Fraser Island - 30 August to 7 September

Day 1

We woke up early and dragged the kids out of bed and we were in the car and on the road by 5am. After an uneventful drive up the Bruce Highway we arrived at Rainbow Beach just after 7am where we filled up with diesel and headed down to Inskip Point to catch the Manta Ray Barge across to Fraser. I aired down the tyres on the 4by (18psi front, 20 psi rear)and camper (16 psi)and locked it into 4WD. We rounded the corner and were  greeted by chaos bogged vehicles everywhere, there was a patch of 100 to 150 meters of soft sand that was proving to be a problem for some vehicles. Both sides of the track were blocked by a Bongo van and a Subaru. After a quick look and chatting to a few guys I decided to  air down some more (14 psi all round), we waited for the track to  clear. The stuck vehicles already had a number of helpers and they were soon out of the way. At this point it was our turn so into low range 2^nd gear with plenty of momentum and we were through with no issue.

Once we were on the Barge I  aired back up to my original pressures on the 4by and camper as I was confident that the beach on Fraser should have been nice and firm given we were only an hour or so from low tide. We exited the Barge without drama and soon settled into our spot in the convoy driving north up the beach. It was a beautiful clear day and we enjoyed taking in the beauty of the eastern beach, we came across a few dingoes on the run north. The beach was in great condition and we were able to avoid having to use the bypass tracks at Poyungan and Yidney Rocks, before we knew it we were crossing Eli Creek and our lookout for a suitable campsite began. Our plan on this trip was to find a spot on the beach somewhere between Eli Creek and Cathedral Beach, so we would have easy access to water from Eli for washing and showering as well as being reasonably central on the Island.

We found a nice campsite approximately 1km north of the Pinnacles and after having a close look at a Sea Snake that had washed up on shore just in front of the spot we had chosen we went about setting up camp. By 10.30 we were all setup, Anna started to read her Kindle the kids explored the campsite and I started getting my fishing rods rigged for this afternoon.

After lunch we all jumped in the 4wd and headed to Eli Creek for a swim and to collect some washing/shower water. After a swim we headed back to camp stopping in at the wreck of the Maheno for a look around. Once back at camp Anna chilled out with her Kindle and I hit the beach with the kids and got stuck into some Tailor keeping the best 2 for a feed.

 

After a very early start and a full day we were all into bed early, I had a great nights sleep, must have been the beers and the sound of the waves…

Day 2

After a great nights sleep we all woke up just before sunrise, a quick peek out the camper window revealed that we were in for a cracker of a day so we all ventured outside to watch the sunrise.Whilst down on the beach we checked out some dingo tracks when we noticed old mate running down the beach towards a large group fishermen just north of us.

After eating and cleaning up after breakfast we relaxed around camp, Anna got stuck into more quality time with her Kindle and spotting whales. The kids played in the trees out the front of the campsite and I headed down to the beach to fish for more Tailor, this time I used a chrome metal slug and soon picked up a number of decent Tailor.

Our mate Vaughan arrived mid morning and we got him set up in his tent around lunch time. The plan for the afternoon was to head up to Indian Head and then over to Champagne Pools. We left camp 4 hours before high tide and had no issue on the run north up the beach, when we arrived at the Indian Head bypass we saw a long line of vehicles waiting for the bypass to clear. A Nissan Xtrail and a Navara towing a Jayco had managed to get themselves very bogged. A number of people were already assisting so we joined the large group of spectators watching the recovery efforts which dragged on for sometime. Instead of trying to get through to Champagne Pools today we decided to climb up to the top of Indian Head to see what we could spot. The water was crystal clear and we had great views up and down the coast, the kids really enjoyed spotting all the animals which included whales, turtles, fish and dolphins.

We headed back to camp and Vaughan and I set about catching a few more fish for dinner. Anna cooked up a great feed of fresh Tailor and Chips. A few drinks after dinner while we gazed skywards at all the stars and then it was off to bed relatively early.

Day 3

Fathers Day - the kids woke me up so they could give me a cuddle and their fathers day presents, I was well looked after.This was Vaughan's first trip to Fraser and he was only staying 3 nights so our plan for today was to take him south to see some of the Islands popular attractions - Central Station, Lake Mackenzie and Lake Wabby.

