Nomads: Fraser Island

"You will die" seemed to be the general message of our briefing on the Wednesday night. Before we left for Fraser on the Thursday, we had to watch a government video on 4x4 sand driving. It was part hilarious, part terrifying. Luckily, the Nomads guy told us we could ignore half of it, just use common sense and we'd be fine. Once the briefing was over, we were free to socialise in the bar. One other girl in my room, Poppy, was also on the tour and she'd met some Irish girls earlier on. There were so many people, I was definitely going to struggle remembering names. I grabbed an iced water and stayed for a while, and then popped to my room to quickly pack. When I returned, a Beer Pong tournament was in full flow and it was packed. I didn't stay much longer, we had an early start. I was looking forward to the tour, the group was massive and full of great characters.

~

My alarm went off at 6am and I was pretty much dressed and ready within minutes. Once we were both ready, Poppy and I headed to reception to checkout and dump bags. We were a little early, gradually people started to filter on through to reception. We met up with our Irish pals, Aoife and Roisin in the queue. I popped to the loo and, when I returned, the line was even longer - I joined Lauren and Robyn at the back. I checked myself out, grabbed myself a sleeping bag and was ready to go. First, we all had to take our rucksacks to the luggage storage, and then walk down to meet the bus.

Sitting next to Poppy, we had a good ole chinwag with Lauren and Robyn in front of us. I was pretty excited, didn't even nap! The drive was longer than we all expected, even warranting a toilet stop. We couldn't be bothered to move, so stayed in the bus. It wasn't much longer and we had arrived at Rainbow Beach, and to 4x4 Island Tours HQ. We were greeted by our guide for the weekend, Tim. He was very stereotypically Aussie. We all had to show our driving licenses and sign a waiver. The fines for damaging the cars were catastrophic, I hoped my car squad would be sensible. We all collected our small bags and made our way towards the cars for a demo. There were thirty-four of us in total and four cars. Ten of the group would be in the lead car, all those who didn't want to, or couldn't, drive. He then began to fill each of the others. Lauren, Robyn, Poppy and I were standing next to Car 4, and were joined with four others. 

Once all of the cars were full, we were ready to hit the road. I called shotgun as Lauren took the wheel. It didn't take long for us to realise the speedometer didn't work. Tim didn't seem too fussed, we were "at the back, easy to follow everyone else's speed". We'd see. Introductions followed, we had German Markus, French Constance, and two Swiss, Michael and Nais. We were all buzzing, especially as the first part of our off-roading experience began. Tim turned off onto a dirt track that quickly became sand. Being at the back of the convoy, we could quite easily see what the other cars were doing and follow along. Lauren was awesome. We made it to the end of the line, we were quite literally on the beach. Crystal clear waters greeted us as we left the palm trees behind - we were getting the ferry from here?

We had barely had a chance to wiggle our toes in the sand when the ferry was spotted approaching. Tim got us all back in the cars, and we had to move to match where it was stopping. It didn't go where he thought it would though, back around in a circle to where we started. Good practice, but completely pointless. Lauren easily drove on to the ferry, and we all climbed out. We were cheeky and asked if we could stand up the top with the driver. From this vantage point we could see the beach we had left behind and the approaching island. We even spotted dolphins!

About 15mins later we had arrived on Fraser Island, the largest sand island in the world. We followed Tim on to the beach and made our way to an inland track, away from the sea. Maybe half a kilometre in and we stopped. Car 2 had broken down. Moving to the side of the road, we sat and chatted while Tim tried to work out what was wrong. No-one really knew what was going to happen. Would we have to wait for another car? In the end, we drove ahead and he doubled back to fix it. Car 1 was to start making lunch, we were still on the side of the road, but it was wider here and we had some trees providing a hint of shade. Lunch was beef sandwiches and biscuits, Car 2 joined us and the drama was over. Phew.

With lunch cleared away, it was time to move on. I'd taken the liberty of grabbing my trusty mp3 player for some classic throwback tunes. For once, everyone liked them - better than the eurotrash we had been abused with previously anyway! The next stint got us to Lake Wabby, a barrage lake and the deepest on the island. We had a short hike from our parking spot, it was all a bit up and down. We finally made it to an exposed stretch of sand, and found the green lake at the bottom of a massive sand dune. It was surprisingly easy to walk down, and the sand was so soft. 

