Australia Round 3 - Days 150-178
So this is my final stretch of my travels and boy has it been a great month! You might think I’d be able to pick one thing that tops my entire trip, but I really can’t. Everything was absolutely amazing and all the experiences were so different. NZ was definitely my favourite country to travel in, and the one where I spent the most time, but Oz definitely gave it a run for its money this final month.
I was quite sad to leave NZ and was pretty bummed out when I flew into Surfers Paradise so I just took a day off to myself and flew up the next morning to Cairns where my adventures really started. I spent a day out on the Great Barrier Reef doing my first ever scuba dive and it was just unbelievable. We had terrible weather, and within minutes people were losing their lunch over the side of the boat but everything changed once you slid under the surface and checked out all the amazing marine life living on the reef. The weather while I was in Cairns wasn’t the greatest, but it was so hot and humid that even when it rained you almost didn’t mind it. I spent another day headed up to Cape Tribulation, one of the only places in the world where rain forest meets the ocean (very Jurassic Parkish). Two German girls and I rented a car and went on a grand adventure. We didn’t get to see any wild crocodiles or cassowaries but we saw a bunch of great signs telling us to beware of crocs and stingers while swimming. I assume everything in Australia is poisonous and will kill me.
I chilled out a few more days in Cairns and happened to win a Castaway Island trip using my superb (Ha!) air guitar skills. It was a pretty ridiculous thing but totally worth the pricey trip! After Cairns I headed down to Magnetic Island just outside Townsville (near where Cyclone Yasi hit in January). You could still see a lot of damage left by the cyclone, lots of buildings still in pieces and places being restored. Magnetic Island is part of a large World Heritage Site and is just off the mainland where World War II Forts were built. I spent two days on the island in a really cool hostel (felt a bit like Fiji) and spent both nights at the hostel bar playing some fun bar games and having a great time. I also managed to snag another 10 night Base hostel card for free! I checked out the old forts and came across a really cool set of small waterfalls I could climb up and swing into on a rope swing. Definitely a place I would recommend anyone to visit if they got the chance!
After Maggie Island I continued my way down the coast to Airlie Beach, probably one of my favourite places on the East Coast and the gateway to the unbelievably beautiful Whitsunday Islands – a collection of 74 islands off the coast. I spent two days in Airlie Beach and lucked out after weeks of rain to have absolute pristine weather. The first night there I headed out to the bar and happened to catch up with five girls I had previously met along my travels and we had a great ladies night out together, capping it off with the backpackers favourite meal: Mickey D’s! I spent a mellow afternoon chilling out the next day and that night ended up chatting with two Ozzie’s planning to hit up the UK and the US in a few weeks. They wanted some advice on the US and we ended up sitting up chatting until 6 in the morning. So random how you meet people while traveling! The next day I grabbed my gear and hopped aboard the boat the Tongarra – my home away from home for two nights on the Whitsundays. I had an epic three days as we had a great crew of British, French, and Irish, and also another Canadian! We spent the time chilling on the boat deck, sunning ourselves, snorkeling, drinking ridiculous amounts of goon (cheap box wine) and watching the stars as we slept on the deck. We also made a stop at Whitehaven Beach which has sand like icing sugar, and turquoise water that matched how amazing Fiji was. If you haven’t yet, take a look at some of my photos – the water was just amazing! The night we got off the boat we all spent one last hurrah together in the bar as several of us were moving on the next day. We had a great night with free pizza and lots of dancing! I even somewhat learnt a French two step!
I headed out on the bus down to Agnes Water and the town of 1770. A place that’s not given a lot of attention down the coast but somewhere I wish I had a few days more to spend. It’s a laid back, chilled out surftown, with the very popular Scooteroo and where I also did my Castaway Island trip. The flight out to the island was almost better than the trip itself! How it works is that a four-seater prop plane flies 12 people out to an island and leaves them there till the next day. I was hoping it’d be really rough and tough but they do have a camp kitchen and tents already set up for us. They also have some walks you can do, a place to snorkel and some water toys to play with. The flight there and back was amazing – the pilot did everything short of a barrel roll! We did climbs and dives and really steep turns. We weren’t aware of it and the pilot surprised the two of us in the backseat when he started diving towards the Earth. Such a rush! I had a great time on the island, just relaxing and enjoying the nice weather. We even built a massive fire on the beach that night and had a great beef stew for supper. I hilariously (although some would disagree) had a little mishap with my camera. When I was using the outdoor toilet… my camera managed to slide out of my pocket… and down the outhouse toilet! I couldn’t believe it haha. I made one of the guys get me a massive stick (turned out to be a fishing rod) and I fished it out of the outhouse. I took it down to the ocean (thankfully it’s water proof) and spent the next ten minutes washing and scrubbing it in the sand and surf. Don’t worry guys, I also hand sanitized the crap (no pun intended) out of it! Hahaha How ridiculous things are sometimes!!
The next day we ventured down the island and picked ourselves some raw oysters… fun to do, but not very fun to eat raw! (especially for a prairie girl – but cool to try nonetheless). We did a little photo shoot on and around the plane and then headed back to Agnes Water. I had my Scooteroo that afternoon – a great time where you get to ride choppers around the two towns and then watch the sunset over the water. They hook you up with flaming helmets, tattoos and leather jackets. I must admit I felt pretty badass! I met two Canadians on the trip and we hit it off. I also think I embarrassed some guys by passing them on my bike, definitely not gonna let the guys lead the whole time ;). One guy especially took it personally that a girl passed him and things got fairly competitive but I thought it was all quite amusing! After Scooteroo, the two Canucks and I hit up the bottle shop, grabbed some beer and wine and spent the evening on the beach chatting and climbing massive trees pushed up onto shore by the surf. Was a pretty fun evening on the beach!
