When former Northland man Peter Hoult took his two kids on an "adventure with dad" he had no idea Cyclone Marcia would turn up at their holiday spot.
Mr Hoult, Stephanie, 3, and Ryan, 2, ended up crouching in a tiny cabin in a campground while the highest category cyclone wreaked havoc outside.
Mr Hoult, who works in inland Queensland as a surveyor in the mining industry, always take his kids on "adventures with dad" during days off on his 9-day on, 5-day off work roster. This time they headed to a campground 10km south of a town many have now heard of after the grade-5 cyclone smashed the area - Yeppoon, 25km from Rockhampton, and the biggest of a string of seaside towns on the Capricorn Coast.
"When we came down on Wednesday afternoon, it was a category two, just a bit of a storm. Then it turned to s..t," Mr Hoult said.
Once at the campground, with the cyclone growing in intensity, there was nothing to do but stay put. A friend had earlier phoned to warn Mr Hoult to get cash out, fill up with gas, buy water, batteries, juice, food and even extra nappies. By Thursday, it was pandemonium. "It took me hours to get through the supermarket just to get a few things," Mr Hoult said.