At first I just laid my towel down and stripped to my bikini for some sunbathing. A load of the lads had rolled down the dune into the lake. It was hilarious watching them try and walk when they were so disorientated and dizzy! By the look on their faces, and a few of the brave souls who had gone straight in, it was a bit chilly. Aoife had braved it, so had Paddy. Robyn, Lauren and I decided to make our way to the edge, slowly dipping our feet in. Robyn went for it. It was still a little cold for me, I walked further and got as far as my belly button. I knew I had to take the plunge now - it wasn't as cold as I'd been expecting. In fact, it was quite refreshing. This was the only lake on the island with fish, due to the low acidity of the water. It was too dark to see any though. Tim had told us if we sat still long enough, little fishies would nibble at our feet. A bit like that weird foot bath trend. We tried, but to no avail.

I wasn't sure how long we'd been in the water, but I wanted to dry off before tackling the sand dune climb. I stood on the bank and soaked up the sun. I wasn't fully dry by time we had to leave, but isn't that just always the case. Cue walking back up the dune and through the forest with a wet bum. Back at the cars, it was Markus' turn to drive. I squeezed into the back, which was a lot comfier than it had looked. For someone who drove on the right back home, Markus was a natural. We all said how safe we felt with him driving. Unfortunately for him, it was only a 5min run to get to Eurong. 

Eurong was amazing, not at all what I was expecting. I dont know why, but even the idea of tarmac and concrete buildings on a sand island baffled me. The resort had multiple accommodation options, a bakery, shop, bottleo, bar and our very own camp kitchen. The majority of us were camping in the tipis on site, with a few in dorm accommodation. There was only meant to be five in a tent, we had a group of seven. All we had to do was steal an extra two mattresses from someone else. While Ann, Aoife, Robyn, Lauren and Poppy organised their stuff, Ro and I looked for bedding. I had a mini panic when I couldn't source one from anyone. Tim was about as useful as a chocolate teapot, he just shrugged. I eventually found one in the last tipi and took it back to ours. Walking in, I was surprised. We had a fan, fairy lights, a mini shelf unit and plenty of space for all of us. Perfect.

I didn't have time to sort my stuff out, we were taking a group trip to the shop before it closed. I was disappointed with the goods for sale, it seemed to be primarily a bottle shop over anything else. I considered buying an icecream but stopped myself, we had dinner soon. With everyone else carting their booze and considerably lighter wallets, we headed back to our tipi. Time to organise myself, I popped my phone and camera on to charge, found my pjs and rolled out my sleeping bag. Something wasn't right. My sleeping bag looked like some sort of bizarre extended bomber jacket. I had arm holes and everything. Should be an interesting sleep.

We made the most of Poppy's speaker and held a mini party. With the fairy lights it felt like a proper little festival! We sang along to all the classics, then decided it was probably time to head to dinner. Tim was still "waiting for the potatoes to boil" so we had a bit of time to kill. Now we were up at the bar, and everyone had their own drinks, we had to stay outside. Aoife and Lauren found a way round this by dragging out a table. The boyband (Seren, Jack and Tim from Essex) joined us and it was time for Kings Cup. As always, there was confusion over the rules as everyone knew a different version. International Rules were in play and we managed a good game before dinner was called. For once, I wasn't the only one playing with water, so was Lotta. It was the first time out here that I haven't picked the last king though!

Despite the fact that we had been outside for ages, practically next to the kitchen, we still didn't make it first in the queue. Tim had cooked steak, potatoes, mixed vegetables, corn on the cob and gravy. I couldn't remember the last time I'd had proper gravy, I was so excited! I very rarely eat steak, and this one was alright. You could tell it was a cheap bit of meat, but we weren't exactly eating at a 5* restaurant. It was good enough to warrant me and Poppy heading up for seconds. We had the last two steaks between us, snooze you lose.

