K'gari

 

When we were in Brisbane we did a mini-break to K'gari (formerly known as Fraser Island) which is about a three and a half hour drive up the coast and an hour on the ferry. It's a fascinating world heritage site and national park - lots of tourists but very little development. I wasn't sure what to expect; many people love it but they seem to love driving up the beach, camping in the dunes with no amenities, and fishing ... none of which appeal to me at all. But neither of us had been so off we went.

It was absolutely beautiful. We stayed at the resort on the bay side of the island, which had mostly seen better days but we were in a little house up in the bush with a deck and our own kitchen and it was lovely. It might have been warm enough to swim - although neither of us thought to bring our togs - but definitely warm enough to paddle. 

We saw dolphins both ways on the ferry, and lots of amazing birds. The island has roads but they are sand, very windy and very steep - you need to have a 4WD and know what you're doing so you don't get bogged. We have neither a 4WD or any experience so did a full day bus tour (4WD bus, hilarious) to see the main spots.

I took a lot of motion sickness pills and thank heavens I did because it was TERRIBLE. I'd rung beforehand to try and see how bad it would be - fully expecting the usual "you'll be fine" or "most people don't have a problem" - they said it was really rough, expect the worst and they have seasick bags on the bus! So I took all the pills, they worked fine but I felt completely spaced out all day and slept for 17 hours when we got back. 

This is the beautiful inland lake that was our first stop.

Then we did a bushwalk along a gloriously clear river - filtered by sand, lots of sand. Onto the main beach, which is a 120 km of gazetted road with an 80 kmph speed limit, including some 40 km spots where you have to cross creeks or there are camping areas. There was a traffic cop with a speed radar at one, so there you go. 

It was stunning, but you can't really swim in the open ocean, it's too dangerous. Lots of good fishing though, and I'm sure people do swim, but I'd be nervous. And of course dingoes that tend to attack tourists - we saw some (safely through the bus window). And we saw lots of whales breaching just offshore, including some calves, really exciting but my photos just look like ocean although there were three whales in the shot, I swear. 

This is an amazingly clear creek that I wandered down - transclucent water, sandy bottom, feels like a million miles from anywhere (and not like you've just hopped off one of four tour buses, including several minibuses of british backpackers, who were having a lovely time and looked exceptionally sunburnt). 

It was a great day and I'm glad I did it, but I don't know if it's really a holiday destination for me. There are designated camping spots up and down the beach but there's no facilities of any kind (including water) and it gets incredibly busy over the summer. There was a wee plane doing joy rides taking off and landing from the beach.

The next day we did a guided nature walk that was excellent, and my husband did another beach walk in the afternoon while I slept for a couple more hours. The pills had caffeine in them to try and keep you awake ... which works for about two hours while the sleepiness lasts three days. We had a good trip though.