G’day all,
Fraser Island – what a massive day. We were on the road early heading north along the beach towards Eli creek. We passed Cathedral Beach and Happy Valley before reaching Eli Creek. We had little trouble crossing the creek and parked next to the boardwalk. We walked along the boardwalk to the top end of the creek and flopped into the water and drifted down the creek towards the ocean. The creek itself was icy cold but beautifully clear and refreshing from the increasing heat of the day. We had great fun drifting through the creek as a family playing along the way. I initially had tripped over Amy into the water so she kept splashing me before I succumbed and flopped in… Jess and Lynda took a little more convincing but before long we were all drifting together.
After the drift down the creek the kids played in the ocean side of the creek (which was pooled like a small lake) making a sand pool and then catching tadpoles and placing them in their pool. They made waterways in a few places and really enjoyed the interaction with nature. The play time finished with a canal being formed and a tadpole race started down the canal…the winner, the first back to the creek.
Next stop was the famous Maheno shipwreck. We enjoyed exploring the wreck and marvelled at seeing the boat up close. The ship has been rotting away on the beach for over 75 years and is slowly losing the battle with the ocean. It was a great education and fantastic to see and explore the wreck. After taking more photos we headed further north heading past Rainbow Gorge and Red Canyon to Indian Head some 50 or so klms up the beach. With a quick stop to check out the beautiful rocky high headlands we headed off the beach following the track to Champagne Pools. These are actually rock pools which are continually refreshed by the oceans swell creating bubbles in the pools…that’s why the name Champagne Pools. The pools themselves were rather cool but beautiful and we bathed in them for a short while before heading back to the car. Now off to Orchid Beach via Waddy Point and the onto Ocean Lake. This was as far north on the island that we travelled today. We had lunch at Ocean Lake and chose not to swim in the water, the entry to the lake was through some pretty ugly sand and vegetation and we new there were nicer lakes to bathe in. Heading back down the beach to Cathedral Beach, we headed inland to Lake Allom. At Lake Allom we watched turtles playing from the stepped access and marveled at how much water was in the lake, apparently recent heavy rains have caused most lakes to fill up and many creeks to flow onto the beach. The kids loved the interaction with the turtles and it was tough to drag them away, but time was getting away. We chose to follow the Northern Scenic Access Track back to Happy Valley and unfortunately this proved to be a mistake. The mapped suggested a scenic route but we were left on a 40km track with plain bush scrub as a backdrop….in fact if had not been for the 7 or 8 klms of rain forest the drive would have been a complete flop. Backatto Happy Valley and back onto the beach heading to Eurong arriving after dark. We saw 4 dingoes on the beach on the way home which the kids enjoyed seeing. Jess had read all the phamlets on Dingo Safety and it was great to see how mindful she was all weekend…some more incidental schooling.
Wow, what an action packed day full of adventure and fun…I am exhausted but blessed for the experience.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
Tags: 4WD, Bud, Bushman, Bushman Bud, Central Station, Eli Creek, Eurong, Fraser Island, Lake McKenzie, Lake Wabby, Maheno Wreck, Ocean Lake, Rainbow Gorge, Red Canyon
G’day all,
7/11 ferry ride, from kingfisher bay turned left uphill following tracks to lake mckenzie, turned left and headed to lake WA by. Walked to lookout above lake WA by and then down to lake foe a swim with the many huge catfish, played with kids on water for about 1 hour before steep walk back to carpark- 3.4 klm round trip, 500m to lookout from carpark. Now following track to beach and from beach to Eurong to book into hotel.