Once we'd washed the dishes and everything was packed away, Tim appeared from nowhere and called us all to the edge of the resort. From here we watched the moon rise. It was amazing! The colour was incredible, a dull glowing red, and I'd never seen the moon so large. It was like watching the sunset, but in reverse. We all watched gobsmacked. I took the time to get a good look at the stars too. I could get used to being able to see the Milky Way every night. It was such a treat to have a sky free from light pollution and a blanket of stars filling the night.

We gradually left the mesmerising sight behind, as the moon grew higher and the stars dimmed. Tim had gone to bed, it was time to get the cards back out. We tried to play Go Fish but there were too many players and it quickly fell apart. I learnt a new game Straws (or spoons), it was BRUTAL. It was such a fast and furious game, I really had to keep my wits about me. I didn't win, but I didn't lose either... I finished somewhere in the middle, which is fine with me. When we grew tired of cards, it was on to the dance floor. We boogied the night away, even taking control of the DJing. It was tiring work, and I knew I'd need some sleep for another long day. I climbed into my bomber-jacket-sleeping-bag with the music still thumping in my ears.

~

As always, I woke up at 6am... I had a quick glance around and saw that everyone else was still asleep. I could try and snooze for a while. I managed to get back to sleep and heard my alarm sounding, and Tim shouting, at 7.15. Car 4 was meant to be getting the breakfast ready but, when we got to the kitchen, it had already been done. It was the usual toast and cereal, with extra brownie points for my favourite milk, and nutella. When everyone had had their fill, we cleared everything away and swept the floor. Another day of adventure lay ahead.

Nais plonked himself in the drivers seat for our first drive of the day. He looked a bit cocky and I was concerned. Once he realised how difficult driving in the sand actually was, he seemed to calm down and focus a bit better. Thank God. I did have to tell his friend, Michael, to actually wear his seat belt though, he was really beginning to grind my gears. Nothing like sharing a confined space with fools. Luckily, we were all in the back, getting along splendidly with the lovely Markus. Constance didn't say much, but she had a nice calming presence. 

We arrived at the Champagne Pools quite early, so it wasn't too busy. They were so named because of the crustaceans on top of the rocks. As the tide washed in, a foamy bubble affect was created and it looked like champagne. It was really pretty, the water was so clear and the sun reflected off of the surface making it seem even more magical. It was the only place on the island safe for saltwater swimming. We really didn't have long here so I didn't mess about, I was straight in there for a quick dip. It was still cold, but not as bad as the lake. We climbed up onto the rocks to watch the crashing waves and dry off in the sunshine. Tim had warned us not to turn our backs to the sea, so we walked down like crabs. I knew I didn't fancy getting washed out to sea or scraping myself on the rocks like a human grater. It was time to head back before we knew it. Back along the boardwalk, back to the carpark and back to Car 4. 

Constance wanted a go at driving now, and so we had a bit of a musical chairs in the back too.. just to get a different perspective. It was a short journey straight up the beach, but the sand was a struggle. She tried her hardest, but it was her first time driving on the left, and probably not the best time or place for firsts. Tim actually called us out on the radio and asked for a driver swap. I felt sorry for Constance, but at least she'd had a go. We all gave her a cheer and she seemed happier in a passenger seat. It was probably best for us all to have a more experienced driver. Lauren jumped in and drove the last stretch to Indian Head.

This was the most northerly part of the island, and where we could hopefully spot some marine life. We had to climb up and over a few rocks and gravel, Tim advised we kept our shoes on. My flip flops were hindering, not helping, I found it easier to go barefoot. This just meant I had to watch where I was stepping, no biggie. Reaching the top, you could see for miles.  It wasn't long until a whale was spotted, as we all rushed to look we realised there were actually two swimming together. Apparently someone saw a turtle too but I couldn't see it. I was on the lookout for dolphins and sharks. I didn't see either and it was time to move on. We were all getting pretty hungry.

Markus got back behind the wheel and drove us to Cathedral Beach campground where we were to have lunch. They had a mini cafe here and I considered getting chips, especially when James and Chrisite did. No, I would be good. I had paid for lunch afterall, and it was make-your-own wraps today. Instead of beef we had ham, at least I think that's what it was. I filled mine with all the salad, plastic cheese and the questionable meat. Delicious! The ingredients were rapidly disappearing so I jumped back in the queue before I'd even finished my first. Another two wraps and a magnum later, I was ready to drive.

