Australia - the East

Australia - the East

Shortly after entering Queensland, we drove into Camoweal, more of an outpost than a town, with its wide dust-track street lined with wooden verandered houses. The fuel station, like many in isolated spots, also had a caravan park, though its main purpose here was to home the outback's transient road engineers.

Our drink's cabinet was bare so I meandered across the road into the local 'Hotel'. I felt a tad conspicuous in my orange 'Diesel' shorts and purple T-shirt as the ten or so hairy-arsed locals gave me a brief once over! The floor was dusty, bare board, the walls covered with racehorse photos and bare bulbs hung from the ceiling precariously close to the spinning fan blades. The barman broke off conversation with his khaki-clad clients, "G'day mate". I glanced behind him at the bank of industrial size glass-doored freezers, beer, beer or beer seemed to be on offer and I wasn't about to ask for Bacardi Breezers! "Six pack of VB please" I asked, "Stubbies or cans?" he replied. The bar was littered with empty stubbies so I decided this would be a good choice to maintain any charade of male credibility. As I left I overheard the conversation move into England's recent one point win in the rugby, as expletives flew I decided that a quiet night at the campsite was probably a good idea!

Lava Tubes

We pressed on bright and early the next morning and after a long, dry day chomping up the k's we saw a sign for the Undarra Lava tubes. This looked worthwhile so we followed the dirt track road 17k's to the Undarra Lava Lodge - a fantastic little bush hideaway with accommodation in old restored railway carriages.

We had arrived just in time for the afternoon tour - which sounded a bit grand given there was only us, another couple and a young tour guide all dressed up in pristine clean outback khaki. Undarra's massive volcanic lava tubes were formed around 190,000 years ago when huge lava flows drained towards the sea forming a surface crust as they cooled. Meanwhile, molten lava continued to flow through the centre of the tubes, eventually leaving massive hollow chambers. The tour took us through several of these chambers some as tall as 20 metres. They were accessed by climbing down into narrow valleys which had been formed when sections of the tube roof had collapsed. These valleys had an eco-system of their own caused by rich soil and a barrier of lava rock which prevented bush fires from spreading and killing their unique vegetation.

As we walked down we could see movement. Then our guide pointed to the tip of a tail pointing out from beneath a rock at our feet. The place was alive with rock kangaroos - small versions of the land variety. Every now and then you would see a pair of eyes, a foot or catch one jumping away over the rocks and into the undergrowth. The dense trees and thick undergrowth made good hiding for all sorts of creatures and the environment felt quite different from the bush land plains above.

Green and pleasant land

From here we nailed it towards Cairns, time with the 4x4 was ticking away and we were keen to spend some time in the rainforest. I had been hankering for a bit of greenery. As we drove into the Atherton Tablelands, the landscape suddenly took on a distinctly Devonshire country feel. The green fields and rolling hills almost made us homesick.

We spent several days in and around Cairns visiting the forests and rivers of the sub tropical outback, driving through the sugar cane fields and taking the odd dip in a chilly waterfall. At this time of year a float in the sea is not really an option - unless you are happy to take a chance with a box jellyfish. Lucy and I had seen the photos of the burns they inflict and we decided to let them have the sea to themselves!

After so much time on the road and particularly after the humid heat of the Northern Territory we decided to treat ourselves to the luxury of air-conditioned rooms and a swimming pool. We drove north to Port Douglas - a fairly upmarket beach resort and sailing harbour on the edge of the rainforest - booked ourselves into Pavilion Villas and did very little for 3 days.

Now time really was against us, the bike had arrived in Brisbane and the Landcruiser was due back. I picked up a speeding ticket on the drive south which, unfortunately, was not my last! But at least we had managed to squeeze in an extra day of relaxation!

Fraser Island

Our last 4x4 adventure was to be Fraser Island, the largest sand island in the world at 120ks by 15ks.

From its 'discovery' by James Fraser in 1836, up until 1991, it was heavily logged for Satinay, a rot-resistant wood highly prized by ship-builders. Conservationists managed to bring logging to a halt and now as many as 20,000 4-wheel drive vehicles visit every year. Tiny sand lanes criss-cross through, up and around the island's rolling sand dunes, dense tropical forests and turtle-infested freshwater lakes, all of which make for an awesome outdoor adventure.

A half-empty ferry dropped us on the island's west coast and we set off into the forest. Wildlife was abundant; the birds observed our comparatively clumsy progress from the forest canopy while dingoes scampered off into the undergrowth on our approach. In no time at all we drove out onto the 95 kilometre-long eastern coast from where all the island's access roads would stem. The sand had softened considerably so we activated the diff-lock and went tear-arsing up the deserted, windswept beach.

It's difficult to have more laughs per minute than when driving off road, particularly in a highly capable vehicle like a Landcruiser. Even when Lucy managed to bog us several feet down in the sand, it only took a bit of gentle persuasion to get us back on the run again! By the end of the day we were experts and even found ourselves helping out another couple who, with the extra weight of a small boat they were towing, had not been able to get across one particularly deep stretch of sand. It is easy to be cocky though as the photos of many an abandoned vehicle had demonstrated in the Tourist Bureau. It is also easy to have hours of fun churning up sand and not going anywhere fast! Eventually light began to fade on us, so we nestled the car amongst the sand dunes, cracked open a couple of cold ones and watched the sun go down on a thoroughly enjoyable day.