After lunch and check in we headed out to lake mckenzie for a look. Another beautiful drive through all types of forests and rain forests before arriving at lake mckenzie for a swim in it’s cystsl clear beautiful fresh water. We lazed, swam and played in the water until about 5pm before heading back to Eurong via central station. Lake mckenzie was an awesome place with beautiful white sandy beaches and cool clear water…a must visit. Back at Eurong we drove down the beach a fee klms enjoying the sunset until heading back to the hotel room.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
Tags: 4WD, 4WD Action, 4WD Camping, 4WD Caravan, 4WD tips, 4WD Trips, Action, Adventure, Alpine, Australia, Bud, Bushman, Bushman Bud, Camping, Central Station, climb, Destination, Eli Creek, Eurong, Fraser Island, Kedron, Lake McKenzie, Lake Wabby, Lancruiser, Maheno Wreck, mountain, National Park, Nissan, NP, Ocean Lake, Offroad, Offroad Caravan, Patrol, peak bagging, Rainbow Gorge, rainforest, recovery, Red Canyon, Remote, Snow, Toyota, Tracks, walk, walks, waterfalls
G’day all,
Beautiful Lake Tinaroo 17 OCtober to 29 October 2011.
After rushing across the Gulf narrowly missing heavy rain and with the thought of the dirt road turning to slop, we arrived at Lake Tinaroo, SE of Cairns early on Monday morning and returned to our favourite camp ground at Kauri Creek. It is here that you can set up on a flat grassy bank a few metres from the side of the massive and beautiful Lake Tinaroo, moor your boat within metres of camp, catch Red Claw for Brunch every morning and if you are really lucky or switched on a monster >1m Barra is there for the taking.
We were greeted with a beautiful sunny day, set up camp and ran off to Cairns for supplies. Our main agenda was to pick up a knee board that we could use for scurfing behind “Remo” (our dinghy for the uneducated), we also picked up 4 more Red Claw nets so we were well armed with 8 in total.
After a big day in Cairns we arrived home after dark, planning our adventures for the next week.
Waking up the next day we were hit by heavy rain and in fact in remained that way for 5 days…doh. Close by in the Goldsworthy Valley 1m of rain fell in 3 days creating flooded rivers. In the opposite direction the Barron River received just about as much water and the Barron Gorge and Falls were spectacular. Soooo, we spent the week mostly taking cover under the annexe, catching up schooling and when the rain stopped for the occcasional half hour running out to put the Red Claw pots in or enjoying a quick knee board…after all we were wet either from the rain or taking a dunk…the biggest problem the blinding rain as it hit your face either trying to steer the boat or the knee board.
Local advice from the ranger on Saturday 22 October said that the rain was set in for good and to leave. Luckily we paid little attention to what they had to say and enjoyed the most magnificent weather from Saturday afternoon onwards to the day we left and boy oh boy did we have an awesome time. We caught more big Red Claw than our last trip…feeding the camp each day…knee boarded to our hearts content and swam whenever we felt the urge. Evenings were spent around the fire with clensing ale listening to the Barra “boofs”, bird and aquatic life. Given that you are camped on the edge of a rain forest the sounds of nature are wonderful. To collect fire wood we would take Remo out scanning the edges of the dam for fallen timber, hop off the boat, use the chainsaw to cut the wood into more manageable pieces and then load it into Remo and unload it at camp…we caused quite a stir with our fello campers, wishing they could so the same. We also met some lovely people during our stay who came and went during the two weeks. Each person received some Red Claw and a “Sound of Music” concert from the girls.
Catching Red Claw is a whole lot of fun. Set your pots and night and return the next morning to check your catch. The kids enjoyed leaning over the boat to grab the floats and then pulling up the pots to see how many Red Claw (and what size) were waiting within. We always left the pots near the dead trees in the Lake so you were always tangling with the trees trying to raise the pots. The Red Claw were placed in a bucket, often escaping the bucket or missing the bucket and having everyone hopping around the boat until Bushman Bud could mop up, avoiding knipping claws. The Red Claw were returned to land, given away, eaten or used for our Red Claw race. The Red Claw race was started near the caravan and the winner was the first to reach the water…the occasinal Red Claw being taken by the onlooking Magpies.
Did I mention monster Barra? Well in fact, Lake Tinaroo holds 13 World IGFA records, all surrounding big, very big Barra. They also call Lake Tinaroo the Lake of a thousand casts, so be ready to give your arm a work out. I reckon local advice is the way to go here.