Michael beat me to it and was already sitting in the driver's seat when we reached Car 4. We were all a little nervous for his driving. He has been playing up all morning, heckling others and not listening to walkie-talkie instructions. I was pleasantly surprised, he wasn't too much of a knob. That was until he started one-hand driving, something we had been warned never to do. When half the car shouted at him he soon rectified his mistake. Thankfully, it was a pretty flat and easy drive across the beach to Maheno Shipwreck. We had already passed it once on our way up the coast, but now we were stopping to explore.

The Maheno had been a luxury trans-Tasman cruise liner that was bound for a Japanese wrecking yard when it was driven ashore, back in 1935. She was a very impressive boat, I was amazed to see a lot of internal structure was still there. Or at least you could see where rooms were and what function they may have had. I crossed the "road" to read all about the history, she had been all over. There was a photo of a woman holding her child up to see through the portholes..  these were now sand level. This made the boat even bigger than I could possibly have imagined in her heyday.

After a group photo, it was time for the next drive. Poppy was up, with Lauren as her left-hand woman. She'd been a little nervous but had no need, she was awesome. We also got to listen to some decent music and all had a bit of a groove as we made our way down the beach. As Tim parked up at our next stop, we realised it was girl power for the first reverse parking of the weekend. Emily, Aoife and Poppy all nailed it. We had arrived at Eli Creek, a freshwater creek that ran alongside the forest and beach.

Before we had arrived it was a peaceful, calm place where families were chilling by the water's edge. All us girls decided we wanted to get to the boardwalk. Walking along the sand would be boring, so we waded through the creek, making an absolute racket and splashing water everywhere. We reached the steps and made our way up and along the boardwalk to reach the end. It reminded me very much of Berry Springs, but without the horrid smell. I launched myself into the water, it was the warmest yet. It was slightly to shallow to float along, I had to kind of army crawl. It was hilarious. There we were, seven grown women, crawling along through 6 inches of water. There were some deeper parts that we made the most of, but also some sand banks that left us beached like whales. It was so much fun that we hopped out and immediately went again! The only problem with the shallow creek, and the crawling, was that I now had an incredibly sandy bum. In fact, there was sand everywhere. I rinsed myself the best I could in some of the deeper water back near the cars. Now was time to dry off with a spot of sunbathing. This was the life.

We next had the option of taking a scenic flight over the island. Unfortunately, there were too many of us and not enough planes. We would have to drive back to Eurong and take off from there. Now it really was my turn to drive. I was the last to give it a go and felt the pressure..  everyone else had driven so well! I got in and worked out where everything was, though it was the sand I was most worried about to be honest. I had the engine on and was ready to go, Tim was moaning at people over the radio - I thought he was having a go at me. I hadn't even moved yet! Sods law, I only went and bloody stalled when we were actually going. No worries, Keen Car 4 gave me a big ole cheer of encouragement and I was off. Once I got going I was alright, the car would naturally swerve and slide on the sand and you just had to let it. I had the same issue as everyone else with getting the speed up. The pedal would literally be to the metal and we'd still be tailing behind. I was so tense I was actually starting to get cramp in my leg. I was slightly relieved when we reached the beach runway and I had to jump out. And I mean literally jump, the pilots were on a schedule apparently.

Matt met the first five out of the cars; this was myself, Lauren, Robyn, Kirsty and Emily. I was the quickest to raise my hand so got to be co-pilot. I was first in the plane, right up front with the controls. Matt warned me not to play with anything and leave the piloting to him. As if I would have fiddled with all the buttons and knobs - as tempting as it was. Headphones on, we coasted to the runway and were off in seconds. It was so cool to watch the plane's shadow gain height. First, Matt took us straight over the sea, we could see the full length of seventy five mile beach too! It was the longest sandmade beach in Australia, possibly even the world? I was too busy gaping at everything beneath us to fully listen. A family of humpback whales joined in the party, we watched as mum and baby played in the waves. They were so cute, and for once I could actually appreciate their sheer size, thanks to the clear sea and our perfect bird's eye view. Matt then flew us around in a massive loop, passing back over the beach to checkout the inland forests and lakes. I was amazed at how many lakes there actually were on the island, all different types. Some would still be there in 10 years, and will have probably grown in size, whereas some will have disappeared completely. We even got a sneaky preview of the jewel of Fraser, Lake McKenzie. It looked stunning from above, the water was so clear and we could even see the white sand beach. Before our return, Matt tortured us with some quick ups and downs and sharp turns. My stomach dropped, we all screamed. To him it was probably hilarious.