After a quick breakfast we headed south down the beach to Eurong, where we stopped in at he Bakery to get some fresh bread. From here we headed west towards Central Station on some soft and bumpy inland tracks. We spent almost an hour having a look around, reading the information boards and taking a stroll along the creek. Next up was Lake Mackenzie which was a first for me too, despite having visiting Fraser a number of times before. I have to say I was a little disappointed with Mackenzie... the day was overcast so the colours you normally see in all the photos of this place weren't on show. I've been to Lake Birrabeen on previous visits and I much prefer it as it quieter and in my opinion more spectacular. Anyway it was nice to have a swim and the kids had a great time. 

After lunch at Mackenzie we took the fairly rough inland track out to the Lake Wabby lookout, due to the conditions of the tracks we were running a little bit later than I had anticipated so we didn't have time to walk all the way down from the lookout to Lake Wabby. Some quick photo's and we headed back to the cars for the trip out to the Eastern beach and north back to camp. We weren't far off high tide so we had to take the bypass track around Yidney rocks and had to cross Eli further upstream where it was a little deeper, both cars got through without any issue.

While we had been inland the wind had picked up and unfortunately it hung a round for a number of days, anyway back at camp Anna got the Roast Pork and Vegies into the BBQ whilst the kids hid in the camper out of the wind and Vaughan and I set about emptying our fridges...

Overnight the wind really picked up and we had a pretty sleepless night listening to the camper awning and tropical roof flap in the wind. At one stage I got up to check that Vaughan and his tent were still there...

Day 4

Today was a big day, low tide was just before lunch and our aim was to drive all the way up to Sandy Cape and have a look at the Sandy Cape Lighthouse. The wind hadn't eased and I was looking forward to getting out of the wind...

We headed north and I pulled in at Cathedral Beach to get some diesel, I wanted to fill up until I saw the price of the diesel... At $2.15 per litre I only put 30 litres in which would be enough for this trip. The tide was falling and we had plenty of beach to drive on, our first real challenge was the Indian Head bypass which looked very soft. This time there wasn't a 4wd in sight and Vaughan and I both blasted through without issue. We were soon passing Champagne Pools and I was getting excited as this was now the furthest north I had been on Fraser. The inland track to Waddy Point was in OK condition but had rough soft sections but again we had no problems getting through. After a wrong turn into Orchid Beach we were soon on the beach  charging north. Its amazing how much quieter this part of Fraser is... North of Orchid Beach we only had a couple of tyre tracks to follow.

I had read heaps of horror stories about Ngkala Rocks and seem some pretty awesome videos of people tackling the rocks or getting badly bogged on the bypass track so when I could see South Ngkala Rocks approaching on the GPS my excitement levels lifted. We only managed one photo as we started on the bypass track, after rounding the bend you can see in the photo the track turned to soup and the only way I avoided getting bogged was foot flat to the floor. Anna and the kids did their best to hold onto what ever they could so no more photo's were taken as we bounced and lurched our way through the track. Both vehicles made it through without getting bogged and we were really pleased with our efforts.

We continued north and were soon at the North Nkgala rocks which were no hassle at all, next was Browns Rocks which required a little bit of rock hoping but nothing too serious. We were now on the last run of beach before reaching the Cape. Wow this place was everything I was hoping for, it was truly spectacular and photo's just don't do it justice and best of all once we rounded the Cape we were out of the wind... We continued along the beach as far as we were allowed to drive where we located the walking track to the Sandy Cape lighthouse.

I had always wanted to visit the lighthouse and read a bit about it but I didn't realise that getting there involved a 4.2 km return walk from where you park the cars. The track you walk up is used by the care takers and is very steep in places, fortunately most of the steep sections are boarded but its still quite a tough walk. I'm very proud of our 2 girls who walked all the way under their own steam with minimal fussing. The views from the top are really amazing and it a very interesting place to visit.

The walk down was much easier and once back at the cars we had a bite to eat and a quick drink before heading back south. Lily fell asleep and managed to stay asleep when we tackled the South Ngkala Rocks bypass. This time we had to wait for a couple of vehicles who were bogged on the track, after 10 minutes or so the track was cleared and we got through without getting bogged.