Well, I did try, not my hardest to land one of those monsters but alas no cigar. In reality I didn’t break the 100 casts and my fishing was best termed recreational. I would sit by the camp fire with a live bait out swimming around in a known Barra haunt, drinking some wine or beer. Hardly a determined pursuit but nevertheless a very relaxing one. Yes, I would like to have held up a whopper Barra to make my mates envious..but luckily for my mates, nothing to write home about this time. I had one run on a live bait but not much to mention there, unless I start exaggerating the story.
You really reenergise at Lake Tinaroo, the water is refreshing, the scenery spectacular and the activities get you back to basics…take a boat there, relax, catch some Red Claw and sip wine by a camp fire soaking up the tranquil energy of this place. Our pick of camps here was definately Kauri Creek (Strictly no pets and no generators).
What a cool stay and very tough to leave such a relaxing and peaceful place.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia.
G’day all,
Given the choice, where does a kid want to be for her birthday….around a playground and water park. So, by Jessica’s planning we left Lake Tinaroo early on Saturday morning heading to Cairns and Coconuts Holiday Resort where their is a great kids playground and water park. We had also agreed to go to Sizzlers as a family for Jessy’s birthday and so after arriving at the caravan park we headed to Sizzlers around 1pm and spent a couple of hours their enjoying the delights, the kids having a concoction of various deserts.
In the end we stayed two nights at Coconuts, the kids enjoying the water park and couple of swimming pools, getting in an early morning “Trick or Treat” on the morning we left being Halloween Night.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
Today was spent testing out the Bitter Springs and Mataranka Springs at the very sleepy town of Mataranka. First up were the Bitter Springs, set in a completely natural environment. If you could look past the algae and stench then the Springs and crystal clear water were magnificent. It was quite a cool setup, you entered the Springs and drifted down stream in the current for about 200m before exiting and walking a short distance to do it all again. Amy and Bushman Bud did the round trip twice which Joey Jess and LL could only hack a once off effort…toughen up princesses I say.
Onto Mataranka Springs, 7klm out of town where we ordered a bowl of fries for lunch before heading to the springs. These springs are also set in a natural setting but the pool has been modified slightly so you can enjoy a bigger area. We found these springs a little clearer and definitely algae free (obvious bonus for some of us). We enjoyed another 30 mins in this spot before heading back to the car and making our way as far down the highway to Three Springs as we could.
Incidently both Springs are free.
We are now sat at a rest area 30 klm N of Elliott for dinner and will add a few more klm tonight before turning in. Hows this…it got to a whopping 43.6 C here today…I knew it was hot, but not that hot!!!
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
Tags: Bitter Springs, Bushman Bud, Douglas Hot Springs, Hot Springs, Katherine Hot Springs, Mataranka, Mataranka Hot Springs
G’day all,
12th to 13th October 2011
Leaving camp in the morning we arrived at Litchfield mid afternoon and setup camp at Wangi Falls. Back in the car shortly after we headed for the Cascades walking to the bottom pool to find it clumsily filled with people. If we can find a way to spend time in a place away from people we will do so. That lead us to walk up the cascades until we found a nice waterhole to ourselves that we could relax in, cool down as much as possible and catch up on some fun times together. For us this was the pick of the swimming holes with an infinity pool overlooking the valley below. After our swim we headed out to the car park along the ridgeline route, thus completing the loop walking trail. The cascades may be spectacular in the wet but in terms of what we have experienced so far, they were a little disappointing. Time in Litchfield can be spent in many better places.
Next it was off to Tolmer Falls about 10klm from Wangi Falls. We walked the 500m to the lookout and were again disappointed by the falls and gorge…perhaps we have just been spoilt…in fact I know we have been spoilt for choice over the last several weeks when in fact the falls were a beautiful place but just not spectacular…harsh judgement, yes!
We had just enough time to head into Wangi Falls before sunset so off we went…finally a waterfall and plunge pool to write home about. We enjoyed a lovely refreshing swim out to both waterfalls and enjoyed the cool water as the sun went down on another glorious day. We swam under the waterfalls and just enjoyed the cool refreshing water. On the way out of the plunge pool we raced each other across the water to the steps. Amy and Lynda coming out on top..well they did have a significant head start. We almost beat them to the line and would have except for Bushman Bud dropping the camera when we were just about to overtake them (with Joey Jess attached to my back, paddling with arms and legs like mad)…next time.
