Gurri

Views along 75 Mile Beach.

The pounding surf beneath Indian Head.

The Pinnacles.

The wreckage of the SS Maheno.

Eli Creek and ...

some Aussie Aussie guy cooling off with a beer.

Thursday Janary 5^th

Gurri is the aboriginal name for Fraser Island and means paradise.

We were up by 6:30 for the included breakfast before boarding the bus for the drive further along 75 Mile Beach to its northern end and one of three volcanic outcrops that provided the anchor for the drifting sand that eventually created the island. This outcrop is called Indian Head. We took a short half hour hike to the crest of the hill and were rewarded with spectacular views of the beaches to the north and south of it. From the top we could see Eagle rays swimming in the water below. Keith said that it was a good vantage point to see sharks and whales too at the right season.

This was the northern most point we were going to. Now we turned around and visited a couple of things on the way back. We stopped at the wreckage of the SS Maheno, a luxury liner from the olden days that was commissioned for military use during both wars and then auctioned off to a Japanese company who had it towed. But unfortunately during a storm the line had to be cut and it drifted onto the sandy island of Fraser. They tried to tow it off again but it was permanently mired here. Most of the decks of the ship are buried in the sand and only the superstructure is visible above.

Then we stopped at the Pinnacles which are sandstone structures that are eroding in much the same way as the Badlands. The muti-coloured sand is a result of mineral deposits. In fact before Fraser Island became a World Heritage Site the sand was mined here for the ores in it and the island was intensively logged.

Our last stop was at Eli Creek for another 'swim'. There were lots of other tourists here and most had brought flotation tubes or air mattresses with them to float down the creek. There was a boardwalk that lead a couple of hundred metres into the forest where you could put them into the water and float down to the beach again. The water was again crystal clear and pure. However, the water was only about knee to waist deep and instead of swimming I waded down the creek to cool off.

After that we began our drive back down 75 Mile Beach to the car ferry and then back to Inskip Peninsula and the drive back to Noosa Heads where I picked up my car and drove back to the Sunshine Coast.

I spent the last of the evening talking to Val and Phil about the trip and then headed off to bed.