When we arrived at Rockhampton it was a little after midnight. We collected our luggage and called for a taxi to take us to the YHA. After waiting for about ten minutes a taxi pulled in to the forecourt,  Alex went to see if it was the one we had booked, but as he spoke to the driver at his window, a drunk guy opened the passenger door and plonked himself in – meanwhile gesturing to his friends to get in. The taxi driver immediately told them to get out (turns out it was our taxi) and luckily the drunken party left of their own accord, mumbling complaints under their breath about the taxi driver being rude. Once we had packed our luggage into the taxi we were on our way!  As we were arriving at the hostel out of hours, we were in possession of a secret code that would grant us access to our dorm key. We found the room and entered in to darkness, we could see that both bottom bunks were taken and the occupants already asleep. We tried to be as quiet as possible but when you have to climb onto the top bunk, noise was inevitable. They didn’t seem to complain though, in fact they didn’t say much at all as they checked out first thing the next morning.

Our reason for coming to Rockhampton was the Olsen/Capricorn Caves. However it wasn’t until we were chatting to one of the staff at the hostel that we realised just how difficult it could be to get there. No public transport goes to it and hiring a car for the day would cost us around $90. The manager of the hostel did however know someone who would come and pick us up, wait while we explored the caves and then bring us back to the hostel again. This sounded great but we needed to wait until the manager got to the hostel which wouldn’t be for another half hour. Therefore we decided to go into the town that day and out to the Botanical Gardens and Zoo and that we would speak to the manager later about arranging the Cave trip for tomorrow instead.

Rockhampton town centre was approximately a 20 minute walk from the hostel. When we arrived into the town centre it appeared to be very quiet, not a great number of shops were open but we put this down to it being a Sunday. However it should be noted that Sundays are not treated the same in Australia as they are in the UK – in fact we have found on many occasions that shops have been open later on a Sunday than a Saturday. After exhausting what the centre had to offer that day we decided lunch was in order and after re-fuelling, we would head across the city to the Botanical Gardens and Zoo. The walk probably took us near enough an hour and it was a rather hot day, we soon finished the drink supply we had with us and were very grateful to finally see the sign welcoming us to the gardens. Despite both wanting to head to the Cafe for a refreshing drink we stopped a moment to admire the flowers on a tree by the entrance. We have seen a lot of these trees – which I now know are called “Plumeria Rubra” (or their common name, “frangipani”) – during our time here and I find them exceedingly beautiful. Anyway after looking at the flowers for a moment we continued into the gardens and on to the Cafe where a Slushy soon revived us!

The lady who served us in the Cafe predicted that a storm would be hitting the area very soon, which would bring a welcome drop in the temperature. However we were yet to walk about the gardens and see the zoo, so without much delay we headed out again! The zoo was undergoing numerous major improvements which was pleasing to see as some of the old exhibits (now unoccupied) looked like they were a little outdated. We saw the usual suspects: koalas, dingoes, kangaroos and wallabies. Additionally we saw chimpanzees and caught the tail end of the keepers feeding talk. It was great to see how the chimps interacted with him. He passed them a carton of juice each which they drank up, using the straw, and when finished handed it back to him. They appeared to be very happy with the interaction of the keeper and also to play about with the people watching at the window. Apparently the previous keeper, who had known them since they were little, used to run up and down the windows with them and they now saw this as an initiation of play. This meant when kids ran up and down the window, they were happy to join in the fun. Unfortunately the leisurely part of our zoo tour was at this point brought to an end. With an increase of wind and a loud crash, a large branch piece fell to the ground a few metres from us. This was quickly followed by a few spots of rain. Assuming that this was the storm the lady in the Cafe had predicted, we quickly made our way back up the path to the Cafe’s shelter. The wind blustered on, the rain became heavier and thunder and lightening joined the party before long. Safely out of the storm, we simply watched mother nature do her thing. A powercut to the Cafe meant that they shut up early for the day, so we simply continued to watch.

Eventually the rain was but a very light drizzle so we ventured out and headed towards the Japanese Garden (becoming a favourite visit of any botanical garden for us both). There was a shelter in the Japanese Garden, which looked over the pond and exquisite landscaping. As the rain had picked up a little again, we decided to sit here for a while and for the second time that day we just watched the outside world. It was so peaceful, I think we could have stayed there all day. However we still had to get back to the hostel which was about an hour and a quarters walk. By this point the storm appeared to have subsided, the rain had been drizzling on and off for a while but we decided now was the best time to head out. When we had gone just beyond the entrance of the gardens we were struck by the sight of a tree we had seen just hours before (not the Frangipani I might add). It had been split in two down the middle. Whether it was weak and the wind had been too harsh for it, or whether the result of a lightning strike, we do not know; but it showed how strong the storm had been. After another 10-15 minutes of walking the rain started again. We had no shelter and within minutes it was pouring, the storm had returned for round 2. We quickened our pace and were heading for a bus stop we had passed on the way to the gardens but it seemed to be no-where in sight. The roads quickly became rivers and are clothes were soaked through. There was no option but to plough on… or so we thought…

