Hellooo there,

Even after all the adventures of Fraser Island and the Whitsundays over the past week, there was still much more to come. So after the sailing adventure around the Whitsundays the party continued heading up the East Coast and I'm happy to report that the car has been well behaved since the problems we encountered outside of Sydney. Touch wood anyway... But since the last entry we have visited Townsville and Mission Beach (where we are now).

Unlike our great country getting from one place to another literally takes hours. Each stop has probably averaged between 300-400kms. This countrys soooo big! Luckily though with an ipod and a spot of air conditioning we're well equiped for such long journeys. Luckily too the banter between us boys never stops so it all contributes to the whole experience. Now Townsville is suppose to the Capital of North Queensland but to be honest there weren't really much to the place. When we arrived though we did find a right cheap hostel, it was just the $14 a night. Thank you very much! I think its definately the cheapest we've found since we've been in Australia. And to be fair it wasn't half bad either. We had our own room for one. The kitchen was decent, and the TV in the common room was massive. It even had a tidy little BBQ and a spa. Townsville was always a place for us boys to stop off and sort everything out, especially after the week we had just had! A whole lot of washing needed to be done. Boring I know. We have noticed to that the further we've headed north, the slower the locals speak. Just a normal question like "Wheres the nearest supermarket?" would probably take the fella the rest of the afternoon to finally give an answer. But although they were pretty slow, the locals are extremely helpful. And too, Me and Milsy have noticed a lot more Aboriginals the further we've headed north. Nick and Miller had come from Darwin so it wasnt so much of a shock to them. The couple of days we spent in Townsville were very chilled out and much needed. Our next stop was Mission Beach.

Mission Beach....I still cant believe I even did it! When Milsy brought up the idea about doing a sky dive in Sydney I was ofcourse all up for it (well on the outside). I was hoping that he might forget. Did he heck. I've got two major fears in life...snakes and heights. And seeing as though I've already had my paws on a 10 foot python, I may as well jump out of a plane from 14,000 feet?? Well...really? Luckily too though the boys Nick and Miller stepped up to the plate too so we were all in it together. We arrived in Mission Beach on a late afternoon and within minutes we were all booked up to do the sky dive at 8am the next morning. So suddenly any prep time needed was straight away taken from us. That night, I think its fair to say we were all a bit nervous but Miller took the biscuit. Lets just say that a few calls home were made by the young man.

The next morning we were up bright and early and believe it or not actually on time! Im still shocked at that. Anyway we were jumping with "Pauls Skydiving" and they came to pick us up. Which made this whole experience even better was the fact that it would be just us four boys in the plane...so at least we didnt have to share the dive with any ze germans (for example). When paying for the package too, we all went for our own personal DVD, and speaking now Im so glad we did. Its something you'll always remember. When we arrived at the air base, we met up with the person who we would be doing the dive with. I had a fella called Greg and luckily he was a barrell of laughs (as you'll see on the DVD) so it made everything ten times better (if thats possible). Our safety briefing was very brief! They probably took all of five minutes to explain to us what we had to do. Honestly, for me it went in one ear and out the other. I had other things on my mind! During this whole time and up to the landing we were being filmed individually. Hmmm...thats embarrassing. It definately is too. So I may have to keep the DVD for my own perusal and bring it out on like my 40th Birthday or something. As we walked to the plane, my heart was a pumping! All I could think was "I've had a good innings". So we all got in the plane and consider that this little plane didnt even have a door! Unfortunately for Miller he was right bang next to this vacant door, which certainly didnt help his already nervy state. We must have been in the plane a good 15 minutes before we hit our desired height...14,000 feet. It looked soooo high, and honestly I cant even remember what I was thinking at that time. Apart from putting a fake smile on for that camera! Always the same. Milsy was out first, then Miller, and then Nick. At the beginning I thought this may be a good thing leaving the plane last but seeing all their bodies disappear and flying off in strange angles made my nerves skyrocket. There was no chance of backing out though. Greg had me strapped in to him and literally pulled me over to the vacant door. 3...2...1...Smile! aaaaaaaaah. What a feeling, absolutely incredible. Like Greg had earlier said its the best thing you'll ever experience with clothes on. Too right. Free falling 12,000 feet for a minute and going in the speed of 170kmh to 200kmh. Wow. Its really hard to describe but I definately advise any one with the opportunity to do a sky dive, to do it 110%! Amazing feeling. Looking back at the DVD on the free fall is certainly a little embarrassing. Odviously, the wind at that speed likes to have a little play with my chubby cheeks so it must put on at least another 30-35 years on me. Flab flab flab...lol. When we finally reached the height where Greg hoisted the parachute, I had so many feelings going through me. Firstly...that was amazing. Secondly...relief Im still alive! And lastly that it was all over...but parachuting in gave the most breathtaking views of Mission Beach. Greg even gave me the reigns for a while. Is he mad?? Well when you see the DVD (if I let you that is) you'll see he is a very funny guy and made the DVD awesome. Cant thank him enough. What another amazing experience. We had a nice smooth landing too on the beach and it was only seconds after I had been disconnected to Greg that I had that camera right in front of my noggin again. Weren't looking my best shall we say! Then all the boys (we all made it by the way) traded tales and enjoyed the journey back to the hostel. Because we were heading pretty much straight off up to Cairns, the guys said that they would send the DVD's up to Cairns for us. Legends. Skydiving Mission Beach will always be remembered, and I assure you you'll have a great time laughing at me when I arrive home. Good to hear from you through emails and messages on the board, means a lot. So stay tuned because the next stop is Cairns before our agonising long drive back to Sydney for our flight home. And just have to say...GET IN THERE JENAS!! What a strike. We're not gonna be going down to the dirty gooners. Speak soon guys.