The next day I was off to my next destination: Rainbow Beach! This is the gateway to Fraser Island – the world’s largest sand island which surprisingly supports a lush vegetation of tropical rainforest and a large population of wild dingos! I spent my first night there hanging with the Canadian I met on the Whitsundays and celebrated his birthday with him. Interestingly enough he’s moving to SK in a couple weeks (no one out here knows where SK is unless they’ve been there or know someone who lives there) so it can be a pretty small world sometimes. I geared up for my trip to Fraser with a great crew of Brits & Swedes and an American. We got to drive 4x4 trucks down the beach and throughout the island. We started out with some really rainy weather but after a few hours the skies cleared for our entire three days on the island. We spent the afternoon at Lake Wobby and then set up camp a little bit down the road… err… the beach where we cooked our supper of delicious steak and got cranked on goon. I met a crew of hilarious Irish lads as well. The next morning I was feeling pretty rough and we headed out to a place aptly named Hangover Creek where I was able to rid myself of my hangover – thank goodness it worked or I wouldn’t have been a happy camper. We stopped for a quick look at a shipwreck on the beach and grabbed lunch and then headed to the champagne pools and Indian Head for the afternoon. We got some amazing views and enjoyed hanging out in the beautiful pools formed in the rocks which the surf crashes over at high tide. We headed back to camp (the sun sets just after 5 so we headed back fairly early) to make another amazing meal. I also managed to score some clams off the Irish crew that they had found on the beach somewhere, as well as my own supper. I have no idea what they cooked them in, but they were extremely good! (So much better than the oysters I had). We spent another night on the goon train, chilling out under the full moon on the sand dunes by the ocean. Pretty sweet evening spent on an island.
We headed back to Rainbow Beach the next day but not before we spent a few hours chilling out at beautiful Lake MacKenzie which also has icing sugar sand and turquoise water. I also worked on my skills at hurling (a super aggressive Irish game that’s similar to a mix-up between lacrosse and field hockey). After cleaning out our vehicles, a few of us purchased another box of goon and chilled on the beach watching the sunset. I managed to score some sweet Chinese food before the shop closed then caught up with the Irish lads where we headed over to another hostel to chill out for the night. The next morning I was up early and on my way to Brisbane. Cities aren’t really my thing so I hung out on the banks of the river and just spent time chilling out. The Irish lads were making their way out to Brisbane as well so I had some company. I spent the next day using some internet then met up with the boys and hit up a few pubs and bars in town. Not a crazy night but a good one nonetheless. Before I caught my bus out of town the next day I was able to catch up with an old Aussie high school friend. We grabbed a short but sweet coffee in her neck of the woods and it really was good to see her again after almost 7 years!
That afternoon I headed down to Byron Bay where I was crashing at a Canadians place I had met on Fraser Island. There was a big Blues Festival just outside of town (names like Bob Dylan and Ben Harper – so everything was booked out) so we chilled out grabbing some drinks with him and his two Canadian friends. The next day we dropped them off at the airport and chilled out on the beach and hiked up to the lighthouse which had spectacular views of the ocean and the beach. That night I caught up for supper with a girl I had met down the coast and drank with the Irish lads I met on the Whitsundays. One of the greatest things about going down the East Coast is that you keep running into people you know everywhere! We hopped on the goon train again and partied at Cheeky Monkeys. I had met an Australian through a mutual friend who had a surfboard he was willing to lend me the next morning and so we headed out to hit some waves before lunch. After some time in the water we went to the Beachside hotel and drank the afternoon away – the perfect way to spend a drizzly Tuesday afternoon. That night a few of us bar hopped and ended up at the Cheeky Monkey’s again where I ran into another girl I had met down the East Coast. Another good night!
Sadly this is where my trip comes to an end. The next day I hopped on a 12 hour bus ride down to Sydney. I’ve already done and seen the city so I got in, unpacked and repacked my entire bag to get ready to fly out the next day. It was a lovely evening with 30 minutes of free beer and wine, and then a quick trip to the pizza shop and, of course, McD’s! The next morning I caught my shuttle to the airport and said goodbye to Australia and the laid back, chilled out six month adventure I’ve been on. I caught my plane no worries and lucked out with getting an exit row seat – next best place to be on a 14 hour ride aside from first class. After that I spent two hours in passport control and another half hour waiting to be screened at security – my patience was running fairly thin, especially after a lack of proper sleep. Luckily I had a long layover and was one of the few people who didn’t miss my plane. I made it to Denver no worries and actually ended up giving up my spot on the plane as they had overbooked it. They were looking for a volunteer and I figured why not! I’m traveling alone with no specific deadline to be at home, so I grabbed some free accommodation at a grand hotel in Denver, a free meal and $400 in travel vouchers. What a great way to end my six month long adventure down under by a spontaneous stay in the US. So tomorrow I finally head home where I get to finally see my friends and family… and go back to work… Boo ;)
Haha as a fairly funny side note - I diligently kept a budget of every single penny I spent… and at the end of it all (hahah mom you might not be so proud of this…) I looked at how much I spent on alcohol… and it came out to $750.00… so that works out (at roughly 12.50AUD for a box of 4.4L of goon) to about 60 boxes of goon – or 264 liters of wine. Roughly 1.5L a day lol! However, it wasn’t all spent on cheap goon, but on bottles of wine and beer as well so I doubt I actually drank that much over the last six months. And if I did, well… my liver’s got to be in rough shape and it’s a good thing I am coming home!
