After a swim in the Lagoon and a bit of lunch, we headed up the eastern beach to Cape Moreton lighthouse to watch whales, dolphins and turtles laze offshore. The pic on the right is a view of the eastern oceanward beach, our 4WD, and some other 4WD copping our turf. Geez. Check out the white dunes in from the coast. We then headed over to the village of Bulwer, pop. 100 for groceries and a bottle shop. The streets were loose sand, and the locals walk around barefoot. While an idyllic existence, I'll bet the nightlife isn't too happening.

Next, we drove down the western leeward side of the island to the Tangalooma Wrecks for a bit of snorkelling. At one time, Tangalooma was a whaling station, and the Wrecks were old boats scuttled about 60m from shore decades ago to provide safe harbour for the whaling vessels. Nowadays, the Wrecks are home to a variety of aquatic life and a few recreational moorings. We reached them later in the afternoon, and thus the light was fading, the air cooling, the water murkier, and fish less active. I still managed to see a fair bit, and I know I saw something really big down there at one point, but couldn't make out what it was. We stuck around long enough to catch the sunset (pic on the left), then headed back to camp for dinner.

My fellow "troopers" retired shortly after that, leaving me to my own devices, so I wandered down to the beach, a ten-minute walk. The moon was out and bright enough to read by, so I could see forever down the coast, and no one else was around. I walked along for a while, taking in the roar of the ocean, and the feeling of solitude and expansiveness.

The next day, Xavier and Martine wanted to give the snorkelling another try, while Elyssa and I wanted to see something new, and thus hiked to the top of Mt. Tempest, a bush-covered mountain of sand and the highest point on the island. It was a nice day, so we could see the length of the island from tip to tip, as well as Brisbane and the mainland to the east and North Stradbroke Island to the south. Checked out the slow-growing grass trees, which have fire resistant bark and a long stick of a flower that the Aborigines used to use for spears.

Once we reunited with the rest of the group, we learned that they had seen two humpback whales between the Wrecks and the shore! Xavier and Sol had had the whales swim right underneath them. Aw man, stupid mountain hike! However, the whales were apparently freaked out by a boat moored in their intended escape route, and had been acting skittish. I was also assured that the rest of the snorkelling had been pretty poor. Surrre it was.

After returning for lunch and a pack-up of the camp, we headed up to enjoy the afternoon on the island's northern beaches, where we hiked around the rocks, watched kids play in rock pools continually filled by the tide, and swam in the surf. Sadly, the ferry picked us up at 3:30, brought us back to the mainland, and me to a shade of reality.

I met back up with Sabrina and Jeff for one last night in Brizzy, where we feasted, drank, and desserted quite heartily (well, not Jeff, he was serving). It was great to see the two of them. Sab is a friend from school that I rarely get to see anymore due to our respective adventures. Due to changing work circumstances, they likely won't be staying much longer in Oz either, and I wish the two of them the best in their next journey. Enjoy Fiji folks!

I also wanted to thank Joe Percy for the map of Brisbane he gave me before I left Adelaide. I used it quite extensively to explore the city, as evidenced by the ripped creases and now-soft paper.

As for me, it was time for the next chapter: the return to Byron Bay for a bit of a longer stay.