Groovin'

Some of our room mates!

June and I with the spirits we won
from the SES (state emergency
service)
 

"Verte", resident gecko we would
watch from the living room patio door

Yes we are in tropical North Queensland, but we’re not talking about the Bob Marley type of grooving’.  The groove we got into was the “work” groove.  Amanda jumped right into the dental assistant pattern, and Nick was in the right place at the right time and was invited to join the maintenance team at Flightech for three months.  To soften the morning routine we decided to move out of the caravan park and into a share house.  This allowed us a few creature comforts and gave us some extra room to stretch our legs.  Every day in the house made the van seem smaller and smaller.  Along with the shower and much needed A/C came a complete kitchen to help mix up the backpacker diet.

1300Smiles team

Flightech team

While we were working hard we did take time out on the weekends to see Cairns and the area. Here are only a few of the things that makes Cairns and area such a great place to live:

The lagoon off the Esplanade
at night

Just a short distance from the apartment was the main street, The Esplanade.  Lining the quaint town were more gelato than one city could support, souvenir shops, as well as the spectacular night markets open till 11pm were you could find everything from kangaroo skin rugs to faux pearls. Along the shore line is the famous lagoon, where you can swim all year round, sans jelly fish.

The Pyramid 

Walshes Pyramid: 20 mins south of Cairns in Gordonvale is the highest freestanding natural pyramid in the world at 922 m tall.  For us it was a very steep 5hr round trip. Reaching the top you are rewarded with a 360 degrees panorama view of Cairns and the Coral Sea. But you wont see us in the august annual race for shortest time to run up and down the famous mountain.

Barron Falls

Just 25k northwest of Cairns is the mountain retreat village of Kuranda surrounded by the World Heritage wet tropics rainforest. It includes about twelve hundred species of flowering plants, eight hundred of which are rain forest trees. Not far from the village is the Barron Falls boardwalk and lookout. Beautiful!


Again high in the Tablelands, surrounded by the lush rainforest is Babinda Boulders, a popular attraction, the creek is lined with huge boulders and clear fresh water weaves between the obstacles to fill large pools where you can swim. Signs lined the boardwalks warning to enjoy the view but in certain places not to swim. So craving a swim we headed to Josephine Falls in Wooroonooran National Park. The waters of Josephine Creek plunge over granite boulders forming a turbulent waterfall at the base of Queensland’s highest mountain, Bartle Frere (1,622m). Surrounding the falls is mesophyll vine forest, the most complex rainforest type in Australia. We enjoyed sliding down the perfect natural made water slide.
Just recently we spent the night out a Lake Tineroo, one of the three man made lakes in the Tablelands. We have been lucky to see many sunsets in Australia so far and this one was a another great to add to the list. Nothing less spectacular was the sunrise, with fog a blanket over the lake and even frost on the van! That morning we met a man and his wife from Perth traveling Australia just like us. He was excited to show us the giant Barramudi (considered the premier fresh water fish to catch in Australia). The lake, being only stalked and quite a young lake, he was sure this fish was one of the originals put there for fishing!

Birdwing butterfly

So, almost 3 months have passed in Cairns. Great people from all over the world we have met. We have been so fortunate to both have great jobs at the same time, and that we were needed for such a short time. Each day we have taken something for what we have learned, living the good life here in Tropical North Queensland. No worries.

But before we say our sad good bye, there was one thing we had to do: get our Padi Open Water Dive certificates. Hearing Pro Dive had a great reputation, great value and good instructors, we needed to hear no more. As a treat, we saved it until we both had finished working. This was a good idea because we could totally focus on the 2 day in class, 3 day on the reef course. Our first day we met Jack, our dive instructor who would be with us throughout the whole course.  We started with basic skills in the pool like breathing and equalizing our ears.  Later we would put them into practice out at the reef like letting water into your mask which for everyone was uncomfortable. Taking off your mask fully was apart of that skill as well, and at 14 meters its no ones favourite.  Amanda got the Nick name ‘weight belt’ because she during a exercise were we had to take our belts off in the pool, she dropped hers, after that the nick name stuck.

