Wow, wow, wow. I just got back from my Whitsundays sailing trip and it was definitely the highlight of my Australia trip so far. And a big part of that is in thanks to Michael and Jenna, an English couple that were on my Fraser Island trip. They had been on the Pride of Airlie sailboat the week earlier in the Whitsundays. They were very dissapointed that the 3 day trip started at 4pm on the first day and ended at noon on the 3rd day, so therefore really only gave them one full day at sea. Apparently there was only one snorkelling trip and they saw "three whole fish". They found out through the grapevine later that it's really just known as a booze cruise. I was booked on the same boat, as were a number of us on the Fraser trip. It was very frustrating as we had all specifically asked to be on a boat with a lot of snorkelling and not the party boats. As soon as we returned from Fraser we called and upgraded to the Anaconda II (a maxi-sailboat that had been around the world many times) for an extra AUD$100. Best money I've spent on the trip. This also meant postponing our departure day from Saturday to Sunday, so we were able to spend a day lounging at the beautiful lagoon in Airlie Beach. (As seen in this picture)
The town itself is nice, but a copy of most beach towns and could be anywhere. One main road parallel to the bay, lots of souvenier shops and bars and hotels. I could have been Myrtle Beach or a beach town in Spain.
We left at 9am on the first day and returned at 5pm on day 3. We spent lovely sunny days sailing through the 74 Whitsunday Islands (so named because they were discovered by Captain Cook on Whit Sunday), lounging on the deck, reading books, chatting, jumping off the boat and snorkelling once each day. We slept on the boat and only stopped on land for a few hours at a resort on day 2 for dinner and drinks. Our group was so much fun. About half of us had been on Fraser Island together and had done the upgrade. Ages ranged from 19 to 43 (yea! I wasn't the oldest!) and included a lot of people traveling on their own. The traditional nationality check: Australia, Germany, Switzerland, England, Ireland, Holland and US. And this time I wasn't the lone American! We really clicked and enjoyed each other's company immensely. The majority of us will be in Cairns later and are planning to meet up again then.
The first day on the boat we stopped at a snorkelling spot where we all saw more fish in one place than we ever had. In my past experience, you can't touch a fish if your life depends on it. In this case, we couldn't NOT touch them. It was quite funny as it took us a while to stop apologizing as we bumped into them. On our way to our overnight spot we slowed down to allow "boat jumps", where you jump off the bow of the boat and quickly reach for the ladder at the back of the sailboat before it passes you by. Easier than it sounds, luckily, and it was so much fun - both to do and to watch everybody's cannonballs, flips and backflips. That night we saw the most amazing sunset in the islands before the phosphorescent fish came out. They looked like glowsticks and also lit up the squid underneath them that surfaced to eat one of them occasionally. Our boat had a spotlight off the side of the boat to illuminate the fish and one school drove Simon, one of the English guys, crazy with their repetitiveness and stupidity. They would swim about 2 feet away from the spotlight, turn around, swim back to the light and then turn around again to repeat the process. We decided they had 2 second memories and were saying to each other "ooh, look a light! Let's go see what's over there. Oh, there's nothing here, let's go back. Ooh, look a light! Let's go see what's over there!" Then one long and skinny fish showed up that looked nothing like the others, made a few circles and then left. We decided he had showed up to the nightclub, didn't see anyone he liked (or who looked like him) and left dejectedly. You can tell we were all having a great time! Dinner was fresh fish on a boat-board grill. And here's a first - not only did I eat the fish, but I found it delicious and devoured it. Those of you who know my intense dislike of fish will know how remarkable that is.
Day 2 was just as gorgeous and sunny as day 1 and included a trip to Whitehaven Beach, the most incredibly beautiful beach I've ever seen, and one of the most beautiful places I've been to period. (This picture doesn't remotely do it justice.) After a few hours there, more snorkeling where the reef and its coral was as interesting as the fish. Then off to the resort where we danced for at least 4 hours before heading back to the boat. We saw the Pride of Airlie group while we were there and all agreed we were so glad to be together, rather than with them! We happily left them to the resort and headed back to the boat to be dumbfounded by the phosphorescents. These weren't fish this time, but rather plankton that absorbs the sun. They look like normal pieces of seaweed until you hit them after which they glow and look like sparks in the water. Some of the group jumped in the water and beat their legs around to set off the sparks. To sum up what it looked like, the Swiss guy who hadn't said a word in 24 hours couldn't stop shouting "There's light in the water!" It was beautiful outside and hot in our cabins, so most of us dragged our mattresses up on deck to sleep in the open. I must have had the best seat in the house because I could barely hear the snorers that kept everyone else up and I slept like a rock, only to be awoken by a beautiful sunrise (at 5am! they need to do Daylight Savings in Queensland!).
Day 3 wasn't nearly as nice weather wise and in fact we were all roused from our beds and had to dash downstairs at 6am as it started to rain. After it let up we spent more time on Whitehaven Beach and then more snorkelling. We finally headed back to Airlie Beach and all agreed it was very reluctantly. After a quick post-trip celebration in town (during which we all felt seasick, even though none of us had felt that way on board) we headed our separate ways. I can't wait to see the pictures. I also bought a CD from the boat crew of the pictures they took during the cruise, but when I got back to the hostel and checked it, it was blank! They are supposedly sending me a replacement to my hostel in Cairns, so I'm crossing my fingers. The only downside of the trip was we returned a few hours after the Melbourne Cup, the biggest horserace in Australia and one of the biggest days out. I would have liked to experience that, as I had been seeing signs in restaurants for weeks advertising their Melbourne Cup fare.
