Sailing the Whitsundays

It was time to set sail!
We arrived in Airlie beach which is the main area to get sailing trips out to the Whitsunday islands. We booked a two night trip on a catamaran and couldn't wait to get out on to the water.

Our boat was called 'On Ice' and it was beautiful! It had a dining area inside and out with a shade canopy, as well as a huge hammock area over the water at the front. Inside were several cabins and even a double bed long enough for Phil. There were 10 passengers in total on board so it was a nice sized group and everyone was lovely. There was also our Skipper Dave who we weren't so keen on as he had a bad attitude, but he knew his stuff about sailing so that's all the mattered, plus there was a deckhand called Julia who was so nice it made up for him!

We departed at 4pm on the first day and enjoyed getting to know each other as we sailed out to one of the islands to anchor for the evening. We had a delicious feast and a lot of laughs as we exchanged travelling experiences that evening, and some people including Phil had a quick dive off the boat to freshen up! As the light disappeared we started to see the first few stars come out. By the time it was properly dark the sky was awash with more stars than I have ever seen in my life. It was full, the darkness pin-pricked all over with the stars. We could clearly see the milky way stretching out and moving across the sky, as well as shooting stars, Orion's body as well as belt and the southern cross (a constellation only seen in the southern hemisphere). Magical is the only way I can describe it... looking up at the view while gently rocking on the water.

First thing in the morning we got our snorkel gear and stinger suits on ready to snorkel this spot (Blue Pearl bay). The coral wasn't too deep here so instantly you saw fish and bright coral the second you got under the water. Instantly I knew this was better snorkeling I'd previously done as the array of colours greeting me was stunning. We saw friendly clownfish in their soft anenome, large parrot fish, angel fish and more. Beyond this though I couldn't believe the colour of the coral, and how it all moved. We saw dark blue clams who closed as you swam over them, and bright lilac coral that looked like someone had dropped a paint bomb on them. We loved it!
After this we sailed on to our next snorkeling spot. Unfortunately we went further out to sea for this and it got very rough so several people felt ill including Phil. This was understandable as it was so rough we were being thrown over waves and water would smash over the front of the boat, and sometimes as far as over the entire cabin, soaking us sat at the back. To be honest this was quite scary as the amount of water coming over was crazy. And one couple were stuck at the front of the boat not just getting soaked but having to hang on tight to not fly overboard. Thankfully this only last about 30 minutes and we hit calm waters again. Not keen on reliving that though...
We arrived at our next snorkel spot and here lived a lot more fish and some giants. There were at least 3 fish that were like groupers (Wrasse fish), incredibly bright coloured and genuinely bigger than Phils torso and much wider. Dave the skipper was feeding them some fruit from the small boat so there was lots of other fish swarming too so it was like a colour whirlwind that you were caught up in. Occasionally I'd make eye contact with a fish and they'd freak out and swim away which was funny. In the madness one of the giant Wrasse fish bumped into me and I squealed just because of the size. It was incredible though, and enjoyed continuing to snorkel around the coral too. You always see new things with snorkeling so it's constantly interesting.
After a yummy lunch we sailed on 2 hours to Tongue Bay which gives you access to Whitehaven beach and the hill inlet viewpoint.
The beach is as expected stunning. It has white squeaky silicon sand and the clearest waters you'll ever see. We even saw stingrays glide around in the shallows. The time of day we went meant there was not many people and we ended up being the last people there! Perfect! We wandered up to the hill inlet view and honestly the view is unreal. You see the swirls of blue water and the different bays of the islands laid out in front of you. Truly one of the best views I've ever seen. We loved our few hours here, it was as you would imagine paradise to be.
For the evening we went to another bay which is where we'd be doing activities in the morning and settled there for another night.

The next day we woke up excited to try paddle boarding for the first time, and to go out in their clear kayak! Paddle boarding was a lot of fun but not that easy, it took some attempts for us both to be able to stand up but we managed it. It requires a lot of core and upper body strength though so was knackering very quickly. After this we went out in their see through kayak and made sure to go over the nearby coral which was so cool.

Shortly after we moved on to another area that's known largely for sea turtles and again great snorkeling. We took to the water and was initially startled to see an incredible amount of jellyfish. It did make us a little nervous as they were small, and it can be the small ones that are dangerous. Luckily there was no problems so they must have been safe ones.The snorkeling again was amazing although sadly we didn't see any turtles. Nature spotting is all about luck and it wasn't to be that day.

By now we headed back on board for a final lunch with everyone and to sail back to Airlie Beach.

Truly this was a once in a lifetime experience and we definitely recommend the Whitsundays, they are so beautiful. We left on a high and can confidently say it's been one of our highlights of Australia so far.

BethRead more