We are back to Ozzz for more sea and beach experiences! Time to top up our tan and learn some more water sports.
We arrive to Gold Coast airport and collect another model of Toyota campervan. This time it is much bigger so we can stand inside, we have electric water pump, a real fridge (not a ice box) and 2 gas heaters. Honestly it feels luxury!
However it turned out later that the so called luxury might be misleading because all those installed equipments (kettle and oven) need to be powered minimum every second day! And for poor baggers like us, it is a problem cuz we tend to camp in the wild ;)
So eventually we don't use them!
Most easterly point of Ozland and hence one can spot some humpback whales passing by in June going up north for breeding. We starred in the ocean for a while and eventually we gave up ;( no luck!
There is a local guy who is creating some hippie style drawings on the sand every so often for the enjoyment of the public, we liked that a lot while having the morning coffee just after sun rise.
We met a nice middle age guy that told us about couple of wrecks just by the beach. So next morning we went for a swim after run to check the wrecks, and imagine that not only we found two wrecks nut there was a big turtle feeding itself just on top of it and even a mini leopard shark too! What a morning to start a day!
That guy also told us about the massive diving gear sale due to shop closure so on the way out we stopped and got some mask and snorkels and fins, that we so cheap that its embarrasing.
Weronika's shoulder isn't much better yet so we decide to take it easy...
We went to see a local physio and that was very well invested 75AUD as after a strong massage and some acupuncture the pain has relieved ;)
We have done a few beautiful runs on the beach followed by swim, so all starts at 6:30am before the breakfast at 9am! The early morning workout makes us feel so good for the rest of the day.
A girl that spot him earlier than us stopped passing by car as surely it would not had noticed the little koala sitting on the road. Sadly I didn't have a camera to shot the scene but trust us it was adorable creature... Later on the koala walked back to its native Bush.
Brisbane
We met in Rotorua a couple of girls from Brisbane and they told us a few locations to visit but after a while of thinking we decided not to visit the city. So we drove through it and decided to go shopping in the DFO (Direct Factory Outlet) mall with amazing discount on many aussie brands like: Quicksilver, Billabong, Ripcurl, Sea Folly and loads more.
We spend most of the day going through shopps and we only left because they kicked us out :( so happy afterwards with all our new goodies...and all was minimum 50% off. Well, naturally we will have to send some stuff home as might not fit in our backpacks not to mention carry it!
Anecdote: As we dont want to pay for camping because we already pay about 80AUD for van rental a night we always look for places to camp/park for free. So far in NZ we did well and now continuing in Oz. So that night we stopped at the parking of the hotel Novotel for the night. Chickily we assumed that any night patrol would think we are the hotel clients (like other cars parked there) so won't be caught ;)
In the morning we could also use fancy bathrooms they have in their lobby! Once you travel you need to find your ways to do a bit of washing and shower!
In the morning we could also use fancy bathrooms they have in their lobby! Once you travel you need to find your ways to do a bit of washing and shower!
Rainbow Beach
We arrived to the beach resort at night, we slept at the parking of rental cars 4x4 company pretending that we also rented 4x4 and left our camper there, at least thats what we hoped the police would think. There were about 5 other campers so we minggled in.
In the morning wake up at 6am and drive off to the beach for a bikini jogging!
The place is famous for its view of the rocks that are seen from the shore, yes it looks pretty.
Anecdote 1: After the run we took our freshly purchased snorkels and masks and Weronika's fins and went for an underwater inspection of the shore. The waves we fairly big and we clearly underestimated them. After a few big slaps of waves Francois lost his mask and snorkel ;( The waves were so strong and powerful that it was impossible to see through the water. We looked for a while but without success. Buuuu ;(
Anecdote 2: After midday we went for a walk along the beach hoping for finding the lost property although the tides were still low. We then feel going into the water again just to get wet. After entering a few metres in the water, Francois reminds Weronika to pay attention to our sun glasses because of the waves.. 10s after the sweet reminder, Weronika got kicked by surprise in the back by a wave, shooting away the nice Gucci sun glasses; despite our desperate search efforts, we did not find the lost property. Nooooo.. :'-/
Anecdote 3: We travelled by night to save time during the day. In the middle of a nowhere countryside, we notice a 4x4 parked on a small dirt road, lights on inside, with the four doors open, and nobody inside or outside. We leave the road and take this dirt road and pass this apparently abandoned car. After 200m we decide to U-turn as the dirt road was leading to nowhere and was not at all in a good state. We again go through the car and again see nobody around. Quite strange and scary... We decide not to stop and to continue, in case of any criminal would show up and kidnap us.
