Australia, Day 3

Today was our first optional adventure, a 4WD tour through Fraser Island. Originally only Joe had signed up, but the tour director really sold us on the drive to Fraser Island, so me and Rachel decided to sign up as well. We had another good breakfast (minus the vegimite) and a nice chat with Dad and Emma for Father's Day wishes. We headed to the bus at 7:45 and met our guide for the day, Dave... he was extremely Australian. 

 

 

Right off the start, we went tearing down the hill, it was extremely bumpy and people were screaming like it was a rollercoaster, Mom would not have enjoyed it.  As we continued our interesting drive though a lovely tropical environment, we learned about the dangers of the area we were in, and all the things that would kill you. He even described in detail the type of helicopter that would be airlifting you out. We finally arrived at the 75 Mile Beach. We got to drive out on the beach which was a pretty cool experience. Our first stop was Eli Creek. It was a fresh water stream that fed into the ocean, it seemed a little mundane at first, but after walking down a wooden walkway, it encouraged you to walk back in the water. The water was crystal clear, and wasnt too cold. I felt like we were reenacting a scene from Dr. No. 

 

After the creek we drove a little ways to the Maheno shipwreck. It was a good place to take a few photos, our driver gave us a little history on it but seems like it might be cool to research a little more when we get home.

 

After a forgettable stop at Pinnacle Point to view the "colorful" sands (spoiler alert: 23 different shades of orange) we headed to lunch. 

After lunch, we headed inland to take a walk through the rain forest. We got a quick runthrough of the different types of spiders that would kill us and then the tour guide left us on our own to finish the trip by ourselves. There were some amazingly huge trees that were similar to our redwoods. Made for a good photo opportunity. It was a great hike which could've only been better if we had left some of the participants behind.

 

Last stop on the tour was Lake McKenzie. It's a freshwater lake with crystal clear water and smooth white sand. It took a little peer pressure to get us all in because it was so cold, but we were all glad we did when it was all said and done. 

 

After the tour, we went out to the west facing beach and took in the sunset. Now it's time for dinner!