Fraser Island

12th to 14th May 2017

In May, there were four of us on Fraser Island - three guys and myself. We set off from the Gold Coast in the morning, made all the necessary preparations (food & beer) beforehand, and arrived just in time for our 4WD rental before we could catch the last ferry for us. After a brief instruction on how to drive a 4WD and what to keep in mind on Fraser Island, we quickly headed to the ferry.

After a 45-minute drive from River Heads to Fraser, we drove on the sandy ground to our hostel for the first time. To keep it short and sweet: If you've ever been on one of those mechanical bulls, you can imagine what the ride is like. The bumpy ride took 1.5 hours and we arrived just before dark. By the way, the roads on the island were one-way, so only one direction could be driven at a time. The only way to make room for other cars is through pull-off bays that occasionally appear on the roadside. Nothing can really happen because you can't drive faster than 30-40 km/h under the ground conditions.

We had our own little bungalow, grilled in the evenings, and enjoyed the evening with a few beers.

On the next day, we could sleep in because we had to wait for the high tide at 11.30 am. The weather had improved compared to the previous day, the sun was shining and it was really warm. We drove on the famous 75 mile Beach, waded through Ellie Creek, and went to the Moheno Wreck. On our way to the north of the island, we also stopped at a lake, where we initially wanted to swim. Unfortunately, it didn't work out, but we were able to discover dozens of little turtles.

We continued to the cape, this time I drive. The ride is really fun, especially on the endless beach, as you can drive at a good 80km/h here. From the cape, we had a nice view of the island. Then we quickly went to the Champagne Pools before it gets dark, where we could and were allowed to swim. Surprisingly, the water was still quite warm for the evening and we could also discover small fish. The evening was relaxed again, we cooked chili con carne together (with jalapenos and without beans, accordingly super spicy haha) and sat comfortably in front of our bungalow and drank a beer or two again.

On our last day, we couldn't sleep long because of the high tide. We set off at 7am, as we had to drive a stretch along the beach. Due to the rain that lasted from last night until late at night, everything was very wet, slippery, and full of puddles, which made driving difficult in some places. Our destination was Lake McKenzie: white sand and turquoise water - which became clear after a few meters and turned into petrol-colored water. The weather was mediocre again, so the water was also cool. But jumping in was a must!

We were back at the harbor for sunset. The long weekend was beautiful :)