Miraculously, the sun was shining for the third day in the row.  We were headed towards the most famous fjord in Norway, the Geiranger Fjord, and in a short while we were hair pinning it down to the fjord and town of Geiranger.

Geiranger

It was packed with grey haired tourists who had gotten off two huge cruise ships which were parked in the fjord and completing the postcard photos of the fjord.  The older generation tourists milled around town and meandered up the roads obstructing it like the cattle we had come across many times.  We did two reasonably short hikes around Geiranger for the views and then took the hour long ferry to Hellesylt.  We passed by waterfalls which were bountiful and small farms which were scares on the fjord’s sharp faces.  At least the sun was still shining so the views were remarkable.

Once we docked we drove to Briksdalsbreen from where hiked to the tongue of Europe’s biggest glacier.  The stream and lake below were exceptionally blue-green from the glacier that it appeared to be a water color painting instead of real.  Around the glacier lake, the landscape was desert-like, all brownish yellow with just the white ice lapping into it.  On the peaks which surrounded us, we could see bits of the glacier peeping down.

We had planned on going to Kaupanger for the night but since we were running late, we decided to camp somewhere on the way. We wanted to try our hand at wild camping again but the roads around the fjords were just too hilly and every road away from the main road led to a farm house.  So following small roads led us nowhere and we realized that finding a convenient, and legal wild camping site was not so easy.

Bøyum Camping in Fjærland

Giving up, we chose the nearest campsite on our GPS and went there.  Bøyum in Fjærland camping was very peaceful, adorable, and surrounded by high peaks with bits of glacier seeping out of them.  They had clean facilities and internet so the 18 EUR it cost to pitch a tent seemed worth it.  It was a very empty campsite, and we only came across two other guests, this was probably because it was already autumn and in hindsight we should have spent extra money and got a cabin since it was freezing at night and our tent failed to keep the heat inside and we were kept awake by our own shivering.

We set off to Denmark in the late morning. The GPS reassured us that the destination was on an unpaved road which is always a good sign when you’re in a foreign country for the first time. We were planning on doing some wild camping, a first for Hendrik and I. A good few hours into the ride we realized we forgot our pillows. A GPS search lead us to an Ikea near Hannover where we bought pillows and had a late lunch/early dinner, people go crazy for their meatballs, Hendrik included. When we crossed the Danish boarder we had to drastically reduce our speed and watched the dark clouds filled with water roll above us. It was going to rain, the question was when.
I had found a park on the internet where people are allowed to camp for free and progressively the GPS lead us through narrower and smaller roads until we reached a muddy unpaved road surrounded by a farm field. Hendrik who has always jumped to the opportunity to drive off road didn’t hesitate for a second and the wheels were pushing through the mud when I said, “won’t we get stuck?” We didn’t, but the road was a bumpy mess but shortly we entered a wooded area with a small parking lot. The continuing road was forbidden for cars so I suggested we set the tent up in a small clearing surrounded by trees steps away from the parking lot. We were able to set the tent up in the quickly dimming light right before it got too dark to do so comfortably.
The night was not pleasant, and I was far too paranoid waiting for the rain and thinking about road pirates to dose off into a long deep sleep. I kept hearing “footsteps” and waves of wind as it passed through the treetops forcing water to fall on our tent tricking me into thinking it was raining.

In the heart of the deep dark forest

Our tents in the morning

I was thrilled when I stepped out of the tent to see that it wasn’t raining. I can’t say that it was sunny but at least water wasn’t pelting down. Kirk told us that a few weeks ago it rained for his whole tour and that they got stuck in the sand and everyone had to dig out the bus in the rain, so comparatively we had a much better time.

Our first stop was at the Coloured Sands which were piles of sand with sand that ranged in colour from pale yellow to almost red. It was pretty because at that time we even had some sunshine which lit up the sand. On our way to the next destination we spotted a snake on the middle of the beach. So we all got out to observe it and saw that it had been run over. It was a poisonous water snake which had been washed out to land. We wanted to help it but didn’t know how since we couldn’t touch it. Kirk got a shovel and managed to pick it up and toss it out to sea and the snake swam away, so hopefully it survived.

Captain Kirk rescues snake

We got back on the bus and soon after we saw a dingo, but Kirk wasn’t allowed to let us out of the bus to take pictures because those were the rules. We were glad we at least got to see one wild dingo since Fraser Island is home to the purest breed of dingo in Australia. Our next stop was Lake Wabby which is a lake formed by blown sand that forms a bank which then dams an already existing creek. This is called a barrage lake and Lake Wabby is the only one like it on the island. It has a steep bank which is a sandblow that drops into the lake which we rolled down. It was a cold small lake which I was able to swim across.

Rolling into Lake Wabby

Then it started to rain and we all started the trek back to the bus. At least the rain didn’t last long because we had to walk through a forest. As we were walking a branch of a tree fell a few meters in front of us on the path. Luckily, this time it was not on top of me but it gave me a scare. Inside, the tree was blood red, and bugs crawled all over it.

We had lunch in Central Station which got its name because it was the centre of the logging industry. There was a short boardwalk around the area where there were some neat trees. I thought the trees with holes or ones that were overgrowing with vines were interesting.

