drive”
  2. “Cape Range National Park because the campsite was beautifully located just above the beach on the Ningaloo Reef. The snorkelling was excellent there and the Whale Shark excursion was just offshore (though departing from Exmouth) and that was a bucket list trip. The experience with Cyclone Quang added some excitement here too.”
  3. “Broome and Cape Levique. The town of Broome surprised me with great markets and our arrival coincided with the staircase to the moon on Roebuck Bay that we saw with good friends. Fishing off the jetty was impressive to watch – seeing people catch large fish and sharks circling below. Goombaragin in Cape Levique was a great spot run by Kathleen a local indigenous lady who showed us bush tucker, how to make clapping sticks, and with her husband John shared many stories around the evening fireplace. We knew two other families with kids there so a great time was had by all. The colour of the cliffs were a gorgeous red, and we loved Middle Lagoon, a trip up to One Arm Point and the inaugural Ardi Festival.”
“What was the best thing you took on the trip?”
“My iPhone was a very useful tool doubling as camera, source of knowledge for apps such as WikiCamps that was used a lot, weather forecasts, and emails”
“What did you miss most, or just couldn’t take with you?”
“I missed all my luxuries from home, like dishwasher, washing machine (the Fifty Toes Walkabout home-made patented model just didn’t cut it) and having a bit more space would have been nice. Apart from this I really missed a regular shower. We were carrying 160 litres of water in the trailer and many of the places we visited were very dry so a shower was not a luxury we could afford. Everyone else jumped in the rivers, lakes and sea but it wasn’t very often warm enough for me”
“Would you do it again?”
“Maybe in different circumstances as the kids schooling complicated things and wasn’t easy. Maybe when they have left home or are self-sufficient that they can stay at home”
“How did schooling on the road go?”
“Difficult. We have high expectations of our kids and they just wanted to finish their work as quickly as possible without putting 100 percent effort in. A lot of friction resulted when quality control was applied and we made them redo sloppy work. Hannah had to do her Naplan test at a roadside stop with dogs sniffing around her legs, far from ideal. Due to a lack of wifi for much of the time we couldn’t access much of the online content available to us. The libraries however were an awesome resource to use when we found them.”
Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, National Park, Photography, Road trip, Travel, Travel Adventure | Tags: | 1 Comment

Ten of the Fifty Toes gives a 5 minute trip summary (#2)

Posted on January 23, 2016 by John Sear

Time for H to give her quick recap on trip highlights:

Taking on the boys at the Todd River Regatta
Brumby in front of Frenchmans Peak
Enjoying the rope swing at Nolans Brook
Hannah riding in Armidale
Tick infested shingleback
The Ethel Wreck, Yorke Peninsula, SA
Humpy town in Cape York
Hannah cuddling a joey
Hannah driving the LARC into the surf
Emu dance at Garma
Tassie Devil at Trial Harbour
Blue Swimmer Dinner
The free chocolate tasting samples
Seadragon find at Thistle Cove
2015 Tunarama Watermelon eating champion and cheque
Hannah at Olssens peak in the Flinders Ranges
Cape Le Grand Kids
Ahead by a nose
Hannah and Dog at South Point!
Humpy at Buttons Crossing
Hannah snorkelling in Bitter Springs
Pentecost River mud

What were your three favourite places and why?”

  1. “Trial Harbour on the West coast of Tasmania was my favourite place because I love the endangered Tasmanian Devils and this was where I saw one. I was sleeping when it tried to raid our rubbish in the campsite and Dad woke me up. They are quite rare and this was the only wild one we saw. Luckily it was a healthy one.”
  2. “The Whale sharks can be found on the Ningaloo Reef in WA. Swimming with these huge fish was my best experience of the trip as they are not very common and they are huge! The girls in the crew were pretty cool too and I’m hoping to go back on work experience one day with them”
  3. “The campsite at Cape Le grand near Esperance in WA was my other favourite place. The people there were lovely and lots of kids to play with….”
  4. “Oh and don’t forget the chocolate factory in Margaret River – all those yummy free samples and the chocolate fondue”
  5. “And winning the watermelon eating contest at the Port Lincoln Tunarama festival……”
  6. “And trying to learn the traditional dances with the indigenous clans at the Garma festival in Arnhemland”
“What was the best thing you took on the trip?”
“My diary because I used it to stick brochures in of every place we visited. I can now look back through it and remember all the places that Mum and Dad have forgotten about”
“What did you miss most, or just couldn’t take with you?”
“I missed my toys, bike and scooter. We only had limited storage space and so took very little from home. We borrowed friends bikes along the way. I also missed my school friends. We had a spare bunk bed in the trailer but not enough seats in the car to take a friend.” Editors note – although we had a 7 seater Pajero the back seat was removed for extra storage space
“Would you do it again?”
“Definitely”
“How did schooling on the road go?”
“It went pretty well even though it was very hard with all the distractions. Some of the projects were really enjoyable “
Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Road trip, Travel, Travel Adventure | Tags: , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Werrikimbe National Park, NSW

