In a free guidebook, we saw a picture of shipwrecks jutting out of crystal clear water in Moreton Bay. I visioned us kayaking around the wrecks and jumping in to snorkel the artificial reefs. We drove from the Sunshine Coast to the top of Moreton Bay in the town of Redcliff. We stopped at an information site to book kayaks for the following day. But it was not meant to be. We learned we couldn’t kayak to the wrecks because they were off Moreton Island over 20 kilometers away. The only way to get to the Island was via a ferry from Brisbane. After a frustrating couple hours tying to find a good way to explore the wrecks, we finally came up with a plan – we would buy a day pass to a resort in the island which included the ferry transfer and then the just walk to the wrecks.

We camped in Redcliff that night at one of the few areas where they tolerate free camping. We were close to Brisbane and it was difficult to find any other options. We ended up staying in the parking lot of a park on Moreton Bay. It’s a pretty spot and we enjoyed the views while eating dinner. Seems that local teens also like that spot because we heard partiers coming and going all night. After a restless night with all the noise, we drove to the ferry terminal to begin our adventure.

The ferry captain warned that the journey would be a little rough because of the windy conditions causing waves in the usually calm bay. I hoped that wouldn’t affect our ability to snorkel the wrecks! The ferry ride ended up being very enjoyable with the captain pointing out factories that lined the water and ships in the Port of Brisbane.

An hour later, we arrived at the resort. I got excited when I saw they had kayaks available for rent, but decided against it because of the wind and waves. We could see the wrecks from the resort and they looked really cool. A resort employee informed us that about 15 ships were sunk on purpose; most in the 1950s but one as recent as the 1980s. The wrecks create a natural barrier off the shore so boats can safely anchor. I couldn’t wait to explore them!

The walk wasn’t too bad but when I tried to put down my towel on the sand it kept blowing away. The wind was so strong! We moved to a sheltered spot behind some bushes and relaxed while building up the courage to venture into the cold and rough water.

Entering the water was a bit of a shock. Between the strong wind, constant waves, cold water and Sara hanging on me to keep warm, it took a minute to get settled. We swam across the deep channel where boats anchor and made it to the piles of wrecks. The water was a bit cloudy from all the wind and waves but we still were able to explore quite a bit. There were fish everywhere! As we swam around, the fish would dart in and out of the different ships and compartments.

Too soon, I was starting to get cold (even before Sara!) and reluctantly we headed back in. On the way back to the resort, I spotted three dolphins swimming just a few meters offshore. I didn’t know that they would swim so close to shore! The rest of the afternoon we relaxed at the resort looking for more dolphins.

Back on the mainland, we headed to camp in Cleveland, south of the city. When we arrived, there were no parking spots big enough for our camper! We drove around the area looking for other potential campsites but didn’t find anything. We were also tired from the day and didn’t feel like cooking so we went back to the first camp area to get fish and chips and ask about camping. When we got back, we noticed another large camper parked right in front of a bus zone so I circled around and did the same at the rear of the zone – perfect!

In the morning, we were greeted to beautiful views of the bay around the park. It was so nice that we decided to have a picnic for breakfast! We cooked egg sandwiches on the barbie and enjoyed the morning. After breakfast, I was excited to keep driving because we where headed to Byron Bay in hopes of going hang gliding!