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Our Fraser Trip 2014/2015
Day 1 (24rd Dec 2014)
After spending the night at Kylies Family in Nambour for an early Christmas, we headed north up the Bruce Highway with our destination of Inskip Point punched into the VMS. Now the way these things work is it will always take you on the route that takes the least amount of time no matter what type of road (unless you put in what avoidances you want)
Little did we know that when we turned off the highway and headed through Pomona than we were about to be taken on a little used inland dirt road that runs up the inland of Double Island Point. Oh well it was a better drive than on a boring highway.
On our arrival at Inskip Point to board the Ferry, we came across our first of many recoveries. A family in their Navara with Camper in tow were stuck to the floor no more than 10 meters onto the beach. Now I have said this before but I will say it again. YOU MUST LOWER YOUR TYRE PRESSURE GUYS. Don’t guess it either, for the cost of a $18 tyre gauge it will save you undue stress and having to ask others to come help you.
From that point in it was pretty easy driving up the beach to our destination at Cathedrals camping area. We did stop at Euronge for a toilet break and some lunch (I wish we hadn’t) the place was like a Westfield shopping center in the middle of Brisbane. Not a car park in sight and a line up for the toilets.
Day Two (25th Dec 2014) CHRISTMAS DAY
Christmas day on the beach is always amazing. Beautiful scenery, fresh air, kids buzzing around with new presents and the smell of bacon and eggs in the air. Today we decided to go to the boy’s two favorite spots on Fraser. 9 year old Harry wanted to go to Elli Creek and 6 year old Cooper wanted to hit Champagne Pools.
First stop the pristine chilly waters of Elli Creek. We got there early enough to park right on the creek and put the awning out, just a quick tip, get there early as I have seen this place with cars and buses parked 5 deep. After a few hours of floating and swimming we went back to camp for Christmas lunch. Next it was Cooper’s favorite place, Champagne Pools. The large rock pools here are a perfect depth for kids and the excited/nervous screams as the waves crash over the rocks has us laughing for hours.
WHAT A CRACKING CHRISTMAS DAY.
Day Three (26th Dec 2014)
On Day three we decided to head to Lake Mackenzie before the crowds start to hit the island. Mackenzie is the most amazing lake I have ever seen, the water here is so clear and pure that you can help but feel you are in one of nature’s best wonders.
Hold on lets rewind a bit here. The drive to the lake is a store that needs to be mentioned. As we were heading to the lake around mid-morning, the tide was getting pretty high. For those that haven’t been here before, Elli Creek is a tretorus creek to cross at high tide the fresh water going out and the high tide coming in makes this close to a bonnet high crossing. We had seen the previous day that it is better to cross the creek further upstream as it isn’t as deep then drive along the top of the 2meter high sand wall. There were at least 6 cars waiting to see someone else cross the creek first and after we went through the traffic on the other side started to cross. The problem was, a couple in their Landcruiser towing a camper had tried to back up but only managed to jackknife the trailer and had nowhere else to go but up the 2mt sand wall. He did well to get the front wheels up but then was really stuck with no options. Let me remind you all that the tide was coming in and in an hour his camper was going to be a submarine. We managed to get ourselves in front of him and after a good 45min of double line winching with the mighty 12000lb Ironman Winch and some help from the Treds, we had him out.
The swim and lunch at Mackenzie were brilliant and the back packer’s swimmers were quite an eye-opener both male and female.
Time to head back to camp but once again we were called into a fairly serious rescue situation. A family in a hire 4WD had somehow strayed of the edge of the track and gone down the embankment only to have the left hand side of the roof resting on a large tree stopping it from going any further. By the time we got there, there was at least 20 bystanders all with no idea what to do. One guy was trying to winch him back but was only succeeding in making the front of the car go further down the bank.
Time to reassess the situation here, the solution was something I had never done before but in theory should work. I was going to secure the rear for the car by my winch around a tree on a 45deg angle, this should pull the car away from the tree and stop it going down the hill. The other car with a winch can then pull him forward. As the other winch pulled forward I let my winch out slowly while still keeping some tension on the rope. Instantly the car started to move forward and off the tree and after a slight change of angle he was out with minimal damage to the car but major damage to his pride. These things happen mate.
Day Four (27th Dec 2014)
Day for was somewhat of a rest day for us. It was one of those days where you have a beer or two after breakfast and that puts you in the mood for an afternoon nap. After the previous day all the family were sick of the car and I wanted to do some fishing. I swear there are no bloody fish on Fraser Island. Oh Well
Day Five (28th Dec 2014)
Day 5 we meet up with some customers of our and their friends, Kurt, Agatha and their kids and Dale, Ange and their kids
The plan for today was to head up to the furthest Northern Tip of the Island, Sandy Cape. I had never been there before and I know the other two families hadn’t either, however there was one big challenge sitting in our way, the infamous Nagala Rocks. With the sand eroding around the rock they have pretty well now become impassable on the beach so the bypass track is really the only way to go. And the problem is you ask. The bypass track is a bloody big sand dune and after a fair bit of traffic the sand becomes powdery soft, not to mention the small coffee rock valley and mud hole you have to drive into first, The best way to do this track is gently, gently through the rock walls then low range second gear and a fair hit of the accelerator ONE TIP DON’T STOP OR YOUR TOAST, the other thing I can say about the sand here is it is extremely hot and I mean extremely hot.
With the girls on top of the hill taking photos, Kurt being the gentleman he is decided to stop ¾ of the way up to pick them up. OOPS don’t stop Kurt. The thought of me heading back up there to recover Kurt was a daunting one, I knew I would get stuck as well but I couldn’t just leave him up there. Up I went and after one good snatch he was out, but now I was badly stuck to the floor. The only option I had now was to winch up the hill and hope Kurt could get enough momentum to get over the other side. Close to an hour later we were all swimming in the waves on the other side trying to cool us down.
The rest of the day was a cracker, the Cape is certainly a different world. Cool, Clear calm water. Sea Turtles swimming past and not a tour bus in sight. The trip back wasn’t as calming however. On our way back over Nagala, The left hand Drive Shaft of the Hilux decide to loosing up and threaten to let go. For anyone that has ever had o CV let go it is a sound you will never forget and one that you hope you never hear again.
Day Six (29th Dec 2014)
We knew what the options were with the drive shaft,
1. Keep driving it and hop it hold, if not pay thousands to get it towed back
2. Sit at camp and do nothing for the rest of our time here
3. Caress it back to Noosa to my mates work shop and fix the CV
Option 3 sounded like more hassle but far less expensive so I was heading back to the mainland. I do want to say a massive thanks to Gympie 4x4 for sourcing the new shaft for me. This is a TJM shop and the still helped me out with a great price, Also Thanks to my best mate Darren, the owner of Omega Collision Repairs in Noosaville for opening the shed while you were on holidays.
Day Seven (30 Dec 2014)
Today we took a rarely used inland track from Happy Valley on the Eastern Side and headed west towards Kingfisher Resort for a swim in the pool and dinner at the pub.
The track was relatively easy with a few tight spots along the way. It zig zagged through some of the best rainforests Fraser had to offer. We stopped off at Lake Garawongera for a swim in the beautiful fresh water. We drove this track for close to 3 hours without seeing another car.
On arrival at Kingfisher we had a quick swim in the pub pool before lunch. The plan was to then head over to the resort pool and spend the rest of the afternoon, maybe even have a cocktail or two. Well didn’t Mother Nature throw a spanner in the works. While walking to the resort it started to shower and within minutes it was absolutely bucketing down. By the time we made to 50mt walk we were all drenched from head to toe. This didn’t stop the boys from having a swim in the pool but the lightening soon did. Lucky it was just a storm and soon cleared up.
One of the best things about Kingfisher Bay Resort is the stunning sunsets out on the jetty. On this day the sun set was incredible, dark storm clouds, Bright Orange Sun Set, The calm waters of the bay and Sea hawks looking for dinner.
I must say I did like the drive back to camp through the middle at night, the forest takes on a whole new dimension.
Day Eight (31st Dec 2014)
New Year’s Eve, Another quiet day on the beach in the fresh water streams that run down to the ocean. Then the plan was to head back to camp for a nap before partying the New Year in at our friends camp up the beach. NOPE no nap for me. Just as I cracked a coldy Kurt pulls in to tell me that Dales Triton has punctured both left hand tires in the side walls on an inland track about an hour away. Well this was going to be interesting. On first inspection each tyre had an entry hole and an exit hole the size of a golf ball.
Removing wheels on sand is extremely dangerous and whatever jack you are using it needs a solid base plate. We replaced the front wheel with his spare and the rear we tried to plug with the puncture repair kit. It worked for a little while but just wouldn’t hold to the side wall. Plan be Take my spare out and use it. Job Done
Later that night we enjoyed great company, the kids (young and old) went crazy with the glow sticks, plenty of drinks and laughs and some fireworks. Happy New Year. Welcome to 2015
Day Nine (1st Jan 2015)
After all the excitement of the past week we think we will be having a quiet day today. Set up a day camp on the beach and just relax. This is what Fraser is all about. You make your own mind up, Take on the action and adventure or just site and relax the day away.
Day Ten (2nd Jan 2015)
The last day of our time at Fraser was spent relaxing and doing nothing really. We went for a swim up at Champagne pools and finished the day with a spot of whiting fishing in the bay below the pools.
Day Eleven (3rd of Jan 2015)
Pack up day and a cruisie trip home