A strong wind warning was in place for Hervey Bay for most of the weekend, however this did not deter eight aircraft from making the trip to the Fraser Coast of Queensland. Members of the Hervey Bay Rotary club were on hand to provide transport back to the OutRigger Resort at the Urangan Harbour. This comfortable resort, over looking the marina, was to be our base for this weekend.

The early risers on Saturday morning were disappointed that the strong winds had not abated sufficiently for the whale watching cruise to go ahead but arrangements were made whereby all those who wanted could join the day trip to Fraser Island. A rough ride was in store for the passengers aboard the Fraser Dawn barge, which carried four busses and us across the Sandy Straits to Fraser Island. Secretary Mal, who doesn’t travel well at the best of times, ended up laying flat on the deck looking up at the sky for comfort. Waves were breaking over the bows and spraying over the top of the busses on the lower deck. After a one-hour passage, mostly across the wind, the barge arrived at Moon Point, the designated landing place. Unfortunately it was high tide so the barge was unable to lower the ramp onto the sand and some water needed to be negotiated. The crew organised all passengers to board their respective busses and then to be driven through the water separating us from dry land. The only hitch was that the waves breaking over the lower deck made for a wet trip to the bus door and almost everyone got wet shoes and pants up to the knees.

The bus for our day trip was piloted by Phil a very knowledgable guide who had his work cut out for him traversing the sand tracks in the four wheel drive, multi geared and diff locked bus. Fraser Island is the world’s largest sand island. There is no soil or rock on the island. The only rock is to be found at the very northernmost point and it is this rock which was the foundation for the shifting sands to form the island. Phil slogged the bus over and through the dunes telling us of the history, fauna and flora of the island. First stop was the Yidney Scrub Rainforest. This small but surprising patch of rainforest is home to a vast range of plants including a Kauri pine thought to be 200 years old. A short walk amongst the giant trees was a welcome respite from the bone jarring ride, but it was short lived and another half hour saw us arrive at Happy Valley Retreat, on the east coast of Fraser Island, for a spot of replenishment. Happy Valley is one of three small townships on the island.

After lunch Phil took us northward along the seventy five-mile beach, which is designated as part of Highway One and is subject to all the Queensland road rules. This stretch of beach sees a steady stream of four wheel drive vehicles (the only form of vehicle able to negotiate the sand tracks, there are no made roads on the island), sunbathers and the daily aircraft landings and take offs just to add to the hazards of soft sand, flooded creeks and the ever moving tide for the unwary traveller. It is quite unnerving to be driving along a designated aircraft landing area hoping that there is not a plane about to land on top of the bus from behind.

First stop along the beach is the wreck of the SS Maheno. This vessel was once a luxury liner built in Scotland but in 1935 was washed ashore during a cyclone and has slowly succumbed to the relentless surf. Next stop was the Coloured Sands, an area where the sand has been tinted by various vegetation dyes and decaying matter and minerals. Lines of various colours can be seen where the sand dune has collapsed and exposed it’s inner self. A pleasant stop was made at Eli Creek. This is one of the many fresh water streams that flow out of the dunes to the sea. Many took time to wade through the cool waters. Eli Creek is the largest freshwater creek with a flow rate of 4.5 million litres per hour.

Back into the heart of the Island for a visit to a perched dune lake, Lake Garawongera. These lakes are formed between dunes when vegetation lines the bottom and traps water. A great place to stop for afternoon tea and a muffin. Back into the bus for the last grinding drive back to Moon Point and the barge for the return to Hervey Bay. A great day, lots of fun and a lot of knowledge gained by all. As the arrival back into harbour was after dark a rush was required to be ready for our joint meeting with the three Hervey Bay Rotary Clubs.

Guest speakers for the evening were Alisma and Angus Clark who spoke about Rotary Fellowships in general and some experiences they had while visiting other sections of the IFFR. Another speaker told of his adventure across the USA on a Harley Davidson motorcycle as part of the Motor Cycling Rotary Fellowship, in a bid to raise money for the Polio Plus programme which needed at least 100 million dollars to enable the work to be completed. A pleasant evening of fellowship with people who were genuinly impressed with what a Fellowship like the IFFR could achieve for its members.

Sunday morning saw us all attend the IFFR meeting where general business was conducted including a decision for the next Fly-in in April. 2006. The venue will be Temora NSW. More information as it comes to hand. Ron Grosser is planning an informal Fly-away for May 2006, commencing at Griffith NSW and proceeding to various locations northbound and terminate at Townsville. More information will be available soon, but the idea is that you can join at any stage along the way and also drop off at any stage. The October 2006 Fly-in will be to Horsham VIC.

After the meeting the bus delivered us to the airport where the fellows and ladies of Hervey Bay Rotary Club put on a sumptuous lunch. Thanks to Trevor and Mal for organising the event, and to the Hervey Bay Rotary Club which embraced our visit and made it a very memorable event.