We audaciously sleep on a rental company car park, located in Rainbow beach town centre. We hope that the Police or the council will not notice us parked with other vans and cars. At 6am Francois wakes up to avoid the 300$ fine for staying overnight, and rides closer to the beach at the sea front, in order to do our usual morning swim.
We decide not to go to Frazer island. Time to move on and forget about our losses. Back in our beloved campervan for a few more kms until Agnes Water.
Agnes Water / Town of 1770
After some days spent in Australia and looking at the surfers continuously going into the water and trying to match Kelly Slater' style, we also wanted to test and feel the surf experience.
Here we are set up for our first surfing lesson. The waves are so tiny that we feel a bit disappointed in the beginning. However, nice and easy conditions make it also so nicer and easier to learn and having fun. We can stand. We can surf until the beach. Yeaah we are now surfers.
The next day, we decide to rent some surf boards to practice and improve our skills. However the waves are much bigger and sea is rough. We can hardly stand and we got caught by the waves all the times, turning like in a washing machine. After 3-4 hours in the water, feeling cold and a bit tired we abort the surfing session, realising why it takes years to master this sport ;-)
The last day, we tried again and it felt better. We were able to stand a few times but again the waves were too big for our level, making us falling in the trap of the wave "washing machine".
We give back our boards to the shop and decide to move on in our favourite campervan.
Tannum Sands
We rode by night and free camped on a service area for truck drivers; we reach Tannum Sands in the early morning for our traditional swim. There is no boyle to target but we see a family doing some SUP (Stand-Up Paddling) and having a break at 200-300m from the shore. That s the swim target :-)
After reaching them and chatting a bit, we learn that this very fit woman accompanied by her husband and daughter has 5 kids; they were also liveguards and owning a SUP rental shop. Once back on the shore, they come to us and lent us their SUP board to test and have fun. It is the first time for us but it is definitely easier than surfing.
We then have breakfast on the beach, an appreciated time of the day, before taking the road again and head to Airlie Beach.
Whitsunday Island - Airlie Beach
Unfortunately, the weather is quite bad, rain, wind and rough sea. But we keep our enthousiasm and soon the sky is more clement. The snorkeling session is mission impossible in terms of visibility: nothing much to see ;(
But the sand is as thin as promised and we enjoy our time on these deserted beaches by having some fun in doing some photo shooting of Weronika ;-)
The speed boat pilot makes crazy turns on our way back, raising adrenaline level.
Yorke Knob near Cairns
Once arrived in Cairns, we contact our former neighboors from London who moved to Cairns to get in touch. We meet them for dinner in their house and meet them a second time for the Tom Cruise movie screening Live-Die-Repeat. We have a great time with them.
We booked some kitesurf lessons and we spend three days between 11 and 4pm on the beach. But the wind is not there and we have to abort the course each day. We really realised that kitesurf only works in a 15-25kn wind range for beginners and without this it is mission impossible to launch as well as maintain the kite up in the air.
Eventually the three days are the equivalent of one day in terms of hours done or, as per the IKO standards, and we are only invoiced for that; quite fair we must say.
To do something in the afternoon, we went revising our wakeboard skills in a nearby cable park.
Francois successfully resumed the 360 and 180 back side while Weronika practiced her 180 front side switches and stand-up start from the pier. It is intense session for our muscles and we feel them for a few days later.
Rainforest - Outback of Cairns
After the Liveaboard, we rent another campervan and go visiting the outback of Cairns, targetting Atherton and Tinaroo LakeResort. We reach Tinaroo lake, Malanda falls, and smaller lakes around Atherton. It is nice landscapes but we don't feel much excited and have the impression to just spend our time, waiting for our flight to come.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
The weather is not too good and the only nice highlight is to meet Fulvio and Antoinette, a Swiss couple met during our Liveaboard cruise. We ride back to Cairns with them and have a very nice lunch together before returning our rented vehicles and take our respective flights.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)