Whitsunday Islands and Hervey Bay

Trip Start Aug 21, 2006
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Trip End Nov 24, 2006


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Thursday, September 28, 2006

Evening all - apologies (again) for lack of entries but I am sure you will agree when I say it is hard to update the blog from a boat or camping in a 4x4! Anyway, I hope you are sitting comfortably, let your good friend Pipe begin...

So after leaving Cairns we set off on the long greyhound journey for Airlie beach, which is the leaving point for our 2day/night tour for the Whitsunday Islands. After stocking up on beers and wine (well Goon, if you can call it wine) for the trip we went to find our boat THE APOLLO, which was once a prize winning national champion racing boat but has long retired to cater for the tourism market. A mix of 24 people from all over the world made for an interesting mix as we stopped to snorkel at various points and met the island famous giant Wrasse fish called Elvis! In the evening we were close to having our first 'Man Over Board' shout when one of the American guys after a bit too much pop swayed and stumbled and then nearly fell down the stairs into the dorms below- -which would of been very painful! In the a.m. we found out that sailors really don't believe in lie-in's and after raising at a ridiculous hour we hit another snorkeling site and then went to one of the top 10 beaches in the world - Whitehaven Beach! It was easy to see why as the view from the lookout was truly amazing (check the pics and see if you don't agree) and the whole sea and beach package was awesome. A BBQ onboard followed by the very talented chef (excellent food the whole trip) and then another evening chilling out under the stars!
I must say that the trip was one of my highlights so far and the islands are truly spectacular.

After setting foot on dry land again we caught the night bus down to Hervery Bay to sample some of their famous whale watching. We stayed a night there and went out for the afternoon and we were really spoilt with the number of whales we spotted. Probably about 15 or so in the 4 hours on the boat! Everyone was snapping like crazy with their digital cameras (lucky they weren't disposable ones - would of cost a fortune in missed shots, showing only the sea). I have attached some of the best ones I got - the next Dave Bailey perhaps?

Next stop on the agenda is a 4x4 safari on the worlds largest sand dune - Fraser Island!!
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