A Time to Remember

Gallery: Mission Beach

ellie — Wed, 4 Mar 2009 09:34:00 GMT

The end of one adventure and the start of another

ellie — Wed, 4 Mar 2009 08:34:00 GMT

I'm feeling a bit sad writing this as I'm back home in the UK it's cold and raining outside and i'm looking at all the wonderful places Paul and i have seen over the last month.

I left you last on Magnetic Island... from here we got the ferry back to the mainland to catch the Oz bus up to our next stop Mission Beach.

This was not just another stretch of sandy shores and surf like the beaches we had been use to. In Queensland and the further north you get the more things there are that want to sting you, eat you or just try and kill you. The waters off the shore of Mission Beach are full of such lovely creatures. Sharks, Crocs and at this time of year the deadly box jelly fish. A good thing we didn't come here for the beach really. Our main reason for stopping here was to get the chance to do a dive trip out to the great barrier reef. We missed out on our chance when we were at 1770 so we thought this would be another good place to do it as there are a few companies that run trips from here.

So we booked our selves on one. The morning of the Reef trip we both woke up excited about the day, unfortunately the weather had taken a turn for the worse over night and it was hoofing down with rain by the time we got down to the jetty. To make things even worse when we got there the nice lady behind the desk informed us the Reef trip had been canceled as we had been the only people to book on that day. We tried not to let it get us down and jumped on the next boat that was leaving for a place called Dunk Island.

As we approached my imagination began to run away with itself. I was expecting to see some Jurassic monster emerge from the thick rainforest at any moment, the scene reminding me of something straight out of the movies. Dunk Island is mainly covered with rainforest and great for exploring unfortunately we had not gone expecting to spend the day in the forest and were suitably unprepared for such, with no insect repellent and flip flops. Instead we decided to explore the luxury resort situated on the edge of the Island. We blended in with the guests and were able to take advantage of all the complimentary extras like tennis and basket ball, we even got away with a free cup of tea from the buffet breakfast! The weather cleared up nicely so we went and hired a kayak and went for a paddle around the Island, i saw a manta ray from the kayak which brightened up my day even more.

The next day we had to get the bus, but not until after lunch so in the morning we took ourselves out to explore Mission Beach a bit and headed to a butterfly park. When we got there it turned out to be just a few trees and we only saw a couple of butterflies so we headed back. On our way back to the hostel we did bump into some slightly more exciting wild life in the form of a Casawarey. These are the most dangerous birds on the planet! with there only being around 1500 left in the wild we were really lucky to see one.

From Mission beach we were only a few hours from our final destination of Cairns. We stopped off at a Crocodile farm in Innisfail, where we got to see some more Casawaries up close, but behind a fence and also some hungary crocs getting fed. One of which was over 5 m long called Gregory, the oldest and grumpiest croc on the farm who had been picked up for taking out a farmers prize bull!

We got to Cairns early evening and had time to enjoy a good meal and a movie before having to get up at 4 am to catch our flight down to Sydney. This was the start of my epic journey back to the UK. We flew 4 hours from Cairns arriving in Sydney just before midday. My flight out was not until 6pm so we had some time to kill at the airport. Paul was a star and kept me company until it was time to check in. We said our goodbyes (shed some tears :( )and i started my 22 hour journey home.

Now i'm back it hardly feels like i've been away and i'm missing everything about our adventure.

I've seen some amazing places and i'm still very much on a journey, but i feel so much stronger for having experienced the things i have over the last few months and now know that anything is possible!

Who knows where life will take me next... i have a few ideas ;)

Gallery: The Nature File

ellie — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 22:52:00 GMT

Prizes to anyone who can identify all the animals in my Oz nature file

Hervey bay to 1770... the final leg!

ellie — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 22:28:00 GMT

After leaving Rainbow beach we made a short trip up the coast to Hervey bay where we had the chance to meet up with Emma, Nigel and the kids. It was terrible weather when we arrived, rain again. So we wasted another day in the cinema and arranged to meet Emma for a coffee the next day. After meeting up with Emma the sun decided to come out so we borrowed some bikes and explored Hervey Bay. It's a small town with a nice beach but not much else. We rode a long the Long Pier and took in the awesome view of the ocean for a while before heading back to go to Emma's for dinner.

That was pretty much it for Hervey Bay ... our next stop was a town called Agnes Waters and 1770. We had a couple of days here and the weather stayed hot and sunny so we made the most of the beach by hiring surf boards again. We also did this fab tour of the town looking for Kangeroos on Scooters! It was a real laugh and a great way to see everything. The next day we went kayaking and caught some waves, which was easier and more fun than normal surfing. I really liked it here the hostel we stayed at was like a relaxing retreat situated out side of town amongst beautiful gardens. It ran it's own shuttle bus in and out of town and to the beach so getting around wasn't a problem. It was a great place to chill out and swim in the pool.

