Island Adventures: K’Gari
Fraser Island, or as it is known by its aboriginal name, K’Gari, is just the place for an adventure filled with pure joy and excitement. The best way to explore The Great Sandy National Park is by going on a three days and two nights tour with Dingos.
Top spots
Eli Creek
Located right in the middle of seventy-five mile beach, on the east side of the island, Eli Creek is one of the best places to stop for a dip and cool off after a few hours driving. The current is pretty strong, so my favourite way to enjoy the creek is to walk along the forest-lined boardwalk to the top of the creek and then float lazily down the creek until you reach the sea!
The 200m creek pours 8 million litres of fresh water into the sea each day. The water is so pure that it is totally safe to drink directly from the creek - of course it’s best to do this at the top of the creek where it’s cleanest rather than at the entrance to the sea, so please don’t blame me if you get sick from it!
SS Maheno Shipwreck
After a short 10 minute drive north from Eli Creek, you will reach the SS Maheno Shipwreck. This 400ft long ocean liner has been shipwrecked on K’gari coast for exactly 90 years this year. There is a completely eerie vibe at the shipwreck, the fact that it is forbidden to swim near it or go inside the wreck definitely adds to this. The risk of something falling down inside the rusted ship is very high. Even more dramatically, it is speculated that there are unexploded weapons inside!!
Lake McKenzie and The Champagne Pools
Unfortunately, Cyclone Alfred was due to hit when I was on my trip to K’gari, so we had to be evacuated meaning that we left the island early and weren’t able to visit Lake McKenzie or The Champagne Pools which was beyond gutting.
Boorangoora is the aboriginal name for Lake McKenzie and it is located on south-west of the island, just inland from Wanggoolba Creek. The sand is mostly made up of pure white silica sand, which is extremely uninhabitable for most species. The crystal blue lake is absolutely gorgeous.
Right in the north of the island you can find The Champagne Pools - a collection of natural rock pools. The shallow pools heat up with sun and witch each wave, air is pushed into holes in the rocks creating a natural jacuzzi!! It’s almost as good as being in a spa. The Champagne Pools are also the only safe place to swim in the sea on the entire island. This is because the seas are brimming with jellyfish and sharks, not even a stinger suit will help you here.
Where we stayed
There isn’t any wifi or data service on K’gari, not even in the campsites. And we absolutely loved it! To be able to disconnect from the rest of the world for a few days and to live fully in the moment is honestly such a treat and the best way to make memories.
Dingo’s Campsite
After our first day of driving around the island, we arrived at our camp. The accommodation is pretty good with lots of two-man tents all pitched together under a tarpaulin to protect us from the weather. There are hot showers, and flushing loos too! Such a bonus.
Cooking in camp
The cooking set up is so much fun, the outdoor grills are the perfect place for an evening bbq. We made the most delicious bacon cheeseburgers on our first evening. Cooking as a team with the people in your car is such a laugh, especially when you are a few glasses of wine deep and are cooking for about 32 people!! Dingos were so good and gave us all the food to accommodate for everyone’s different allergies (massive creds to them there because our group had so many!!)
Once dinner was successfully over, we all sat outside for the rest of the evening chatting, playing card games and drinking wine, having a right laugh until our campfire went out.
A little bit of aboriginal history of k’gari
K’gari is the aboriginal name from the Butchulla people for the island that many people call Fraser Island, which is the name given to the island by European settlers. Its original name was given back to the island in 2023 by the Queensland government to acknowledge the Butchulla people’s connection to the land.
Before we arrived on the island, we were warned that it is banned to whistle on the island because, according to aboriginal tradition, it is said to disturb the spirits on the island and leads to some serious bad luck. The Dingo’s campsite is also one of the few places on the island where the Butchulla people have granted the use of fire.
For a few days of adventure, laughs and total disconnect from the outside world a trip to K’gari is extremely worth it - I would go back in a heartbeat.