The following morning we woke to see yesterday's sandpit fresh and smooth from the high tide and ready for more abuse. Only in Australia would they devote a whole island to such playground fun. And of course all the money from tourism is used to fund the island's conservation.

We drove along the beach to the end of the island where we took another ferry back onto the mainland and spent a few hours exploring Noosa's pine forest tracks before heading down to Budrim. We stayed here for a couple of days to catch up with my cousin and go to her daughter's wedding, but all too soon it was time to take the Landcruiser back.

Back on the bike

The bike had arrived in one piece and once re-assembled we continued south. One of our missions on the journey down the coast was to pay homage to Australia's 'Big' attractions. The east coast in particular is famous for its, amongst other things, Big Pineapple, Big Banana, Big Lobster and even a Big Avocado. These are all exactly what they say they are - Big! And you don't even have to concentrate on the one's in the Lonely Planet because there are plenty of others!

Having kept ourselves suitably amused on the journey we eventually arrived at our next stopover, Byron Bay.

Byron Bay has, since the 1960s, been a mecca for surfers and those seeking an 'alternative' lifestyle. It has splendid beaches, country walks and every conceivable form of relaxation and spiritual healing. As Lucy and I sat in a street café soaking up the atmosphere and watching the world go by, we were approached by a man who smiled, looked us over and then said, "I like the colour of your aura" in the same way you might say "Isn't it a lovely day". That night we sat in the old railway station, now a pub, and listened to a man who made the didgery doo sound like a flute - its all part of being in Byron Bay!

We stayed at the western edge of town in Belongil Beach, an area that had its 'clothing optional' status recognised in 1997 after locals protested by listening to reggae on the beach in the buff. Although the weather was beautiful, a quick dip in the spud-shrinking sea confirmed how far south we had travelled in the last few days. Two days of sitting in cafes and lying on the beach and we were back on the bike.

Beers on Bondi

We decided to do the journey down to Sydney in one day so we set off early, picked up my second speeding ticket and found ourselves crossing the Harbour Bridge just in time for rush-hour! Sydney was where we were holing up for Christmas, so having found our hostel we made a point of unpacking all our bags and making ourselves feel a bit more at home.

The next few days were spent catching up with friends. The first few sunny days had us anticipating a hot Christmas day on Bondi Beach supping beers and throwing a few shrimps on the barbie. However, this was not to be. We started the day at a friend's flat breakfasting on salmon and scrambled egg, helped down with a liberal quantity champagne. But when the time came to hit the beach it clouded over and we spent a chilly afternoon hugging our beers and watching with admiration the more resilient who decided, goose-pimples and all, to brave the weather in their bikinis and swimming shorts!

Mountains and large roundabouts

Two days after Christmas we were back on the bike for a short trip into the Blue Mountains. We stayed in Katoomba from where we could walk to the edge of the hills and look out at the famous Three Sisters rock formation. We had imagined this view, one you see on many a postcard, to be something only the hardened rock climber would be privileged to see. However, as it happens, there is a conveniently built platform from which to view the rocks, a sky rail and an impressively steep railway that takes you down into the valley.

For the more energetic there is the 'Giant Stairway' which is exactly that! Lucy and I decided we needed a bit of exercise so we took the stairs - down! Having reached the humid forest floor we made the more sensible decision to take the train back to the top!!

Our next stop was the snowy mountains, a National Park further south from where Australia's main ski industry takes place. On the journey through we stopped briefly in Canberra. I had been here before but Lucy was interested to see Australia's capital - especially as hardly anyone ever has a good word to say about it! It truly is the most extraordinary place. With streets so wide you could play football across them, roundabouts the size of desert islands, an enormous lake right in the city centre that is so big you can only just see people strolling along the far banks and expanses of grass large enough to house eighteen holes. Whoever built this was either suffering from severe claustrophobia or was a giant! Imagine looking around you through the wrong end of a telescope - you've got the idea!

And so to the last night of our trip! We spent the night in an 'Alpine' hotel in the Snowy Mountain National Park in a room looking out over the ski-lifts and toboggan runs. Of course at this time of year there isn't much snow but there are plenty of lovely walks and if you are anything like us and prefer walking down to walking up then it is nice to know that the ski lifts work all year round!

That evening's meal was our last on the road so we chose the best restaurant in town, ate fabulous food and toasted our adventures - and toasted and toasted and toashhh……..

The end of the road

Bright and early the next morning, and nursing small hangovers, we started to pack the bike for the last time. Melancholy took over as we thought about the last fifteen months - the people we'd met, the places we'd seen, even our hospital visits! The early morning sun broke through the clouds and lit up the valley as we started off on the road into Victoria. Five hours later we were driving between the tram lines with Melbourne's city-scape looming above the electric wires. And before we knew it, we were pushing the bike into the backyard of our new home!

We took off our crash hats, pulled off our boots and…. well that's it!

Photographs

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