After spending 2 short days going to school, Megan, Mila and I left for Moreton Island. For about the 10th morning in a row, we had to be up at 6 in the morning. Our guide, Brett, picked us up in the 4WD car, heavily equipped to drive on difficult terrain.
4wd
To get to Moreton Island, we had to take an hour and a half ferry ride. The ferry was pretty nice and we got to just sit in the sun and relax.
The three of us on the ferry
When we got to Moreton Island, we realized that the entire thing is made up entirely of sand (hence, the need for a heavy-duty vehicle). The water was a beautiful tourquise color-I'm not sure if you can see it in this picture. Also, the metal pieces sticking out of the water are sucken boats. It's called The Shipwreck Coast, and the boats are there to break up the currents.
Moreton Island/The Shipwreck Coast
Once on the island, we drove to our first stop of the day, sandboarding. The contrast in tophography was so cool. There were huge sandhills right in front of me, but to the sides there were forests, and even further out, the ocean. I felt like I was in a tropical desert, if that makes any sense. Anyway, after climbing the hill (omg sand is so hard to climb), Brett gave us a demonstration of how to wax our boards/the correct position to lay in. For some reason, he chose me to go first! I was a little nervous but couldn't scream because sand would fly in my mouth. As he gave me my starting push, I realized that it's just like sledding in snow! It was pretty fun but the climb back up the hill was hell!
Me and my board-look at all the sand!
And the top of the hill..eek!
That tiny little spec is me at the very bottom!
After sandboarding, we did a "scenic" drive of the island to some great beaches/lookouts. The drive was terrible. It was the bumpiest ride ever and everyone felt carsick. Meg had to put her head down to stop herself from throwing up and by the end of the hour ride, everyone in the car was griping. We spent about an hour and a half at the beach, playing in the water and wating lunch. My swim suit decided to break while I was on the beach, and Mila managed to snap a couple of accidental photos of it. The one below is tilted because she was laughing so hard.
Megan trying to help me get my top back on
Me balancing on a rock in the ocean
Mila and Meg walking around
We left the beach to go see the lighthouse/more beautiful places before taking the day-trippers back to the ferry. Boy were we glad to have done with overnight trip. The people who did the day trip only go about 4 hours on the island because the ferry only leaves once a day at 3pm.
Look closely at the reflection in her glasses
After dropping off the day-trippers, there were only 5 of us left spending the night. We dropped our stuff off at camp and spent the evening together. We cooked dinner, ran to the local store, walked along the beach and had an awesome time. The highlight of the night was when Brett decided he wanted to go fishing. When we turned the corner out of the campsite(in the 4wd), we saw that the tide was so high, that there was only room for one car to drive down the beach. (the 4wd cannot go in the salt water or they will get ruined). So, the ride was incredible! We were dogging waves, driving basically on the sides of the sand hills and it was pitch black! It was like being on a back to the furture ride-it was awesome! When we got to the beach and got out of the car, I saw the most spectacular sky. It will be a moment I will always remember. The lack of light made the hundreds of stars visible in the sky. For the first time, I was able to see the Milky Way. We sat under the stars for about an hour and a half before going back to camp and making a fire. We roasted marshmellows, drank some beers and chilled. It was such an awesome night.
You can get a general idea of what it was like sitting in the back of the car
Mila playing in the water
The sun starting to set
The three of us fighting in the back of the car-Megan didn't realize she was actually choking me here
Awww, the three of us together the next morning