24 Dec 2005

We're on day 1 of our Fraser Island adventure. We took a ferry from the mainland to Fraser Island this morning and immediately set out in a big bus with a really quirky and fun guide.

Firstly, some topography and geology. Fraser Island is the world's largest sand island and one of Australia's 16 World Heritage Sites (this is the second of four that I will see this trip). The island was formed from sands that drifted from southern Australia and Antarctica on ocean currents and were trapped by a small volcanic protrusion in the water during one of the ice ages when the water levels were much lower. The sand continued to collect and now acts as a filtering sponge for all the rain that falls. The water here is some of the best I've ever tasted. The coloured sands on Fraser Island (mostly reds, yellows, creams and every shade between) are caused by leaching oxides (mainly iron from hematite) that coat the grains. The outer coasts contain largely gum tree forests while the centre houses a sub-tropical rainforest. Most of the animals on the island are nocturnal. The most famous is the dingo. The breed of dingo here is the purest in the world as they have not had the opportunity to mix with domesticated dogs.

There are also several beautiful lakes on the island. They are termed "window lakes" because they are formed where the surface of the sand dips below the watertable level. Most of the lakes are very acidic and house very little life, mainly turtles, some crawfish (yabbies) and an intrepid little amphibian known as the Acid Frog. The water runs off the leaves and detritus of the rainforest and has usually collected tannins and other minerals that make it really hard for most creatures to survive. They are also some of the clearest lakes I've ever seen. Lake Wabby is an exception. It is a barrage lake formed when shifting sand dunes block a creek. The waters here are a deep yellow-green due to algae and tannins.

Notes from the Bush (on a bushwalk following a river along a path in a subtropical rainforest) :
The trees are grand! They emit an amazing radius of energy. The older and larger, the bigger the radius. It's wonderful! The water of the creek/river is sand filtered so it is amazingly clear. The cicadas sing so loudly, it is almost deafening. Apparently, many male cicadas spend most of their lives underground, only emerging the last 3 days of their lives to sing and mate.

We've been to two lakes today. Both are freshwater and amazingly clear and warm. I brought my mask and snorkel but haven't seen any signs of life underwater. The water comes exclusively from rain, which picks up minerals from the leaves and trees, heavy in tannins. As a result, the water is pH 4-5. Very acidic.

Koalas have brains the size of filberts. This little evolutionary wonder occurs partly because of their diet. They eat eucalyptus leaves which are filled with a poisonous alcohol-like substance. They don't drink water but gather it from these leaves. Alcohol has been proven to shrink brains, so the koalas have very little left at the end of the evolutionary day. Their slothful nature (sleeping 19 hours a day) helps to conserve energy. They also have evolved a caecum (pronounced see-cum) which is unique to koalas. It is a part of their digestive tract used to process the very specialized diet of rough leaves. I believe it acts as a mammalian gizzard.

We did see a male musk duck on Lake MacKenzie. He was loudly, yet unsuccessfully, trying to score a mate. All he managed to attract were swimming humans. Poor fellow. I wish I'd had my camera. He was quite attractive with his swollen gullet (or whatever that part below the beak that he inflates is called) and puffed tail feathers. He is aptly named, for he was emitting a definite musky odour. All the lady ducks surely must swoon. *smiles*

25 Dec 2005

Merry Christmas! Gosh, it's muggy this morning. My walk to food left me drenched. Very sexy, I know. *grins* Love me, love my sweat!

Today we drove up the east coast of the island. We stopped at Eli Creek to ride inner tubes back to the beach. Eli Creek flows from an inland underground aquifer. It is crisp, clean, cool and refreshing. We also stopped at the wreck of the Maheno. It was once a luxury liner transporting passengers between Sydney and Auckland and operating in the early 1900's. In 1935, a cyclone washed it ashore Fraser Island while it was being towed to Japan for scrapping.

As we headed up the east coat of the island, we stopped at Indian Head, which is one of the few rock outcroppings on the island, where we sat for a bit to watch for turtles, sharks and rays in the waters below us. We also stopped at the Stonetool sand dunes and hiked about on the mountains of sand. I felt like I was in a movie trekking across the dunes. At the Tukee sand blow, we saw rods of glass formed where lightning had struck the silica sand and fused it into glass. We made a lunch stop at the Champagne Pools where people often bathe but the tide had brought in a lot of seaweed and it was rather pungent. We stayed above on the walkway and watched for aquatic life, instead. I scored a few sharks and a ray.

Despite careful re-application of SPF 30, our day of windy beach, ocean, river and sand dune activities (notice the distinct lack of forest here?) has left me feeling washed, salted, marinated in sweat, baked and sandblasted. Add a little dill and a Bearnaise sauce and I'd be a tasty meal. *shakes head with amusement* I'm feeling a bit like old leather. I've had my shower and slathered myself in moisturiser, so I'll, optimistically, be okay in the morning.

The best part of the day was the bus trip back to our lodge. Peter, our guide and driver, has been allowing one of us to sit up front with him. Tonight was my turn. He played a bunch of cool tunes for the trip over bumpy sand roads. I had a great time jouncing around the front, singing and leading everyone in the proper arm signals for the Village People's "YMCA." I looked back down the length of the bus and saw 3/4 of them following me. It was sooooo cool! Better than watching "the wave" at a sporting game.

Our guide is Peter Meyer. He's lived and worked on Fraser Island for 10.5 years. He's a professional nature photographer for the BBC and has written a book and photos of the island. He's very knowledgeable and has fun stories. He is also so self amused, he adds his own laugh track to his monologues. While this may sound silly, it's really cute. He's been great fun. I feel very lucky to have had him.

Right now, I'm sitting on our lodge deck watching a Christmas light show. The Universe has seen fit to bless us with a glorious thunder and lightening storm to really seal the holiday. Everyone is still partying in the bar, so we have the place to ourselves. G and I were reflecting how grateful we are to be an old married couple. It would lake far too much effort for me to try and meet people through partying. We very much enjoyed a peaceful, companionable evening together wallowing in our old-fogginess. *contented sigh*

Weather Update: My legs and feet are being rained upon. It's almost 9pm. Time to head to bed.

26 Dec 2005

This morning we drove to Lake Wabby. We walked across a sand desert, crested a hill and there before us, nestled between the barren sand and a forest, was a jade green pool. It was a strange sight. From the top of the dune I could see the ocean, a gum tree forest, the lake and a desert. I'm not sure if any other location in the world could combine four such distinct environments in one view. Our guide brought a body board and many of our bus-mates decided it would be great fun to lie on said board and fly down the side of the sand dune into the lake. *shudder* It was vastly amusing and terrifying to watch this. Especially when the two sunburned Swiss boys suffering from testosterone poisoning decided to forgo the board, join hands to each other's ankles and somersault down the dune Cirque du SoleiI style. *shakes head* Crazy kids.

G and I went for a swim. The water was very cloudy and yellow-green from tannin and algae, but the pH was closer to neutral so the lake supports more aquatic life. I saw a larger fish, but it was too hazy to identify in the three foot visibility, and some little gambusia-like fish that gave me kisses all over my legs and body while I sat in the water near the edge. Very cute.

After a refreshing swim, we dressed and began our forced march across the desert. Peter had driven the bus to the beach to wait for us, so we had to walk across the expanse of dunes to the gum forest on the coast, through the trees and out onto the beach. It was really fun to be so completely surrounded by sand and sun knowing that water and trees were very close at hand. I wouldn't want to be out in the middle of the Sahara on such a hot sunny day, but I didn't mind in this case. Besides, I had my trusty sun-brella with me. Peter laughed at me when he saw us round the corner. G was walking normally, Belinda was hiding her head, shoulders and arms under a beach towel and I was marching along with my umbrella and hiking boots on the beach. It was a Monty Python vision. *snicker*

After lunch, we went to Lake Birrabeen. At the bathrooms, we had a fun sighting. We found a harmless carpet python cozily curled between the ladies' and gents' rooms. Yay! I've been trying to spot a snake since we landed here. I keep looking at all the strangler fig vines wrapped around tree limbs waiting for one of them to move, but alas. *sighs dramatically*

This ended our Fraser Island adventures. After handshakes and kisses from Peter at the docks, we boarded the ferry for the mainland. Fraser Island was well worth the trip. I'd definitely return.