curious nemo

Giant clam

  Practicing a emergency situation we exchanged regulators, we were taught buoyancy, putting your BCD (buoyancy control device) and air tank/valves together. Also extras like towing your buddy and cramp removal etc. Among these things were extensive in class knowledge. That was great but we couldn’t wait to get out on the reef and see the incredible underwater world. Sailing 3 hours north of Cairns to Milnn and Flynn Reefs, we were totally immersed in diving for the next 3 days.  The rough schedule would look something like:  Wake up 5:45am. Dive. Breakfast. Dive. Lunch. Dive. Nap.  Snorkel. Snack. Supper, and on the 2nd day a night Dive. The night dive was a wonderful calm atmosphere, not like any of us had imagined. With our torches we explored in our group of 9 what life was like after dark. By now we had become very comfortable in our gear and our surroundings. All our dives lasted around 35-45 minutes. As we were coming to the end of dive we still hadn’t seen a shark, but just as we were doing our safety stop a peaceful white tip reef shark slowly swam by. Amazing!
 It was almost unbelievable, even on our down time snorkelling we couldn’t believe what we could see just floating. Giant ‘bomies‘ of coral created different passageways on our first dive as certified divers. Always diving in pairs, we were briefed on the ’Tennis Courts’, a lining of huge coral formations (the bomies). Different tunnels allowed for neat explorations. We waved at our friends, you can smile with a regulator in your mouth!   It felt as though we were swimming in a fish tank you might find in your local dentist waiting room.

Already certified divers doing up
grade courses-navigation

So on completing our open water, we decided to take advantage of the deep dive course (certifying you to 30m)  which for a small cost was extra and we thought we should because we were already on the boat! Going down to a total of 25 m, colors change- Jacks bracelet went from bright red to dark purple. We even opened a pop can to see the effects of pressure. What do you think happened?Sights include but were not limited to: Clown fish complete with anemones, barracuda, 3 different green turtles, Christmas tree worms, parrot fish, a giant Maori wrasse named “Wally”, sea cucumbers and so much more.

Coming back into Cairns harbor the view was amazing, the mounatins and quaint shoreline you cant take your eyes away. We really were sad to be back on land and soon have to leave Cairns. Not to mention the 24 hr which really turned out to be 3 days, of dizziness you experience from being on the boat. That night off the boat we had dinner and drinks at a hot spot on the Esplanade with all our diving buddies. We shared our stories and had some great laughs.  Now we can dive with any other certified diver up to 30m anywhere in the world and it never expires! It will no doubt be a highlight of our trip.

Sully (the van) has expressed his enthusiasm to get back to the open road.  With a renovated “kitchen” and an overhauled carburetor he is sure to be a loyal companion.  He’s pointing his nose towards Darwin.  We will tag along for the ride.  We’ll leave you with our new motto: “divers are great under pressure”

Well, after a great stay at the resort in Bundaberg we were refreshed and ready for the road once again.  We say goodbye to air conditioning and a queen size bed, and “hello old friend” to the open road.  The drive wasn’t much to see when we first started out and even when we arrived in the Town of 1770 it was again one of those small Aussie towns you could bat an eye at and miss it.


The Town of 1770 is one of only a few places in Australia where the sun sets in the west over the water. The historical legacy of European settlement is rich in 1770, marking the site where Captain Cook stepped ashore. 


After visiting the info center of 1770 we experienced our first taste of Mamino ice cream (possibly the best) and ‘least melty’(which is a criteria of Amanda‘s!) ice cream we have ever had, we were told of a few places to visit while in 1770. 
The main look out is a peninsula nestled into the western side of Rodds peninsula surrounded on three sides by the Coral Sea and Bustard Bay had magnificent coastal views. The lookout was spectacular. Standing on the peninsula surrounded by the endless ocean clear blue sky’s was wonderful, even saw pelicans watching for fish. We stayed three nights at the beautiful spot. We parked the van to camp for the night in the small parking lot at the tip of the peninsula lookout. One unforgettably clear, warm, night there we laid on the ground and looked at the stars, while listening to our one and only neighbour play his guitar. That was an amazing feeling. 


