Fraser Island Questions

One final question. Sorry. Where is the nearest under body car wash located from Inskip point? And what can i expect to pay and receive?

Thank you.

Hi Crawfy.

I was last there in May 2003, but I suspect not much has changed.

1. Best time to arrive is right on low tide time or a little before.

2. Speed limit on the beach is 80km, but you have to slow down for the wash outs. I allowed 90 minutes for the run up the beach to Dundubera. You can take in the view without stopping and go back when camp is set up.

3. In May we had no problems with insects, but always carry some sandalwood sticks to burn if/when the mossies come out. Could be a few there in summer. Camp fire smoke also keeps them at bay.

4. In Dundubera, the Rangers will come to your tent and give you a briefing on dingo rules and regulations and they are also posted in the shower/toilet block. They also then tie a coloured ribbon to your tent which is their indication that you have been briefed (and therefore can be fined $5,000 if you are caught feeding them ....). At one stage when we were there they were wanting to close the camp ground down becasue they had noticed a change in "pattern" of the local dingoes, in that they were coming through the camp whereas they had previously skirted around it. As we had paid in advnace for the full week they could not kick us out. The dingoes came around late afternoon and also during the night but they were no trouble. Just make sure your food is inside your tent, securely locked. The little buggars can rip open a tent if food is laying around.

5. When I was there (for 8 days) I had my UHF on scan and only got one lot of chatter, from a tourist bus. The rangers will let you know which channel they use (if and when).

6. Showers cost 50 cents per 3 minutes. You can get change each day when the ranger drops by to clear out the machine, but also take plenty with you. Does not take long to eat up $20 in 50 cent coins if you like a longer shower.

7. I can't do long range weather forcasting, but it is Queensland. Expect hot, humid days and buckets of rain if it decides to drop down in the afternoon.

8. Nearest underbody cleaning joint is at Rainbow Beach, just behind the main group of shops. Can't remember the address, but it is signposed as you come off the beach and head into Rainbow Beach proper. You take a left on the way in (signposted) and it goes straight to it. Can't remember the exact cost, but I think I cut out $10 for the wash.

9. Final piece of advice - watch out for backpackers. Most of them are dead stupid in the way they drive. There are numerous incidents of them rolling the hired troopies they turn up in. I don't stop to help any more. Oh, and the police will often have radar set up along the beach, and they certainly pay their way.

Enjoy your stay there. Best place on earth in my opinion. Love the place. The Rangers are good people as well. Offer them a beer - most of the time (off duty) they will sit and chat after their rounds are finished.

Jack

Jack has pretty much covered it Crawfy.... I just want to add a few things.. We stayed at Dundabara Oct 03, they were in the process of building additional facilities at that stage, showers cost 50 cents/3 min. The Rangers are a wealth of info... ask them and heed their advice and you will be fine! Also there is a dingo awareness kit with the permit from Rainbow Beach rangers, read it carefully and again... listen to the rangers. (We were camping at Lake Boomanjin and met a couple who had just arrived on the island, we saw two dingo's and they wanted to feed and pat them!!!!!! SHEEESH!!!)
UHF coverage is fine... remembering that UHF is based on line-of-sight coverage and Fraser is a vast island.... just that there is no-one to talk to! Apart from the tourist buses, and the rangers when they are on channel. Youy'll have to ask them what channels they use.
I have heard that the police presence is getting stronger, it pays to remember that the east beach is a gazetted highway with an 80k speed limit, and all regular road rules apply. Watch out for the Rent-A-Troopy's crowded with back-packers who mostly haven't a clue what they're doing... they can be very dangerous.
Dundabara is a pleasant (about) 90 minute run up the beach, there's a lot to see on the way, it pays to keep an eye for planes that use the beach as a landing strip in places... they have the right of way!! I heard a couple of nights back that Eli Creek is now a shadow of it's former glory, storms have changed it's path and it isn't as much fun as it was, but probably still a good spot for a freshwater swim.
We used Bushmans Ultra roll-on repellant and it worked a treat, BUT it is very strong stuff and some people have had allergic reactions to it, so "test" it before you go. At Dundabara, the flies were there in the zillions, also march flies are present on the island and they bite like buggery! Don't let it spoil your trip there though, just find a good repellant!!
Qld in January can be fun.... :-) We have hot humid days with sometimes big sub tropical storms at night. My bride and I spent an hour last January long weekend holding our tent down against the rain and wind while the storm raged around us! Mostly 'cos we had picked a not-very-good spot to beach camp and hadn't got our tent set up correct! We have endured storms (albeit not so big) at Dundabara and survived quite well... more shelter there from the wind than where we were in January.
Lastly, depending on how long you're visiting, it's worth a visit to Champagne Pools, Wathumba Creek, and the inland tracks take you to some beautiful lakes, and the driving on some of the tracks is quite fun!!

Sorry this has been a bit long winded, but Fraser Island is one of my favourite subjects... LOL..... if you have any other questions, leave a follow-up here and I'll try to answer them.... if I can't, there will be someone else here that can!

Crawfy

All of the above is excellent info.

Add this ... don't rely solely on the underbody carwash. I've used it a few times and still manage to hose out a barrow load of sand ... well .. would you believe a fair bit, when I get home. So much so that I tend to pass it up as basically a waste of 10 bucks.

Cheers and enjoy your trip.

Crawfy:

If th is is your first trip, you may be interested in a book I found most useful. Called "Fraser Island" by Brad McCarthy, it really gets you around the place with a minimum of fuss.

You buy it from this website.

Jack

G'Day Crawfy

I was at Fraser 3 weeks ago and it was my 1st trip there..... It is a great place. Couple of things I discovered.

Pretty Hard to tell with the tides. I arrived at hook point about 1 hour before low tide. There was a fair bit of soft sand for about 1k till you reached the eastern beach then no worries. However on the way back six days later the place looked totally different. Seeing that the arrival was no drama I thought I would try for 2 hours before low which was at 4. Arrived at hook point and I didn't recognised the place. The erosion was that great that several large trees had fell over the beach. and you had to drive around them to get to the barge. (unless you went back and took the inland track) I wasn't real keen to Dip the car into the ocean, pick the waves and go for it, however after waiting for about 15 mins and seeing others arriving from the other way and getting away with it around I went and it was no real drama, cept for a salt water car wash !! Dead Low is that way to go if you want to have a stress free arrival and depature.

Went straight to Dundaburra and the travel time the others have suggested is about right. New facilities were still being built. Showers as stated 50c for 3 mins and yeah flies are a problem. Had a look around the top of the island Indian head etc etc then decided to head to central station. A much more pleasent camp ground showers $1.00 for 6 mins. Great place to base yourself to check out the lakes (which are fantastic) and the inland tracks are much more fun !! Stayed there for another 4 nights and loved it.

Have no idea about UHF channels.

Have a great Holiday You will love it (cept might be a bit crowded that time of year)

Cheers

PS Don't buy fuel at Kingfisher Bay !!! 1.70 per L with others on the island at 1.40 (diesel)

Thanks for all the information. I haven't bee able to get half as much from searching the internet. I did have one other question if anyone could help. What is the access from the beach to Dundabarra like? Is it pure soft sand all the way or is the track boarded?