Introducing Fraser Island
The local Aboriginal people call Fraser Island ‘K’Gari’, which is very fitting as it roughly translates into paradise. It is said that all the sand from the eastern coast of Australia eventually ends up at Fraser Island, a gigantic World Heritage–listed sand bar measuring 120km by 15km and created by 800, 000 years of longshore drift. Seen from the coast this beautiful enigma appears too lush and green to be the world’s biggest sand island, but the island’s diverse ecology is one of the many wonders of the place. Rainforests and some 40 freshwater lakes dot the landscape, and dunes (known locally as ‘sandblows’) tower up to 224m high. Off-shore, whales, dolphins, sharks and turtles can often be seen from these high points.
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There’s a sci-fi other-worldliness to Fraser Island, as 4WDs and buses with towering wheel bases and fat, chunky tyres all pull in to refuel against an idyllic beach backdrop of white sand and waving palm trees.
Coming here, there are certain essentials to know: 4WDs are mandatory as all roads are sand tracks. Your vehicle will need to have decently high clearance and you will need to cross over to the island via a ferry from either Hervey Bay or Rainbow Beach.
Other things to be aware of: the lakes are lovely to swim in, but the ocean is lethal – undertows and man-eating sharks make it a definite no-go. And feeding the island’s dingoes has made them increasingly aggressive in recent years.
Yet none of this detracts from the enjoyment of a location unlike any other on earth. If the dunes, the forests, the lakes, the birds and the mammals aren’t enough, gaze up at the night sky. With little light behind you, the Milky Way blazes brightly.
Among the ways to see Fraser Island (your own 4WD vehicle, a group self-drive safari or a guided tour), we would ask you consider the eco impact before deciding. Even though joining a guided tour can mean sharing your Fraser experience with up to 40-odd strangers, tours also have a lower impact on the environment. The fewer vehicles on the island, the lower the chance its fragile ecosystem gets screwed up. Self-drive safaris are a good middle ground (these put groups together into one vehicle and thus lessen the number of jeeps on the sand), but you need to seriously consider your 4WD skills (or those in your proposed group) before signing up. Driving on Fraser can be hair-raising to say the least: one minute you’ll be cruising along when suddenly the earth turns to water and you start to spin out. See the boxed text for more details on these options.
Last updated: Mar 2, 2009