Back on the ground, we all clambered out and grabbed a photo with our wonderful pilot in his sexy socks. Everyone was waiting near the cars for us, we paid and then watched the other plane land. What an awesome experience. Once everyone was ready to head back to camp, we got back into the cars. Apparently Michael had been sitting in the driver's seat the whole time, just in case anyone else wanted to drive. Luckily, I was too hyped and full of adrenaline from the flight to care. He drove us the full five minutes home to Eurong and we emptied the cars. The tipis and Poppy's speaker were calling. We had a little wait until dinner. I waited for the shower queue to go down, then hopped in myself. I was still covered in sand from Eli Creek, it was everywhere!

By the time I was out of the shower and dressed again, food was ready. I found myself at the back of the queue with Ann, Markus and Lotta. We decided this was actually a good thing and gave ourselves double helpings of pasta and garlic bread before the others came back for seconds. It was delicious, and demolished within minutes... I hadn't realised just how hungry I was! With all the plates cleared away, us girls practically ran back to the tipi to experiment with some face paints. Lauren had been carrying them with her since her adventures in Thailand, we thought we'd treat ourselves. The neon paints matched the festival vibes of the music and tipi. News spread and we soon had a full tent, the boyband had joined, along with Markus and Martin. Jack was somehow convinced to paint stripes in his hair, and managed to pull it off.

There was meant to be a meteor shower, and some of the group had already headed to the beach for star-gazing. I put my hoody on and headed out with the girls. It was pitch black outside once we passed the fence, I had my head torch and my phone torch. We had to take precautions against the native dingo. According to Tim, it was breeding season so they were randy and aggressive. Aoife was in charge of the dingo stick (literally just a stick to wave around if we saw any) and we stayed together as a group. We met everyone in a pack in the middle of the beach. With all phone lights off, you could really appreciate the enormity of the universe. The stars stretched right from the horizon onwards, and were magical. Those of us that had been in Oz a little longer tried to point out southern hemisphere constellations that we recognised. My knowledge only stretched as far as knowing the Southern Cross. Once we'd had our fill, we gradually made our way back up the beach to the secret tipi entrance.

We aimed for the bar, they were holding a Beer Pong tournament, but you had to pay. We just borrowed some cups and used Emily's ball - that way it was free. I was supposed to be the ref but I spent most of the time chopsing with Markus and Poppy. We had a good little bitching session, and then a little history lesson about the Berlin Wall. Much more interesting than watching people throw balls in cups. Poppy wanted a game of pool next, when our coin was up we made our way over. It was us against Emily and Aoife. I was terrible, as was Aoife, Poppy was okay and Emily had skills. I surprised everyone, including myself, by potting our last two balls and winning us a free cocktail jug! 

It had been a long old day and I was ready for bed. Poppy had already snuck off, and there seemed to be more locals than nomads left. I changed into my jammies and cleaned my teeth. The music was so loud; Poppy was still awake and I knew I would be for a while too. At least until someone turned down the bass.

~

I didnt even hear the other girls come in last night, I must have conked out. I was awake first, at 6.30. I had wanted to see the sunrise, but it was already up and going about it's day. I got myself ready and quietly packed my belongings away. For two nights in a tent and not a lot of stuff, I seemed to have spread out quite an amount. Dumping my bag outside the tipi, I went to the kitchen and started getting breakfast ready. I even beat Tim, who arrived as I was putting the toasters out. Constance arrived and helped me with the cereal and spreads. Soon, everything was out and I was free to enjoy a cuppa and some cereal. I then had some toast, because I could, and left the rest of Car 4 to clear up.

