Monday October, 4th to Thursday October 7th, 2010
So I started a new travelling plan as I was leaving Hervey Bay. I decided that since I slept most of the time anyway, why not travel on the bus overnight. It would save me some nights in hotels and I still wasn't missing anything. So I decided I would grab a bus from Hervey Bay at 0030 (that's half past mid-night) and then arrive at my next destination around 0700. You might recall from my last post that I arrived back in Hervey Bay from Fraser Island at around 1600 (4pm) so I did have a few hours to kill. I decided I would catch a movie since the theatre was just across the street. I apparently am not the only back packer to catch a movie at 2100 (9pm) on a Sunday before catching a bus because the theatre actually has a secure place to store our bags.
I went to see The Other Guys, a police comedy staring Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell (and for a short bit Dwayne (formerly The Rock) Johnson and my man Samuel L Jackson.) Why am I telling you this? Not so that you will go see the movie (over all I would have to say it was mediocre) but because I never realized what it might be like to watch a movie based in the USA in another country. There was a scene in the movie about the New York Yankees and the World Series and Derek Jeter getting shot and how the should have shot A-Rod (you had to see it) and I was killing myself laughing (it was funny) but no one else was. It occurred to me at that moment that it wasn't funny to them because they didn't know who A-Rod and Derek Jeter were. Most North Americans....even non-baseball fans will have at least heard their names and get the reference but over here......not so much. Anyway, just made me think.
But back to my trip. After brushing my teeth and repacking my bag and pulling out my sleep sheet (on old sheet that mom has sown up like a little sleeping bag.....keeps my toes warm) I became the 5th person on the bus and made the 6.5 hour ride to Rockhampton. Pretty uneventful bus ride. I did wake up a few times when the bus stopped ( I wasn't always sure where I was) but the rest of the way I slept.
I was heading to Rockhampton because it is the closest bus stop to Yeppoon. I was heading to Yeppoon because it is the current home of some friends from Calgary Dan and Paula McWilliam and their 2 boys, Lochlan and Keane. Paula and I went through the same nursing program and worked together for a while at Rockyview Hospital in Calgary. Interestingly enough, Dan did through same program as Steve at Mount Royal College. A few years back it did take Paula and I a few moments to make the Steve-Dan connection because I knew Dan only as Disco Dan and Paula knew Steve as Tiger (from a Halloween costume) but eventually it made sense. Anyway, Dan is now a teacher and has done a job swap for the last year and since they were on the way I decided I better stop by. Always nice to see some familiar faces and hear a familiar accent.
So I arrived in Rockhampton at around 0700 but Paula couldn't come get me until 1100 so I had a few hours to kill. I had a nice breakfast and a latte and then took a quick wander to downtown Rockhampton....not much there. But eventually Paula and the boys arrived and we made our way to Yeppoon.
Downtown Rockhampton. This is the old Customs building.
The water front in Rockhampton. Apparently there are crocs in the river but I didn't see any.
I let Paula off the hook when it came to entertaining me because with me living here and already having checked out a few things, I don't think either of us really felt the need to run around and see a bunch of things. Plus with the 2 boys, it isn't that easy. So I had a nice relaxing visiting, but of course we did see a few things.
Tuesday, Paula and I went on what can only be described as the worst planned day trip ever. After Paula dropped Lochlan off at kindergarten and managed to find someone to watch Keane (last minute, really just a fluke) she came home. We decided that we should make our way out to Great Keppel Island. We had just enough time to throw some towels/snorkel gear/swim gear on and then get in the car to make the boat. On the boat we discovered that neither of us had any sunscreen and we had neglected to pack any food but you will be happy to know that we did have a bottle of water between the 2 of us.
Paula on the boat with my hat.....which just happened to already be in my bag.
Once we got there we hummed and hawed about where to go snorkeling and then decided that we should walk across some rocks to find a place on the other side. The tide was out or else we could have just swam.
Some of the pretty blue water that surrounds Keppel Island. Just can't get enough of it.
Eventually we got our stuff settled on a rock and went for a snorkel. With the tide being out however, there wasn't much to see. If we had been more organized and thought a little bit more we could have swam around the coral and snorkeled on the far side of it where it was deeper. But that would have taken too much thought and effort.
That's Paula doing a little bit of looking.
And I did manage to take a picture of this.
It didn't take long before we gave up on the swimming and just sat in the shallow water and talked.......and got a little sun burnt. I really did enjoy it.....not the sun burn but just hanging out in some nice warm water, and sunshine and having a conversation with a friend.
