Welcoming winter in the Whitsundays

1 to 9 June 2023

What better way to start winter than a cruise around the Whitsunday islands? This past week, we welcomed aboard our friends Jane, Andrew, Liz, and John. While Melbourne shivered through chilly days, we enjoyed temperatures of 20-25°C, day and night.

It was too early in the season to spot whales, but we did see lots of turtles and fish. We saw a kaleidoscope of colourful tropical fish while snorkelling at Blue Pearl Bay and Stonehaven. The variety was amazing.

One evening at Stonehaven, there were hundreds of fish leaping out of the water as we panned our torch across the dark surface. The light seemed to startle the school, which was probably already nervous of predators hunting around reef.

We did a few walks to stretch our legs on land. A short walk at Nara Inlet on Hook Island took us to an interesting cave with aboriginal art. The Ngaro people have been living off the land and sea of this region for thousands of years. On Whitsunday Island, we did a couple of walks from Cid Harbour. One was a leafy 1 hour stroll between Sawmill and Dugong Beaches (keeping well clear of the giant stinging trees!). The other was a more challenging 2 hour hike to the summit of Whitsunday Peak (437m). The panoramic views, as well as the hike, were breath-taking.

A lot of the time we spent simply relaxing on the boat: reading, playing cards and board games, eating, drinking, enjoying the view, watching the sunset and gazing at stars.

Although the weather was windy at times with some showers, we always found quiet anchorages for restful nights.

At our “home” port in Airlie Beach, we spent the first and last nights of this cruise in Coral Sea Marina. Airlie Beach is a busy little tourist town with lots of places to eat. We bookended our voyage with dinner at a couple of our favourite restaurants.

The map below shows our track for this cruise. You can zoom and pan to view the track in greater detail.