Felix and I checked into our hostel in Surfer’s Paradise and were given a room that no one else had checked into yet. When our new roommates arrived, (Amy, Lee, Mark, and Vic) we had instant new friends. They also brought with them some friends that they had met just the day before in Byron Bay (Hokai, Karina, and Melena), so Felix and I went from just the two of us to a large group.
We had heard that Surfer’s Paradise is known for their nightlife, and our hostel was organizing a night out (even though it was Monday night). The night out got us free entry into a club called Sin City (which would usually be $15), one free drink, and discounted drinks for the rest of the night. We ended up staying and dancing until late in the night and we had a great time.
The next morning, we rented a few surfboards and bodyboards and took to the waves - why else do they call it Surfer’s Paradise? The day really was paradise; no one else had ever been surfing before, so I took my new knowledge and gave my new friends lessons. I was such a proud teacher by the end of the day, because everyone managed to stand up and ride in a few waves. Maybe I have found my new calling...
Amy, Vic, Lee, and Mark were only planning to stay in Surfer’s Paradise for one night, but we convinced them to stay with us for another. The next night was much more relaxing and even though our hostel was doing another night out, we decided to stay in and just hang out. We had to wake up early the next day - Felix and I were going to Noosa Heads as our next stop.
As soon as I got to Noosa, I already loved it. It was the complete opposite of Surfer’s Paradise but also very different from Byron Bay as well. Much more relaxed and relatively free from tourism, Noosa Heads has beautiful beaches and a famous national park. I even considered taking a job at the hostel that we were staying at for 3 - 4 weeks working at the travel desk just so I could spend some more time there. It would have been a great time; they only needed someone to work 2 hours a day in exchange for free room, board, food, and internet. My thoughts were that I could definitely improve my surfing skills and save some money at the same time.
We decided to walk through the Noosa National Park just before sunset, and there were incredible views (and dolphins, of course!) and strangely, wild turkeys along the walk. We walked as far as a place called Hell’s Gates that was incredibly windy and led you to an enormous drop-off over a cliff before heading back to avoid being out after the sun went down. We also took a quick detour to see Alexandria Bay which is supposedly an informal nude beach (although there was no one on it) and then headed back to our hostel.
The next morning, I borrowed a surfboard from our hostel and rode a few waves at Noosa Spit. The funny thing about Noosa is that the waves are really small (or even nonexistent on some beaches), so it is a great place for beginners like me. I had my best ride ever and was not ready to leave! Another highlight of the day is Felix wearing my wetsuit (that I bought for a huge discount from my surf instructor!), because he is at least 6’4”! It was hilarious watching him struggle to fit.
The only reason I was convinced to leave Noosa Heads is that we had made plans with Amy, Lee, Vic, and Mark to meet up in Hervey Bay and do the self-drive tour to Fraser Island together. For those of you that do not know, Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world. From Hervey Bay, the tour operators put you into groups of 8, rent you a 4-wheel-drive and some camping gear, and you have the next 3 days and 2 nights in paradise. Unfortunately, in recent times, many backpackers have been reckless and a few have actually died. Because of this, starting in July, they are going to require each group to be accompanied by a guide and driving instructor. When we heard this, we were so glad that we were able to do the trip before this change took place.
When we arrived in Hervey Bay, we were just in time for our 1 1/2 hour briefing on all of the safety procedures for our trip to Fraser Island. Our group of 8 consisted of Felix, Amy, Lee, Vic, Mark, me, and 2 girls from England named Emily and Claire. The briefing was very long and repetitive, and by the time it was finished, we had heard how many dangers - including dingoes, snakes and spiders! - were on the island and we were more terrified than excited.
We stayed the night in Hervey Bay and left bright and early the next morning in our hot pink 4WD named “Stinky.” We are yet to know why ours was named Stinky... The night before, we had planned out our food for the trip, and we made a stop at the grocery store and butcher to buy everything we would need for the next few days. From the grocery store, we drove to the barge and boarded a ferry that would take us across to Fraser Island.
Side note: One thing that we noticed is that the people in Hervey Bay were awfully grumpy. We had a few run-ins with unpleasant people including the woman who worked at reception at our hostel, a random woman in the grocery store, and the man who parked the cars on the barge (and incidentally also worked the snack bar on the boat). We later determined that it must have been because of the weather since it was a little cloudy that day, because they all appeared to be in better moods over the next couple of days.
