The Whitsunday’s and beyond.
The drive to
Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands was long and we passed numerous
kangaroos dead on the side of the roadway hit the previous night as they sought
the sweet grass by the side of the roads. It is sad but in a country this big, fencing
the side of the roads would just be impracticable. Remember if you are thinking
of coming to Australia and driving from city to city distances are huge! Even
our GPS we named Doris seemed to have a sense of humor as she stated in her
posh English voice. “Drive straight for 378 kilometers then make a right turn.”
On the way to
Airlie beach we drove through Rockhampton and headed for Yeppoon. Due to lack
of available accommodation we stayed for one night in an overpriced apartment
tower called Bay-view Towers. We renamed them Faulty Towers. At $160 a night
you would expect good facilities. Things like plates, knives and spoons; if you
wanted these you were charged an additional $5. There were no cooking
facilities except a microwave. The ranch slider to the balcony refused to open
and there were so few plug outlets they had extension cords running around the
room.
Determined to
get some value for money we went looking for the spa and swimming pool complex
advertised in the in-room information brochure. Mysteriously they had vanished.
Maybe it was another add on? How a large apartment complex can advertise a
facility that doesn’t exist leaves me speechless.
I passed a radio
billboard on the way out of town advertising ‘NAG’ Radio not a very compelling
call sign I thought.
While Hervey Bay
seemed to be semi tropical, Airlie Beach seemed like a resort you would find in
places like Fiji, complete with coconut trees. Tourism must be booming this far
up the coast everything is bigger and brighter here. We found a nice motel
apartment just a few hundred yards from the beach.
Up north they
get those stinging jellyfish here from October to May so at Airlie beach they
have a man made lagoon for swimming all year round. What a great idea!
On our last day
at Airlie Beach we went on an island tour known as ‘the three island’ tour on a
big wave piercing catamaran. Seeing skyscrapers on Hamilton Island kind of
spoiled the view from the sea while the rest of the villas genuinely tried to
blend in with the tropical forests. We never stopped at Hamilton Island which
is a resort island for the rich and famous as well as the moderately well
heeled.
The boat did
stop and anchor on what surely must be one of the most pristine and unspoiled
beaches on the planet. Whitehaven beach is miles of pure white silica sand and
clear turquoise blue water. This beach has not been developed and is all the
better for it. The water was a little cool but compared to New Zealand waters
at this time of year it was. The longer you stayed in, the warmer it felt.
There was a large sea turtle swimming about but he was just a little too far
offshore for me as I didn’t have any swim fins.
After a dive on
the reef at Hook Island and being surrounded by hundreds of reef fish we ended
up with an hour and a half on Day Dream Island which is a resort destination.
Another swim and a hot spa rounded off the day in facilities which were first
class.
The next morning we left for Mission Beach with a stopover in
Townsville to stretch or legs. It was a long drive but an easy drive on a good
road clearly signed with plenty of places for a rest or refreshment break.
Mission Beach had taken a hammering in a cyclone earlier this year
and reminded us that in the summer tropical storms can spring up at any time.
Still it is a beautiful spot and is quickly recovering from the damage.