 12 kilometres to the south,  is the small town of Agnes Waters.  Mainly just a small marina, some shops and what seemed to be the one and only attraction,  “Scooteroo” (“the Original and the Best Chopper ride in Australia”). Well, we were excited because were else can two people ride a chopper for $80 for 3.5 hours and see some breathtaking views? We had a blast and not only did we have a fun ride (not a real Harley by the way…) but we got to see 1770 peninsula in a different view-a breathtaking sunset. 


After thoroughly enjoying our stay in 1770-Agnes Waters we hit the road again because we had booked a sailing tour for 3 days two nights to the WhitSunday Islands! We are so excited. So many people had told us of their wonderful experiences sailing to the famous islands. When we got to Airlie Beach we were early by 3 days, which made us even more anxious and excited. The morning we went we were all packed and arrived early at our meeting point at the marina where Summer Time, our sailboat, was waiting! We met Sam, our dive instructor and 13 other new friends we would be having a blast with for our official Great Barrier reef dive, sail and kayak! 


We boarded and then met the other two crew members, Brad (the captain) and Britta our ’hostie’. Brad introduced himself and told us we were in for a treat because we had picked the best sailing and adventure boat to tour the islands. We learned various rules of the boat.  The main ones to remember were: no wet suits downstairs, no excessive drinking, etc and no ’wings, strings or things’ down the toilets!

 Also 1 minute showers were only permitted per person each day.  Brad explained that there were no rules stopping you from gambling your one minute over a friendly game of poker, or saving up two days worth for a double length shower!  So we were off!! 2.5 hours later, aboard the 70ft traditional oiled timber sail boat, crystal clear views on a perfect 30+ day, a little choppy at times, brought us to our first destination: the world renowned White Haven Beach (a protected island just north of Airlie beach, nestled amongst many other islands)

 We had got to know everyone on the sail over and what a great group of young people we all were. Nick and I had huge smiles for the days to come. What was said to be overcast, rainy weather so far had turned out to be crystal blue skies and perfectly hot temperatures. A dream come true. At White Haven we put on the thing we would be wearing most of the time for the next 3 days-our wet suits! A short walk through the dense forest brought us to a lookout.  From there we could see over the magnificent silica sand, and water that took on many shades of green, dark and light blue. All of us were speechless, it looked just like a post card. We all went swimming with our suits on, these are worn because its jelly fish season. The sand was incredible, so fine. We spent a couple hours there and waded in very shallow warm, but cool refreshing water. We even saw sting rays! 

Nick and friend from Ontario playing
a strategy game after dinner 

Later back on the boat Sam briefed us for the next day-diving and snorkelling! We had a lot of questions about our 9 meter dive, but Sam was a great teacher and patiently listened and explained everything. We all woke up early as we were spending the whole day anchored at Lucheon Bay exploring the reef! And what another beautiful day we woke up to! Nick and I were definitely excited and a little nervous about our first dive but Sam was a great teacher and made us feel comfortable and confident! Nick, myself and two other first timers were the very last group to go, that way we got to take in the snorkelling and get used to that before the diving. Right after jumping into the water we could see coral of such bright colours, schools of fish of all different shapes and patterns that we had only seen on TV. We were instantly amazed and couldn’t get enough. We couldn’t wait to go diving. After we got fitted with proper weights and got our BCD vests on, we were ready to go to the beach and do our in water practice test. There Sam taught us our hand signals, how to breath and how to resume breathing under water in case your mouth piece comes out. Also he told us how it was important to try not to hit your fins against any coral as everything is living!!!!

 That day we did 2 dives and couldn’t get enough. Another follow first timer asked the crew if she could just do one more dive very early in the morning on the 3rd day (our last day). Sam asked Brad, the captain and then asked us if we wanted to go. He told us early morning dives were amazing. He was right!  By the time we got into the water it was 5:30 am and what a great way to start the day. After our dive we came back and had breakfast. Oh I forgot to mention how great the food was, so much variety, and always fresh. We really were spoiled all around on this trip. 

Ok, so the last day was our kayaking. Sam lead us as we paddled in our rafts of two, just around the corner of were we had anchored each night at Hook Island. There he told us some history on the formation of the islands. We also saw our first mangrove tree. A very interesting tree which root systems are buried in the sand at sometimes deep levels of water close to tropical shore lines.

