Fraser Island...
discover the Beauty
Located just off the coast from Hervey Bay, World Heritage Listed
Fraser Island will leave you feeling charmed and captivated. Spanning
124km and covering an area of 163 000 hectares, Fraser Island
is the largest sand island in the world and the only place on
the planet where rainforest grows from sand. An ecological masterpiece
of giant sand dunes, rainforests, streams and perched fresh water
lakes, Fraser is a nature lover's dream. Its Aboriginal name "K'Gari"
appropriately means paradise.
An exceptional range of flora is found on Fraser Island. Cool and peaceful rainforests of towering Satinay and Brush Box trees, some over 1000 years old, contrast with swampy wetlands, heathlands full of wild flowers and coastal strands of Pandanus palms. Fraser Island boasts around 230 species of birds and 25 species of mammals including wallabies, possums, flying foxes, echidnas and Eastern Australia's purest breed of dingo. The warm waters surrounding the Island attract dugong, dolphins and turtles.
Whale Watching.
The region is also famous for close encounters with the majestic humpback whales which rest in the Bay before their return to the Antarctic. >From August to October, the whales frolic in the warm sheltered waters of the bay, putting on a spectacular display for their admirers. Celebrating the return of the humpback whales each year, Hervey Bay stages a Whale Festival for two weeks in August. An aquatic carnival, including an illuminated procession of floats, is the highlight of this fun-filled fortnight.
But there is much more to Hervey Bay, with its many attractions centring around its safe and sheltered waters and golden beaches. Indeed, Hervey Bay is establishing itself as the centre of the Great Sandy Region, which has been World Heritage Listed. The Central City District of Hervey Bay stretches from Gatakers Bay to River Heads, taking in the coastal resorts of Point Vernon, Pialba, Scarness, Torquay and Urangan. Howard, Torbanlea, Toogoom , Burrum Heads, River Heads and Booral are also within the boundaries of Hervey Bay municipality.
Boating and fishing enthusiasts will find estuary, beach, jetty or reef fishing, and a variety of water sports including diving, water and jet skiing, sailboarding and snorkelling. Fishing from one of Hervey Bay's landmarks, the Urangan Pier, is a popular pastime and a glass bottomed boat provides great viewing of the coral reefs found in the Bay.
Attractions
Dayman Point offers sweeping views of the Great Sandy Strait,
family picnic facilities and memorials to early explorers Matthew
Flinders and Joseph Dayman, and to the men of "Z" force
who trained on Fraser Island for a daring World War operation
in Singapore. The Korrawinga
Monument, dedicated to the Aboriginal people of Hervey Bay and
Fraser Island, is a symbol of hope for the future unity of all
peoples of the area. Hervey
Bay's attractions include a shark show, aquarium, shell display,
wildlife park, arts and crafts, historical and mining museums,
restored colonial homes, a waterslide and natural attractions.
To experience the early settlement of Hervey Bay and Fraser Island, visit the Hervey Bay Historical Museum at Scarness or hire a boat and explore Woody Island National Park, halfway between Urangan and Fraser Island, with its disused lighthouse and graves. Protected by Fraser Island, Hervey Bay is an ideal spot for diving, with coral reefs and sunken ships teeming with fish life providing lots of interest. For non-divers Neptune's Coral Cave Aquarium, or Vic Hislop's Shark Show, both at Urangan, offer different perspectives on the reef and its fascinating marine life.
Natureworld, on the outskirts
of Hervey Bay, is a 40ha haven for Australian wildlife, including
crocodiles and their hatchlings. The Bush Tucker and Bush Medicine
gardens offer rare insights into survival techniques
practiced for centuries, and a night-time spotlighting tour, rounded
off with billy tea and damper around the campfire, allows visitors
to view distinctive nocturnal animals at their best. The koala
enclosure has become one of Natureworld's most popular attractions.
The Fraser Coast is one of Queensland's most attractive holiday destinations and being only a three and a half hour drive north of Brisbane or a one hour flight, it is also easily accessible. With an incredible diversity of experiences to offer, from World Heritage Listed Fraser Island; to the sheltered waters of Hervey Bay visited each winter by the huge and playful humpback whales; from the living history of Maryborough to the majestic Bunya Mountains; from the capital of Queensland's peanut industry, Kingaroy and its surrounding rich farmlands to old mining villages and peaceful seaside settlements.
