Fraser Island – 4×4 Cruisin’

Ever since we started planning our trip I was looking forward to going to Fraser Island which is the worlds biggest all sand island. Seeing pictures of Lake Mackenzie, the dingos and the rainforest I knew it was a ‘must do’. Initially we were going to rent a 4X4 and drive it ourselves, but after measuring the costs (+700 for 2 days) we decided to take a tour.

LAUNCHING POINT

After some deliberation, we decided to use the small beach town of Rainbow Beach as our launching point for Fraser. Although tours and self drives depart from other places such as Hervey Bay, we were acting on local advice that Rainbow was by far the superior choice. After hitting up the beach at Rainbow, we knew we made the right decision. The town is literally one street sporadically lined with shops, cafes and a lone hotel. Its the kind of town that Byron likely once was, with little development and amazing future potential, Rainbow Beach is host to some authentic small town Aussie charm with a world class beach to boot. The town itself gets its name from a ridge of coloured sand deposits that have been deposited over thousands of years, which sounds like a geologist’s  fantasy dream…I don’t know much about rocks but the formation is definitely an impressive display of the earth’s changing environment.

WHERE TO STAY?

Transportation to the Fraser area on transit was extremely expensive, with a bus trip costing upwards of a couple hundred dollars, we opted for a rental car, not just any rental car however, we got a campervan. For those of you following our adventure that does mean we were once again living a nomadic life out of the back of a car, which was infinitely more enjoyable than the station wagon we had in NZ. At $39.00AUS a day it was hard to beat, the worst part about it was driving in a van labelled “SPACESHIP” which may as well read “FREE CAMPING, CHEAP ASS TOURIST!!”, all jokes of course.

Jackie lounging in the 5 Star resort known as the SPACESHIP

If going down this route, the campsite at Inskip Point is hard to beat. At $5.15 per person per night it is an absolute steal. We got a spot on the west side of the peninsula and were treated to an amazing setting sun every night we stayed there. Some local Queenslanders were also generous enough to lend us their kayaks for a nighttime cruise where we saw sea turtles swimming throughout the mangrove lagoon. A definite locals spot with unbeatable scenery, just be weary of the potential to run into poisonous and constricting snakes in the area.

BEST WAY TO EXPERIENCE FRASER?

As I said before we had the following options lined up to experience Fraser Island:

• self drive 4X4 -  2 day 1 night
• 4X4 guided tour – 2 day 1 night
• Group tour -  2 day 1 night
• Group tour – 1 day

If cash wasn’t an issue, bombing down the sandy highway would have been the number one option, 4X4ing along some of the inner trails would have been a great time but the price didn’t justify the experience.

The self drive guided tours were a feasible option, at $265 a head it still wasn’t all that cheap, but you do get a chance to drive on the island following someone who knows what the hell they are doing. Unfortunately our itinerary didn’t allow for us to do this tour

We figured the two day guided tour was our best bet but decided to talk to some Rainbow Beach locals. They told us that the one day and two day tours go to basically the same sights with the two day tour spending a little more time at each location. Add in the overnight accommodation and the price immediately skyrockets, $295 for the tour we looked at.

So the one day tour it was, and at $165 per person we knew it wasn’t going to be the most personal experience but we would definitely get to see the landscapes of Fraser Island.

On a sidetone, after our trip I was talking to a local who said you can catch the barge to Fraser from Inskip Point for free if you have no vehicle and once there you can usually hitch hike a ride with someone cruising the island, so this could be a very feasible option if you are up for it.

4X4 Bus Tour it is!

FRASER ISLAND HIGHLIGHTS

Our first stop on the tour was the rainforest which is host to ancient ferns that have lineage with the Jurassic era of the earth. Since the island is all sand, a rainforest on the area is quite a rare phenomenon.

After spending some time under the jungle canopy, we ripped through some amazingly rough terrain in our sweet 4X4 bus, which was driven by an awesome straight shooting Aussie who definitely enjoyed his job, to the islands most popular destination, Lake Mckenzie. I had seen the pictures, but I was not prepared for what greeted me as we came down the jungle path. The lake, in my opinion, is the best place in the world for a swim. The white sand beach and base has filtered the water into such a clean and pristine state that is hard to imagine a better looking body of fresh water. I swam out to 15 feet of water and I could still see the bottom. Absolutely amazing and worth the price of admission alone. Stay tuned for some pics and our Aussie episode for visual evidence. SImply amazing, still can’t shake it from my mind!

Enjoying the amazing water at Lake Mckenzie

The water is so clear and clean

The tour took us to an island resort where we had some lunch and got ready for a cruise down the east coast of the beach to the wreck of the Maheno, Coloured Sands and Eli Creek. Since you have to wait for appropriate tide times, if you are touring or self driving you will likely be waiting around at some point in the day, so it is usually a great time to grab a bite. Our first stop was the shipwreck which was pretty cool and extremely deteriorated. Cast upon the island in the 30′s, the ship remained on Fraser and has slowly decayed into a skeleton of its former glory. Good for a photo op and thats about it, but nifty to see this type of thing above water.

Part of the Maheno Shipwreck on Fraser

Coloured Sands was a mini version of what we saw at Rainbow Beach, so nothing really new on that front, but a little ways up the beach is Eli Creek which is  the largest sand bottomed fresh water flow on the island. A boardwalk leads you into the jungle where you can hop into the water and slowly make your way out to the opening by the ocean. The weather was +34 the day we were at Fraser so this was definitely a refreshing activity.

Crystal clear and amazingly refreshing, not a Pepsi clear ad, but the waters of Eli Creek

WRAP UP

The island, in my opinion, is a must do if you are headed to Australia, it is a UNESCO World Heritage sight and after spending a day there it is easy to see why. From the crystal clear waters of lake Mckenzie to the luscious greenery of the rainforest, there is a new simulate to the senses every step of the way. Although a little pricy no matter what option you choose, the island trip is easily worth every dollar spent, but if you have money and wanna burn some if it, do the self drive which in the end would be a more adventurous experience.