Entries about thunder cats

14 January 2020- Wildlife
After a hectic few days on Fraser we took the day fairly easy; starting off by rearranging our bags and charging devices, this has now become common practice on check out day. Once satisfied we headed to check out Noosa National Park in search of the Fairy Pools and keeping our fingers crossed for Koalas!

Our wildlife hunt started well with us spotting a school of dolphins mere minutes into our walk. This was the first time either of us could recall seeing these in the wild. There were between 6-8 dolphins swimming not too far from shore and we tracked their progress as we trekked along the coastline. Well this was until a large group of people starring at a tree distracted us. Matt (our Fraser guide) had told us this was a popular spot for kaola spotting so we got excited. After about 10 minutes glaring at the tree tops without seeing anything I noticed a pair of fluffy ears poking out into the skyline. It was a little napping kaola!! I couldn't believe it. We had heard that it was rare to see kaolas in the wild and after all the bush fires and the fact we were not going into the forrest we kind of resigned ourselves to the fact we wouldn't see one outside a sanctuary. But here he was! I've no idea how the first person saw him as he was so well camouflaged into the trees but I was so happy to see his little outline and we stopped for around 25 minutes to just gawk at him. Feeling chuffed we gave up our prime viewing spot to locate the Fairy Pools.

The weather was really random with rain spells interrupting a really sunny and hot day. We stumbled across the pools during one of these rainy spells. While I'm sure the weather didn't help we were pretty underwhelmed by the pools. They were basically just two small rock pools filled with overflowing sea water. The backdrop of uninterrupted sea was cool and made them like infinity pools but we weren't feeling a dunk.

Instead we went to try some more koala hunting. Although this proved to be a little hazardous as looking up at trees meant you weren't looking for rocks that were lurching to trip you up! Unfortunately we didn't manage to spot any other ones but the good thing was that the one we saw earlier was still in the same location and had moved down a little. After getting some cool photos he then had a little stretch and clambered down the tree for some food. It was magical watching him. And I feel sure he knew everyone was watching and was just showing off! He really was cute and we could have watched him all day but we needed to get back for our bus... Which we had already left the timing fairly fine resulting in a brisk walk back! How does this airways happen!

Loaded up it was time for another overnight bus to Airlie Beach in preparation for our Whitsundays trip. The four 18 year olds we had adopted on Fraser were also on the same bus which provided some laughs and extra conversation. As with all the bus rides we've had it was fairly uneventful. Well that was until we got to one of the service station stops, where out the corner of my eye while awaiting the toilet I noticed an odd movement. It was not a natural looking movement or anything I'd seen before and peering through the darkness without my glasses on I could not be sure what I had seen. Well not until the movement happened again and I overheard someone whisper that there was a kangaroo there! Grabbing Iz we both looked out waiting for it to move again. Which sure enough it did and appeared under the street lamps next to a busy road with a baby Joey in toe. It was not something we expected, especially against the back drop of a petrol station, and it was like nothing we had ever seen! It was wonderful and really topped off a great wildlife spotting day! 3 stereotypically Australian animals in the wild ticked off in one day... Not bad!

Stepping off the bus at 9.30am at Airlie was like stepping into a sauna! The heat just encompassed you and made us instantly begrudge the walk to the hostel we knew was coming. A hostel representative had come down to lead the way. Although this was bittersweet. As on the one hand it meant we wouldn't get lost and would take the most direct route... Yet on the other hand it meant we would not be able to set our own pace. Dripping in sweat (much like now as I write this) and in a fair degree of pain we ploughed forward to the hostel.

15 January 2020- Worry

When we arrived feeling disgusting we were told we that we couldn't check in until 2pm. Although fairly common it's still annoying. Despite this we thought we would try our luck as sometimes rooms are available a little early. And boy were we in luck! She did let us check in and upgraded us to a private room!! Things like this do not happen to us and we were revelling in it. The room was a large four bed family room with a double bed, air con, a fridge and it's own bathroom! Now this may not sound like much but when you are used to staring a room with around 6 other people and often a bathroom with a greater amount this was luxury! Plus it was nice just to be able to spread out and walk around without clothes which in this heat was a dream! After a shower to freshen up and cool down we headed to explore the town and grab lunch.

Lunch was a huge tasty pizza that was large enough to have the leftovers for lunch. We also had a chat to the pizza chef and things were all going well. Obviously with us this was about to come crashing down. The hostel was massive and beautiful with two pools we headed to one, again in an attempt to cool down. This was futile though as the pool water must have been about 18 degrees, so it felt like a warm bath! Back at the room looking to book our flight our flight into Japan was when disaster struck! We couldn't find the debit card! We had taken it to reception earlier as they had wrongly charged us for the upgrade sand we needed to reverse it. But neither of us could remember when we last had it. After a mad panic looking everywhere we resided ourselves to the fact it was gone, but hoping it would have been handed in when checking in the morning. It really put a dampener on things. Which was a shame as everything had been going so well. Crestfallen we packed a bag for our trip the next day and headed to bed.

16 January- Whitsundays

After checking at reception and still no sign of the card we put it to the back of our minds ready to enjoy our day trip. Once measured for a wet suit and after signed our lives away in disclosures we were on the boat. It was another scorcher of a day and we were pleased for the breeze as the speedboat bounced over the sea. It was a ridiculously calm day on the water, so much so the surface looked like a mirror.

We reached our first snorkel spot and wow it was incredible. By far the best place either of us have ever snorkeled. There were fish everywhere and they were so brightly coloured. Although it is really difficult to see on the camera. You could get so close to them! Our big ambition was to a turtle, however we didn't get so lucky. Back in the boat it was off to the next snorkel spot. The diversity of fish at this stop was lesser but here they were permitted to feed the fish meaning there were just streams of fish everywhere. When the food hit the water if you were close you would literally be caught in a fish tunnel. It's experiences like this that are so hard to actually describe and the reason you need to travel and experience these things first hand.

With a lunch in our bellies and on a little high it was time to stop at Hill Inlet and view the famous Whitehaven beach! This has to be the most beautiful beach you will ever see! It looks like it has been made on a computer and no photo does it's beauty justice. Something else special about this beach is that it looks completely different every day, as the sand swirls in different ways. So only the people that visited on the same day as us will have the unique photos we have of this location. It is difficult to comprehend that nature has made this place. It honestly looked like everyone's perception of paradise. Another interesting fact is that the sand here is the purest and finest in the world! It is 98.9% pure silica sand. In comparison the sand at Lake McKenzie is around 60% and this place has the second purest silica sand in the world! As at Lake McKenzie the sand was great for exfoliating your body, washing your hair and buffing up any gold jewellery. The below photos are not enhanced in any way, yet they still don't capture what you saw. Seriously stunning!

Although it was great to view the sand and sea from above it was so hot we just wanted to run down and get in the water. Yet again though the water wasn't really as cool as you'd like yet still refreshing. It really was a brilliant day and along with Fraser up there with the best things we have done in Australia.

Next stop an overnight bus to Cairns!