Fraser Island is really paradise on earth. With the exception of all of the dangers - dingoes, spiders, snakes, tiger sharks, and steep cliff edges - it was definitely near the top of my list of favorite destinations I have been. For example, on the first day, we drove our car right on the beach and went to a place called Lake Wabby that is a tiny lake (it actually will not even be there anymore in approximately 5 years) surrounded by amazing sand dunes. There were hundreds of catfish swimming in the lake that were not bashful and came right up to us. While at Lake Wabby, we decided to climb the tallest of the sand dunes for an aerial view of Fraser Island. We also saw our first dingo and were actually able to get quite close without fear of it attacking.
After Lake Wabby, we found our campsite for the two nights that we would be staying on Fraser Island. We had lost the other 2 pink 4WD’s that were part of our group, but instead found new friends. On the campsite next to ours, there were 9 American girls and 7 guys who were from America and all over Europe. They quickly became our friends, and we hung out at their campsite until bedtime.
Our schedule on Fraser Island was determined entirely by the tides since we were driving on the beach. This meant that we were supposed to get up early and be off our campsite by 6:30AM. Of course, none of us even woke up until nearly 7, so we were already behind schedule by the time the second day started.
On this day, we drove down the beach to see Maheno Wreck, a large shipwreck that has washed up on the beach and the Pinnacles. The highlight of the day though was hiking to the top of Indian Head (the most northern part of the island we were allowed to see) and the Champagne Pools. From the top of Indian Head, we could see tiger sharks and stingrays swimming in the clear blue water below over an enormous cliff edge.
We walked down the beach a little further to the Champagne Pools which are my favorite part of Fraser Island by far. Natural rock formations are found here, and when the waves wash over, tidal pools have been created. The most ironic thing about Fraser Island is that the water is the clearest I have ever seen, however swimming is not recommended because it is a breeding place for tiger sharks. The Champagne Pools are one of the only places that are safe enough to swim in saltwater. I wish I could have my own Champagne Pools - I did not want to leave. We were surrounded by fish, and when the waves crashed over the rocks, we were sprayed like champagne from a bottle. It was really one of the most amazing places I have ever been.
The drive back from Champagne Pools was a race against high tide, and I was a little nervous at times. There are many washouts (areas where freshwater streams have run-off into the ocean) and we had been warned that we would lose our entire $1,000 bond if we got any saltwater on our 4WD. Lee was our fearless driver, and he did a great job getting us safely back to camp. We only slid in the deep sand a little and hit our heads on the ceiling of the 4WD a few times haha...
On the second night, we found the other two pink 4WD (they had been camping just down the beach from us) and invited them over to meet our new neighbors. We had such a great time getting to know everyone and I knew I would be sad to be leaving the next day.
We got a slightly late start on our third and final day, but we were not too worried. Normally, we would be going to a place called Lake MacKensie which is famous for its crystal blue water. However, they are doing some construction in that area, so we went to Lake Birnabeen instead (which is the sister lake of Lake MacKensie). It was still beautiful and the water there was as crystal blue as the pictures I had seen of Lake MacKensie. We stayed at the lake for a few hours, went for a swim, got a little sunburnt, and then drove back to the barge to head back to Hervey Bay.
At some point on the Fraser Island trip, Amy, Lee, Vic, and Mark convinced me to come with them to New Zealand. When we got back to our hostel at Hervey Bay, I booked a one-way flight from Brisbane to Christchurch for the next morning at 9:40AM. Even though I was planning to go all the way to Cairns on this East Coast road trip and had a few more stops to make along the way, I decided it would be spontaneous and fun to go to New Zealand with my new friends.
That night, we crammed all of our bags into their rental car and drove the 4 1/2 hours back down to Brisbane. Instead of booking a hostel for the night, we decided to just sleep in the car/airport since our flight was so early.
I am a little nervous about how cold New Zealand will be since I had packed my East Coast road trip bag for tropical beach weather. But this may be the only time in my life I can just book a flight to New Zealand the night before, so I had to take advantage of the opportunity...
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