Barely a moment later a car pulled over and the lady offered us a lift. We couldn’t believe our good fortune. The lady, whose name we later learned was Sam, was in a rush herself but offered to take us to her house where we could shelter in her car port and call a taxi. This greatly pleased us and was already more than we expected, as we had simply asked to be dropped at the bus stop a little further up the road (which wouldn’t have been much shelter to be honest). Upon arriving at Sam’s house a few minutes later, we all remained in the car while she called a taxi for us. For whatever reason though the taxi would be able to pick us up much sooner if we were at her friends address, just a few minutes away, so off we went again. Sam showed us incredible hospitality and was even apologising that she couldn’t offer us a cup of tea due to a powercut to the area. About 15 minutes later there was still no sign of the taxi and with the storm appearing to subside, Sam decided to cancel the taxi and take us herself. We did protest and insist she had already helped us more than enough but she wouldn’t hear otherwise. A friend of hers appeared (if you remember she had told us when we first met that she was in a rush – she was due to be meeting with this friend) and so the four of us headed back to the car and off to the YHA, the other side of the city. We could not thank Sam enough for what she did for us, not only did she go out of her way to drive us back to the hostel, but she is, in her own words a “nervous nelly” when it comes to storms. So to drive us back when the odd thunder clap and lightning strike still lit the sky was incredible. To guide us back to the hostel, we had LexNav and our now very soggy complimentary map. Upon arriving back safely we again thanked Sam and asked if there was anything we could do for her in return, but there was nothing. She just wished us to have a good time travelling and to stay safe.

Despite being incredibly wet still we were in high spirits, and this was set to continue as we returned to our room and met our new room mates: Ben (from Canada) and Linda (from Germany). Soon after introducing ourselves it became apparent that Linda was having trouble getting internet to use Skype so Alex set up the laptop with our wireless dongle for her and from there we got chatting. None of us had eaten yet and Ben and Linda were planning to have a steak, as this is reputedly THE thing to do in Rockhampton (we should have known as there were several “bull” puns present in the town, for example, a training business with a large bull statue out the front with “train-a-bull” written on it – we laughed a lot). They had a car too, so as the rain had come back yet again we were most pleased to be able to drive back to town to the steakhouse. Linda and I make a run for it from the car, round the corner to the steakhouse. When we looked back to see where Ben and Alex are, we saw them walking towards us, casual as; using a large tropical leaf like an umbrella held above them to protect them from the rain. We couldn’t stop laughing.

Once inside and seated we shared a pitcher of beer and contemplated which steak to go for. The weights of the steaks were all in grams which threw everybody off a little; Ben decided that he would go for the 1000g challenge. That’s right, a kilogram of steak. At this point I should point out the Ben was physically fit; Linda and I were convinced he was grossly underestimating how much 1kg of steak was (later Alex would coin this the “Great Barrier Beef”). The evening was enjoyed by all, good steak and good chat.

The following morning we all checked out. Ben and Linda were headed further North so we said our goodbyes and left them to resume their roadtrip. We, on the other hand, were not due to catch the greyhound until later that evening and were determined to see the caves before leaving! When we arrived at the desk I overheard a girl infront asking about getting to the caves as well, so we made our interest known too and Ozzie (the manager) called his friend Robbie to see if she was available to take the 4 of us. After a few minutes it was all arranged that we would leave in just under an hour. Alex and I would be able to store all our luggage behind reception and collect it just before getting the shuttle bus to the Greyhound stop. Robbie, also known as the Backpackers’ Mum, used to have a hostel of her own but now just spends her time taking backpackers to those hard-to-get places in the area. Once we arrived at the Caves she sorted our tickets for the guided tour.

The tour was fascinating, the guide really knew her stuff and we’re so glad we made it. The tour lasted for around an hour and as we were led through the caves the guide pointed out the features of each cave and its “decorations”. These are the individual markings on the cave walls; they might be areas of calcification or shapes in the rock that were originally used by people to navigate through the cave. For example, the camel or the whale’s belly. The tour we took was called the Cathedral tour, as one of the caves is called the cathedral. This cave has a high ceiling and great acoustics, because of this it is hired out for different purposes. They currently host about 40 weddings a year and it’s on the rise, and each year an opera is also held there. Whilst we visited this cave we all took a pew and amazing grace was played to demonstrate the awesome sound quality, during which the guide turned on and off different lights to “show off” the cave… finally leaving us in complete darkness for a short period. It was incredible. Another memorable part of the tour was when the guide asked us to tell her what the floor of the caves was made of… Sand? No. Dirt? No. The guide suggested to feel it, if it would help – I declined, having remembered what she had commented on at the start: the cave was inhabited by thousands of bats. Sure enough when she revealed the floor was made of Guano I wasn’t too surprised, but seeing the expressions of surrounding people (who had felt the floor) was classic. As we made our way out of the caves we had a choice of route, we could either follow the guide back on the easy route, or we could take a zig-zig path that gave us a taste of the adventure tour. It is a narrow path and requires you to walk sideways and sometimes duck your head this way or that to make it through to the otherside – not for those who are clostrophobic.

After the caves Robbie offered to drop us off at the Stocklands shopping centre, it was early afternoon and we were ready for lunch. We spotted a Sizzler as soon as we got there and decided to give it a go and I have to say it was rather tasty. Alex ordered a chicken wrap meal where as I went for the salad/pasta/desert, help yourself, all you can eat, kind of thing. After filling our bellies we went into the shopping centre and had a good old nosey around. For a while now I’ve been looking for a silver wing pendant necklace with little success, but this was all about to change. As we wandered through the centre Alex spotted the necklace in the window of a Jewellers. It was perfect. It became my Christmas present and I love it.

We then headed back to the hostel where we would wait a few more hours until the shuttle bus took us to the Greyhound. Our next stop would be Airlie Beach.

Rockhampton YHA rating: 66/100