Posted on December 18, 2015 by John Sear
Orchids
Orchids
Spring flowers

Shortly after leaving Armidale we chanced upon a sign to the grave of Nat Buchanan who died at the age of 72 in 1901. Like we did, you are probably wondering who Nat Buchanan is, but we discovered that after arriving in Australia from Ireland in 1837, he went on to create an unrivalled reputation droving cattle. The plaque next to the grave explained all his feats and having visited some of the areas he was droving we could well appreciate the achievement.

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Apsley Falls, Oxley Wild Rivers NP

Apsley Falls, Oxley Wild Rivers NP

Driving further along the road in the Northern Tablelands another sign triggered me to turn off to the Apsley Falls. I had read about these and also was keen to see what the Oxley Wild Rivers National Park had to offer. Two sets of falls plunge some 60m into the precipitous Apsley gorge and a series of lookouts offer some amazing vantage points to watch. The water levels were low and the river disappears beneath rubble at one point re-emerging around the next bend in the gorge.

Mooraback camp is a quiet oasis that lies in Werrikimbe National Park, and adjacent to the Oxley River National Park. Classified as a Gondwanaland forest, it is the remnant of forest from the supercontinent of the same name that split into the continents that we know today. The homestead was handed over to the National Parks in 1975 and is now critical habitat to a number of endangered plants and animals, including the River Hastings mouse. This rodent was believed extinct for over 100 years until rediscovered here in the 1980s.

Reaching an altitude of up to 1200m on the drive up it was quiet a refreshing change, from the mid 30 degrees of the previous day, as temperatures dropped to a brisk 16 degrees.

Driving into the clouds we were regularly sprinkled with fine drizzle. On arrival we had choice of the 5 sites, all recently mowed luscious green patches dispersed amongst the trees. A fire-pit and supply of wood offered us probably the last opportunity to have a campfire on this adventure. As daylight vanished and everyone else disappeared into bed the forest suddenly lit up with tiny flashing lights, and for 30 minutes a display of fire flies flitted gracefully between the trees in the forest in pursuit of one another. Hannah was still awake and came to watch this magical finale to our trip with me.

From the camp there are two easy walks, one takes you through a number of habitats in the forest behind. This 15 minute walk showcased many local birds, crimson and eastern rosellas, white-eared honeyeaters, golden whistlers, rufous fantails, red-browed finches, fairy-wrens, silver-eyes, and treecreepers.

Mooraback camp
Forest walk at Werrikimbe

The second walk is a 5km walk that takes you around the headwaters of the Hastings river that runs towards Port Macquarie, where it finally meets the Pacific Ocean. The streams and pools abound with platypus and Xavier and I were fortunate to see a number of them in the late afternoon.

The hillsides up in this NSW alpine region abound with colour at the moment and we had fun spotting many different spring flowers, including a few different orchids. When the clouds finally cleared and the sun emerged this place was a truly tranquil gem and worth driving the additional kilometres from the main road to visit.

One last night, and time for a final episode of the “bushman’s TV”. Each episode lasts as long as your wood supply, and though often similar, are equally riveting for young and old with every viewing. The last of the kid’s houses built from firewood were sacrificed, another display from the fire flies and it was time to farewell this remote spot.

Categories: 4WD, Adventure, Animal Action, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, National Park, New South Wales, NSW, Offroad, Photography, Photos, Road trip, Travel, Travel Adventure | Tags: , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Grafton and the Waterfall Highway

Posted on December 10, 2015 by John Sear

With the passing of the previous night’s storm the air smelt clean and fresh the next morning. The humidity crept up on us though, something we have had trouble acclimatising to in recent weeks.

Emigrant dam wall
Kids hanging by the falls
Lennox Head
Killen Falls
Killen Falls
Killen Falls

With local knowledge imparted as we farewelled our hosts, we headed down to the beach, then up the road to get a good look back at Lennox Heads before heading towards Killen Falls. The water wasn’t very inviting following the previous night’s rainfall but the falls were putting on an impressive performance. Not quite as much a local spot as expected, there were plenty of people there though few dared the chilly waters. A collection of small cairns have started sprouting up opposite the falls, adding to the magic of the location. Hannah and I also snuck a quick look at Emigrant Dam while grabbing a geocache on the way out.

