31.10.2016 Australia # Brisbane to Rainbow Beach # finally water again

After a journey of about an hour with Virgin Australia, we safely arrive in Brisbane on the afternoon of October 27th. Strangely enough, we have to adjust our clocks again, even though the two cities are on the same longitude. The reason is quickly found. Daylight saving time, yes, they have it here too, is not well-received by all states. New South Wales (Sydney) has it and Queensland (Brisbane) does not. Quite a mess...

By train, it takes another half an hour to reach the city center. According to the description, our hotel, the `Metropolitan Motor Inn`, should only be an 8-minute walk from Central Station. So, we decide to walk instead of taking a taxi. However, it was not written anywhere that it's almost all uphill, and we have a hard time dragging our big bags to the accommodation. It's noticeably hotter than it was in Sydney, and we're sweating again. But it's all for a good cause.

Brissie, as the locals say, is also a big city, but it doesn't feel as hectic as the capital. Since we only have two nights here, we use one entire day for some sightseeing and shopping. You can also do tours, like whale watching with a money-back guarantee if you don't spot any whales, but we're not interested. First, we reserve a car with `East Coast Rental` for the drive to Cairns, which we have planned for nearly two weeks. Of course, with some stops along the way, because we also want to see the surrounding area and, above all, the underwater world.

After that, we leisurely stroll through Chinatown, where the final preparations for a three-day Halloween party are underway. It seems to be a big celebration here. We then take the train to South Brisbane and Riverside, where you can spend your time in a relaxed manner. However, we decide not to take a ride on the `Wheel of Brisbane` as the 19 AUD per person seems a bit steep, and 110 AUD for a VIP gondola even more so :-) We continue on foot to the city center, which is quickly explored due to its compactness. We spend the rest of the day writing our diary and blog, sorting and editing pictures, and relaxing.

The next morning, as agreed, I pick up our vehicle for the next two weeks around 10:30 am. The stylish white Corolla with automatic transmission drives well, and I have no trouble finding my way back to the hotel. It's a little over 200 km to our first stop, Rainbow Beach, so we don't have to rush. With Google Maps support from my backup phone, we easily navigate out of the city and head north on the `Bruce Highway`. Apart from driving on the left side of the road and the fact that `Burger King` at the rest areas here is called `Hungry Jack`, everything is just as we know it from home. After a short break, we leave the highway at Gympie and drive the last 65 km on well-maintained country roads to Rainbow Beach. We booked our accommodation, the `Rainbow Getaway Holiday Apartments`, quickly through Booking.com yesterday. And it's a good thing we did because there are hardly any accommodations available, as many Australians like to spend their weekends here. When we arrive, a larger group of Swedish farmers is about to check-in. We get there before them, and when we enter our apartment, we're speechless. It's huge, something we didn't expect at all. In addition to a large living room with a kitchenette, we have three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a guest toilet, two balconies, and a garage for the car. And all this at a very reasonable price, considering the complete facilities like a washing machine and dryer, etc. Furthermore, everything still looks new and is spotlessly clean. We can feel comfortable here.

In the late afternoon, we visit the `Carlo Sandblow`. After a short walk through the forest, you suddenly find yourself on a huge sand dune, several hundred meters long and wide. On one side, you have a fantastic view of the sea and the `Coloured Sands`, which give Rainbow Beach its name. On the other side, you can enjoy an equally impressive view of the hinterland. There is already quite a crowd gathered there, waiting for sunset. Meanwhile, on the steep cliff towards the sea, mostly young people indulge in sandboarding, while hang gliders and paragliders use it as a launch pad. There's plenty of space for everyone.

We have booked a diving trip to `Wolf Rock` with the `Wolf Rock Divers` for the next day. It was mainly the name that caught my attention, but I was already fascinated by the descriptions of dives with gray nurse sharks and other large fish species during the planning stage. We arrive on time at 8:00 am, and Kevin welcomes us. He looks a bit like an old seafarer, just as you would imagine. Together with his wife Cheryl, he runs the whole operation and also offers underwater work on the side. An eccentric, nice guy who clearly knows what he's doing. There are also an Australian couple, a Canadian couple, and an Aussie from Brisbane joining us for the dive. Once everyone is equipped and has paid their fee, we hop in the jeep with the inflatable boat on the trailer and head to the marina. The boat trip to `Wolf Rock` starts off in calm waters, making us think that the 45 minutes won't be that bad. But as soon as we reach the open sea, we quickly change our minds. The sea is rough, and the small boat is bouncing up and down a lot. When we finally arrive at `Wolf Rock`, we have a sense of what awaits us underwater. The small rock, located about 1 km off the coast, is battered by large breakers, and you can see the strong currents swirling around it. Even when the boat is moored to a buoy, it's still being tossed around by the waves. It's not exactly comfortable diving conditions.

I'm one of the first to get into the water and hold onto a line attached to the boat to avoid drifting away. Then, we make our way in single file to the buoy, where we descend on the line and wait at 5m until Kevin gives the okay. He leads the first dive while Cheryl stays on the boat. Using a thick plastic-coated line, we descend to twenty meters, then drop down to 30m and swim against the current around the rocks. The visibility is rather poor, but there are plenty of fish. In a channel, several large gray nurse sharks are waiting for prey. That's exactly why we're here. The majestic predators don't seem to mind the strong currents at all. They effortlessly glide through the water. Some of our fellow divers, however, struggle and soon reach a point where they have to turn back due to their air supply. While circling the rock, we see eagle rays, stingrays, a turtle, and lots of smaller fish. Kevin guides the group with low tank pressure back to the ascent line, and we continue the dive. The reward is a rare sighting of an almost free-sitting octopus on a rock wall.

During the surface interval, Maike takes her motion sickness medication, but unintentionally ends up feeding the fish. Considering our relatively long dive time compared to the others and the fact that Maike embarks on the second dive despite feeling nauseous, Kevin coins the term `German Superdivers`. Of course, we modestly decline, but it still sounds good :-)) We only dive with the three of us on the second dive, with Cheryl as our guide. The two other couples pass for various reasons. As with the first dive, we see several gray nurse sharks, a leopard shark, a large spotted stingray, and also schools of eagle rays, a magnificent sight. For a brief moment, Maike gets scared when a large gray nurse shark swims straight towards me and then passes just below me. But they don't do anything harmf ul, they just want to play. :-) It's a pity that the photos don't turn out great due to the poor visibility.

Back at the dive center, we first rinse our equipment, and then Kevin opens the fridge and pulls out a cool Carlton Draught beer for each of us. We sit together for a while, sharing diving stories. It was fun, and one of our stickers found a good use.

We decide to skip the second planned day of diving. Kevin wouldn't go out with just two people, and we want to avoid the tiring rocking of the boat. Instead, we drive around a bit and walk along endless, almost deserted beaches. At least it gives us some sun and a bit of relaxation never hurts.

We have to leave our beautiful place tomorrow already. We will stay overnight in Rockhampton on the way to Airlie Beach, so that the drive is not too long. It's possible to do it in one day, but we're on vacation, not on the run.