From here we went to Kroombit and had a night on a cattle station. This was a lot of fun as i'm sure the pictures show! We went horse riding, had a go at lasooing some goats, learnt to crack a whip and of course rode the bucking bull! It was a really good time and they kept us all entertained all night!

We had one night in Airlie beach and now we are on Magnetc Island. We are having to cover a lot of ground in a short space of time so it's one night stops for a while. We got here at lunch time today so we had some time to explore but we're back on the bus at 9 am tomorrow to take us to Mission Beach, where we hope to do a dive on the Great Barrier Reef. We've got 2 nights booked there but then it's the last leg to Cairns ... a flight to Sydney and then home :(

It'll be great to see everyone but you can't blame me for being a bit sad to be leaving this place. I'll miss Paul as well we've had a good time and he's been the best travel companion.

Gallery: Magnetic Island

ellie — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 22:11:00 GMT

Gallery: Hervey Bay to 1770

ellie — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 22:03:00 GMT

Gallery: Rainbow and Fraser

ellie — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:34:00 GMT

Gallery: Noosa

ellie — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:32:00 GMT

Gallery: Surfers Paradise

ellie — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:23:00 GMT

Rainbow Beach the gateway to Fraser Island

ellie — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 15:33:00 GMT

So from Noosa we continued our journey up the coast to the small beach town of Rainbow. Our driver described it to us as a lot like Summer Bay (Home and Away) With a cafe and a Surf Club and a Caravan Park. He was spot on. There's not much else here besides the hostels and a few shops. But it is the gateway to Fraser Island and that is what everyine has come to see! An amazing expanse of sand and rainforest, with beautiful lakes and fresh water creeks.

We booked a day trip rather than the 3 day safaris most backpackers opt for. This meant we got a guide to tell us all about the island and it's history as well us all the flora and fauna on the island. We got lucky with our guide for the trip too as he was a 'real' local 5th generation from Rainbow and there wasn't a thing he couldn't tell us about Fraser Island. He really made the trip something to remember. We had the opportunity to get a birds eye view of the island with a plane ride. We opted out at first but as we could see a few other getting on the plane we made another snap decision to go for it. It was soooo worth it. We got to see the real scale of the place a see things we would never have been able to from the ground, it was truelly amazing!

One of the Highlights from Fraser was our visit to Lake McKenzie, a crystal clear lake surrounded by the purest silica sand. It was heaven, we swam in the lake and felt years younger as it has amazing cleansing properties. We had a guided walk through the rain forest and drank 100 year filtered water from the 'Silent' creek. Water so pure you can't hear the creek or even see the water! We had a first encounter with a real australian Dingo as well. She came for a cool down in the lake while we were swimming. We here in Rainbow for one more day and then we go the short distance up to Hervey Bay.

There is so much more to be done i just hope we don't run out of time. the aim is to get to Cairns but as you might have seen in the news they have been having pretty serious weather up north! We're keeping an eye on things and hopefully it will have cleared up by the time we get there!

I can't believe the snow you've beeen having at home i really do feel a million miles away from it!

Love to all and another update will follow.

Surfers Paradise to Noosa via Brisbane

ellie — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 15:05:00 GMT

I've finally taken some time to sit down and fill you all in on what's been happening here. Byron Bay was amazing and we really didn't want to leave but, we are trying to get as far north as we can and the time we have left is slipping away so.... needs must and we got on the bus for a town called Surfers Paradise. You'd think from the name that we'd be in our element here. Sadly not. I'd have to describe it as a city on the beach and having come from Byron it wasn't really doing it for us.

We did have a couple of good days here which included a really really long walk along the beach, a very funny meal out at The Hard Rock Cafe, and a spot of Putt Putt Golf. We got the bus from here upto Brisbane. We had planned to spend a few days in Brissy but after Surfers we didn't feel like another city and this one didn't even have a beach to play on. So we made the snap decision on the bus to carry straight on up to Noosa. So we had just one night in Brisbane, and after walking through the city that evening we did begin to wonder if we had made the wrong choice to move on so soon. Brisbane is a really clean and friendly place and doesn't have the feel of a big city at all, it has a beautiful lagoon and parks for the public to use and lots of Museums.

Once we arrived in Noosa we soon got over missing out on Brisbane as we found ourselves in yet another beautiful beach resort. It felt very similar to Byron Bay but a bit more upmarket. It's a hot holiday destination for the middle class aussies, so prices could be a bit steep for us backpackers. Noosa has the most amazing beaches and a National Park which we spent a lot of time exploring. The hostel we found was a winner as well as it was more like an apartment so we had our own room and kitchen facilities, luxury compared to the mixed dorms we've been in so far. It was a stones throw from Sunrise Beach but a little bit of a walk or a short bus ride from the main tourist drag of Noosa Heads. We spent a total of 3 nights here.

We had planned to go Kayaking at sunset whilst we were here but the weather put a stop to that! The rain came down and the trip got cancelled. Instead we spend a day kicking about eating food and going to the movies. When the sun was out we made the most of it and hired some long boards, my second attempt at surfing since Surf Camp! The waves weren't great but it was fun spashing about in the ocean.

