Fraser Island Experience!! (K'Gari)

Three days here so very long post ahead!

May 16

Another early morning here. Woke up just after six to get ready for my Fraser Island tour, or as I now know it, K'Gari (silent k). Around 645 we got picked up from the hostel and went to the main station in Noosa. There we were introduced to Clint our guide for the next three days and the other 27 people on the tour.

After our safety video and signing in we were put into four groups to drive down to the island is eight person 4x4's. My group was composed of three girls from London area, a guy named Owen from Wales, and a guy from Germany named Marico.

Instead of taking the highway we took the beach to all the way to the other pickup location. It was probably a two hour beach drive which was pretty cool! Midway through the drive we pulled over and Clint was able to get some red sand from the side of the hillside (it's called rainbow beach for a reason). He drew three lines across our forearms. He explained later how each line represented a life rule for the aboriginals here in Australia, many of which were quite similar to those of Christianity which I thought was interesting.

Right before we were going to catch the ferry to the actual island we got stop searched by the police which is pretty normal. However, nobody had renewed the insurance for Clint's vehicle so unfortunately we were unable to continue for a while. Most people were full of complaints, which I found pretty stupid given that there was a beach literally 100 meters from the area we were stopped.

After about 45 minutes of waiting we continued on and caught the ferry to the island! So for those of you who don't know Fraser island is the largest sand island in the world. We had a nice wrap buffet lunch on the beach before continuing on our first day adventure! The coast driving on the hard sand was pretty easy and relaxed for the most part. The interior back roads were not so lovely though. A lot of up and downs and side to sides.

Eventually we made it to Lake Boomanjin which was a tea tree infused lake. It was absolutely stunning with a red color and black water. It made for some cool photos and apparently it's supposed to have a nice effect on your skin and hair (but that's more applicable when you spend great amounts of time in it). That was around dusk so once the sun was gone we headed back to camp. It was about an hour and I got to drive the whole thing which was pretty awesome! So much fun :)

When we got back to the camp we had an absolutely delicious dinner. Steak, potatoes, green beans, and hot dogs. I even had two steaks because I was so hungry from the day.

After dinner Clint told the story of Fraser island and how it got its name. The story was actually quite sad but it essentially had to do with a rich British couple crashing a ship in purpose to claim the insurance money and then landing on the island. Most of the crew died of hunger because it took so long to get picked up and saved including James himself. The aboriginals of the island (the Butchulla) helped Eliza stay alive until help came and she went back to Australia.

When she got back she couldn't get the insurance money because the boat was under James' name do she wrote a book about her experience but it didn't sell. So she wrote another book but changed it so that the Butchulla were made out to be the bad ones and the book explained how they killed James and the crew and this one sold. She even wrote one more that said they were cannibals who ate James and the rest of the crew. Eventually the government sent the military to the island to hunt them all down. They took them to Indian head (which is a massive cliff on Fraser island) and pushed them down into the ocean one by one. All two hundred of them. Such a sad story, but luckily forty were able to somehow swim to shore, hide, and live to tell the tale. There was more to the story but that essentially covers it and that's why it was named Fraser island, but to the locals it was K'Gari and because all of this information recently came out, the island name is officially being changed to K'Gari in the near future!

As Clint spoke more it became very evident that this island had a special place in his heart and that he loved his job and the island itself. He even explained how he felt physically connected to it. Later we all had a few drinks and then called it a night. It was amazing to camp because we were only a few hundred meters from the oceanside so I literally fell asleep to the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore which was amazing!

May 17

Rise and shine! Clint woke us all up for 5:45 so we could watch the sunrise. We had a nice filling breakfast and then we were off for the day by about seven!

Our first stop was Indian Head. I was honestly quite disappointed because despite the horrific story told the night before about what had happened there everyone just took stupid happy selfies there and it felt like going to something like the holocaust and posing for happy photos. Regardless it was crazy to think about standing right where such a horrific event had happened. On a much lighter note we did spot a few whales swimming along the cliff which was quite a sight!

We had another great wrap lunch. I helped Clint clean up all the dishes because well, I could. Then we went to Eli Creek. It was so pure you could drink the water coming out of it. Also quite massive given that the creek produces eighty million litres of water per day. What was even cooler was learniny that the sand takes a long time to purify the water so it could literally stop raining today and the creek would still flow at the same consistency and pressure for the next 50 years!

We spent a good chunk of time there before heading to Maheno shipwreck. I personally didn't much care for this part of the tour.

Later we had another really delicious supper. This time we had a honey chicken and vegetable stir fry. It was loaded with onions and yet I devoured it all which for anyone who knows me is quite uncharacteristic of me. Client explained more stories of the Boomerang and some of the weapons the Butchulla people used back in the day. This kind of stuff always seems to interest me. Again a few drinks. I made friends with this Swiss couple Ursin and Lorena and we had great chats before calling it a night.

May 18

Today went really fast. After breakfast our first stop was Lake McKenzie which was so stunning. Beautiful white sand and literally the eater was so clear. Even beyond the points where you could touch the ground while swimming you could still look down and see the sand! Like wow!

Then we hit up the islands Rainforest area. Clint had lots more stories about the Butchulla and the traditions they had. The forest area we visited was along a creek and it was where women traditionally gave birth. It was also a place where men were not allowed way back when.

Unfortunately by mid day out tour was over and it was time to drive back to Noosa. On the ferry off the island we saw some dolphins and even a dewgong. After getting back on the mainland we almost immediately got stuck but we were able you push our way out! Immediately after getting stuck one of the other vehicles got a flat tire. What luck! Clint and I changed the tire and my new friend Ursin was quick to comment "how Canadian of you" which I realized it was. It was also weird to see all the cars going by without even one asking if they could help us out. I guess helping really is a Canadian thing! On the way back we listened to some German music from Ursin's phone and then I shared my country music collection.

When we got to Noosa we said our goodbyes and off we went. I just checked into the hostel for the night and I will sleep soon! What a trip! Tomorrow is my last official day in Australia so i better try and make the best of it!

-Terrence outRead more