Fraser Island - Places to See

Ferries
Ferry services to Fraser Island depart from three different locations: Rainbow Beach, River Heads (an outer southern port for Hervey bay located east of Maryborough) and Hervey Bay. Services from Rainbow Beach are as follows:

There are currently three vehicular barges which all operate on demand from Inskip Point (7 km north of Rainbow Beach) on the mainland, and Hook Point on the island. Departures kick off at around 7.00 a.m. and conclude at about 6.00 p.m., with extended hours in peak times. There is no need to book. Two of the vessels - the Rainbow Venture (http://www.fraserislandferry.com.au/) and Elmer's Barge - are associated with Eurong Resort on Fraser Island (tel: [phone]). The other is the Manta Ray, tel: [phone] or check out: http://www.fraserislandbarge.com.au/

For ferries to Kingfisher resort please check out their website: http://www.kingfisherbay.com/ for updated times and rates.

It is also possible to take a vehicle barge called the Fraser Venture from River Heads to Wonggoolba Creek (a thirty minute trip). Check out: http://www.fraserventure.com/ for times and rates.

Maps of the island are for sale at all ferry points. It is important to remember that a permit is required to drive on Fraser Island, for which a fee is payable. They can be obtained from the Queensland National Parks and Wildlife Service offices. One is located at Rainbow Beach and is open from 7.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. daily (tel: [phone]) and another is located at River Heads. There are also fees for usage of the camping facilities on the island.

Stonetood Sand Dune
This huge dune is currently moving across the island burying everything in its way. The movement, driven by the prevailing winds, is very slow. The size of the dune is remarkable. It is not possible to walk across the dune. Although the island has been used for over 100 years by Europeans there is now a genuine environmental concern which recognises the delicate ecology of the region.

Eli Creek
Eli Creek is the largest freshwater stream on the eastern coast of the island. It is an area of exceptional and pristine beauty. There are a number of wooden walkways and a short, circular route runs up one side of the creek and down the other. It is possible to swim in the lower reaches of the creek. On a hot day it is very cool and refreshing.

The Wreck of the Maheno
After thirty years of service in Australian waters the Maheno, a huge cruise vessel, was being towed to Japan as scrap when it hit cyclonic conditions off the coast and was washed ashore on 9 July 1935. The past 60 years of waves and weathering have reduced this once huge vessel to a small rusting hulk.

The Pinnacles and the Cathedrals
These coloured sand cliffs have been sculptured by the wind and rain blowing in off the Pacific Ocean. The colours - red, brown, yellow and orange - are spectacular. The size of the cliff faces is a reminder of how large the sand dunes on the island are.

Central Station
The Woongoolbver Creek which carries clear water through the island's rainforest at Central Station (Central Station was once the home of over 100 people and the centre of the forestry industry on the island) is one of the most beautiful retreats on the whole of the island. It seems as though this area inspired the Australian Nobel Prize winner Patrick White whose description of the island in the novel A Fringe of Leaves includes the lines: 'Now it hushed the strangers it was initiating. At some stages of the journey the trees were so densely massed, the columns so moss-upholstered or lichen-encrusted, the vines suspended from them so intricately rigged, the light barely slithered down, and then a dark, watery green, though in rare gaps where the sassafras had been thinned out, and once where a giant blackbutt had crashed, the intruders might have been reminded of actual light if this had not flittered, again like moss, but dry, crumbled, white to golden.'

Lake McKenzie
There are a number of freshwater lakes on the island including Lake Bowarrady (120 m above sea level), Lake McKenzie, Lake Boemingen (reputedly the largest perched lake in the world), Ocean Lake, Hidden Lake, and Coomboo Lake. Each is notable for the clarity of the water, the purity of the white sands on the surrounding beaches and the peacefulness of the area. They are ideal places for picnics and fishing.

Tours
Fraser Island Adventure Tours are located at 4 Mooloola St, Minyama, tel: [phone] or http://www.fraserislandadventuretours.com.au

Horseriding
Clip Clop Treks operate lengthy horse rides from Rainbow Beach, across the ferry to Fraser Island, and also around the hinterland, tel: [phone].