All the sand on the east coast ends up here

A November 2003 trip to Fraser Island by Orl

It's the biggest sand island in the world (you probably know that already!), full of weird and amazing natural phenonomena.

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Swimming in Lake Wabby - a deep lake engulfed by a huge sandbar; Eli Creek is amazing also, and for a bit of r&r, you can't beat drinking cocktails by the pool.

Quick Tips:

Be aware of sandflies; they are attracted to some people more than others. Blue is supposed to attract them.

There are many warnings about dingoes but the general consensus is that if you do not disturb them, they won't bite.

Best Way To Get Around:

A big bus or a 4x4. Fraser Island is big, so walking from one lake to another is not really an option for the inexperienced hiker.

We did the Fraser Island 3 day adventure safari, which is a bus tour/resort combination. For $250 dollars it included all trips meal and accommodation: www.fraser-is.com.

I don’t like bus tours. In general, the amplification is poor so I can’t distinguish the words but it’s loud enough to disturb my daydreaming. It’s a rocky road form Noosa to Fraser Island. I was glad that I did not have a hangover.

Eurong resort is quite nice. Facing onto the beach, it’s clean and comfortable. The food was good also. The beach bar is boring though.

Our first scenic destination on the island was Lake Mackenzie, which is the biggest perched lake in the world. A perched lake, I found out, is not one full of perch but a lake above the water table. The water here is mildly acidic so my skin and hair felt really soft afterwards. The lake is tidal so it was quite difficult to swim in.

In the afternoon we went to Eli Creek. You can half-swim, half-float downstream. No I didn’t spot crocodiles but I did swim with eels and fishes. Without sounding like too much of a tree-hugger I felt at one with nature.

The following day we visited Lake Wabby. I felt like I was in ‘The English Patient’. We walked over these huge sand dunes to see Lake Wabby below. It is the deepest of the lakes on Fraser. The water here is ph neutral and it’s not tidal so it’s really easy to swim. However the sand flies drove me mad. We walked back to the resort as we could not face getting on the bus again. The drive back to Noosa along the 75 miles of beach was surreal.

Many Australian visitors describe Fraser Island as their highlight of Australia. Most of these hire the 4x4s and camp. On one level, I am sorry we took the cautious option of the bus/resort tour. However, we saw a few accidents and arguments among people who took the 4x4 option. We’ll never know.

About the Writer

Orl
Orl
Dublin, Ireland

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