Noosa Heads is essentially a collection of small beach towns that intersect near Noosa National Park and The Sunshine Coast. After exploring Hervey Bay and Fraser Island we were excited to soak up the sun on the area's famous beaches for a couple days.
It was cloudy and raining when we left Hervey Bay on Friday morning so we hoped the three hour drive south would result in improved weather conditions. Luckily as we drove into Noosaville, the sun was shining and the rain had stopped. We grabbed sandwiches at a cafe in town and then checked into our hostel (a less-than-ideal experience. You can see my review here) before heading to the beach.
The most crowded we ever saw Sunshine Beach.
We practically had the beach to ourselves!
The beach was pretty empty, at least compared to what we are used to back home on the east coast in the summer! That is, until 50 junior lifeguards-in-training stormed the beach and began rescue exercises. We took the opportunity to move a bit further down the beach and laid there for the remainder of the day. The current was a little strong but the water temperature was cool, a refreshing change from the warmer temperatures up north!
We wanted a change of pace for dinner and were happy to stumble upon a popular rasta-themed Japanese restaurant (strange combo but it works!), Sushi Yah Man. The staff were all from Japan and even served conveyer-belt sushi! It was a nice reminder of our Asian travels and a great break from the more familiar fare we've been eating in Australia.
Saturday morning we woke up early so we could hike through Noosa Forest before the heat got too intense. We were hoping to see a koala - no such luck - but we saw a few other wildlife examples along the way...
A few wild turkeys...
A giant (I know it's hard to gauge but this guy was at least two feet long) lizard...
...and a naked old man in nothing but a hat! This guy was one of the many naked people we ran into (but the only one I could safely take a picture of without being a complete creep).
Once we got over the shock of wandering onto a nude beach inadvertently, we had a great mix of scenery along the trails: beautiful beaches (even the with the nudies!), rainforest trails and overlooking cliffs.
Looking back on Sunshine Beach at the start of our hike.
Crystal clear water at every turn.
One of the prettiest beaches was of course the nude beach - overlook at Alexandria Bay.
Further down Alexandria Bay.
After about three hours in the sun we were ready to jump into the ocean but the sky had started to look a little cloudy. We took cold showers at our hostel instead and grabbed lunch in town (I found bagel sandwiches!!), hoping the weather would hold. It wasn't raining after lunch so we went to the beach and spent the rest of the day reading and relaxing.
We walked to a nearby cafe for dinner and enjoyed excellent pizza and very friendly service. A perfect way to end our beach life days in Noosa. Tomorrow we head to Brisbane for some city living - another change of pace!