Airlie Beach to Brisbane

Oh wow it really has been a while since we wrote on here - I can promise you we have been using our time wisely though and having lots of fun!! So from Airlie Beach, with the world still swaying slightly, we headed to Mackay where we did a trip out into the Eungella National Park - it was an early start but did mean we saw platypus feeding in the river as well as lots of turtles swimming about, Lizzy also had her first leech experience! The day finished off with a walk through the rainforest to a waterfall where we went for a cold (refreshing) swim - very nice! Next stop, after a long overnight coach was Rainbow Beach, named due to its colourful cliffs. We chilled out here for a few days, heading over to Fraser Island for a day in a 4x4 bus where virtually all the driving is done along the bumpy beaches (sitting up front was definitely an experience). The island was beautiful and we spent the day going for a wander in the only rainforest grown on sand, wading through the rapids-esque Eli Creek, visiting a ship wreck and swimming in the stunning Lake McKenzie where the silica sand meant we left with silky smooth skin!  Back in Rainbow Beach we visited Carlo Sandblow at sunset, a very large sand dune which over time has covered a forest, one end overlooks the colourful cliffs and then, after a steep climb up sand, the other side drops off steeply into more forest land...bit of a strange sight really. Leaving Rainbow Beach, we were on our way to stay with my (Tiff's) godfather, Clive and his wife, Jenny in the mountains outside of Brisbane. Arriving in the dark meant we were in for a surprise when we woke in the morning to stunning views over the Glasshouse Mountains - this was going to be a difficult place to leave! We spent the morning visiting the local town of Dayboro (enjoying tasty muffins and Aussie beers :)), the afternoon attempting archery (under Clives watchful eye and attempting to avoid the wandering wallabies in the garden who I believe must have a death wish standing behind the target when I'm aiming), Lizzy was much better at this than me but I am going to excuse myself that i was attempting it right handed....Anyway, in the evening, we all headed into Brisbane - entering the city by boat and wandering the riverside and night markets and stopping for drinks (we spotted quite a few Movembers going on...), was a lovely evening. The following day we headed to the Glasshouse Mountains, getting the car dirty on the unsealed roads and then going for a walk at the base of one of the mountains..was very hot!! Thankfully on our return to the house we headed straight to the dam at the bottom of their land for a swim (with the resident croc) followed by a tasty BBQ and drinkies. The next day, after feeding the visiting Kookaburra by hand (took a while to get used to Cockatoos and Lorikeets just popping by the balcony in the mornings!) it was time to leave (begrudgingly) and after driving us to Brisbane and wandering around the botanic gardens we said our farewells and we headed onto Byron Bay.