Mission Beach via Townsville

Loved Mission beach - for the people and another place to do not much apart from relax.

Stayed in Townsville 4 a few hours before the greyhound just to glimpse it. Reminded me of a slightly better Rockhampton. Spent the time looking for a second hand bookshop and a copy of Lonely Planet Thailand. Found it a mile out of town, shut. Nxt door told me it was in the centre now... D'oh! Found it; or the shop it would be in, in a few weeks. No point in the adventure! Had a McEurope burger for lunch - bit like KFC.

Bus to Mission Beach. Arrived and talked to Kevin and Camilla from Byron and Surfer's Paradise and Airlie Beach, who were randomly getting my bus.

Niiiice hostel, 1st 2 nites only 25 bucks cuz of voucher. Saggy matresses but there's a fire and a drive thru 'liquor store' across st. Infront of fire, made good friends instantly. got fire names based on our experiences and strengths/weaknesses, I'm burnt foot , Dan is Talking Bull, Jussi is Big Flame, Chris the skydiver is Long Fall, there was also White face, Maggie - No Play (a guitar but no songs!), Andy who whitewtaer rafted that day - floating monkey.

Nxt day played badminton, read in the hammock and went to the beach which was cold and windy - was warmer in the sea! Little bit of body surfing! Keepy ups with beach ball for hours. Big fire that night! Collected a tonne of driftwood wi wheel barrow. Tried slide quitar with a beer bottle. Told to be quiet. I thought it was good...

Next day, same thing til lunch - read map with Andy and Dan, found "Muff Creek" - boyish laughs and innuendo for about an hour. Decided to go on a journey/adventure there. took $8 on bus, 2km walk and being bitten on one leg by sandflies. Saw a butch cassowary sign on the way, 2 dead marsupials. Creek its self just tiny, muddy and trickling. Muff Creek had crabs! etc...

Bingo that night!! Andy and I won $10, Ethel stole the big hamper tho... Good fun. Recognised some people from Sydney back at hostel, thought they were from Deeping for something - Sydney so long ago!!

got a free T-shirt for staying 3 nights and a free cap for booking white water rafting. Woo?! Rafting day - got up nice and early, picked up, E+B in van! Driven to tully river; had grades 1-4 rapids (5 is impossible). First rapids biggest!! Paul a guy in the raft freaking out when our raft flipped - good fun floating down rapids!! Nice and dangerous... BBQ lunch, saw a 1m eel in the shallows. Beautiful scenery, more jurrasic park. Sheer cliff and unspoilt dense rainforest for the whole 5hours of rafting. Big 4m rock to jump off, a few people flipping off it! Free photo after, cuz of voucher. Want to learn to Kayak now, and get strong enough to do rapids like that. Where in the UK though...

Watched 'Wolf Creek' - film about travellers who break down and get tortured. People up coast say it'll make you not want to travel, but its not that bad... its just a horror film, based on 'true' events. Made popcorn from real corn. Next day - swimming in the pool and chilling before the LAST EVER GREYHOUND!! Saw the big (5m) cassowary by bus stop. Wasn't moving much...

Off to Cairns!!