About a week into my travels, I arrived in the sunny resort town of Airlie Beach. With only one full day here I explored a little, but beyond the main street lined with lively bars, busy eateries and shops dedicated to beach-goers, there wasn’t much to discover. The main reason people flock to this luxurious little town is to access the Whitsunday Islands, an archipelago comprised of 74 (mostly) uninhabited islands covered in forest and bushland, lined by some of the purest sand beaches in the world and home to some of Australia’s most impressive marine life. I was no exception, and I eagerly awaited my turn to see this spectacle.
The only way to explore the islands is by boat, and it’s a particularly popular destination for sailing. So, along with 24 other excited travellers, I hopped on board the impressive Maxi Yacht ‘Broomstick’ and off we went, leaving Airlie behind us for a couple of days. I was keen to have a hands-on experience on board, as much as possible anyway, so as we reached the edge of the harbour I volunteered to hoist the main sail. It’s so much harder than it looks though, that sail weighed an absolute tonne! (No, not a precise measurement, but I was too busy trying to regain feeling in my arms afterwards to ask exactly how heavy it was). It took 4 of us in the end to get it fully raised, so the sense of achievement among us when it was up and we sailed ahead was as high as the sail itself. While our captain Mikey and his expert crew guided us smoothly to our first destination of the day, the rest of us relaxed on the deck in the late afternoon sun, getting to know the bunch of strangers that we’d be sharing very close quarters with for the next two days.
It wasn’t long before we arrived at Hook Passage, the chosen spot to watch the sunset. Here, we were joined by the other two yachts in the company for what’s known as a raft up - all three boats tied together to create one massive deck and one massive party. It just so happened that on one of the other boats they were filming promotional footage for the company, which is why we were fortunate enough to experience something so unique. We also jumped (literally) at the chance for a dip in the sea before the sun went down completely, animatedly throwing ourselves off the side of the boat and plunging into the water below, as clear and as motionless as glass. A bit chilly back onboard, but we soon warmed up with some delicious food and a few glasses of goon (famous Australian boxed wine, although to call it wine is generous - if you know, you know). An evening full of laughter and chatting turned to night before we knew it, so we returned below deck to our cosy bunks for some rest ahead of our busy day to come.
The next morning, I was awake in time to catch the last of the sunrise, the warm hues illuminating the islands around me in a golden light, and reflecting on the water’s perfectly still surface. The first stop of the day was Tongue Bay on the eastern side of Whitsunday Island, the largest of all the islands here. We reached the shore by dingy and were led on a bush walk to a viewpoint, looking out over Whitehaven Beach and the neighbouring bays and islands. The view rendered every one of us speechless. My words will never do its brilliance justice, nor will my photos ever fully capture the beauty that we were struck with. Bright white sand swirled in smooth curves beneath the most vividly turquoise water I have ever, and surely will ever, see. The only movement by the sea was gentle lapping onto the shoreline, and the ripples created by swimmers enjoying the blissful scenery. From where we were stood, everyone below us on the beach looked like tiny specs, insignificant to the vast network of inlets in front of them. In awe of what we were seeing, we were all itching to get down to the beach - after a few obligatory photo shoots, of course.
We waded through the thick sand, as soft as flour, heading towards the water. This sand is the purest in the world, being 99% silica; so pure it can remove scratches from watch faces, clean silver jewellery, and exfoliate the skin leaving it feeling brand new. Its purity also means it doesn’t get hot, even after a full day under the intense Australian sun, making it even easier to spend hours wandering and sunbathing. From the viewpoint I spotted some stingrays, known to dwell in the shallows along Whitehaven, so of course that’s where I headed first. After a little while spent looking, not one but three stingrays appeared out of nowhere, gliding gently around our feet. One buried itself in the sand in front of me, proving that I was wise not to touch the ray-shaped rock I had been looking at earlier on… Their camouflage was unnervingly effective, but they were clearly very comfortable with humans passing through their habitat. In fact, their ease with our presence just highlighted their peaceful nature; like most animals, they pose no threat if they feel no threat themselves.
Unsurprisingly, a couple of hours spent in this heavenly place flew by, and it was time to get back onboard our Broomstick. We snorkelled twice that day, and our first stop was Mackerel Bay. I was lucky enough to see a turtle again, although I was so saddened to see people chasing it and diving down to touch its shell. I’ll admit that I can be a little overprotective when it comes to nature, but an action that may seem harmless on the surface was actually causing the animal undue stress, which is simply irresponsible and disrespectful. The joy of seeing these animals in the wild should come from just that: seeing them. There’s an arrogance in people that makes them think they can play an active part in any other species’ lives, without impact or consequence, which I think is a shame. Anyway, I don’t want this to become a rant, I prefer to keep it as a longwinded ramble! On we went to our last snorkelling location, Hayman Island, the northernmost point of the Whitsundays and a haven for fish. We jumped in, right into the middle of a school of tropical fish. They were absolutely everywhere, many more than I’d ever witnessed on one reef! It’s impossible to know just how long I spent in the water that time round, but I’m so pleased I stayed in for as long as I did, because the best part was just to come. The few of us who remained were rewarded for our endurance, as a group of 9 humphead parrotfish made their way around the reef. These incredible fish can grow to a length of 1.5 metres (almost as big as me. Those who know me may think that’s not a lot, and they’d be right, but this was a fish so, pretty big), and weigh up to 75kg! Their green scales shimmered when the light caught them, and their beady eyes watched us swim alongside them, as they used their bony beaks to munch on the coral. Once they got used to us they would swim on all sides of us, coming within inches of our bodies without too much care. It was an exhilarating experience; I had never swam with any creature as big as that before, and it’s a memory and a feeling I’ll hold onto forever.
We ended our last day on the boat with more amazing food, a beautiful sunset, some salsa-dancing lessons from our Spaniard on board, and just a little bit more goon. It was a wonderful adventure filled with awesome moments and the best bunch of people I could have hoped for. If you’ve made it this far through the longest blog yet, congratulations! I’m going to tie it up here, although I could have gone on indefinitely about my magical time in the Whitsundays. I hope everyone gets the chance to witness this incredible place.
Stay tuned, next stop: Noosa and Fraser Island.