We endured a rather hot night before waking early and heading off to Talynear Falls along the Reynolds River 4WD Track. The Falls were reached after a 1.7klm walk and were well worth the effort in the heat to visit. We had the Falls for over an hour to ourselves before all the late starters arrived. By this time we had had out fill of swimming out to the waterfall, finding a small rock to jump from and otherwise just swimming around watching the water continuously flow over the 70m falls. This place is spectacular and more of waht I expected of Litchfield.
Leaving we headed back to camp to hook up the van and head to Florence Falls. We were trying to make Katherine by 5pm to get our mail and therefore not be held up for several hours waiting around. Time is getting precious now having to be in Brisbane by 12 November.
Florence Falls in beautiful and is another twin falls master piece. Take the 135 steps to the bottom as it is quicker and an easier walk to the plunge pool. The plunge pool is small but really pretty if you can look past the number of people that inundate this place. The falls although small have a large volume of water flowing over them, even late in the dry season. This keeps them beautiful all year around and a treasure…yes…this once again more of what I expected. We swam out to the waterfalls for a few photos and basically just cooled down and chilled out for 15 minutes before a mad dash back up the stairs and into the car. Kathering 285klm away and 3 hours to make it!
Guess what we made the post office at 5pm on the dot just as the parcel collection place was closing…I must add, much to the disappointment of the clerk who was trying to get to a birthday dinner…thanks to you lady for getting both our parcels.
We continued on to the first rest area we could find and crashed for the night.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
Tags: Bushman Bud, Florence Falls, Litchfield, Litchfield National Park, NT, swimming, Tolmer Falls, Wangi Falls, waterfalls
G’day all,
26th September to 4 October 2011
Bali Bash from Darwin
We had been looking at cheap airfares and accommodation from Darwin with a view to travelling to Bali for a long anticiapted look. With some airfares purchased and accommodation finally found we were off to Bali staying at the Dynasty in their Excutive Suite…a great room for a family.
We spent the week shopping various markets, enjoying time around the pool and hiring a driver for a couple of days. The driver took us on a whirlwind trip around Bali…yes and if you know how the Balinese drive then it was a whirlwind tour…in fact the driver even had a minor head on with a scooter!!
Our favourite side trip was to the flying fox playground near the Botanical Gardens. This is an amazing adventure playground with high altitude tests of fitness, coordination and mental attitude with many obstacles and flying fox cables…check it out. We had a look at the temple in the ocean, botanical gardens, rice paddies, jewellery manufacturers, wood carvers, volcanoes and other markets along the way. We ate at some great restaurants and soaked up the culture of this amazing place. It was a great break from caravan and our extended trip around Australia…it seems strange but it was refreshing and allowed us to take stock of what we were doing and look forward to our next adventures.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
Tags: Bali, Bushman Bud
G’day all,
After experiencing difficulty with the rear drivers side shocky, it was a quick change of plans and instead of Litchfield, it became Darwin.
We left Day River on Monday morning, passing through Adelaide River and arriving in Darwin early afternoon. What we found was that most caravan parks in Darwin are actually some distance out of the city so we settled on a nice resort just outside Palmerston.
Monday afternoon came and went, whilst Tuesday was spent mostly on schooling activities with a late afternoon swim in the pool with the kids.
Wednesday morning was used up with some more schooling before hitting the Lenyear Recreation Park waterslides and pools in the afternoon. The Lenyear Recreation Park has 3 big enclosed water slides/tubes, one big pool and a crazily big skate park…best of all it is free…amazing hey!
Back at the resort we headed to the Bistro for dinner…that was after we had a few drinks by the poolside bar and a swim. We caught the first half of the quizz night before heading to bed for the night.
Car issues and schooling to sort over the next few days and then off to Litchfield National Park and Kakadu.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia