Posted by: Jonathan
We planned on a big day of driving as we left Hervey Bay but we stopped for a picnic lunch at Rainbow Beach which turned into an all day affair. Road trips aren't about getting there but what you see along the way, right?
We planned on a big day of driving as we left Hervey Bay but we stopped for a picnic lunch at Rainbow Beach which turned into an all day affair. Road trips aren't about getting there but what you see along the way, right?
After laying in the sun letting our food digest, we hiked to a nearby sand blow overlooking the ocean.
We carefully made our way down the steep slope to the ocean and walked along the hour glass shaped bay. It is called Rainbow Beach because the cliffs have layers of all different colored sand resembling a rainbow.
Once we pulled away from our lunch pit stop it was almost dinner time, so we gave up our ambitions of covering ground and headed for nearby Noosa Head for the night.
When we booked the Fraser Island and Whitsunday tours I negotiated with the booking agent (a habit developed in South America, later perfected in Asia, that I have yet to break) and they threw in three free nights in dorm rooms for both Jenn and I in different places along the coast (Noosa Heads being one of them). We have used all three free nights and in each case we checked in, used the showers, kitchen, and common area and then ended up sleeping in Hippie in the parking lot, returning our unused linens to the slightly confused receptionist the following morning. Yes, Hippie is just that amazing. That next morning Jenn and I checked the surf at several different beaches around Noosa Heads before we gave up on paddling out and hit the highway.
Our next stop was Byron Bay, a town so unashamedly Hippie our camper van struggled to fit in. While parked at the beach for one hour we saw everything from dude roller blading dancers to fire twirlers to bong drum bands and everything in between. We stayed parked along the beach to cook dinner; Australia has awesome free gas BBQ pits at all parks, especially along the beach. Jenn vetoed the roo dogs (kangaroo hotdogs) so I had to settle for beef ones. We stayed at the beach until the moon rose over the cliff putting the lighthouse in its place.
Our next stop was Byron Bay, a town so unashamedly Hippie our camper van struggled to fit in. While parked at the beach for one hour we saw everything from dude roller blading dancers to fire twirlers to bong drum bands and everything in between. We stayed parked along the beach to cook dinner; Australia has awesome free gas BBQ pits at all parks, especially along the beach. Jenn vetoed the roo dogs (kangaroo hotdogs) so I had to settle for beef ones. We stayed at the beach until the moon rose over the cliff putting the lighthouse in its place.
The next morning I rented a wettie and surfed my first Australian wave. The reason Byron Bay, and so many other headlands, get great waves is because they have beaches facing multiple directions so no matter the swell direction or wind, there is a glassy wave waiting on you just around the corner.
While surfing, a huge grey thing momentarily broke the surface no more than 30 yards away. I was frozen in fear. Just a week ago a body boarder was bitten completely in half by a giant great white shark here in Australia and he unfortunately did not survive the injuries. I continued to watch the water for "the fin of doom" trying to decide if I should paddle in as there weren't many other surfers around me. Several minutes later (felt like an hour of suspense) it surfaced again even closer but this time it expelled a breath full of air out of a blow hole, phew it was only a whale. I have never seen a whale while surfing, it about gave me a heart attack.
We spent another day in Byron Bay enjoying the beaches and views around the headland. While wondering around the lighthouse we saw 25+ whales in several different pods cruising the coast.
We spent another day in Byron Bay enjoying the beaches and views around the headland. While wondering around the lighthouse we saw 25+ whales in several different pods cruising the coast.
Leaving Byron Bay we hugged the coast as we continued south stopping at numerous beaches and lookouts.
A few hours into the drive we saw glassy waves peeling in both directions with only one guy out. I snatched my board and paddled out. Don't let the board shorts fool you, the water was c cc ccccold. Jenn opted to lay in the warm sunshine and snap photos than brave the icy waters.
After thawing out we drove a few bays away for lunch on the beach.
We spent the late afternoon wandering the grounds of another light house and watching the dolphins play in the waves from above.
Continuing south along the coast the beaches went from desolate to over crowded, welcome to Sydney.
We made our way to the north side of of Sydney Harbour stopping in several places with great views of the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Sydney started out a bit hectic and stressful because of the traffic, getting lost without a good map, and most of all parking. We would ride around for 30+ minutes looking for an open spot every time we moved Hippie, usually making more than one illegal U-turn to secure it before someone else did.
While on the steps of the Opera house we met up with the four English guys (Matt, Ryan, Ben, and Flo) from our Fraser Island Tour. Ben, who is currently enrolled in the University of New South Whales, suggested we park Hippie in one of the University lots (where we could later sleep in the van) for free and could use the bathrooms and showers at his dorm - Buckets! We drove Ben back to his dorm and we all showered and changed before catching a bus to Kings Cross (center of down town Sydney) where the other English guys were staying in a hostel. We started the night Jenn's favorite way, Dominoes pizza feast - six people, six large pizzas.
While on the steps of the Opera house we met up with the four English guys (Matt, Ryan, Ben, and Flo) from our Fraser Island Tour. Ben, who is currently enrolled in the University of New South Whales, suggested we park Hippie in one of the University lots (where we could later sleep in the van) for free and could use the bathrooms and showers at his dorm - Buckets! We drove Ben back to his dorm and we all showered and changed before catching a bus to Kings Cross (center of down town Sydney) where the other English guys were staying in a hostel. We started the night Jenn's favorite way, Dominoes pizza feast - six people, six large pizzas.
We spent most of the night using the hostels free pool table and Foosball table.
Later that night we decided to go to a few bars to check out the big city's night life. Evidently sandals and shorts are a "no go" in these parts. We were turned down at several bars (two of us weren't up to code) before we got into a swanky bar that the guys frequented previous nights and got to know the bartenders.
The next morning we met Ben at Rose Bay in Sydney Harbour. He is on the University Sailing team, gives beginner lessons, and had two cancellations that morning. While we were readying the boat and hoisting the sails a few people warned us that gale force winds were recorded just north of us and would be blowing through in the next thirty minutes. We decided to go ahead and push out but not go too far out from the bay.
We cruised around the bay with hardly enough wind to keep the sail full; turns out it was the calm before the storm. I was at the helm when Ben shouted "move" and took the reins. The wall of wind was visible as it whipped salt spray across the water. Our boat capsized within seconds. We wrestled it upright and jumped back in only to be capsized again. The winds were gusting up to 60 mph and the direction changed with each blast. At one point Ben and I both only had our feet strapped in and were completely out of the boat, leveraging our body weight to keep the boat from capsizing again. We failed. We ended up having to get towed back into the marina, an unforgettable Sydney Harbour sailing adventure - that is for sure.
We dried off, changed clothes, and headed to Bondi beach to meet Ryan, Matt, and Flo. After a few games of soccer and volleyball we said our good byes to the Englishmen and Sydney to continue the journey southward bound.