Our last activity on the island was Lake Birrabeen and luckily it was sunny.  It is a clear blue lake surrounded by extremely fine white sand. We did not visit Lake Mckenzie which we were a bit sad about, but Kirk assured us that Lake Birrabeen was just as pretty and even more so because it wasn’t overrun by tourists. It was nice being on the beach with only a small group of people and having the whole lake to ourselves. The sand was soft and I polished my earrings until they shined. The water was cold but refreshing and at the end Hendrik and I had to make a run for it and we were the last people on the bus which was not a good thing for the last activity of the tour.

Lake Birrabeen

Then the ferry took us back to the mainland, and we spotted dolphins swimming along the boat and jumping out of the water. Before the bus dropped us off we spotted kangaroos having a feed in the meadow. Kirk pulled over and everyone but a few Aussies, who thought we were silly, got out and started taking pictures. They were the first wild living kangaroos we saw in Australia so we were excited.

I thoroughly enjoyed the tour and I’m glad we didn’t drive because we wouldn’t have gotten any of the commentary which was probably the most interesting part of the tour to learn about the history of the island, the logging, the aboriginals, the animals, and the plants. I would have been really mad if we had spent half a day digging out our vehicle in the rain, though Hendrik still regretted not having a car to speed down the 75 mile beach with.

We were picked up at our campsite in the morning by a huge 4wd green bus and were brought to the ferry which then took us to Fraser Island. It was overcast so we knew it would either be raining shortly or the clouds would break and the sun would shine though, of course we were hoping for the latter. Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world and there is only one very short paved road there so, therefore, you need a 4wd to get around it. The main highway of the island is actually the beach which runs along the whole east coast of the island.

Our bus

We first stopped at the Yidney Rainforest which is the only rainforest on the Island which had not been logged since it was the last one which was supposed to be logged. Logging started in 1863, being initiated by American Jack Piggott and ended in 1991. In 1992 the island became a world heritage site. The rainforest is home to some spectacular plants and trees which our tour guide, Kirk, was excited to talk about. He loved the Island and it seemed that he knew everything about it. He was one of the best tour guides I’ve had on a tour, and he talked non-stop for two days which was impressive. We had a nice walk through a part of the rainforest, but we got eaten by mosquitoes which wasn’t too fun. We were told over and over again to “only leave footprints and only take pictures,” so I didn’t think killing mosquitoes really fell into that motto, but nevertheless I squashed a fair share.

As we rode the bus to the place where we would have lunch the rain started to come down and by the time we were supposed to get out of the bus and have lunch it was pouring. It was the kind of rain that gets you soaked in seconds. We all ran to the restaurant and had a buffet lunch and hoped that this was just a shower, but no such luck, it just kept coming down.  I was really upset because I was really looking forward to relaxing in Eli Creek. Eli Creek is the largest creek on the east coast of the island and you can walk to the top via a boardwalk and then use it as a lazy river to get back. I put my bathing suit on before getting back on the bus just in case.

After lunch we went to 75 mile beach which is the highway and even runway but it’s not good for swimming because of dangerous currents and Tiger sharks. We spent most of our time on Fraser Island driving along this beach. It was still raining and a bit chilly when we got to Eli Creek. I first waded into the clear clean stream with my umbrella and when I reached the top of the boardwalk I really wanted to ride the creek back. My clothes were already damp from the rain so I figured I can either be wet and swim, or I can just be wet, so I went for it. The rest of the group thought I was crazy, but I thought, “Screw you rain, why should you ruin my fun?” One other guy followed as well so there were two of us in the creek. It was very relaxing to lie in the water letting it do with me what it wanted, until I hit a root, which was painful. The water was warm, the surrounding silent, and the pitter patter of the rain on my face didn’t bother me at all. It was one of my favourite moments on the island. The rain was probably a blessing in disguise because our tour guide said that on nice days the creek is jam packed with people, or maybe he was just trying to make me feel better. I was a bit chilly after and moist the whole day, but I would have been moist anyway since I happened to have the seat in the bus under a leak.

Eli Creek

The next stop was the S.S. Maheno wreck which was shipwrecked on the island in 1935 while it was being towed after its retirement. We saw before pictures so we could compare and see the drastic effects of salt water and wind in less than 100 years. We also learned that soon after it became beached a wedding was held on it because it was still a beautiful ship. I thought that was a very original wedding location.

Maheno Wreck

The next site was at the Champagne Pools which on a nice day would be a cool swimming spot and people asked me whether I was going to go for another dip. Because the weather was so bad the waves crashed into the pool and caused too much motion so I thought it looked a bit too dangerous to go swimming since it was really rocky, but I did go for a wade.

Champagne Pools

That night we stayed at a campsite where we had a bbq dinner, played cards, and hoped for a sunny day the next day. We slept in tents but they were permanent tents with wooden floors, double beds, and nightstands so they were comfortable except that I could hear everything outside such as the pop pop pop of the rain on the canvas and worse the loud rainforest birds really early in the morning, so I didn’t sleep too much because of that and because I always have trouble sleeping in new places.