24th and 25th of September 2005

The expedition members began assembling first at Love St Bulimba and then on to Quay St to pick up the final member of the team. Steve and Karl were ready earlier than expected and went against the team's original plan of waiting for Jim at Karl’s Love St residence. They decided to meet with Jim in Quay St. This was this a sign of things to come, plans being changed - almost anarchy. Only time would tell.

As it turned out it was although reckless, a wise decision, Jim was still in the throws of packing all the extra food he decided to take (heaviest kayak by far). There was a feeling of excitement in the air a little like the first day at school except we were a lot older, not so much wiser, but older. Then the final checks were completed under the watchful guidance of the expeditions main coordinator Jim Holden, once complete we hopped in the cars, Steve and Karl in callsign “Kayak One” and Jim pushing up the rear in callsign “Kayak Two” (the naming of these was to become a point that certainly caused some contention - a fire soon extinguished by the majority in Kayak 1).

The convoy began the long journey to our destination the Noosa Everglades, it was to be a routine trip approximately two hours. We had travelled for 20 minutes when the convoy was halted due to a crewman, Karl in Kayak 1’s vehicle, finding it difficult to continue due to an almost seizure like tremor brought on by the fact he had not had a morning coffee.

Only after the crew had fed and coffees were purchase could they continue on. Back on the road after a short stop, spirits still on a high and the two way radios switched on, it was like a couple school kids swapping truckie talk over the air waves. Although some useful information did change hands, none of it comes immediately to mind.

The rest of the journey passed quickly plenty of discussion about the trip to come. After a short amount of navigation through the back streets of Noosa expertly undertaken by Karl with the aid of one of the three different direction map sets prepared by Jim (he leaves nothing to chance), they were there at the launch site. The expedition was about to begin in earnest all three members began the calm, almost methodical preparations that are required for a journey such as this. A suggestion was made by Kayak One’s driver Steve that perhaps we should be beginning the paddling leg of this journey at Boreen Point instead of the previously agreed Elanda Point, was this the first signs of non conformation with the plan creeping into the team. This suggestion was quickly overturned, a decision that will be mentioned again before the end of the trip.

The cars were then taken out to their resting place for the next two days, the kayaks were lifted by crew members down to the waters edge. It was time now for a photo to mark this momentous occasion, nervous laughter… the jubilation evident in the men’s voices.

Finally the moment Jim, Karl and Steve at times thought would never become a reality: the first few tentative strokes, many times before had they been in their craft. Yet it was if they were small children taking their first steps into the big world outside. Then came the comment that if not made once that weekend it was made 100 times: how lucky we were to be alive and live in such a magnificent land. The sun high in the sky by this time (nearly 10.30 am) was warm but not unbearable, a slight breeze making the conditions very comfortable for the paddlers. Karl who after a fall from his road bike (part of the rigorous training undertaken by the team members prior to the expedition) only two weeks before the trip was a major concern for the team. Would he cope with the unceasing paddling that his sore shoulder had to take or would Steve and Jim be forced to take on the burden of towing him? Only time would tell.

As the crew made there way across a very shallow Lake Cootharaba comments were passed that the boats did not perform all that much different than when they were unladen. Steve’s kayak seemed to have not been packed evenly the nose of which was decidedly low in the water a problem easily solved at the next stop. It was only a short journey across the lake to the visitor centre perched upon poles in the edge of the lake. This was the first stop of many. It was something quite unexpected by the team - the centre was built standing on poles in the lake.

There were a number of other people going through the packing and checking phase of their own adventures, some as was evident shortly after they left the safety of shallow water could not even spell Canadian canoe let alone paddle one. Final ablutions taken care of, we set off into the everglades - Canadian canoes heading in all directions except where they wanted to go. Small giggles could be heard as the team glided effortlessly past. Looking back now our adventurers should perhaps have kept their giggles to themselves.

Steve who had been in charge of carrying the maps was to make an almost fatal error, instead of checking all the maps, he and Jim were more concerned with playing with their GPS’s. Their exit point from the lake was missed adding an additional 3 kilometers to the paddle. Would this affect the outcome of the days paddle. Remembering Karl’s action was hampered severely by his injuries, time would tell.

The team found themselves at a dead end, the bravado was no where to found as they slowly backed the craft out. Questions were being asked: “where did we go wrong”, “how could this have happened when every detail had been meticulously planned”. After this humbling experience trying to find their way back on course, which included asking a father and son fishing team, one of their statements was it would be easy to get lost in here without a map. Little did they know our expedition had three maps and two GPS’s - a secret well kept by the team. This exercise did at least prove that all members of the team could still work together very well: no one person actually fully pointing the finger at Steve for the mistake (it really was a simple error anyone could make).

Once back on course, we passed all of the very big signs with arrows showing the route. How did we miss them the first time? The team were paddling in earnest, through the bottom section of the river called the narrows: an area truly remarkable. The surface of the water as flat as glass, reflecting every tree, piece of grass anything that was in sight like a mirror, only to broken by the knife edge of the three kayaks bows. The action of the bows sending black arrow heads of ripples towards the shore, around every bend another sigh unconscientiously coming from one of the team. Expressions of disbelief as to how lucky we are to live in this land, once again we passed between the paddlers.

Now as they made their way up the main arm of the river there was only one way to point the boats, Harry’s hut it had been decided would be the next stop - an area widely lauded for its beauty. Everyone was keen to see the famous Hut. After all, the visitor centre was far more than expected. How good would Harry’s Hut be? The paddle blades were all the time pulling the team closer to the lunch time stop - Steve and Jim were watching their GPS’s… they were supposed to be there but where was it? Nothing could be seen. At this point a small amount of finger pointing was directed at the person who had programmed the way points into the GPS’s, could the most organised person the team members have ever met have made a mistake (it is not possible). So on they paddled. Not far really, but certainly far enough to warrant a comment on poor planning. They were there. Could it be that Mr Brown’s Coast Watch isn’t as accurate as should be, a point noted time and time again on the tour…