Birds on the deck in Grafton

Birds on the deck in Grafton

Well on the homeward leg now, our trip was becoming more of a social event than one of exploration and we headed towards Grafton where our friends “Roving Reeves”, from Perth, were staying. The kids always enjoyed catching up with their boys so it seemed an obvious stopping point for us to catch up with Tash and Stephen. An enjoyable dinner was spent on the deck, chatting and watching flocks of lorikeets, king parrots, cockatoos and galahs queueing up to eat sunflower seeds.

 

The next morning, once a thick fog had lifted from the hills around Grafton, they joined us on a drive towards Dorrigo National Park, stopping first at Dangar Falls, just off the obviously named Waterfall Highway.

Dangar Falls
Old steam trains
“Roving Reeves” – wait is that George Michael?
Ebor Falls
Rainforest at Dorrigo National Park
Dangar falls

A quick lunch and walk to the base of the falls at Dangar then off to the Dorrigo National Park where we wandered into the rainforest, onto the skywalk and listened to the birdsong throughout the hillside. with time once again getting away from us we bade “Roving Reeves” farewell and parted ways heading towards Armidale, via the Ebor Falls. The surrounding woodland and fields there were smothered with a thick dusting of white michaelmas daisy snow, the wonder of springtime flowers was greeting us once more in our last few days on the road.

Spring flowers around Ebor

Spring flowers around Ebor

 

Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Natural World, New South Wales, Photography, Photos, Road trip, Travel, Travel Adventure | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

Byron Bay – Australia’s eastern most point (Back to NSW)

Posted on December 8, 2015 by John Sear
We did it - the final compass point extremity of mainland Australia

We did it – the final compass point extremity of mainland Australia

The last challenge for us was to stand on the last of the compass points of mainland Australia. In the South, a year ago, we had hiked 40km in 2 days to South Point. In the West an arduous drive took us some 32km along a hideously corrugated sand track to Steep Point. Only a few weeks ago we had stood at the Tip, (Pajinka) on Cape York, in the North and the last challenge was Cape Byron on the East. This had to be the easiest part of our challenge. We parked car and trailer and walked 15 minutes up the hill past the lighthouse to the sign. Once again a storm threatened but on our return we hesitated on the cliffs to watch a manta ray glide past. We also witnessed a shark, eagle rays and dolphins cruisng close to the shore before we dashed to miss the rain.

Looking into the glowworm cave
Cave Creek drops into the glowworm cave
Natural Bridge, Springwood NP

 

But wait a minute I’m getting ahead of myself!! Leaving the Gold Coast we took a scenic drive inland through forests to a place called the Natural Bridge in Springbrook National Park. A short trail through forest takes you to Cave Creek that falls over a rock wall then through a cave making it a photogenic “Natural Bridge”. The river passes several plunge pools before cascading over a large log into a glowworm cave, then flows out to the forest again. The glowworms are only visible at night unfortunately when their green light fills the cave. Another feature of this part of the park are the Hoop Pines, primitive conifers that have existed for 180 million years.

Nearly home!

Nearly home!

Our itinerary was busy and as we pressed on again, then suddenly on a narrow winding country road we were confronted with a sign that grounded us. “Welcome to NSW” meant we were truly almost home. We left NSW over a year ago.

The big Buddha
Ganesh
Prayer wheel
Bamboo corridor
The world peace Stupa

Our next stop requested by the kids was Crystal Castle in Mullumbimby. I wasn’t prepared for what greeted us, but mirth soon overtook apprehension when our guide paused for an unexpected moments meditation. The kids slurped their drinks loudly (we were lunching on the run again). I poked them in the back, half opening my eyes to see if anyone had heard but they didn’t get it and kept slurping. I hung my head for a minute in embarrassment, then let go, relaxed and enjoyed the sumptuous grounds. Giant statues of Buddha and numerous Indian gods occupy strategic positions throughout the Shambhala gardens. Enormous crystals offer healing qualities, and a world peace stupa allows one to close your eyes and pretend you are in Tibet. There is a rainforest walk, regular events, and niches where people seek tranquility for a spiritual experience. Much work and collaboration has been required to develop this place and it is well worth a visit. After a couple of hours here it was time to close the compass point challenge and Byron Bay was our next stop, unfortunately having no time to stop to see our fellow travellers “Our Roaming Home”, who started from our home suburb shortly after we left. They had seen us passing and called Amanda on the phone!

A manta ray cruising past below us
The lighthouse at Byron Bay
Watego beach

With light fading fast we headed for our camp at Lis and Greg (friends of Amanda’s brother) in Lennox Heads, put the trailer up and the deluge began. As hailstones began to rattle the roof on the house I hoped that they wouldn’t be big enough to damage the car. The kids were fascinated with them as they haven’t seen hail for a long time. Finally we sat in the house watching Malcolm Douglas episodes on TV, a rare event in the last year, until it was time to retire to bed.

