♪♫♪ Like a Band of Gypsies...We Went down the Highway ♪♫♪

There is something about the old Willie Nelson tune, On the Road Again, that I just love. It's probably because when I was younger and my family went on road trips, we would sing the song as we set off on our adventure. So, when my friend, Patty, said we should "plan a spontaneous road trip", Willie Nelson's song got stuck in my head, and I couldn't stop singing the theme song to our 3-day road trip up the Queensland Coast to the Mon Repos Beach Turtle Rookery.

The main purpose for our adventure was to see the Turtle Hatchlings hatch and run for the ocean at Mon Repos, the largest turtle rookery in the South Pacific. But, of course, we had a lot of other adventures along the way.

It was a gorgeous 4+ hour drive north. Not far out of Brisbane, the landscape changes and we were surrounded by a lush green landscape for the rest of our journey.





We stayed in a whimsically painted, self-contained beach bungalow in Bargara, a TINY coastal village a few minutes south of Mon Repos Beach.



We got to Bargara after dark. Our first night was spent making spaghetti, drinking Shiraz and watching My Kitchen Rules on the Tele. We stayed up past midnight talking about how excited we were to be taking a GIRLS ONLY road trip.

The next day was a BIG day....

The Beach in Bargara

Looking back toward the tiny village of Bargara on our early morning walk

Heaps of Volcanic Rock and the Coral Sea

Visiting the Amandine Lavender Farm a few kilometers inland from Bargara

Elliott Heads Beach about a half hour South of Bargara....Tropical Storm coming in FAST

We had the whole Elliott Heads' Beach to ourselves

Elliott Heads Beach in HDR

The original, kerosene powered lighthouse in Burnett Heads build in 1873

Patty's first WILD kangaroo in Burnett Heads, about 15 minutes north of Bargara

Patty with her first wild kangaroos in the field over her right shoulder

Miles and miles of sugar cane, one of the main crops of far north Queensland

Once we saw everything in the region...we played some Aussie style pool back in Bargara

Finally, it was time to head to Mon Repos Beach. It is turtle nesting and hatching season, and we were hoping to be able to watch some hatchlings run to the sea. But, we were told if turtles are scarce, we might either have to wait for hours before going with the environmental staff to the beach OR we might not see anything at all. After waiting an excruciating 3 hours, we were finally directed down to the beach where hatchlings were digging their way to the surface. What an amazing sight!! They all come out at once. One moment we were looking at sand, and the next minute we were looking at hundreds of tiny turtles bubbling through the surface.

Patty with the new hatchlings at Mon Repos Beach

5 minute old Loggerhead Hatchlings just before running to the sea

The best part of the experience was when the hatchlings decided not to follow the torch lights of the rangers and instead follow the light of the full moon. Patty and I had just commented about how we felt like the rangers shouldn't be trying to get the hatchlings to follow an artificial light just for our benefit and should instead be letting the hatchlings do their natural thing. Literally a minute later, the hatchlings all changed course and headed straight towards us as they bee lined straight for the full moon over the sea. We froze as hundreds of hatchlings raced over our feet and through our legs on their first journey to the sea. Amazing is an understatement!!!

The next day, we woke up early and drove to Oaks Beach at high tide, which we had been told would be the best time to go snorkeling. We had rented snorkel gear the day before, and we were looking forward to snorkeling in the Coral Sea. At Oaks Beach, we were slightly disappointed when the high tide conditions weren't optimal for snorkeling. We didn't let this stop our fun. We played in the waves for a bit, while Patty gave me lessons on how to swim safely in the ocean.

After driving back to Bargara to return our rented snorkeling gear, we got on the road and headed back to Brisbane. We, of course, stopped a few times on the way back to Brissy so that we could take pictures.

Taking time to smell the flowers

A little blowy... But, we found beautiful flower farm along the rural Queensland Hwy

Bundaberg Rum Distillery... I don't like their rum, but I'll pose with their ginormous bottle

Where else but in rural Queensland would you see a beware of golfers sign on the motorway?

Sunshine Coast Hinterland

There's something about cattle gates that I just love

Sunshine Coast Hinterland in HDR

All in all, it was a fantastic trip. It was both mine and Patty's first road trip without our men since moving to Oz in late 2009. Even though I missed Ryan and always love taking trips with him, it was empowering to travel alone in a foreign country. Not only did I feel a slight bit of independence, but also I was able to have an adventure with Patty before she and Aaron move to the States in a few months. Even though Patty is moving back to the States soon, I have no doubt that there will me more adventures in our future.