PART 5 CHRISTMAS~NEW YEAR TRIP TO THE COAST

THE LOGGERHEAD ~

After the Centipede encounter we went to bed only to be awakened a half hour later by one of the camp hosts/turlte researchers. There was a female turtle laying eggs about a kilometer down the beach and we had only 15 minutes to get there. The four of us got up super quickly and rushed off down the beach in the dark. We were the first people (other than the researchers) to arrive and the head researcher showed us the turtle and let us take some pictures. The turtle was absolutly huge, probably a meter in length. She had dug a hole quite deep into the sand and the eggs dropped into the hole a few at a time without any breaking.

By the time we took a few pictures the rest of the camp had shown up (around 10 other people). The turtle layed eggs for about 10 minutes and then started to fill the hole in with sand. This lasted another 15 minutes and then she started her trek across the beach back to the ocean. Everyone moved down the beach very slowly with the turtle until she disappeared into the ocean.

The researchers marked the spot where the eggs were buried so that they could relocate them on top of the dune so that the high tide would not drown the eggs. The eggs were dug up and the turtle had layed 109 eggs. Everyone was allowed to help move the eggs and it was a great experience knowing that in a small way we were helping these turtles.

PART 4 CHRISTMAS~NEW YEAR TRIP TO THE COAST

DAY 2 ~

On the beach in Agnes and 1770 ~ After a hot night in the tents we were up early and ready to get out to the beach. We were all a little worried about swimming because there had been some recent warnings about Irukandji Jellyfish in the area (highly poisonous). However, once we got to the beach there were tons of people swimming (and the beach was patroled by lifeguards)....so we decided to go for it!

"Hey Kristin, do I have any white on my face?"

We learned very quickly that it is important to reapply, reapply, reapply sunscreen all day long! The sun here is very strong and you burn very quickly. There are billboards all over that promote good sun sense.

Surfer on Bike ~ The picture speaks for itself but it was really funny taking the picture, hanging out the window about 1 m from the guy without him knowing at all!

View from the point in the Town of 1770 ~ This would have been the land that Captain Cook first came across as he sailed into Australia.

Sundowners on the Beach at Deepwater ~ Here we are enjoying some champagne and crackers and some cooler temperatures in the shade.

The CENTIPEDE ~ I (Kristin) came across this massive thing while I was entering the tent before bed. It was hidden in the fly of the tent and I luckily didn't end up touching it. Charles came over and removed it...thank goodness! He reckons that it would have hurt badly to get bitten by one of these.

PART 3 CHRISTMAS~NEW YEAR TRIP TO THE COAST

AGNES WATER~TOWN OF 1770

While in Agnes and 1770 we stayed at Deepwater National Park. We pulled into the Park at 5pm and had to drive another 15 km through the sandy terrain using 4WD. We were lucky to see a couple of kangaroos in their natural habitat (nothing like the Koala sanctuary where we could pet them!!). We stared at each other for a little while before they hopped away into the bush.

Here is a photo of our campsite at Deepwater National Park. We did not have reservations and the camp ground was all booked up BUT there was one site where the people had not arrived yet (they were booked from dec. 25-jan. 8) and so we pitched up on their site for 2 nights. The camp sites were just a short walk to the beach!

PART 2 CHRISTMAS~NEW YEAR TRIP TO THE COAST

THE PINEAPPLE ~ On our way we stopped at a fruit stand on the side of the road. I was so excited to buy one of my favourite fruits. Unfortunately, I left the pineapple out while we went to explore the beach and something (maybe a bush turkey or a rat) had eaten a huge chunk out of it....

PART 1 CHRISTMAS~NEW YEAR TRIP TO THE COAST

On Boxing Day, we all packed up our camping gear for a 5-day trip down the east coast. Emerald is about 3 hours in-land from the coast. Once we got to the ocean we drove another 3 hours south to the small towns of Agnes Waters and the Town of 1770 (yes, this is the official name of the town! It is named after the date when Captain Cook discovered the area). The Queensland government has organized "driver reviver" stations all along the highways to prevent driver fatigue (which is a huge cause for accidents in the state). Here you can have a FREE cup of coffee, tea or juice and some tea biscuits and small snacks. While we were at the Driver Reviver stop we saw some colourful Lorikeets.