Well, after spending two weeks surrounded by all that nature has to offer, the contrast couldn't have been more striking as we approached the Gold Coast! Initially, we were quite excited about making it to Queensland and the improvement in the roads was noticeable almost immediately. Our excitement soon turned to horror as we drove through the streets looking for a caravan park. We had stopped in Byron Bay for lunch and thought that that was busy!
We ended up pitching our tent (one of only two in the park) beneath two towering apartment blocks in an area near the only remnant of natural bushland in Burleigh Heads. Ironically, in pride of place in the office was a picture, showing the same park in the 1950s, covered in tents, with the beach and the bush in the background. Perhaps once, it was a place to come for a holiday.
We had dinner with my cousin and his young family and the following day, set off for Tin Can Bay. We passed through Maryborough and Nambour and were surprised to see train tracks passing right alongside the main streets. We began to see more and more sugarcane fields and pulled over to watch the trucks loading a train.
In Tin Can Bay we stayed in a caravan park that felt like it hadn't been changed since the 1970s and enjoyed exploring the mud flats while the tide was out. In the morning we hand fed the dolphins (for $5!) and were in shorts at 1030am! The weather had definitely begun to change.
From there we drove to our next farm stay near Agnes Waters and although the surrounding beaches were stunning, the dusty, sandy, cattle farm that we pulled into was far removed from the previous farm stay.
We enjoyed our time with Richard and BJ the dog and his cattle that came freely to the car or front door and met a couple more German backpackers. There was plenty of hard work to do, but made easier with visits to the surf beach in the afternoons. Our last night was spent at the 1770 caravan park, our tent pitched right on the beach! We enjoyed freshly caught fish and hot chips on the headland and watched the sunset from the comfort of our car. After dark, we chatted to family on the phone to the sound of a crackling fire and waves in the distance.
We set off reasonably early for another unplanned day and a spare-of-the-moment decision to follow the signs to the Rockhampton Botanic Gardens, led us to an amazing playground for the girls under towering Kauri pines. We ended up spending several hours there, wandering through the Banyan figs, exotic fruit trees and the zoo - complete with bird aviary, chimpanzees and dingoes - all free! With not much of the day left, we decided to stay near Emu Park and pitched our tent at another fantastic site... unfortunately ruined by the noisy campers next door, who have left us desperately hoping that not all Rockhampton residents enjoy burping, farting, drinking and smoking (in between bursts of violent coughing) until the wee hours of the morning!
We were up with the Kookaburras and after seriously considering egging their tent or telling Matilda she could yell as loud as she liked, we packed up as quickly as was humanly possible, determined not to let them ruin our experience of Emu Park. Brekky by the beach, a visit to the singing ship and the spectacular 'Shell World' was exactly what was required. We had a great time marvelling at the collection of more than 20,000 shells and it was nearly lunchtime before we set off for our next goal of Sarina.
We didn't quite make it. Everyone was feeling a bit ratty and after lunch at Marlborough, we encountered some signs to a caravan park at Clairview and decided to follow them. What a find! Nestled right on the foreshore on a largely untouched stretch of beach was a very authentic, no frills, u-beaut Aussie caravan park, complete with a bar serving beer and the main meal for the night? Corned beef and veges!
Ben got right into the swing of things and cracked open his first coconut that had washed up on the beach, but not before the conversation with Rob (from Newstead!) and some fishing (which only resulted in a snag).
A minor mishap involving a tent peg and a water pipe was averted with the help of two permanent residents 'Bunga'and 'Bill' (neither of which looked like they had shaved or worn shoes for the last 35 years) and we set off the next morning for lunch at Mackay.
Mackay seemed like a town on the move and overall we were impressed with our short visit, but it only convinced us more, that we are really enjoying the small towns - the less commercialised, the better. It is only then that we feel we are experiencing the 'real' Queensland and the characters that call it home.
One of the observations we have made is that, for all their rough exteriors - faces hardened by sun and tragedy and sheer hard work, the men that work the land or live closely with their natural environments seem, paradoxically, to be more open with their feelings and sharing their stories, than some of those we've encountered in our everyday lives. Is it, we wondered, that we model our own behaviour on what is around us? That, in a modern, electronic, mechanical world, we see death or loss or emotions as 'failure' or 'malfunctions' that need to be fixed, rather than a normal, natural cycle of life. Maybe. Or is it just that we have more time to listen?