BEST CAMPING TRIP EVER!!!

Before it was “discovered” by Captain James Cook in 1770, Fraser Island was known by the Aboriginal peoples as “K'gari” which means Paradise. In 1992, the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) named Fraser Island as a World Heritage Site for its natural beauty and unique ecosystems. The world’s largest sand island, from top to bottom Fraser Island is 123km or 76 miles long and covers an area of 710 square miles. To drive the entire island would be like driving from Lancaster to Baltimore entirely on sand. As there are no paved roads on the island (except around the resorts) driving is done on the beaches and inland tracks.

Planning for our Fraser Island trip began weeks in advance, as the island is notorious for bogging even the most experienced off-road driver. The “Honey Badger,” as Dave’s Holden Rodeo is affectionately known, got a new clutch, suspension, and tires (or tyres as the Aussies call them) in preparation for the adventure. On Thursday evening, we met our guides, Matty Johnston, his wife Jodie, and Jodie’s brother Craig, in Gympie. We hit the road before 6:00am Friday morning, hoping to catch an early barge to keep ahead of the high tide on our way up the eastern coast.

With fuel topped up and tire pressure lowered, we left the hard pack on Inskip Point to cover the 200 or so yards to the waiting barge. Not even 50 yards in, the Honey Badger lost its footing and just as quick as we started, we were bogged. “Great, this is going to be a long weekend!” I thought to myself, but just as we were about to call for support, Dave realized it wasn’t in 4WD. As soon as it was switched over, the Honey Badger was back in action! We paid our $100 round-trip barge fee and made the short trip across the inlet to the Southern tip of Fraser Island.

With Dave and myself in the Rodeo, Matty and Jodie in the Toyota 4-Runner, and Craig in the Nissan Patrol, we made our way North on the beach, bumping and bouncing over dunes and through the surf. The beauty and tranquillity of the drive was frequently interrupted by the sheer terror of hitting an unseen ditch or dune at 60km. The resulting force would hurl our belongings wildly, but only a few times did we actually lose gear from the bed. Following the other vehicles provided us with both an early warning system for unforseen dangers and entertainment as we watched our mates go flying over dunes or smashing through a wave. The island is a true playground for boaters, dirt bikers, 4WDers, and camping enthusiasts and with so much space, you feel as though it is your personal playground.

Around 9:00am on Friday morning we made our first stop at Eli Creek. Eli Creek is a freshwater creek that flows into the ocean. A popular spot for tourists, you can float, crawl, or walk through the crystal clear water to the beach. After a quick dip in the cool creek, we headed on past the Maheno Shipwreck and Cathedral Beach, stopping again at Orchid Beach to refuel and grab some ice. We kept up our pace through mid-day and located a beach camping area about 10km from the most northern point of the island. With camp set up, we ate a late lunch, had an afternoon nap, and fished until dark. It felt like we had the entire island to ourselves because we didn’t see any other people the entire rest of the day. The sky was so clear that night, when the stars came out it was unreal.

We were up early again the Saturday morning, wanting to traverse the Sandy Cape and see the lighthouse before high tide made it inaccessible to vehicles. As we rounded the tip, the waves died down and the beach became very flat, a welcome respite from the dunes and ditches of the previous day’s drive. We reached the entrance to the lighthouse in no time and made the calf-burning hike up the hill to the Sandy Cape Lighthouse, which has stood since 1870. With the tide rising, we made our way back the way we came and headed inland to Ocean Lake.

Surprisingly, Fraser boasts 40 fresh water lakes, “arguably the most pure clear lakes in the world due to the filtering effect of the sand.” Many of the lakes are classified as “perched lakes,” meaning they sit above the water table. Fraser Island is home to over half of the world’s known perched lakes. Ocean Lake was deserted when we arrived, so we took the opportunity to go for a dip. We each took a turn on the rope swing, some more gracefully than others. After a bite to eat, we did some more inland driving to get across to the western side of the island.

We arrived at Waddy Point in the afternoon and made camp there. Showers and pit toilets were a welcome sight. Matty brought out his giant kite that evening because the wind was perfect and we watched it pull him across the sand, twisting and diving through the air. Sunday morning we packed up and headed off in search of the Champagne Pools. Arriving around 8:00am, we were the only people there. The tidal pools fill with frothy, bubbly waves but are protected from the open ocean (one of the few spots on Fraser where you don’t have to worry about sharks). We had brought a bottle of Champagne for this very purpose and passed the bubbly as we soaked in the pools.

More inland tracks awaited us as we made our way to one of the best known lakes on the island, Lake Mckenzie. The inland tracks are a mix of corrugated packed sand, deep loose sand, boardwalk, and rubber matting. At some points the bumps were so bad it was like being on a ride at an amusement park, I couldn’t help but giggle. Driving through the rainforest was beautiful as well. Some of the trees there are thousands of years old and would give a sequoia or redwood a run for its money in terms of height and width. Logging on Fraser was a large industry until fairly recently. After it was found to be resistant to marine borers, the Satinay became popular for use in marine conditions around the world, including construction of the Suez Canal and the London Docks after World War II. Scientists are still puzzled at how such a forest can grow in sand.

Lake Mckenzie is lined with white sand beaches with gently sloping shores and lapping waves. We soaked up the sun and wallowed in the water but the stop there was entirely too brief. As it was our last day, we needed to be back to the southern tip of the island to catch the barge before the tide came in. We made a quick lunch, shooing away the salivating Goannas (monitor lizards), and departed.

We circled our way around the lake and popped back out on the eastern beach, racing back down the coast. Back on the barge, we bid adieu to Paradise and with a new sense of driving confidence, expertly navigated back across the beach where our journey had begun. In all, Fraser was Paradise. We covered a total of 300km on the island during the trip and it was a perfect place to hone off-roading skills. The weather was fantastic, the scenery was gorgeous, camping went off without a hitch and the off-roading was a blast. Good food, good people, good times. We will definitely be back again.