We did eventually have to get back to the mainland though. We were a little late picking up Lochlan from Kindergarten but he was still taking a nap. That evening we made our way over to the park to fry up some sausages. I have mentioned before that a lot of the parks in Australia have these public BBQs that anyone can use. So we met up some friends of Dan and Paula (Luke and his kids Finn and Angus) for a sausage sizzle.
I really am a fan of these. Not only means you can get out and have a picnic but you don't have to limit your picnic meal to sandwiches and salads. That's Luke and Dan watching the sausages. And I think Paula is chasing the boys around.
Wednesday we tried to be a little bit more organized and headed out to see the Capricorn Caves. The caves were originally found in 1882 by John Olsen. One day he was wandering around, found a cave opening, went home to get some rope and a lantern and then started mapping the caves. It didn't take him long to see a potential profit in owning the land these caves sat on so he managed to obtain it from the government (really wasn't that difficult at the time. He just had to make sure that when we requested a plot of land, the caves were in a small corner of it. The government then took a look at the plot, didn't notice anything of interest to them so the land became his). Let's take a look at the caves and then I will tell you a few things about them.
This entrance to the cave only gives you a small idea of what is inside.
Paula and Keane laughing at something the tour guide said. Although Keane seems more concerned that I'm taking a picture and seems to be checking with Paula to see if that's ok.
Inside the caves. The caves were first opened for tours in 1884. Since then thousands of people have been through them. The Caves were owned by 5 generations of the Olsen family until 1988 when they were sold to another family who now owns and manages the caves.
This is a spelunking hole. Not sure what spelunking is.....well it isn't anything you will catch me doing anytime soon. Imagine being tied to a rope (or not) and squeezing yourself into a tiny little hole in a rock and working your way through to the other side. That is spelunking. The Caves offer many opportunities for adventure caving. I prefer to wander along the mark trails.
Some of the upgraded stairs and ramp ways. Makes it much easier to get around. There have also been upgrades to the lighting in the caves. They contain an estimated 10 kilometres (6 miles) of wiring.
With the lighting they look kind of creepy. It is interesting to note that the local Aboriginals will not enter and have not entered the caves. They will not tell the staff of Capricorn Caves why, only that they won't enter them. It was suggested to us that we visit the local Aboriginal Dream Centre and ask there. We won't have time on my trip so I will leave it up to Paula to discover that for us both. I'll update you on this once I get the information.
These are dry caves. Need a lot of water before they will flood. Also interesting to note that a lot of the base of the cave is in fact bat poop......about 18 metres (60 feet) thick of it. For many years this area was mined for the guano (that's bat poop). The caves are now home to a few thousand micro bats (we didn't see any.....I guess it isn't quite the season for them). The staff here at the Caves has to be careful to make sure the caves are free of feral cats because they can go through (as in kill and eat) an entire colony of bats in a night. All that is left behind is their little wings.
One of the old original bridges built in the caves. No people can't walk on it anymore it is just there to give us an idea of how things use to be.
Inside the cathedral. Can't hold very many people but it is a very favourite place for people to get married. In fact Paula wanted to renew her vows just so they could hold the ceremony here.
Another look at the small cathedral. Apparently it has acoustics that compare to the Sydney Opera House. Now I haven't been to the Opera House (yet) but the music we heard while here sounded great. I will have to let you know at a later time if it does in fact compare to the Opera House.
This is one of the many fig tree roots you will find throughout the caves. This one is estimated to be about 40 metres (131 feet) long. The tree it's connect to.....is about as big as an arm.
The last part of the tour was fun. We were given a candle and some directions and had to work our way through a small tunnel and out to the other side where the tour guide was waiting. It just gave us a little idea what it would have been like to wander through these tunnels before all the electricity was connected.
Paula with her candle.
After that is was off to pick up Lochlan again and then once Dan got home, Paula and I left the boys to themselves and headed off to a little restaurant for dinner. Very nice little place right on the water. And BYO which makes it perfect. Great food, great conversation.
Eventually Thursday arrived and well we didn't do much. I spent most of the day packing my backpack (always a chore), and Paula spent the day looking into a trip to Tasmania. I also attempted to finalize the next part of my trip although I had trouble getting in touch with them during the day. Finally at 1700 (5pm) I got the call I had been waiting for. Not a moment too soon either since we were getting ready to leave. I had a bus to catch and Dan and Paula were heading off to see Powderfinger (that's a band and they happen to be an Australian band).
And that was my few days in Yeppoon. A nice little spot and it was so great to catch up with friends. Sure beats freezing our butts off in Calgary. Paula and Dan and the kids will be back in Calgary just in time for Christmas. For their sake I hope a Chinook rolls into town right around that time too.
Julie
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