Chasing Horizons #32: Sailing, Diving, Parties and Schoolies – Queensland

Sailing, Diving, Parties and Schoolies

I had spent a relaxing couple of days on Magnetic Island but time stands still for no man. When I got back to Townsville, I made straight for the bus terminal to catch a Greyhound bus out of town. I was surprised to meet up with my Irish chum, Declan on the same bus and was very happy to see the party nutter.

The bus journey was a short 3-hour hop down the coast. We passed fruit and vegetable farms, this is where a lot of seasonal work is found and many backpackers take work here as fruit pickers. There was, of course, the inevitable sugar cane fields that are criss-crossed with narrow gauge railways hauling caged trucks piled high with impossibly large bales of cane stalks. We also passed through patches of dry bushland with its dusty brown soil almost devoid of vegetation. Then there were, of course, the ever present clumps of eucalyptus trees.

The bus turned off the Bruce Highway and returned the 25km to the coast. Suddenly the road fringed an idyllic bay with water that was strikingly blue, yachts and boats bobbing in the tranquil setting. On the headland of the bay was the resort town of Airlie Beach, our destination for the day. As we drove into yet another backpacker party town the one main street was lined with palm trees and testament to the town’s popularity were the many holiday shops, boutiques, restaurants and pubs.

Declan and I had pre-booked accommodation at a place called Magnums, it was all part of our Peter Pan package. This is a notoriously rowdy place with evening entertainment and infamous foam raves. I could tell this was a party hostel by the number of open-air pool tables and the backpackers spread out around the benches nursing sore heads. The place is right in the centre of Airlie Beach with funky dorm rooms, and a nightclub pizza bar. Declan and I were going to fit right in.

Here in Airlie Beach they do have an uninspiring beach of sorts, the sand tends to be a bit muddy. To compensate for this and to totally avoid the threat of the lethal box jellyfish mentioned previously, the local municipalities have built a huge ergonomically shaped public swimming pool called a lagoon. It is right on the water’s edge just across the road from our hostel and, best of all, it’s free. We had settled in by early afternoon so we just wandered down for a cooling dip and top up the old tan. It’s such a convenience and I read that it has been a major boost to the local tourist industry, transforming Airlie Beach from a backpacker party haunt to a more up-market tourist resort.

Of course, Airlie Beach is the main jump off point for cruises around the Whitsunday Islands. The number of cruise options being offered by the many travel agencies are many but I had heard by word of mouth which boats where the most popular. Unfortunately, my tardiness in booking meant I could not get a berth on Anaconda III; Declan had booked his trip on this boat and was obviously one of the more popular yachts. I did manage to get a booking with a sister yacht called Jade.

On Thursday, 14 November after another day relaxing around the Lagoon, I finally got motivated to stock up with supplies for the next few days sailing. What this meant is scouring the town for the cheapest slab of beer; I also got a wicked haircut. By mid-afternoon, I had made my way down to the quay at Shute Harbour where I met a group of fellow travellers milling around. We were instructed to only bring one small bag with a few light clothes, sunscreen, insect repellant, sunglasses, towel, etc. and a keen sense of fun. Well, they took one look at me lugging a crate of beer under one arm and realised they had forgotten a most important provision and there was a mad, last minute scramble to find the nearest offie.

Jade

So, after quick introductions we were led to the jetty where Jade was moored. The yacht is a 48ft catamaran, with a large saloon, cramped galley and numerous bunk and cabins. Although licensed to carry 30+ passengers we were only 18 plus three crew and two dive instructors; So far so good, the group seemed to be a good mix of people and we weren’t going to be squashed in like sardines.

In no time at all the gear was stowed below deck and we were given a briefing about the boat safety and explained the itinerary for the next three days. I think it was very unfair to suggest I was in any way responsible for the copious amount of beer being loaded, but the crew did mention it and thought it would be impressive if no beer was left when we returned. Now I might have some influence in that outcome.

Our sailing adventure began when we left the yacht marina and sailed out of Pioneer Bay. We left the Australian mainland behind us, headed through the “Unsafe” passage between North Mole Island and South Mole Island, and began crossing the Whitsunday Passage to Australia’s premier pleasure boating region.

These groups of subtropical Islands are actually drowned mountain ranges cut off from the mainland by past geological events. Now all that remains are the island peaks of the underwater mountains. The Whitsunday’s were first recorded in the history books on 3rd June 1770 by Lieutenant James Cook, although there is speculation that the Portuguese did visit the islands prior to Cook. Curiously, the Whitsunday’s are misnamed; Cook, on returning to England, found that his meticulously kept log was one day out because he had not allowed for crossing the date line. When he sailed through the area, he was unaware of the existence of the Great Barrier Reef, although he realized that something to the east of his ship was making the waters unusually calm. He of course was to find out all about the reef when he ran his ship aground on the Endeavor Reef near Cape Tribulation.

It was a long sail across an open stretch of sea to the Whitsunday Islands proper, which was just as well as it gave our group a good chance to gel. Firstly, the guys got to know each other better. As we chatted away on the aft deck we were being fed cans of beer continuously by Rob, the young boatswain. Soon enough curiosity got the better of the girls, who where having their own gossip session on the foredeck, and they came and joined us at the rear.

