39TDS Posted February 13, 2012 Report Share Posted February 13, 2012 I can get to Hervey Bay OK but want to go to Eli Creek on Fraser Island. What is the best way to get there? I want to spend a little time there and preferably not as part of a group of 40 odd. (will be having a word with someone who isn't with us any more) Anybody done it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil smith Posted February 13, 2012 Report Share Posted February 13, 2012 (edited) Yes we went in 2007, we drove a camper van from Sydney to Cairns over eighteen days. As im sure you know there are no surfaced roads on Fraser. The tracks are all soft sand & 4x4 is essential. We took a trip with a small group using a small 4x4 bus converted out of an old army vehicle. But you can take your own vehicle if its suitable, I think you need a permit however if you intend to camp their overnight. The ferry is like a landing craft & drops you straight onto the beach great fun. We also took a flight off the beach in a light plane, it gives you a great perspective of the whole island. We did some swimming at Eli creek but we were told to keep out of the ocean at the time of our visit because of box jellies & sharks. I really enjoyed Fraser & also the blue mountains near Sydney, don't miss the Whitsunday islands either if you get a chance they have some beautiful beaches. N Edited February 13, 2012 by neil smith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaun4860 Posted February 13, 2012 Report Share Posted February 13, 2012 I can get to Hervey Bay OK but want to go to Eli Creek on Fraser Island. What is the best way to get there? I want to spend a little time there and preferably not as part of a group of 40 odd. (will be having a word with someone who isn't with us any more) Anybody done it? pm markm off here, he did it last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markm Posted February 13, 2012 Report Share Posted February 13, 2012 pm markm off here, he did it last year. We booked a private full day hummer tour. You get a personal guide who points things out and you see a lot more in a day instead of waiting for 50 people to get on a bus at every stop. It was expensive but worth it, full buffet picnic with champers as well. We chose this as we had limited time and 2 kids, they carry up to 4 in the hummer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
39TDS Posted February 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 13, 2012 Thanks. I only really want a day there. My missus is desperate to go to Eli Creek so looks like we might have to hire a 4wd for the day. Bus trips with other people isn't really my scene but if she says that's what we will do, then so be it. I will choose for the rest of the trip Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil smith Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Thanks. I only really want a day there. My missus is desperate to go to Eli Creek so looks like we might have to hire a 4wd for the day. Bus trips with other people isn't really my scene but if she says that's what we will do, then so be it. I will choose for the rest of the trip If you drive yourself be sure to be well equipped, with lots of water & a winch, some of the tracks are deep sand & its easy to get stuck if your not an experienced off roader. Also its easy to get lost, all the sand tracks look alike & there are no signs & nobody around in the forest, it is a wilderness area. The island is very large & the tracks across the centre through the forest make for some extreme driving in places, we hit our heads on the roof of the vehicle several times, so be prepared On our return to catch the ferry we had to rescue another party who had got themselves stuck in the sand & had broken a driveshaft, in true Oz style our driver hooked up a tow line & dragged them all the way back too the ferry, the thing is if we had not come along they could easily have been stranded in the forest all night & missed the ferry ride back. Oh & don't feed the dingo's N Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddJob Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 If you are in Hervey bay and it's the right time of year, go whale watching. Pick a small boat, not the massive catamarans. Small boats seem more attractive and you are so close. Magical experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
39TDS Posted February 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Thanks Neil, some good info there. I am a farmer so do have some off road experience, more swampy mud than soft sand though. I don't mind getting lost and stopping out for the night if it came to that but I think I would end up feeding my missus to the dingos before first light. She would do my head in whingeing all night! We will be there at the end of April so a bit early for the whales. Maybe I will have to go back another time for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markm Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 (edited) The sand is unreal (how deep it is). The hummer we were in had full off road tyres and they serviced the vehicles every 2000 miles. We were thrown around something rotten. I am sure we were told (apologies if I'm wrong but) unguided tours are no longer allowed, ie - you have to drive the vehicle and follow and do what the guide says in a convoy. It's not easy going, in fact scarey, the mrs was very worried at times with a driver who spends 5 days a week there. It's massive, to give you some idea the main beach is a 70 mile straight line and is classed as a motorway, you can get done for speeding and drink driving etc. airplanes land on it. Edited February 16, 2012 by markm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vulpicide Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Dont feed children to the dingoes they prefer to catch them themselves I think theres still a backpacker unaccounted for. :yp: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil smith Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 (edited) Some pictures, we went in late April as well, sorry I don't have any of the terrible tracks, we were too busy hanging on tight to take any pics On the ferry from Hervey Bay approaching the landing point on fraser. Heading off the ferry 75 mile beach from the air, you can get a ride in a small plane that takes off & lands back on the beach, which was good fun, you can see Eli creek on this image, its located a couple of hundred yards past the shipwreck on the beach, just were the sand goes further inland, towards the top of the picture. Butterfly Lake from the air, as you can see the forrest is dense & there are no roads, in places the tree's are only inches from the windows as your vehicle slides in the sand. Shipwreck on the beach close to Eli creek. My favorite place on our Oz trip was further north in the Whitsunday Islands, we took a trip from a town called Airlie Beach on a small boat called the Mantaray, it was a one day trip out to the reef & Hill inlet overlooking Whitehaven Beach, again its a conservation area & no tourist buildings are allowed, we then spent a few hours swimming with the fish & lying on the beach a brilliant day. Have a good trip, wish I was going back this year. N Edited February 16, 2012 by neil smith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markm Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 (edited) We done a jet ski safari around the whitsundays, a very good trip. An other point about the Fraser island tour we done. The driver pointed things out and gave us a lot of information about the island which you will miss or not know if your driving alone. He told us all about ship wreck etc. Noosa Heads is a beautiful place to visit. Edited February 16, 2012 by markm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil smith Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 We done a jet ski safari around the whitsundays, a very good trip. An other point about the Fraser island tour we done. The driver pointed things out and gave us a lot of information about the island which you will miss or not know if your driving alone. He told us all about ship wreck etc. Noosa Heads is a beautiful place to visit. Mark You make a very good point, our driver did a similar thing, they know a lot about the island & its creatures & plants, they will give you a lot of information that you will otherwise miss out on trying to do it yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
39TDS Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Thanks again. It is looking more and more like we will be doing the bus tour thing. There's a chance my son will turn up with a 4wd and there's a chance a mate that lives over their might come up with a bright idea, but bus trip it is for now. TBH I am not a fan of tourists and being amongst them so a bus trip isn't my idea of fun. It is only one day and is for my missus' sake as much as anything. I'm sure i will enjoy it all the same. Never heard anyone that has been to say they didn't rate it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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