Driving Fraser Island- Tuesday, February 9 to 10

After numerous discussions on the pros and cons of having our own transport on Fraser Island, Dane and I decided to spring for a 4WD Toyota Hilux truck whom we aptly christened “Bruce.” It turned out to be a great decision and wasn’t that much more expensive than taking an organized two-day tour. And we had that ever-important sense of freedom; something we’ve become quite accustomed to on this road trip!
Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world. At 120 km long, you could spend weeks exploring it. We only had two days and set out a rough itinerary that would lead us past the major tourist attractions and a bit off the beaten path. The beaten path on Fraser is most definitely beaten. A 4WD is the only way you can get around the island because rough, off-road sand tracks traverse the inland sections. The quickest and easiest route is on the eastern beach. However, you can only drive on the beach three hours either side of low tide and have to be careful of wash-outs and soft spots.
We took a short ferry ride over and started out down the never-ending strip of beach. It was quite romantic, seeing the ocean crashing in out Dane’s window and large, shrub-covered sand hills out mine. A few unbelievably skinny dingoes wandered past and we didn’t see a whole lot else for the next 60 km. We made a short stop at the Maheno shipwreck, an old ship that was being pulled to Japan in a cyclone and broke loose. Maheno’s now rusty remains ended up on Fraser’s beach.
Our goal was Indian Head, about 90 km north from the island’s southern tip (where we exited the ferry.) The track ends not far after Indian Head and all the roads are closed on the island’s western shores due to soft sands and conservation areas. Ocean swimming is also off-limits on Fraser as sharks frequent these waters.
The lookout from Indian Head was incredible. It’s always such a great feeling to stand on a cliff and survey the lands around you. The point is composed of sheer rock faces and looking straight down made me a bit queasy but the view was well worth it.
Heading back down the beach, we planned on making a stop at the famous, crystal-clear spring known as Eli Creek then heading to our campsite, Central Station, which is 10 km inland from the beach track. We only had about another hour or so until we had to get off the beach or risk Bruce getting carried into a big wave (an event that would definitely ensure we didn’t get our damage deposit back!) We saw a sign posting to Lake Allom and decided to check it out but soon realized that driving on the inland roads was slower going than expected. The top speed manageable hovers around 20 km/h. We were probably not going to make it back out to the beach and down to Central Station before the tides came in. I surveyed the map and realized there are several inland 4WD tracks that would lead us, in a very roundabout way, to our camping destination. Feeling better, we set off on a journey, relaxed with the knowledge that we would make it to our campsite one way or another.
The drive ended up taking us about seven hours. By the end, our bums were tender to say the least and Dane had gotten loads of practise traversing logs, holes, steep climbs and deep sand. The road led us through dense, green rainforest on a steep, dug out track which turned into pine tree forests, then scrub land. Bruce climbed up to the island’s high point and brought us safely back down closer to sea level. We stopped at a lookout for a massive sand blow and heeded warnings of dangerous dingoes in the area. We stopped to cook dinner right on the track because there was really nowhere else to do it and batted off horseflies the size of my thumb. We met one other vehicle the entire time and tried not to think about how long it would take someone to find us if Bruce broke down. And we listened to country tunes blaring out of Dane’s PSP.
We arrived with a whoop of excitement at Central Station around 10 p.m. and promptly set up our tent. While most of our bedding and pillows had gotten wet from a spilled water container, we were just happy to have made it to our destination. I used to sleep on the ground while camping with friends but haven’t had the luxury of doing so in quite a few years and I can’t say my body thanked me for it. I awoke in the morning to see that we were surrounded once again by the gorgeous, towering trees of a rainforest. It looked sunny overhead but it was extremely hard to tell through all the foliage.
We arrived at Lake Mackenzie, Fraser’s most popular place and for good reason, first thing in the morning. The lake is an indescribable shade of blue and the water is the clearest I have ever seen. The bottom is covered in silky white sand which does little to disguise your toes which can be seen easily through the water. I decided to swim across the lake and loved looking down at my hands paddling through the indigo depths at the lake’s center. I’ve never seen water like this before and we stayed a few hours until the tourist buses started to pour in.
Next stop was Lake Wabby, a deep water-hole home to catfish and turtles. On Wabby’s north-eastern side, a massive sand blow is slowly encroaching on the water at a rate of 3 m per year. After, we headed for Eli Creek and walked along the clear stream that leads out to the ocean, taking photos and watching for water snakes.
Unfortunately, the trip had come to an end and we had to get back down to the southern end of Fraser before high tide and with enough time to catch the ferry. We both agreed Lake Mackenzie was the highlight of the trip and that renting the reliable Bruce was the best decision.