Great Barrier Reef, the Outback, Byron Bay

After spending a week camping in the Outback, we've made it to Byron Bay. Byron is a small surfing town on the east coast about 2 hours south of Brisbane. We've decided to spend our last few days in Australia just doing nothing - no driving, no sightseeing, no trying to figure out where we'll spend the next night - just lounging on the beach and reading books or hanging out by the pool. Since the last posting, we've gone diving in the Great Barrier Reef, survived a "tsunami" and driven through the Outback dodging wild Emus, Road Trains and Kangaroos.

Great Barrier Reef = awesome.
I have never in my life seen so many fish of so many colorful varieties.
We took a dive boat out from Cairns and dove a number of spots along the Great Barrier Reef. The water was warm enough that the wetsuit was optional and I stayed down on every dive until my tank was near empty. The majority of sea life was between 15 and 30 feet, so one tank lasted for almost an hour. If I could have, I would have just stayed underwater. Maybe brought a sleeping bag and moved in. By far, this was some of the best diving I have ever done in my life.

The "tsunami" turned out to be a dud. An offshore earthquake in the Solomon Islands led to a tsunami warning along the eastern coast of Australia. Luckily, we were up in the hills at Mission Beach, staying in a little cabin with screens for walls and a fantastic view of the rainforest. After the scare was over, we continued on our journey, only to find out later that a "tsunami" had actually occurred...a "tsunami" of 20cm. Tragically, the Solomon Islands experienced an actual tsunami which brought some serious damage and ended many lives. We feel fortunate to have not experienced what the Solomon Islanders went through and our hearts go out to the survivors.

Driving through the Outback
I was hesitant to visit the Outback again after my last adventure there 10 years ago. It turns out that traveling through the Outback in air conditioned comfort is quite pleasant.If you're not occupied with standing in the sun, sweating profusely and trying to hitch a ride, the Outback is really a lovely place. It is chock full of Eucalyptus trees, wildlife, termite mounds and, in some places, red dirt that fills the horizon as far as the eye can see. We saw wild emus and kangaroos, small dusty towns and lots of red earth. We also saw Road Trains which, next to Kookaburras, are my new favorite thing.

Road Trains are terrifying visions. Giant semi trucks that pull up to 4 trailers; they can be as long as 55meters (about 150 feet) and they CAN'T STOP. There is too much momentum behind them. Whatever is in their way will be smushed.
There is an immediate rush of adrenalin to the head when you spot one in the distance coming toward you. In many cases, we would be on a one-lane road when a road train was spotted. Normally, when passing a car on a one-lane road, each car moves to the side, so 2 wheels are in the dirt and the other two are on the asphalt. If it's a road train coming at you, it's important to get the heck off the road entirely. It's also imperative to slow down or even stop as the pebbles and rocks that these things kick up can nick or crack a windshield. Watching one of these beasts roar by - especially from the vantage point of a small, Japanese car - is truly awe inspiring, like watching a battleship from the vantage point of a rowboat.

More photos have been uploaded to flickr. Take a peek!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/muddygaloshes/
Thanks!
-Michelle