Feeding the dolphins at Tin Can Bay and Fraser Island Day 1
Posted by Sarah O'Neill , Saturday, 16 April 2011 02:50
On Sunday morning we packed up the tent and drove to Tin Can Bay, a small little place we had not planned to go to, but as we had extra time and we found out there were wild dolphins there regularly we thought we'd stop for a night. Ended up raining badly again, so it was great to see a cheap cabin available when we arrived. Spent a bit of time exploring, and had sausages, eggs and chips from the chip shop, which were the best Ben ever had! Had an early night as we were getting up super early to go and feed the dolphins. Got up at 6.30am and we were down at the tiny beach area for 7am to see the dolphins, who were already there! There were about 6 other people there and the rangers supervising. 
These dolphins are Indo-Pacific and live in rivers mouths and esturies. There were three dolphins. We were not allowed to touch them, but we could put our hands out and if they touched us that was fine. The dolphins seemed more interested in people at the other end of the group which was a shame, but it was amazing to see them so close and be so near to them. It got a lot busier as the time went on, and feeding was at 8am. By then lots of people had turned up, but we were at the front with the best view! There was a little talk by the ranger, and then if you wanted to feed one it was $5 for a bucket with a couple of fish, so I jumped in the queue! It was great to be able to feed one, as I had not been picked when we were at Monkey Mia in Western Australia. Feeding it was great, being so close to the dolphin was amazing! Ben got some good pics for me! After the dolphin trip we headed back and packed up the car to drive to Rainbow Beach.
We had an early start and made it to the pancake breakfast which was nice. We put our big bags in the storage lock up and met as a huge group outside. The weather was looking good, and after a briefing we were told to check the contents of the car against the list, and collect our food 
supplies for our group and check the car over etc. It was very hectic, but we managed to get sorted and then it was time to get on the road. There were 7 cars, two driven by guides, and then the others driven by the occupants, luckily we did not have a driver so we could all take turns! Ben was happy to drive first, and 
the others were happy to let him, so he was the brave one! It was funny to be driving with gears again! It was a short drive to the ferry, and a ten minute crossing, at which point it started to rain! Fraser Island is the world's largest sand island. So the minute Ben drove off the ferry he was driving on the sand! We drove along the beach which was pretty cool!! Our first stop was at Eli Creek, and was one of the only real toilets on the island, so we all made use of that! Eli Creek was beautiful clean water running down to the ocean, Ben went for a swim, you walk 
along the edge of the creek up to a bridge and then get in, and follow it all the way to the beach. The weather was a bit iffy, raining one minute, sun coming out the next! Next we drove to a camp ground, which was pretty basic, a toilet block (no hot water) and an undercover area with picnic tables. The guides took us there to have lunch as it was undercover and it was raining! They also suggested we stay there that evening as the undercover area would be good for cooking dinner under and the weather wasn't looking good. We all agreed and paid an extra $2 each. Lunch was a fun affair, bascially each group got out there food and equipment and did lunch like little families on a picnic! Kim, Ben and I got stuck in, but the boys kind of just sat there and didn't really know what to do, so we sliced veggies and got it all sorted, and all ate together! We had very tasty roast beef, cheese and salad sandwiches!
After lunch we went to a place called Champagne Pools, pools of sea water made by rock 
formations. The weather had turned quite bad at this point so I did not fancy a dip in the sea! Ben of course went in and enjoyed a swim, at which point I considered whether I should get in, but when he got out and was very cold I was glad I hadn't gone in!!! After that we
went up to a headland called Indian Heads. We had to climb up to the top, and the views of the sand dunes were awesome!!! Kim had a go at driving and Lamine (German) and Sircan (Swede). We headed back to the camp ground and set up our tents, trying to pick the flatest smoothest ground as we only had sleeping bags and nothing else to lie on! Then all the groups got busy making dinner. Each group got together on a picnic table and got all their equipment from the trailer, and the food supplies. We started to prepare dinner, which was steaks, potato salad and green salad. Everyone was getting stuck in, except the two German lads. They were both 19, and you could tell they just expected everyone else to do everything for them, one was particularly worse than the other! I confronted him and said if he wanted to eat dinner, he had better come and help us all, and he still didn't bother. He came over after a bit and Ben and Kim and I realised we would just have to dish out jobs and tell them what to do, or else they would do nothing! So that's basically how it went after that, we played mummy and daddy to them, and told them what needed to be done!
After dinner everyone began drinking and playing cards and drinking games which was great fun. Our group ended up gelling a lot more which was good and we had a great evening! The guy who owned the
camp came and told us that the lights would go out at 10pm and we would have to be quiet after that, so most of us went down to the beach for a beach party! Had a really good night! Ben and I staggered back to the camp, both a bit merry! Ben had seen some posh looking permanent tents nearby, and had a look inside a few and they were empty. They had proper beds off the floor with mattresses and everything! They had obviously been used and not made up for the next guests, so we grabbed out sleeping bags and had a great night's sleep! We set out alarm very early to get up before anyone so they wouldn't spot where we'd been!
Post a Comment