After the kayaking we had to go back to Airlie beach. Many sad faces were seen on the boat then because we all had had such a great time. All and all, we saw sting rays, a sea eagle, a giant turtle swimming, dolphins eating bright orange squid after dinner the first night, and many different fish,(including Dori and Nemo) the brilliant coloured coral, and a crown of thorns star fish. Spectacular!  


Our time aboard the ship Summer Time will be something we will never forget and it will be one of the highlights of our trip here in Australia for both of us . We made great friends. We shared the incredible first time experience of not only diving but diving the Great Barrier Reef. We got to experience nature in a way that may not be seen the same in the future. Incredible.

From here we will continue north.  Destination: Cairns.  We are under a tight schedule as Amanda has a job starting in two days.  With 800+km to roll over sully will get little rest.  Nick will start his job hunt right away.  What we earn over the next few weeks will have to serve us until we reach western Australia some 6000+km away.  It will be strange going getting back into a full time position as it is at this point that “routine” no longer fits into our routine. 

Two upside-down’s make a right-side-up

That’s right, turn something on the other side of the world upside down and its right side up to a Canadian.  That’s how the two of us look at it anyhow.  By this logic, that means that a good portion of a joy flight Nick took recently was done “right side up”.

We were both very anxious when YAK 52 pilot ,Peter, pulled up in his golf cart at the Bundaberg Airport and escorted  us to his hanger.  Ready and waiting was a polished, 9 cylinder radial, Russian trainer aircraft.  Peter went over a few safety procedures and had Nick jump into a flight suit.  They paused for a few “before” pictures and wasted no time getting in and synching down their shoulder straps.  The engine came alive and settled into a deep growl.  If Harleys had cousins that flew they would sound like this.  Peter taxied down to the end of a grass strip and did a quick high RPM run-up.  They turned back to face the hanger and the YAK’s voice went from a growl to roar.  The nose came up followed by the to main wheels, and it seemed like only a second had passed before they shot almost vertically into the cloudless sky.  It wasn’t long before they were a tiny black speck, and then just an invisible hum.  In the rear seat with the canopy closed Nick could still hear the wind howling over the airframe.  After a quick warning Peter pulled back on the stick, pointing them vertical again, and held it back taking them inverted, then facing the ground and finally, with the YAK forcing them into their seats back to the usual “blue on top” configuration.  Testing out Nicks belt tightening skills Peter swung the stick left  rolling them slowly as if they were in a drying machine rather than an aircraft.  They headed for the coast near to where we have been staying and just so Nick wouldn’t have anything obscuring the view, Peter did the majority of the sightseeing upside down.  After hearing that Nick had flown before Peter handed over the controls.  They did a few simple exercises (for Peter) like (very) steep turns and a couple rolls.  They flew a navigation exercise inverted and even practiced a Hammerhead or two.  They flew back to the Airstrip and did a couple low and over’s for Amanda’s camera on the ground and Nick (with Peters guidance) brought the YAK back to earth.  Smiling and a little white Nick took off the straps and stepped out for a few “after” photos.  Peter presented Nick with some gear and jotted down his info to send him a DVD of the experience.  It turns out that Peter had taped the whole thing from inside the cockpit.  Should make for an entertaining movie to watch when we get back.  Also since Peter is also a flight instructor in his spare time Nick was able to log the time/training in his records (every little bit counts).  Though both Nick and the plane are on the ground it seems like his head will remain in the clouds for days to come.    

As a warm up to the flying adventure we took in an aviation museum dedicated to the world famous local Bert Hinkler.  It was a tribute to his life spent building, flying, and inventing flying machines.  He was the most famous for his solo trips flown from England to Australia.  He was is/was a local legend and even has a song written for him.  The tours concludes with a tour of Hinkler’s (actual) home relocated to the park just outside the museum.  It was a great story showing how once you catch the bug (called Aviation) it can be very hard to get rid of.