We stopped at Champagne Pools which was disappointing as the storms earlier in the year had filled most of the pools with sand, I really hope mother nature gets rid of the sand before our next visit as this place is normally very beautiful and a great place for the kids to swim.

Back at camp we bunkered down for another windy night, the kids were into bed early and the we weren't 

that far behind them.

Day 5

I think the wind eased a bit overnight and we had a couple of light showers of rain. We had a bit of a sleep in today and when I finally emerged from the camper Vaughan had already packed his camp away.

Today was Vaughan's last day with us and after a couple of big days in the car we decided to have a quiet morning at camp to give the kids a break. After morning tea the sun came out and we went for a walk along the beach. Low tide was just after lunch so we followed Vaughan down the beach and had another look at Eli creek. Anna and the kids had another swim while Vaughan and I had a look around, we sat at the top of the board walk for 10 minutes watching the Jungle Perch swim around.

We said our goodbyes to Vaughan and then headed back towards our camp, the kids had been really good so we decided to reward them (and ourselves) with an Ice cream from Cathedral Beach. The rest of the afternoon and evening were spent relaxing at camp.

Day 6

We woke to an overcast morning and had the occasional shower passed over our camp, but by midday the skies started to clear. Today our plan was to chill out around camp and then take a run down the beach later in the afternoon to dump our rubbish and collect some more shower/washing water from Eli.

I think Anna was into her 3rd book by this stage of our trip and the kids had mastered climbing the trees around our camp. I tried my hand at fishing but the breeze was still too strong and talking to few other blokes on the beach it seems like the fishing had gone off right up and down the beach.

Day 7

The weather had turned overnight and the wind dropped right down and we all had a great sleep.
We didn't venture too far from camp today, after morning tea we took a short drive down to the Pinnacles and had a good look around. We were a bit concerned when we saw the warning signs about aggressive Dingoes in the area considering we were only camped a couple of kilometres away. Although we never had an issue with Dingoes at all on this trip, we did see a few around but none of them showed an interest in us or our camp.

After the Pinnacles we visited Eli Creek again, despite it being a good source of washing water the kids love it here and it would have to be one of our favourite spots on Fraser.On our way home we stopped in at the Maheno for the obligatory shot of the 4by next to the wreck.

Late in the afternoon I tried fishing again with no real luck, the kids joined me down by the water and promised not to get wet... Once the kids complained about being cold I took them back up to camp for a warm shower and we all settled in for our last happy hour on Fraser.

Day 8

Our last day and we woke up to a beautiful morning, it had been a couple of days since I last caught a fish so I headed back down to the beach to my favourite gutter. The fish were back... I'd promised my father in law some fish. I managed 4 Tailor 3 were barley legal but the last was a keeper and was soon in the fridge for the ride home.

We had breakfast and took our time packing up, we really didn't want to leave and the kids were trying their best to convince us that we should sell everything and live on Fraser in your camper permanently. I guess they enjoyed the trip...

We stopped at Eli Creek set up the awning and let the kids have a couple of hours of fun swimming and playing in the water. After a quick lunch we packed up and had a very easy drive down the beach right on low tide to barge. Memories of the soft sand at Inskip returned so I dropped a few more PSI out of the tyres before getting on the barge, just in case. We had no issue getting off the beach and we were soon airing back up and ready for the 2.5 hour drive back home.

We had a great time on Fraser and can't wait for our next visit, we might make this our annual holiday. In my opinion this is the best time of the year to visit Fraser. Despite a couple of showers and 2 or 3 days of strong easterlies the weather was fantastic. Our 4wd and Camper performed fantastically, the only changes we are going to make for our next trip will be a long range tank so we don't need to get diesel on the Island and speak to Modcon about making up some more canvas walls for the awning as this will help keep out some of the wind. Before we left Anna made up some shade cloth walls which worked well at giving us some extra privacy and kept some of the wind out but canvas will be better at dealing with the strong winds.

Trip distance = 535km (to and from the camp) plus approx 320km without the camper on Fraser.
Total distance travelled with camper = 6801km
Total number of nights in the camper =52