November 23

**This picture is of the whole group on Fraser. That's me up top beside Matt.**
FRASER ISLAND!!!
Huge Adventure! Noosa was a pretty town. Lots of hills and Lindsay, Matt & I went on a long nature hike by the water. We spent most of our time in Noosa booking our three day Fraser Island Adventure. We left Noosa Monday night to arrive in Hervey Bay, where we would stay in the hostel until early Wednesday morning,
Wednesday..
Up early for an orientation on how to drive the 4x4 through deep sand. There were two groups of eleven, so the 4x4's were HUGE to fit eleven people in each. Somehow Lindsay, Matt and I got into the group of all girls except for Matt, so he became the 'main' driver. (mostly because he's the only one who knew how to drive manual). We loaded into the 4x4 and got onto the barge that would take us out to the Island. Fraser Island is a huge island made entirely of sand (I almost never want to see another grain of sand in my life!) Once we got to the island, we had a long drive through the rain forest and got stuck in the sand so many times I've stopped counting. we had to get out and push EVERY time! It was still fun. Matt drove most of the time, so by association Lindsay and I got to sit in the front almost the whole time. It worked out so well for us because in for the 20 minutes we did sit in the back,, it was back breaking & bumpy. I hit my head on the roof so many times! We drove out to an area where we could take an hour walk out to a magnificent & perfectly still lake. The water was SO clear, fresh and clean. The sand was SO white. We took a swim and a while later we walked back to the 4x4 to see some more sights. We didn't get too far. Something happened to our tire and we couldn't drive it through the sand anymore, so we had to call a mechanic and he towed us to the beach while he took the truck to fix it. We were still with the other group, so their driver drove us all to the camp site where we could set up camp. I've been camping a few times in my life, but NEVER like this! We were literally out in the wilderness, right beside the ocean. Lindsay, Matt and I quickly found out that our group-mates were the most lazy and self centered people we had ever met. The three of us did absolutely everything for them while they sat on their towels and complained about being hot. The one good thing about this is that Lindsay & I both chose the vegetarian option (I refuse to eat spam) so we did all of our own cooking and left the others to fend for themselves. After dinner we made sure to put all of our food, garbage and dishes into the 4x4 so that we didn't attract any wild animals. The other group was really fun to hang out with and even though we couldn't have a campfire, we sat under the full moon and talked all night, seeing dingo's every once in a while. At about midnight, a few of us were returning from a walk on the beach when we noticed that a Dingo had found an open window in the truck and was inside eating through our garbage. Hahahaha, I laughed so hard, but actually dingo's are apparently really dangerous and they warn everyone before they get to the island to keep their children safe from Dingo attacks. So, we eventually got it out, but not before it pooped inside.. not impressed. Slept in the two-man tent with three people.. without a pillow.. waking up in the morning was HOT!
Thursday..
We were all up by 6am to get our selves packed up and ready to go by 8. We can't swim in the ocean here because it's shark infested water, so everyone was desperately in need of a swim. After Matt, Lindsay and I cleaned up the campsite, we drove to a fresh water stream where we walked all the way up into the rain forest, so that we could float on the current all the way back down. It was SO refreshing and gorgeous! After the stream, we drove along the beach to an old rusted out shipwreck. Apparently in the 1940's a huge oil tanker washed up onto the shore and they tried for 3 years to get it back out into the water, but they couldn't so they just left it. The salt water has destroyed it and now it's just a huge pile of rust in the shape of a boat. Pretty interesting to see. After the shipwreck we drove further down the beach to 'Champagne Pools'. It's called this because there is an area of the ocean where people can swim because it's encased in rocks (sharks can't get in), but it's really cool because the waves splash up against the sides and fall into the pools (looks like fizzy champagne). After, we headed to a new campsite for the night. Everyone was starting to get jealous of our vegetarian meals and actually eating some of the stuff that is set aside for us because their meals are so gross. That night, we didn't see as many dingo's but still stayed up and had a great time with everyone on the beach.
Friday..
I am now made of sand. I don't even mind eating sand anymore. There are SO many flies here, & I don't mean regular nice little flies, but massive, 6 times too big, horse flies that bite every time they land and the bites sting like crazy!! We woke up at 6 again and after packing and cleaning dishes, we headed to another remote location to see another beautiful lake. It was STUNNING! Crystal clear water, beautiful scenery. The nicest lake I've ever seen. We stayed and swam for a few hours before lunch time and headed to a picnic area to eat whatever was left of our food. On the way to the picnic area, a huge rain cloud came out of nowhere and the downpour began. Without cover, we all stood in the rain and ate our lunches. Lindsay & I had sopping wet tuna sandwiches, yuk. We headed straight back to the barge with the 4x4. When we arrived back at the hostel, we gathered our things, took a shower and hopped on the bus to head to Bundaberg. It was sad to say goodbye to Matt.. he's heading farther north, but we may see him again.