A stay in Bundaberg is not complete without a tour of the world famous Bundaberg Rum and Gingerbeer distillery.  These are two separate entities, but together they form another legendary beverage the “dark and stormy”.  This is a premixed drink, combining both their gingerbeer and rum, which they assure us is something that the public came up with.  The guided tour took us through the whole process from sugar to molasses to fermentation to ageing to the bottle.  They also let us in on a secret.  This secret being that they ship their rum in milk trucks as to fool any potential rum bandits.  The only difference on the truck is it is required by law to have a flammable sticker on the back.  So next time you see a milk truck, check it for fine print, it could be a rum runner.  The tour ended with a few sample on the house.  They had all the options you could get at the any local bottle shop, but also had a few blends exclusive only to the bond store.  The ginger beer factory tour also ended with a sampling.  Instead this time you were encouraged to try all 14 flavours.  By the end of it Nick was feeling a bit sugar sloshed.  After sleeping off the sugar, we packed up Sully and pointed him North to Airlie Beach.

Relax, its Queensland!

Yes! A week at a resort!! Thanks mum!
After a much need break from our 10 week stint of working with the Segways we checked into Don Pancho resort on the beautiful Kelly beach in Bargara QLD 10 mins from Bundabergs CBD.

Ahhhh like a breath of fresh air we immediatly took in our studio suit for the week. A queen size bed, bathroom which can be accessed at any time just feet away quickly became a luxury.  Quite often you would be wide awake when you return from the hike we sometimes had to do for a midnight bathroom run. Included on our list of new luxuries were: kitchen with stove top and microwave, full fridge with freezer, (yaa ice cream!) and TV with cable. Amazing what a treat the little things had become.

Friday: We checked in, exploded our things all over the room. Saturday: relaxed and went for a walk around the area. Great beaches, some of the last ones to swim and surf at before we get farther up north where swimming is to dangerous because of the jelly fish.

Sunday: we took in Bargaras local united church where we where welcomed by the retirement community locals. We talked to almost everyone, over coffee and treats, they had so many questions for us. Us being the youngest ones there, they where interested in our adventure. Many had been to Canada when they where younger and of course had wonderful things to say. We said "good bye" and where even given a jar of jam-Jaboticaba cherry!!
Monday: It took almost the whole day to do the last blog entry as we had lots to catch up on. We also went to the beach and enjoyed the empty pool, as most of our older guests usually where reading in their suits or taking beach walks.This we found to be the trend for the week, which was great to have a pool to ourselves and a quiet stay.

Nick shoulder deep in Mitsubishi

 Tuesday: We wanted to go to an aviation museum but Sully (the van) had a different plan. After just leaving our parking spot we stalled and fortunately coasted to the shoulder. Nick carefully diagnosed the problem to be the fuel pump. Later that night we went to the beach for a walk, being told we might be able to catch a glimps of a baby turtle making its first steps.
Wednesday: We enjoyed bacon, eggs , toast and blueberry pancakes on our balcony over looking the beautiful blue waves flow gently onto the shore, another 30+ summer day, clear sky. We even watched a YAK (a Russian war bird) fly laps of the beach over head. With the help of the owner of the resort, we got a fuel pump from the wreckers which she kindly picked up for us.

That night though we took in the locals fav retirement hobby-lawn bowling. There was lots of laughs had by all in our group, they also where first timers. Snags (sausages) with onions and a beer plus lawn bowling for $7 was a great way to spend the night, even if all the locals stared at us, because again we where the youngest ones there.

 Thursday: the previous night we kindly had our new, but techincally used fuel pump delievered to us. Nick spent the better part of the day contorted into weird positions to access the engine area. I brought him water and applied lotion to his burning calves. He borrowed tools from the maintanace man at the resort and by the afternoon Sully was up and running again!!!! Oh how excited we where and we both hugged as we had another moment of hope for Sully's future and his secound trip around Australia. That night Nick proudly drove to Mon Repos (a conservation park) where each year mother Loggerheads make their way up the beach to lay their 150ish clutch of eggs. These turtles are one of the common breeds but are indangered. Hatching is always at night anywhere between 7:30 pm to midnight. When the temperature drops in the sand, the babies know to hatch. Once they hatch they are drawn by the magnetic feild of the earth toward the ocean(which they will also use to find their way back to lay their own eggs).

