Up and at 'em early this morning to watch the Riders/Stamps game, which went well for a while but ended poorly. We had our complementary breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast and tea to get fueled up for a long day of hiking in the sun. We walked to the center of town by where the ferry comes in then took the road towards the hiking trails. The first beach bay we came across was empty but there were people out on the rocky point, so we followed the road over there to discover tons of huge boulders and a bunch of tiny rock wallabies! Wallabies look like a cross between a rat and a kangaroo, live in the crevaces of the rocks and are just about the cutest things ever. We got some carrot slices off a family that was there and hand-fed the little guys. We just need to see Nemo now and our wildlife goals for Australia will be complete.
A buddy back home recommended the Forts walk here, so we continued along the road and up a lot of hills until we finally arrived at the entrance to the Forts trail loop (about 12 KM later!). There was a sign warning not to stray off the trail due to the presence of Death Adders, which are one of the most venomous snakes in the world. So although the whole trail was very wide and groomed, we were stepping very warily. Didn't end up seeing or hearing any snakes, so that was a relief. Along the walk were old lookouts, gun emplacements and bunkers from WWII used for naval surveillance and command back then. Also got to see a couple koalas napping in the trees, which are always a welcome sight. We got to the beginning of the trail again and waited for the bus that comes by and took it back to town. Lunch was my new favourite thing I order everywhere; the works burger (with pineapple, bacon, ham, carrots, etc) which was nearly as good as the one in Rainbow Beach.
After lunch back at the hostel we ran into our Irish friends and caught up on the Whitsundays trips then went in search of some dinner. Both the restaurants we knew of were closed (one closed at 6 and the other wasn't open Mondays) so we asked the guy at the bottle shop (the only place open) and he directed us to a Mexican place around the corner. The place had a cool vibe with patio laterns, Spanish music, etc. making for good ambiance. Hanging around in the trees (pun intended) were possums, which were nearly as cute as the wallabies and ate nacho chips given to them by the owner. There were also long-legged hissing birds that freaked us out a bit, but they got shooed away. The food was pricey, but the ribs and nachos were tasty and filling. After dinner we chilled on the beach while the majority of the hostel was going wild at the bar.
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