Poppy had been an absolute doll and swept out the tipi, all we had to do now was cart our stuff up to the cars. None of us really felt like driving this morning, hungover Robyn and Lauren definitely couldn't. We simply all piled into the back before the Swiss arrived and let them take over. We were all happy sitting together; dancing, singing and taking in the view as we made our way inland to Lake McKenzie. From what I had seen from above, it was going to be awesome. We had all morning to chillax there too.

We parked up and ran out of the car to get a glimpse of the stunning natural lake. Wow. The water was like glass, but in the most beautiful shade of turquoise. I sunk my toes into the white silica sand and marvelled in the beauty. Walking across the beach, the sand squeaked beneath our feet. I left my things on the soft carpet of sand, stripped off, and headed straight for the water. There was hardly anyone else at our chosen beach, and we took the opportunity to have a little photoshoot. It all started with Poppy asking for a photo, I then offered my services. I had a great time photographing everyone doing the classic herbal essences hair flick. Me and Ann even did some underwater action shots. It was great fun and certainly kept us busy. We were in the water much longer than everyone else, my drying time was limited. Despite a good twenty minutes trying to dry on the sand, I still left with a wet bikini. Who cares, it was worth it!

It was now Poppy's turn to drive us back to camp for lunch. Lauren was our DJ and had the whole car singing and dancing back up the track to Eurong. We had wraps for lunch again, and could finish off the biscuits. I missed the chance to grab a cuppa, Tim had locked the kitchen back up so quickly. Before we knew it, it was time for the home stretch back to the ferry. Our last drive on seventy five mile beach. Nais had the honour and we all chatted in the back about the wonders of Fraser. I'm glad I wasn't driving, the tide was coming in and avoiding the waves without swerving was getting difficult. One drop of salt water in the car would cost us a lot of damage. We made it to the ferry without any drama, but a random car change for Tim, and waved goodbye to Fraser. We didn't see any dolphins on the return journey. I had offered to drive back to HQ, but I was far too tired now. Poppy took the wheel and I called shotgun, finding some epic songs to play us out. Before the depot, we had to refill the cars at the servo. This is when we discovered that Car 4 was the only diesel, which may explain our acceleration issues. We met our transfer back to Noosa and bid farewell to Tim. I think the vast majority of us slept on the way back to Nomads.

On our arrival we were given room keys and feedback forms. Once these were filled in we could grab our luggage and get to the dorms. I was looking forward to having a proper shower! We were all split over several rooms so there was a little confusion over plans for the evening. I was going to cook with Ann, but she had gone to the Irish bar to eat. By the time I'd rounded up the troops, and eaten a carrot, they were heading back. Luckily, Emily, Lotta, Robin and I passed the Germans en route. Markus had cooked spaghetti and had loads left over. Being the sweetheart that he is, he offered us some pasta, pesto, and cheese. Perfect!

The rest of the night flew by. We all met in the bar for our afterparty and some pretty lame platters of finger food. We all had a little dance here, shown up by an old guy in a hat. He was awesome, challenging the youths to dance-offs! One of the Dutchies whipped out some break dancing and Lauren did the worm. We had been given free drinks vouchers, I redeemed mine and was giving the extras to who I felt deserved it, or whomever asked the nicest. Great fun. Things started to get a little weird in KBs, so we all headed for the Irish pub. This wasn't what any of us were expecting, least of all Paddy, it was very quiet and a bit boring. It was nice for me because I could actually chat to people and hear what they were saying. I had a lovely talk with Christie and with Markus too. Group consensus was that it was too quiet and we all trundled along back to the hostel. I partied my socks off here until they chucked us out at midnight. The bar then closed... There was a bus taking people to another club but I didn't fancy it. I hung around to see them all off. I wasn't sure who I was going to see in the morning, so it was big hugs for everyone! Walking back to the room, I was surprised to see Chrisite, James, Lauren and Robyn sitting outside having a natter. I joined them and finally headed to bed at gone 2am. 2AM!

It had been an incredible weekend, and I was so glad I'd had an awesome bunch of people to share it with. I was thoroughly looking forward to catching up with people further up the coast, or in their home country. Everyone, Keen Car 4 and our tipi crew in particular, had really made the trip for me. "It's all an experience..."