The conservation park, with volunteers, monitors their habits and help assist them safely to the ocean.  The park is open to the public to watch the events take place.  With nature there is now garontee and we worried that being at the very back of the line was going put us in the last group and more likely to be in a group that dosnt get to see the very best action. We got our passes...Group #1! oh, we couldnt wait.  Our pree show show in their out door aputheatre was cut short because group 1 was called to go to the beach. For what we didnt know yet! We were lead by flash light in our group of about 30. Our group consisited mainly of Christian school boys on a field trip, and even a photographer from the local newspaper. Along the way we were given instructions on how to be safe around the hatching babies. The nest had been relocated up high on a sand dune, so the rangers could study them better and have a better success rate against high tides.
 We gathered in a semi circle around the nest, right now just sand and grass. The boys excitement grew and soon the first baby poped his head through the top of the sand. He was well ahead of the others as he was the only one up and about for the next 30 minutes, when woke up. 10 at a time, now crawling all over each other made there first crawls toward the ocean.  74 exploded from the earth, and the ranger brought around one to let everyone see up close and touch the shell. At this time the journalist from the paper took Nick and my picture! He even took down our names. But before they where off to their new home they where collected in a net and brought down off the high sand dune. We stood on either side of the long line the ranger and volunteers made as a path way for them to make their first steps. What an incredile sight to witness, some of the boys got to stand and have the babies crawl through their legs, this with flash light made an illuminated path for them to follow.  Readers of this will not be the only ones able to hear our story as this saturday we found a detailed version in the local paper with both of our mugs plastered in the middle of a two page article on C7.!!

Life is Swell....

Quite literally.  Since our last entry Nick has acquired a surf board.  Whenever the conditions permit, and occasionally when they don’t he has been chasing and catching waves.  He has made it his mission to master the skill before we leave the country.  The surfing days are numbered however once we head north.  Soon we will drift into the no swimming area of OZ.  The waters will begin to get clearer and more beautiful but with the rainy season in full effect, will bring on the jellyfish, crocks, and sharks.
He will often ride a Segway from work to the beach before work, which has often caught a few eyes and brought in more work for the afternoon.  This may seem counter-productive as the more he surfs the less he can surf, but it doesn’t seem to hurt the financial situation.  The van seems to be getting smaller with the influx of souvenirs, and we have taken it upon ourselves to rig up a roof rack and strap the majority of our all-weather items on top.  Too much more and we will have to add a trailer to the mix…

Over the Christmas/school holidays the Segways never seemed to stop rolling.  Towards the end of January the tours became smaller and eventually we saw a few days off.  At this point we welcomed the mandatory holiday.  We took up a new hobby in the form of cable skiing.  This activity is virtually the same as waterskiing or wakeboarding, accept one major aspect: the boat.  Instead you are launched from a dock and sent skimming around a man made lake via a tow rope attached to a series of cables and pullys’.  The whole “getting up” and “riding” bit proved to be easier than its tow-boat counterpart, but there was a new skill required to make it around the lake.  This skill consisted of being able to do a (seemingly instant) 90 degree turn to the left.  Both of us took the majority of the night to master whip #1.  That still left another 3 ½ whips to make it around the whole lake.  Needless to say the majority of the evening was spent walking back the launch pad.  I forgot to mention before but this was all done at night with the help of spotlights.  This was another advantage to the cable ski racquet; you can unwind after a full day of work, and you don’t need to buy (or know someone with) a boat.  It is also worth mentioning that Amanda didn’t face plant while launching for the first time.  We were told by the cable operator that it is rare to see a newcomer stay dry for more than a few seconds.  Amanda avoided that fate…until whip #1 of course.  There were heaps of gear to choose from and Nick made it duty to try everything at least once.  This meant riding wake boards, kite boards (thinner), surf boards and skis.  Once he thought he had conquered them all he found a lonely plywood disc in the corner of the gear room.  He asked if it was an option and the operator laughed and said “yes, but make sure you don’t ride it upside down.”  It turns out there wasn’t a difference between top and bottom and it was meant for more of a gag for birthdays and bachelor parties.


Nick said he wouldn’t have noticed it except his father relayed many a story about the toys they used to ride behind the boat, and one happened to be one of the same.  Nick beat the odds of getting off the dock with it but soon noticed its lack of a steering mechanism and spun himself off and into the drink.  Determined he rode it, again and again.  He skipped down the lake and forced to do his own impression of a flying saucer on the corner as he was whipped to the left, leaving the disc flying straight toward the shore.  After giving it the ol’ college try he decided to put it back in the corner to wait for its next victim.

