There is a terrific amount of touristy things to do here and we are keen to check them out so that we can take Karen and Linda to the best of them. 

Our first stop was Cedar Creek Falls. We discovered it is obviously a popular local spot as it had plenty of people enjoying the space. A beautiful cascading waterfall resulting in a rocky freshwater swimming hole. It was magical. A few tourists were braving the cool water, sucking in their breath as they got deeper and deeper. It appeared rocky underfoot so they were forced to swim into the water before they were entirely ready and a few expletives were heard. Caleb followed a German tourist around one side of the swimming hole where they spotted a large turtle swimming closer to the waterfall. It was a beauty of a spot, hopefully we get a chance to take the girls there.
Driving further we came across Conway Beach. Ray had his fishing stuff in the car because he was hoping to do some beach fishing after we had lunch. When we saw how far out the tide was, (at least a kilometre) we knew it wasn’t going to happen. We drove around the other side of the point to Wilson Beach where the holiday houses were literally on the foreshore. But here also, the tide was so far out that fishing wasn’t feasible. We enjoyed our lunch and then adamant that Ray would have the opportunity to wet his line, went in search of a suitable fishing spot. We ended up at New Beach, not far from the main strip of Airlie Beach. Caleb had a swim while Ray fished. There were three men fishing, one had arrived before us, and of the three Ray was the only one to catch anything. He landed a bream fish which was a really very pretty looking fish, all silvery and colours of the rainbow. Caleb named him Jack. Ray also caught a toadie and the other fishermen failed to catch anything. Ray was pretty pleased, but tried not to punch the air as he was in full view of the others. Jack swam around in the bucket while Ray tried to catch another to make it worthwhile to fillet and cook them. One wouldn’t be enough for us. 

Caleb met a friend in the beach, Michaela, and they built a sandcastle with a moat which had a channel leading back to the water. They were talking to Jack and kept checking up on him in the bucket like a couple of doting parents. I sensed a potential problem should Ray catch another and proceed to behead and fillet Jack. I was mentally preparing a different meal for Caleb, knowing full well that there was no way he would be having a piece of Jack on his plate. 
Ray failed to hook anything else and announced that Jack had to be returned to the water. Well,didn’t that cause a ruckus! Caleb wanted to keep him of course, figuring out how he could be kept in the caravan and come with us on our trip. Eventually, he was forced to say goodbye to Jack and Michaela and we headed back to the car. But, he wouldn’t stop going on and on and on about “his friend” Jack. Ray and I thought it better not to say anything but it was tempting to point our just how close “his friend” had come to being our dinner. Ahhh…the challenges of travelling with children.