Leaving
the Paradise that is The Whitsunday Islands, its time to begin the long drive
South to Sydney. With just three weeks of motor oil to burn, its going to
be hectic - there's several thousand kilometres to lay black smoke down and
numerous rocky outcrops to explore. We get cracking, leaving Airlie beach after
a visit to a bizarre exhibition - Vic Hislop's Shark Show.
We head South along the coast road but decide that a detour is in order to
get us away from the Pacific for a while, and back into the Outback.
We decide to visit the towns of Longreach and Winton with their museums covering life in the outback
and the meaning of 'waltzing matilda'.
Missing a turn off, we end up on a dirt track - an unexpected but worthwhile detour
as it takes us to the little town of Rubyvale in the heart of Sapphire country. Here we visit
Bobby
Dazzlers mine and sieve a superb light blue gem valued at A$150 from a A$6 pre-dug bucket of mud.
We arrive in Longreach and watch the sun set in the desert sky - a magical
sight every time.
Its hot here. Very hot. And after just a day we are clamouring for the coast
road and cool sea breezes again.
So returning to the Coast, we head down to
Bundaberg - home of Australia's'
favourite Rum and a tour of the Distillery, the highlight of which is the
opportunity to sample their entire range of products - a task we undertake with
considerable gusto.
From here its onto a ferry for Fraser Island - the Worlds largest sand
island, time to deflate the tyres and find adventure.
And adventure is what we find...