We've decided there are only about 50 people traveling at any given time, as we all keep bumping into the same people over and over. Even funnier, all of us that were on Fraser and Whitsundays together fly out of Cains on the 15th. David, the youngest of our group, turns 20 on the 14th, so we're all planning to meet up for a reunion/birthday party in Cairns.
I'm now on Magnetic Island which is a whole other story. But that's for the next post!
The town itself is nice, but a copy of most beach towns and could be anywhere. One main road parallel to the bay, lots of souvenier shops and bars and hotels. I could have been Myrtle Beach or a beach town in Spain.We left at 9am on the first day and returned at 5pm on day 3. We spent lovely sunny days sailing through the 74 Whitsunday Islands (so named because they were discovered by Captain Cook on Whit Sunday), lounging on the deck, reading books, chatting, jumping off the boat and snorkelling once each day. We slept on the boat and only stopped on land for a few hours at a resort on day 2 for dinner and drinks. Our group was so much fun. About half of us had been on Fraser Island together and had done the upgrade. Ages ranged from 19 to 43 (yea! I wasn't the oldest!) and included a lot of people traveling on their own. The traditional nationality check: Australia, Germany, Switzerland, England, Ireland, Holland and US. And this time I wasn't the lone American! We really clicked and enjoyed each other's company immensely. The majority of us will be in Cairns later and are planning to meet up again then.
The first day on the boat we stopped at a snorkelling spot where we all saw more fish in one place than we ever had. In my past experience, you can't touch a fish if your life depends on it. In this case, we couldn't NOT touch them. It was quite funny as it took us a while to stop apologizing as we bumped into them. On our way to our overnight spot we slowed down to allow "boat jumps", where you jump off the bow of the boat and quickly reach for the ladder at the back of the sailboat before it passes you by. Easier than it sounds, luckily, and it was so much fun - both to do and to watch everybody's cannonballs, flips and backflips. That night we saw the most amazing sunset in the islands before the phosphorescent fish came out. They looked like glowsticks and also lit up the squid underneath them that surfaced to eat one of them occasionally. Our boat had a spotlight off the side of the boat to illuminate the fish and one school drove Simon, one of the English guys, crazy with their repetitiveness and stupidity. They would swim about 2 feet away from the spotlight, turn around, swim back to the light and then turn around again to repeat the process. We decided they had 2 second memories and were saying to each other "ooh, look a light! Let's go see what's over there. Oh, there's nothing here, let's go back. Ooh, look a light! Let's go see what's over there!" Then one long and skinny fish showed up that looked nothing like the others, made a few circles and then left. We decided he had showed up to the nightclub, didn't see anyone he liked (or who looked like him) and left dejectedly. You can tell we were all having a great time! Dinner was fresh fish on a boat-board grill. And here's a first - not only did I eat the fish, but I found it delicious and devoured it. Those of you who know my intense dislike of fish will know how remarkable that is.
Day 2 was just as gorgeous and sunny as day 1 and included a trip to Whitehaven Beach, the most incredibly beautiful beach I've ever seen, and one of the most beautiful places I've been to period. (This picture doesn't remotely do it justice.) After a few hours there, more snorkeling where the reef and its coral was as interesting as the fish. Then off to the resort where we danced for at least 4 hours before heading back to the boat. We saw the Pride of Airlie group while we were there and all agreed we were so glad to be together, rather than with them! We happily left them to the resort and headed back to the boat to be dumbfounded by the phosphorescents. These weren't fish this time, but rather plankton that absorbs the sun. They look like normal pieces of seaweed until you hit them after which they glow and look like sparks in the water. Some of the group jumped in the water and beat their legs around to set off the sparks. To sum up what it looked like, the Swiss guy who hadn't said a word in 24 hours couldn't stop shouting "There's light in the water!" It was beautiful outside and hot in our cabins, so most of us dragged our mattresses up on deck to sleep in the open. I must have had the best seat in the house because I could barely hear the snorers that kept everyone else up and I slept like a rock, only to be awoken by a beautiful sunrise (at 5am! they need to do Daylight Savings in Queensland!).Day 3 wasn't nearly as nice weather wise and in fact we were all roused from our beds and had to dash downstairs at 6am as it started to rain. After it let up we spent more time on Whitehaven Beach and then more snorkelling. We finally headed back to Airlie Beach and all agreed it was very reluctantly. After a quick post-trip celebration in town (during which we all felt seasick, even though none of us had felt that way on board) we headed our separate ways. I can't wait to see the pictures. I also bought a CD from the boat crew of the pictures they took during the cruise, but when I got back to the hostel and checked it, it was blank! They are supposedly sending me a replacement to my hostel in Cairns, so I'm crossing my fingers. The only downside of the trip was we returned a few hours after the Melbourne Cup, the biggest horserace in Australia and one of the biggest days out. I would have liked to experience that, as I had been seeing signs in restaurants for weeks advertising their Melbourne Cup fare.
We've decided there are only about 50 people traveling at any given time, as we all keep bumping into the same people over and over. Even funnier, all of us that were on Fraser and Whitsundays together fly out of Cains on the 15th. David, the youngest of our group, turns 20 on the 14th, so we're all planning to meet up for a reunion/birthday party in Cairns.
I'm now on Magnetic Island which is a whole other story. But that's for the next post!
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