Airlie Beach to the Whitsunday Islands

By 8:00am we were down at the marina and boarding our boat, 'Hammer', to sail out to the Whitsunday Islands. Welcomed by skipper, Mike, and his friendly crew of Dan and Ed, we found our little berth nestled within the turquoise fibreglass hull of the ex-racing vessel. Altogether there was an eclectic mix of 22 nationalities and 3 crew squeezed into bunks, crooks and crannies.

Motoring out of the marina and into the open water, some of the group including Alex, helped hoist the sails that quickly caught the wind. We cut through the chop at a 45+ degree tilt, the spray catching our bare feet hanging over the side.

The black shapes of a mother whale and its infant suddenly appeared ahead of us with the infant's fin arching out of the surf to wave back at us. Our laughter rang out over the crash of water against the hull and we drew closer to the islands on the horizon.

Once at the main Whitsunday Island we moored in Tongue Bay with other yachts and took a dingy up to the stony shore so we could explore Whitehaven Beach. A short walk took us to the lookout of Inlet Hill where silica beaches swirled with a painter's palette of blue.

The silica glowed white and slipped like silk as we walked out onto the beach. Seeking shelter from the wind we moved toward some low standing dunes. Given a task and a giant sandbox Alex dug with the fever of a 5 year old to create a natural wind break before falling asleep in it.

Making sure we were back before the receding tide prevented us from doing so we set sail for our overnight stop. On the deck we watched the waves for whales and chatted with our fellow travellers. There were teachers from Newcastle, an accountant from Glasgow, a pilot from Finland, a photographer from France, students from Switzerland and Germany amongst others.

The sun set to reveal a barely visible moon as we anchored for the night, sheltered by the Hayman and Hook Islands. The deck was lit by LED lights and our hunger sated on a hearty dinner of roast chicken and mash potato with vegetables and damper bread (Australian bush bread).

Although Kim did not feel any worse than she had yesterday she lost her voice almost completely!Read more