Reflections by John Sinclair, AO on his love of Fraser Island (K’Gari)

There are the qualities of ocean-side wilderness – which Fraser Island does so particularly represent and the water, the lakes and the rain forest. They give a sense of awe, I think, of sensitivity towards the landscape and I feel that sense of awe. I know very few children who have been able to experience, as people of my age did, the loneliness on a coastline, the beauty experienced without human interference.

Judith Wright (From evidence to 1975 Fraser Island Environmental Inquiry)

Fraser Island has played such a large part in my life I should describe some of its special features that I have come to appreciate and love.  As long as I can remember Fraser Island has always been part of my life.  At first it sat in the background.  It was the backdrop I could see across the waters of Hervey Bay.  It was the place of fascinating and colourful stories discussed by my parents, their friends and my peers.  It seemed like a lifetime before, as a teenager, I was able to first experience it for myself; see those legendary crystal clear lakes; feel the surge of the surf on that vast straight beach; be impressed by the spectacle of the coloured sands and the shifting landscapes of the sandblows.  Above all, when I finally got there as a teenager, I was awed by the grandeur of the forests like no other forests I had ever seen.  I wondered how it could grow in nothing more than sand.  I was thrilled by the adventure of getting there and the challenges of travelling around on rough sand tracks just wide enough for a small vehicle to drive through while passengers ducked to avoid some of the branches.  It was a place of wonder and excitement that surpassed all my expectations. Keep Reading…