G’day from me – Gav Adventure in paradise.
A lot of our guests tell me I’m hardly your average frog, what with owning and running Australia’s winner of the 2012 Australian Tourism Award for Tourist & Caravan Parks.
But I am really just like my amphibian amigos. How can you tell? Well it’s time for a bit of herpetology – that’s posh talk for frog study.
It’s a bit of a giveaway really. I, like all my frog friends, love to live in a cool place. And how cool is it living here at BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort! Your honour, I rest my case, I am just a frog after all.
But I have to admit, my frog days are quite different from others. During the day, while the ‘Average Joe’ Green Tree Frog is lethargic in a letterbox, torpid in the toilet, dozing in a drainpipe or bunking in a bucket, I’m on the mooooove and in the groooove all day long. My day starts at the giant jumping pillows – my big lungs and ballooning throat (more on that later) comes in handy when inflating it to the bounce perfection.
Next; test the temperature of our 32 metre long lagoon style pool – did I mention it’s the largest in Airlie Beach? Once it’s a perfect 27 degrees I hop onto my favourite job. Testing the slippery-meter on the two water slides. I’ve got a reputation to uphold – and I love it slippery dippery. So do the kids.
Getting around our 26 magnificent acres tires the old frog legs, so I hop on a pedal kart, or hijack the famous frogmobile and fang around like crazy (well 10kmph feels fast when you’re a frog).
All 18 holes of mini golf looking good. Tick. Check the length of grass on the big green lawns where guests play footy, cricket, you name it. Tick. I do a little sneaky check in the corners for any delicious bugs or insects for a mid morning snack. Yum.
Over to the Kids Club for some awesome fun, I mean work. But first – check I haven’t got any bits of bug or lizard stuck on the side of my mouth. The staff reckon it freaks the littlies out.
Good time to show off my party trick – I balloon out my throat (for us male frogs, that’s how we make our croaks louder). And boy Big Gav can balloon with the best. Kiddies usually stare open mouthed unable to move or run screaming out the door. Mega awesome.
While we’re on that topic – another herpetology fact for you to file away for the next trivia night quiz – most Australian frogs don’t make a croak. They whistle, cackle, grunt, moan or even chime. But us Green Tree Frogs – oh yes, we’re the croakers. People says it’s a waulk waulk waulk sound but mine’s more brawk brawk brawk. Must be my Victorian accent coming out.
Gotta hop – a big froggy farewell for now.
Gav Adventure,
Paradise