 In the mix of work and play the Aussies declared a holiday-Australia Day.  Very similar to our Canada Day, people were scurrying about with coolers and grills flocking to the beaches and parks.  Getting up early we were rewarded with a free breakfast at the local beach.  In the spirit of things we gorged ourselves that evening on meat pies, washing it down with OZ made ginger beer, while watching some local music and taking in the fireworks on the beach.  We even interviewed a few locals asking them what the best part of being Australian was, to which one replied “ice cream” which may have been a bias opinion from the ice cream merchant.

Things in this neck of the country have been heating up.  All the recent rainfall has now taken to the air and made this Canadian couple feel much more Canadian.  We have been hiding out in shops and supermarkets mooching A/C like its our job.  The small van we reside in has been getting smaller each night and trips to the beach have become more frequent.  We have equipped small fans to our “bedrooms” in hops of relief.  The only success we have has was to leave the coast for a few days and do a tour of the foothills of Maleny, and Montville.  Here we were reacquainted with our shoes, pants and sweaters.  We also got to know the views of the rolling peaks, freshwater lakes and deep valleys.  In Montville we visited shops of all kinds.  We took time to take a lesson from the custom candy makers, and enjoyed tasting a few fine liqueurs made locally.  After tasting the pride of the shop we couldn’t leave without a small bottle of coffee liqueur that makes Bailies taste like dirty socks.


 In Maleny we found market after market of fresh produce.  The town brags of no franchises and the book stores outnumber the pubs.  There were also many beautiful walks in the area to which we were obliged to include in our stay as well.  Our trip back to the coast was broken up by a night of flying sod and mud as we drifted off the safety of the ash fault and came to rest at the bottom of a seemingly gradual slope.  This was our own doing as we ventured off the designated rest area parking and to the shelter of a nearby tree.  We never made it to that tree.  Instead we spent the majority of our time trying to get farther from it realizing it requited a lighter vehicle with a bigger footprint than our Sully had.


After exhausting all other options we called a tow truck only to find out it would cost more than a days wage to get us out of this pickle.  We decided to call the only other person we know in the country with a truck (Ray) and see if we could cut a deal.  Luck was on our side as Ray was only 15 min away at the time and could make short work of it and not even miss his supper.  It turns out you pay your mates for towing the same way ya do in Canada…with beer.  So we cut a deal and traded his services for a few goods we picked up at the nearest Bottle shop.

Amongst the Segway tours we were enlisted to assist with a few Corporate events.  One crew found themselves suddenly in a plane wreck situation with only a few items dropped from the plane before its unscheduled decent.  They worked together to find food, build shelter, cross a raging river, hunt their own food build a fire.  They worked in teams and earned points along the way.  The final event was a clay pigeon shoot out, the winner walking away with a free Segway tour of the nearby ranch.  We were located not far west from Brisbane but on our tour we encountered roos, horses, lots of spiders, and even a group of wild camels wandering through.  It was just as much an adventure for us as it was the clients.  Other days had us setting up human-fooseball, lazer-clay and Segway-croquet for clients such and EB Games and a local Engineering firm.  It seemed like we had as much fun watching them as they did playing them.

We are making this entry 4 hours North of our last one, from inside a Don Pancho Resort room.  We are very thankful to Amanda’s mom for the Christmas gift of a weeks stay here on beach in Bargara 10 minutes from Bundaberg.  The A/C is a blessing and it’s a treat to be able to spread our possessions out and regroup for our next leg of the journey.  A kitchen, though small by most standards, seems just big enough to cook some recipes from home. Our newly acquired freezer has found itself full with icy treats.  We are also informed that we have arrived just in time for sea turtle hatching season.  There is a place down the road you can pay to have a guided tour, with chances to see the little guys taking their first steps, but we have been told we have the same chances when we stroll the beach ourselves after dark.  We have a full moon tonight to light the way.  We will head out shortly to try our luck.

We are not completely sure of our next move.  There is talk about saving some more money for the long leg around the top.  We are also considering spending a week at sea sailing the Whitsunday islands.  As soon as we know we promise to let you all know.  We would like to end this entry with a quote from Ray’s website: “Do the best you can, with what you’ve got, right where you are.”