Once again we arrive at dusk. It is not for lack of trying but the darkness is upon us. Hervey Bay is a complete surprise. I expected another small sea side town and holy cow it is a city, and quite a big one at that. It reminds us of Kelowna in Canada. The long avenue in is lined with all sorts of commercial buildings and it goes on for ever. We don’t have a real map just one photocopied from the Lonely Planet. We enter civilization and have no idea where we are. The map only covers the portion of the city by the water and we don’t even know where the water is. Eventually we get our bearings and find our way to the esplanade. We arrive at the furthest point along the seaside walk and since it is an area less traveled we find a cheap room again after dark. Still can’t seem to get that part right.
This morning is crisp but not quite jacket weather. A walk to the end of the 1100 M pier serves to wake us up. Into the car and we drive the length of the esplanade we missed last night. It is a really nice street. Mostly residential but there are a few small scale commercial areas and the occasional motel/hotel/resort.
It takes a few tries to get out of the city but once in the right direction it doesn’t take us long and we are on the highway south. It is about 150 kms to Noosa our destination for today.
Right off the bat we encounter road works. This long section is not just a slow down in speed but three different sets of flagmen delaying our onward progress. Arriving in Gympie, a mere 75 kms away, 2 hours after we leave the hotel. Our goal today is to arrive in Noosa and find a hotel before it gets dark and already that looks in danger.
From Gympie on the traffic increases greatly. Finally about 12.30 we get to Noosa. It is not a big place but first glance it is quite crowded. The entire place looks like it has been built in the last 2o years. Very modern and upscale. As we drive further the traffic gets worse, both on the road and on the sidewalks. This isn’t looking good. We cannot even find a place to park and get our bearings. This is not our kind of place. A traffic jam from one end of town to the other and not an inch of sidewalk to spare. Have at ‘er if you enjoy that kind of holiday but the executive decision is made and we move on.
Frankly I would not recommend Noosa to anyone. It is off the map with overcrowding and pricing. The hotel we asked at was OK for the hotel, nice place for $130/night but wifi was $5/hour/device. Not that we want to spend our whole time on the computer but strickly on princple I would not stay there.
So on we go. The road continues along the ocean front and we head farther south, destination unknown. Debbie finds a possible destination, and to Mooloolaba we head. Our goal is still to be settled before sunset. The maps we have are a little sketchy and the trip is a bit stressful but the sign on the highway says Mooloolaba 12 km and we are feeling better. This town feels and looks way better than Noosa. Within 10 minutes we sight a couple of motels and the first one we stop at is good. The motel is 3 blocks from the beach and the wifi is included. Welcome to the 21st century. It is 3 pm and the sun is no where near the horizon. We even have time for our first swim in the ocean since diving.
Hervey Bay from the pier