Look in any tourist guide and you will see blue seas, white beaches and fantastic views of coral reefs. And so it can be, but not this year. This fabled group of islands, part of the Great Barrier Reef national park, and snuggled between the reef and the mainland has looked a bit like the west coast of Scotland recently. Green, misty, and grey skies above. Still very pretty, and certainly pretty warm at this time of year.
The islands are 'drowned mountain ranges' which have been cut off from the mainland, and have gradually grown fringing coral reefs. So they are made of the same rock and have the same flora and fauna as the mainland. There has been quite a move recently to encourage indigenous growth, and palm trees have been removed or allowed to die except in resorts, and towns. Holiday makers evidently expect palm trees if they go to tropical islands! It was interesting to see tide lines of small pumice stones on some beaches which is flotsam from distant volcanic South Pacific islands.
Except for resorts and some privately owned islands, most are now national parks and undeveloped. Fast launches from the mainland hub of Airlie Beach take groups of visitors for day trips to beaches and snorkel and dive areas, but there is very little accommodation. National Park campsites mostly have nothing but a composting toilet and maybe a picnic table - water and fuel has to be supplied by the campers. Fishing has been a disappointment, but we have seen more turtles than in any other place. Their little heads pop up near the boat, and snorkelling along with them is a wonderful. Some beaches were covered with tracks as this is the nesting season. Another thrill was to see a manta ray leaping out of the water one day.
Being Australia, there is an oversupply of nasty bugs and beasties. We haven't luckily had much problem with mosquitoes or sand flies (much worse evidently in the flooded river areas on the mainland), just some big buzzy stinging flies; but there are quite dangerous jellyfish in the water; one particular one so small that you can't see it, but the sting is quite dangerous. Consequently everyone is advised to wear a 'stinger suit' in the water, and most people do. They are double-layered thin neoprene or nylon suits, ours dull black but we have seen the tour boats supplying pink and turquoise for the ladies. Once on they also provide good sun protection, but struggling into them when hot and sweaty is not so easy. Capt gets very frustrated to the point of not wanting to go swimming! We have heard tales too of people who anchor in shallows up creeks having visits from snakes - one slid up the self-steer mechanism into the boat. Another couple had a possum aboard. The sudden infestation of flying ants we got is nothing by comparison even though we are still finding them in dark moist places like under buckets two weeks later. At least they don't bite or sting.
It is a great area for sailing, with lots of anchorages within easy reach of each other. Perfect for the charter companies, and at this time of year most yachts are chartered. Insurance companies usually refuse to cover boats in the cyclone belt from December to April, and on the way north in December most of the boats we met were heading south. The only international boat we met was having repairs done, having lost its mast due to rigging failure in the Soloman Islands. The S. African owners were back off to the Solomans, being intrepid sailors, afloat on and off since 1970, with great tales to tell of their travels.
We had P and S on board for a couple of weeks over Christmas and the New Year, so did a fair bit of exploring of the islands. The rain started the day they arrived, and the next clear day was the day they left! Not quite what they had hoped for, but at least it was warm compared to a very snowy frozen UK. Snorkelling was on the whole not very spectacular due to the rain, but there were good beaches, excellent trails on some islands, and visits to Airlie Beach when we needed provisions, laundry, and a proper shower. Queensland (and Australia in general) is very well set up with coastal promenades, parks, picnic areas, and BBQs. The latter are electric, free, and cleaned down every morning. We have had some very pleasant water-side evenings with meat on the barbie and salads made on board (kangaroo kebabs went down particularly well). Cooking the Christmas turkey when cruising has become a tradition of beach BBQs with heath robinson spit devices. Not this year, it poured all day, and was so windy that we had to take shelter up a creek along with many other boats. Turkey in the oven on board, what a come-down for our reputation!
The plan was to sail out to the Barrier Reef for a couple of days, and pick up a mooring. The water is always clear there. It is not far from the islands, so when the forecast was reasonable off we went. When the sun is out the area is a patchwork of different blues, but when the clouds cover the sun you are in the middle of the ocean with no idea where the shallow bits might be! (No land or rocks above water in the area where we were) Penny and Simon had a successful dive, and we had the company of a large commercial dive yacht who were very helpful. But they left at dawn the next day and we were in a windy grey spot, not comfortable. So back we went.
As soon as P and S left the sun came out and it would have been very pleasant to stay for another week or two; but a severe cyclone season has been forecast so it seemed prudent to start making our way south again, about as far as Brisbane. The whole coastline has a string of islands so lots of places to explore. The prevailing wind is from the SE, our direction of travel, so as soon as a bit of north was forecast we went for it and kept going. Any mainland place with a river is a no-go area at the moment with very severe flooding, evacuations, roads cut off and food supplies limited, so we will have to find small coastal towns not situated on a river when we need to stock up the frig. Luckily we hooked a tuna on passage yesterday, so no corned beef hash for a few days at least.