 

 

Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, National Park, New South Wales, Photography, Road trip, Travel, Travel Adventure | Tags: , , , , , | 2 Comments

Fraser Island (Part 2)

Posted on December 5, 2015 by John Sear
Fun in the dunes
Amanda taking it all in
As far as we could go!
A timid dingo at Sandy Cape
Ocean Lake
The sand keeps moving
The sandy road towards Orchid Beach
Contemplating a swim
Sandy Cape sand dunes
Ocean Lake

The following day saw us heading north to Sandy Cape, up past Indian Head, Waddy Point, through the cute settlement of Orchid Beach, before heading up the beach again. With the tide being quite high on the way up we had to briefly leave the beach at Ngkala Rocks taking a bypass track that squeezed us through the rocks. We spotted two more dingos on this trip and at Sandy Cape the road to the lighthouse was impassable due to the tide, so we took to foot to walk over the dunes to the Carree campsite. The tall sand dunes plummet to the seashore and the kids ran up and down in the hot sunshine whilst we watched. The lighthouse poked out from the trees several kilometers to the west of us but too far to walk in the heat.

Champagne pools
Champagne Pools
Champagne Pools

On the return trip we visited the Champagne Pools, somewhat disappointing due to the fact that each pool had fifty backpackers wallowing in it, some of them stripping off and crushing snails to feed the fish, despite the “no collecting” signs.

When challenged one said he was with an Aboriginal who said it was ok to do so. Whilst indigenous people do have privileges to collect within National Parks, tourists don’t and when others started copying the marine life will soon be stripped and spoilt for the future. I found it surprising that the indigenous guide had allowed this, as most aboriginal people we have met consider themselves to be guardians of the land they occupy. In this case perhaps the lure of the dollar was more important than preservation of the environment.

On the top of Indian Head
Indian Head
View from Waddy Point

We walked to the tips of Waddy Point and Indian head to look for sharks, turtles and more but returned disappointed.

Storms brewing over Wathumba
Wathumba beach

On the return trip we headed east at Orchid Beach to visit Wathumba, a large estuarine area, with a wooded coastline and mangroves growing in the sand. This beautiful spot is notorious for sandflies but we didn’t witness many at all.

Another day, another excursion and we headed south to take in the Central Lakes drive. Out timing of the tide wasn’t good and when we arrived at Eli creek some thirty cars on both sides of the creek were awaiting the tide to abate. Some of the Tag-Along tours had fixed itineraries though and were not prepared to wait. The 4WD vehicles driven primarily by inexperienced backpackers nervously entered the water, sometimes to their leaders horror even taking a precarious passage over rocks. Whilst the water wasn’t too deep I was prepared to wait a bit longer rather than taking a brine rinse under the bonnet.

Crossing Eli Creek at high tide
The queue to cross Eli Creek

One vehicle stalled on the exit and couldn’t be restarted by the driver. Without a snorkel it looked like this could be the end of their day but the leader emerged from the back of his vehicle with a can of CYC spray and with a prolonged spray under the bonnet life was restored in the engine and off they drove.

As we crossed shortly after four guys were digging sand out from the wheels of a very bogged car near the front of the queue.

Oscar looks through a tree!
Lake Wabby from the lookout
Shores of Lake Mackenzie
Swimming in Lake Wabby
Lake Boomanjin
Forest track on Fraser Island

Once across the creek and past Yidney and Poyungan rocks along the beach the track heads inland and a short drive through the forest brings you to the Lake Wabby Lookout. The lake is easily accessible from here and despite the threats of a dark storm approaching we couldn’t resist. The water was surprising warm for the deepest lake on the island and with steep dunes plunging into the deep water it was a favourite with the kids.

Beyond that is another major attraction, Lake Mackenzie, whose brilliant white sandy shores and pale blue acidic water grace all the tourist brochures. To avoid crowds, a short walk along the beach, and over a few steps, brings you to a second beach. Still no sun but plenty of crystal clear warm water to swim in – irresistible. The drive continued past Lakes Birrabeen, Benaroon and Boomanjin, all picturesque and much less frequented by the crowds of tourists but time was flying and we had to drive back up the beach.

As the rusting wreckage of the Maheno emerged from the sea spray in the distance we knew were almost back at camp again where the kids needed to be woken up, having fallen asleep in the car, after another exhausting day on Fraser Island

Rusting hulk of the Maheno

Rusting hulk of the Maheno

Categories: 4WD, Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Beach, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, National Park, Natural World, Offroad, Photography, Photos, QLD, Queensland, Road trip, Travel, Travel Adventure, Wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

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