Refreshing Fraser Island

Today the Red Elephants toured Fraser Island in style in a big Truck come Bus.  We decided to hang the cost and play it safe by doing a tour.  Leading up to this mega trip of ours we have had a lot of car trouble and spent a lot of money on our Brindi.  Pete is not a confident 4wd driver and did not want to risk any further issues and costs to Brindi our Toyota Prado.

The Troopie

 We where picked up out the front of the park bright and early.  This is the first time in 3 weeks we have had to meet a specific time frame.  We where being picked up at 7.40  I was helping James with his shoes  when Grace tells us its 7.38. LETS GO!!!!

As we went down the beach to embark the barge to cross to the island we decided that if we where driving there was no way we would have made it to the barge.  The beach was soft with deep ruts and tracks left by other Troop Carriers and 4wd's.

Any way lets get to Fraser Island.  Fraser Island is heritage listed and the worlds only fully sand Island. The sand is pure white and so fine it reminded me of caster sugar.  As the trope dropped us of at Lake Mckenzie our guide suggested we give ourselves a beauty treatment and rub the sand over our skin  to gain soft skin.  James  immediately sat in the sand and rubbed it all over his legs, they are lovely and soft now.  He then insisted we all do it, so all the Red Elephants have lovely skin all over thanks to lake McKenzie natures beauty parlour.  Lake Mckenzie is a beautiful freshwater lake that is crystal clear.  The roads up where rough and sandy in fact all roads on Fraser Island are defiantly sandy and rough we bumpily bumped along all day in the troopie.

SS Maheno

Fireman Pole Tees

We then drove through sub tropical rainforest with these huge tall trees that reached for the sky.  The trunks where as straight as a fireman's pole James said.  It was amazing to see the these big trees growing so tall with nothing to anchor them but sand.  We where introduced to the Satinay tree it is a Fraser Island specialty and in Fraser Islands hey day of logging these trees where used to rebuild the Suez Canal and build the wharves around our own Circular Quey.  In the middle of this rainforest is Central Station,no trains, but it was the old logging base.  We walked through the giant trees along Wanggoolba Creek.  It may sound strange but the creek was so clear Pete and I thought it had a layer of  algae on the top, but on closer inspection the water was as clear as a freshly cleaned window.

Lake McKenzie

We where then driven along 75 mile Beach at a great rate to  the Pinacles, Eli Creek and the SS Meheno ship wreck.  This ship was a hospital ship before she decided to stay permanently on 75 Mile Beach Fraser Island.

Now I must say that I was at odds with Fraser Island a world Heritage listed "wilderness" area.  I like to enjoy my wilderness in its natural state not with busloads of tourists.  Every where we stopped there was at least three other troopies full of tourists.  On the pristine 75 Mile beach there where other troopies , 4wd's  hurtling up and down the beach.  There where even 2 little planes doing tourist flights from the beach.  It just did not seem right.  But there was I on a tourist trope being part of the wrongness.

SS Maheno Shipwreck

This is the SS Maheno ship wreck it used to be used as a hospital ship before  it ran aground.

Lake McKenzie

 Lake Mckenzie a beautiful Crystal clear freshwater lake up a mountain and sand mountain I guess.  The water was 20'C but still a little chilly for us.  It was beautiful to walk around and the sand was white white and as fine as caster sugar.  The road up was very rugged through bush land and tea tree.