Queensland - Rain or Shine

View of Brisbane from Mt. Coot-tha

Driving down the deserted 75 km beach on Fraser Island

View from Indian Head

Champagne Pools on Fraser Island

Sunset on the ferry ride back to Hervey Bay

Sunrise en route to Airlie Beach

I left Sydney under looming grey clouds and arrived in Brisbane with the same weather conditions. It appeared, based on the weather channel, that the entire east coast of Australia - and Queensland in particular - was receiving more rain than it had in years. The meteorologist event stated, "if you're thinking about heading for the beaches, forget about it..." The problem was that the beaches were exactly where I was intending to visit. After climbing Kili in the rain and dodging a hurricane in Mauritius, it looked like I was to hit the flooding in Queensland head-on. The unpredictable fate of weather had caught up with me.

I was staying in Brisbane with Peter and Michael, whom I had met on the Garden Route in Cape Town. Those two, along with their three other roommates, were fantastic hosts - even providing dinner and drinks for two nights in addition to free accomodations. It was wonderful to see them again after meeting them only a few weeks ago, and I enjoyed catching up on CNN/Super Tuesday results, as well as watching the Australian/Qatar soccer match. (BTW, has anyone ever seen the Australian soccer players??!!).

Brisbane is a nice size metropolis that spans two sides of the winding Brisbane river that runs through town. The downtown was easily manageable, and I was able to walk around during the morning and the afternoon after taking the bus from my friends' house to the city centre. I also took a bus during mid-day (pre-rain) up to Mt. Coot-tha for a birds-eye look at the city and the sea several miles offshore. I had read about a good hike up at the summit that promised waterfalls and Aboriginal Art, but I was sorely disappointed by the lack of both. Well, I suppose the spray-painted rocks were serving as the "art," but I didn't get much out of the walk other than an appreciation for Queensland humidity.

I managed to duck into an internet cafe minutes before an afternoon thunderstorm and finished planning my travels for the next few days. More than anything, I am just happy to be able to move around Australia fairly easily, as the buses, bus stations, and trains are all very safe and well-traveled by fellow backpackers.

I left Brisbane the following day around lunchtime and took a five hour bus ride up the coast to Hervey Bay. I was quite looking forward to the bus ride, as I had grown to love the long drives in Africa - observing the houses, towns, and the multitude of Africans walking around and living their every day lives. I should have realized that Australia would be a bit different - not only were the roads more advanced, which allowed for quicker transport, but most Australians are employed - which means not many out wandering the streets on a Thursday afternoon! Regardless, it was a pleasant ride, and I met an American who serves in our army and was on his two week R&R break from Baghdad. I enjoyed hearing about his experiences in Iraq and seeing his pictures, if for nothing else than to make me understand what Ben is living through every day.

I arrived in Hervey Bay and took a cab to Enzo's Cafe on the Beach. As I previously mentioned, Shelley (my friend in Sydney) had called her friends who live in Hervey Bay to assist with my travels. Enzo used to be a tour guide with the Fraser Island Company before opening his own cafe right on the beach; his wife Danielle continues to work for the company and helped to coordinate my trip. I met Enzo as he was closing his cafe - he offered me a beer while he finished closing up, during which time I was able to sit and enjoy the view of Hervey Bay. We ate that evening on their outside covered porch, as we listened to the heavy storm move through the area.

The next morning, the Fraser Island Company picked me up in a large green bus that was to be our tour vehicle for the two day trip. We headed out of the Hervey Bay Marina on the car ferry and landed at Fraser Island about an hour later. Fraser Island is an extremely large sand bar - about 120 km in length and over 15 km wide. However, the island isn't all barren with just sand - it is home to lush rainforests, swamp land, sand blows, and breath-takingly white beaches. The island has no paved roads; rather, all of the roads are just deep trails in the sand and only allow access to limited parts of the island. On day 1, we stopped in the rainforest for a walk, let the current carry us down Eli Creek to its meeting point with the ocean, took snapshots of a WWII-era shipwreck, climbed Indian Head for panoramic views of the beaches, and swam in the Champagne Pools. By far, the Champagne Pools were my favorite. They were rock formations that formed small pools, which were filled when the ocean crashed on the outside rock wall. The ocean foam would bubble over - like champagne - creating an ideal swimming area. Given the fireweed, extreme currents, and presence of sharks, we couldn't swim in the ocean on any other part of the island, so we certainly appreciated the opportunity to enjoy the salt water and the sun at the last stop of the day.

We slept in tents that evening and had a hearty meal of grilled fish, potatoes, kangaroo, salad, and ice cream. Our group was small - around 15 - and a good mix of young and old. I enjoyed spending time the most with the Alexander family from Canada, the daughter of which was getting a masters in Brisbane in teaching and was also my tentmate. We also had an entertaining British couple and a pair of young girls from Germany who were spending six months in Australia.

The next day, we weren't as lucky with good weather and had to forego seeing one of the 50+ lakes on the island due to the high tide. We spent the day at two other lakes and climbing through a sand blow - a large sand dune on the inside of the island that is constantly changing form under the wind. We finished the day with some time on the beach at one of the lakes and a peaceful ride back to Hervey Bay under a blanket of blue clouds interspersed with a setting sun.

Prior to traveling to Hervey Bay, I had heard that I also had to visit Airlie Beach, the jumping off point for the Whitsunday Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. From other travelers and my friend Peter in Brisbane, I had been told that I absolutely had to make a stop there. I just wasn't sure how I was going to fit it in. After chatting with some of my travel mates yesterday afternoon, I made the last minute decision to hop on a 12 hour bus from Hervey Bay to Airlie. I rushed back to Danielle and Enzo's apartment, took a quick shower, and repacked my bag to make the 8:25 p.m. bus. Of course, by the time I had concluded that I was going to take the trip, the Greyhound office was closed and I couldn't purchase a ticket. I was assured that I could buy one on board, but when I reached the station, it was clear that there was little chance of me making the bus. There were tons of fellow backpackers, all who had tickets, waiting to get on. Thanks again to my little angels and to a Ms. Heather Smith who failed to show up for the bus, I managed to take one last seat. The bus ride was pretty brutal, but I arrived here in Airlie this morning around 9:00 a.m. without having to waste a day of travel.

Unfortunately, it's been a dreary day here in Airlie. I've seen pictures of what it's like on nice days, and it's the picture of perfect beaches and islands - crystal blue water, white sand, and blue skies. Given my luck with the weather, I only escaped the rain this morning but have now retreated to an internet cafe due to the rain that's been falling all afternoon. Ugh. I was hoping the effort to get here would be worth it, but it looks like tomorrow will have to make up for the trouble. The place is more grey than blue at this point, and no one seems to know what to do. The town is comprised of basically one street that is lined with tourist shops, travel companies, and souvenir curious, but you can only see so many stuffed koalas and key chains. I'm spending tomorrow on a tour of the Great Barrier Reef and just really hopeful we have at least a few hours of nice weather.