Great view

It was a merry bunch that made it through the narrow channel between the two large Hook and Whitsunday Islands. Development on the island is strictly controlled and the few resorts are exclusive and beyond the reach of the shoestring traveller. We anchored in Osprey Bay in front of the Hook Island Wilderness Resort that is the only true budget resort in the Whitsunday’s. There were quite a few other yachts moored in the bay and dinner had been arranged for guests by the wilderness resort. A huge party ensued around a pool bar with live entertainment, drinking games and limbo dancing. It was quite a night.

Tents had been arranged for most of our group and it was late into the night when people started to fade out. I had got chatting to out yacht skipper, Roger, who had taken a bit of a liking to me after I had told him of my yachting experiences. I managed to be assigned a forward cabin on Jade so got a good, comfortable night’s sleep back on the boat.

The next morning an early start was made, the group looking rather worse for wear after the previous night exertions and what must have been a rough night in the tents. Roger motored around the far eastern side of Whitsunday Island whilst the crew served up a hearty breakfast for the group still well enough and not feeling seasick. At Esk, a small, uninhabited island, anchor was dropped and whilst the first timers were given a crash course diving lesson, the rest of us snorkeled off the rocky coast. Mid-morning saw us up anchor and cross the short distance to Whitsunday Island into Tongue Bay. We were taken by tender onto the island to walk up the headland to a lookout perched over the vast expanse of Whitehaven Beach, and what a beach it was. It was a stunning view over Hills Inlet with blinding white sand, made from silica. The shifting sandbars caused the sea to be many different shades of aquamarine blue which made it one of the most beautiful stretches of coastline I think I have ever seen. The walk continued on downhill through the mangroves that lined the beaches. The group frolicked on the fine silica sand and chased huge rays that lazed in the shallow, lukewarm sea water. It was a fine way to spend a couple of hours and work up an appetite before lunch.

Stinger suits

After lunch, our skipper had Jade on the move again, this time to Dumbbell Island for some serious “fun” diving. The certified divers were supplied with all the necessary diving gear, including the obligatory stinger suit. We quickly sorted out the buddy teams and made a grand slash in the sea, keen to get underwater as quickly as possible. To date I had not had great diving experiences on the Great Barrier Reef but this time that was all about to change. The dive was excellent with such a diverse variety of coral, fish and reefs. This was more like the fabulous diving I had come all this way for.

It was coming up for dusk as we turned and headed back, under sail, which was quite a thrill for me. We journeyed back to Osprey Bay where there was more socializing at the Wilderness Resort at Hook Island but not on the scale as the previous evening. Everyone, including the novices, were satisfied with a wonderful day.

Once again, I slept well in my private cabin on board Jade whilst the rest of the group made their way back to the tents on land. In fact, next morning as we once again set off at dawn, the upper deck looked more like a battlefield with the campers collapsed in sleepy heaps. I emerged from my yacht cabin after sleeping in for over an hour and realised this was definitely the “lifestyles of the rich and the famous”.

This time we motored west around Hook Island to Manta Ray Bay for a wake me dive then immediately into the nest alcove and another great dive on Larsons Reef. Now I did start to feel guilty about being given preferential treatment but I needn’t have worried because for the rest of the morning the boat was taken to a wide stretch of water. Here the rest of the group were catered for in all manner of water activities like boom netting, tubing, water skiing and lounging around the deck sunbathing. We were just off Hayman Island and there was noticeably more traffic (not much more though) on the water because of the luxury resort located on the island.

Jade group

To round off the sailing safari that afternoon, we sailed back across to the mainland. It was a great trip, the crew of Jade looked after the group well, not only seeing to their every culinary and beverage needs but also being competent dive masters and sailors. I was fortunate to be amongst a perfect group of people for such a trip, lots of fun and we had many laughs.

We tied up back at the mooring in Shute Harbour and made our farewells, but this was not to be the end of the fun. As is customary for all Whitsunday sailing trips, the crew and passengers finish off with… you guessed it, a massive party at Magnums in Airlie Beach. There were boat races and sculling games all hosted by a master of ceremonies dishing out beer to the winners. Many yacht crews and their clients take part and the competition is fierce. To round off a successful weekend, the Jade’s table were the keenest, rowdiest and most successful. I lost count when we won our eighth jug of beer. After all that, you’d think we would’ve had enough? Oh no! We rocked in Airlie Beach that night. The first fingers of dawn were creeping over the horizon when I left the party at Mama Africa, a nightclub with an appropriate African theme.

How did I get such a huge hangover on Sunday morning? Fortunately, the MacCafferty’s bus didn’t depart until around noon but I still had to hastily check out of my hostel to avoid being charged for an extra night. As I waited for the southbound bus, I noticed an entire busload of school kids get off various buses. I had read a lot about raves being planned for school leavers up and down the Queensland coast. Airlie Beach was obviously one such venue and these kids looked hardly into their second year of high school let alone in their final year. Anyway, it seems that the town in Airlie Beach was about to get even more rowdy and raucous, if that is at all possible. I was glad to be leaving.