Sydney to Byron Bay via Surf Camp.

ellie — Sat, 7 Feb 2009 18:56:00 GMT

After Paul's Birthday we got the bus from Sydney which took us up the coast to Byron Bay. We had an over night stop on the way and the opportunity for some Surf lessons. Yes i did have a go and believe it or not i was pretty good! ... no not really i sucked!! but it was a lot of fun and i did manage to stand up on the board at least once.

After some goofing about on surf boards it was back on the bus to Byron. We've had 3 days here and there has been a lot of sun bathing and frolicking in the ocean. Paul's been getting some good time on his surf board and i've been working hard on the tan (lobster look!)

After the hub of Sydney Byron has been a welcome break and it feels really good to just relax and chill out in the sun. I have been sooo laid back i've been horizontal most of the time! It's our last Byron beach day tomorrow before we get the bus up to our next stop of Surfers Paradise... yes that will be another beach :) We'll have a couple of nights there and then head to Hervey Bay and Fraser Island.

We're going to borrow a couple of bikes from the hostel tomorrow so we can see a bit of Byron before we leave, it should be a lot of fun (if my sun burnt bum can take it!)

Check out Paul's blog for more pics and a better story. It is the same as this except you add paul_byrom to the address.

I hope the snow hasn't caused too many problems for you all.

Lots of Love E x

Gallery: Byron Bay

ellie — Sat, 7 Feb 2009 18:33:00 GMT

Gallery: Sydney

ellie — Sun, 1 Feb 2009 12:25:00 GMT

Sydney so far...

ellie — Sun, 1 Feb 2009 11:35:00 GMT

Well i arrived safe and sound after a surprisingly easy flight. With 2 breakfasts and 2 dinners and 2 sunrises all in the space of 20 hrs. I did manage to sleep quite a lot of the time so have been really lucky not suffering with jet lag.

Paul was there to meet me at the airport and we were soon on our way in to Sydney and our base for the next week.

As i arrived at the silly early hour of 6.30am we were able to get stuck into the tourist stuff right away, after a freshen up at the hostel we headed straight out. Our first stop, breakfast by the harbour and a stroll over to the famous Sydney opera house, where there were plenty of opportunities for cheesey tourist pics! We then caught the ferry over to Manly Island.

We've been doing the tourist thing since then, each day has been packed with stuff. We had a lovely long walk from Bondi beach to Coogee on Thursday and my first dip in the Ocean. Paul's Cousin Simon lives in Coogee so we headed over to his and enjoyed by first Ozzie Barbie on his balcony (there were no shrimp but plenty of sausages!)

We've been to the PowerHouse Museum and had a lovely tour guide show us the highlights! And we made it up to the Harbour bridge to take in the awesome views.

Friday we took had a rest from the big city and took a bus ride out of Sydney to visit the Blue Mountains. We climbed down the giant staircase and took in some incredible views of the famous threes sisters. According to aboriginal folklore these three huge rock formations came about when three beautiful aboriginal maidens where turned to stone by a which doctor ... there is more to the story than this but i won't go in to it now!

Friday night was finished off by a fabulous meal of fish and chips at a place called Doyles. We got there just in time to watch the sunsetting behind the cityscape of Sydney. This has to be a highlight so far. the meal was great and the company even better, a truely wonderful evening!

That brings me to Saturday. And the the most i've laughed in a long time! We borrowed Simon's Scooter or Scoot as they like to say here, and had our own non guided tour of the city and the suburbs! Heading out to a place called Surry Hills we stumbled across a cute little cafe for lunch called Peas please (Amy this made me think of you) and then spend the the day scooting about the place until we finally found our way back to the city. Feeling rather hot and sticky by this point (with delightful helmet hair!) we decided to hit Bondi Beach to cool off. Time had gotten away from us by now so it was time to take the scoot back to Simon in Coogee and find some place for dinner, a lovely italian where we shared pizza and pasta. All in all another great day!

Sunday today so we treated ourselves to a late start. Doing some laundry and Paul has hit the Gym which has given me the chance to sit and do my update. We're here until Tuesday now, longer than planned due to some bus timetable issues but we'll soon be starting up the coast - first stop Byron bay and some surf lessons!! This should be interesting!

Next blog from Byron Bay!

Love you all

big kisses to Cinni and Nutmeg xxx miss you

Gallery: Nearly time to fly

ellie — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 11:40:00 GMT

Family Farewell Meal

Getting ready for the off

ellie — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 11:24:00 GMT

I'm nearly there. It has been a very strange and hard time lately but this trip is going to help me to put things into perspective (i hope).

The packing and list making is almost complete, I've just got a few days left to say some good byes before the big adventure can begin.

We had a lovely family meal this evening, i can't remember the last time we were all together like that and it was lovely. Just one person missing... but i'm sure he was watching over us (probably saying thank goodness i didn't have to go!)

Next story will be from Sydney!