[28 Dec 05 - 31 Dec 05]
If you are like me & don't have the money to hire a 4WD for the weekend, then you won't get far from the landing zone, Tangalooma Wrecks. Don't get me wrong, its still well worth the trip, definetly. But just don't expect to do loops of the island.
You will probably travel on the MIcat, its a barge/ferry. And after the 90min trip to Moreton you will see something like the beautiful sight below.
To your left the very visible sand slides of Moreton Island & to the right Tangalooma Wrecks, an artificial reef of sunken boats, with crystal blue water all around. The campsite itself is behind a shroud of trees, that are directly inland from the wrecks. It has natural toilets, open showers to the side & a sink out front.
Really quite good facilities, there are bins 200m south, at the end of the site, and the water is untreated, so no drinking unless you boil it for a while first. Its quite apparent from the landing that the wrecks draw a crowd. Boats shelter around them for the night, you can snorkel them, its best at low tide (and well worth the effort), and well they just look kinda cool, rusty ol' buckets that they are. Sunrise is probably the best time to get a photo of them.
So there is much relaxing and fun to be had just at the wrecks, but if you want to go for a walk, there are a few places you could go. Like the sand slides just north of the camp, there is a track up, if you can find it, or take the hard way up, the sand slides themselves (2 steps up, slide one back). However if you have plyboard you can taboggan your way back down, very fast & fun. Just remember to watch for cars & if you wax the bottom of the board it goes faster. Or just jog down them at a reasonable pace, thats fun too. The view up top is great, alone worth the effort, specialy for the sunset (featured at the top of the article).
Or you could travel south along the beach for about 20mins, which takes you to Tangalooma Resort. Yes it is a resort, but its open to the campers too, as long as they behave, & not after sunset. There are a couple pool tables, a pool with two spas, plenty of lawn, shaded by palm trees to relax under & even tours of the island you can partake in.
Though actual residents of the resort get preferance, you got a good chance to get a spot. I recommend you go on the snorkel tour of the wrecks, they supply mask & fins to swim & wetsuit & gloves to protect you from the wrecks. They take you on a boat from the resort out to the wrecks, and guide you around the boats, then at the end they throw bread in & ALL the fish swarm around your feet, very cool. If you can not or have trouble swimming, do not worry, wetsuits make you float very well, but if your still unsteady, then they will supply life jackets or foam boards to reasure you. There is also a tour out to the small deserts of Moreton, where they explain how it got its different colours & you can give sand tabogganing a go in a more controlled environment. One tour takes you to Blue Lagoon, which is well worth a look, and is a freshwater lagoon up the northern part of the island, eastern side. The last i think takes you to the northern tip of the island, where there is a lighthouse & rocky cliffs. These tours can cost a bit though, more so the 3 island tours.
But if you have no money, check out the agenda for the day, to see these free treats. Early in the morning you can go view 'Kookaburra Feeding' where you get told interesting facts about the bird too. 'Pelican Feeding' is also early, its a bit more of a crowd drawer & the Cormarins join in the fun too, very informative. They also have bird watching tours in the mid morn. But the biggest trill, 'Dolphin Feeding' is late at night, only resort residents get to feed them though, but just watching is great, they are still quite wild dolphins. Tide times are available at the resort too.
Its a great place to camp, and if you can afford it you can spoil yourself too. The resort has a convenience store if you run out of food. There is a no burning of local wood rule, so bring your own firewood. And enjoy this fantastisc paradise the way it should be, on your back!
