Whitsunday Islands

Yesterday we went on an all day boat trip, complete with snorkeling, lunch, a hike, and a few hours at Whitehaven beach. Blaine and I almost didn’t go out today because of a category 3 cyclone (hurricane) hovering above Cairns and generating bad water visibility, wind and rain. But when we woke up at a bright 5:30 am it was partly sunny so I thought we should go for it. We still have 14 days left here but almost twice the distance to drive (we doddled a bit too much). Anyway, I am so glad that we did because it only rained when we were snorkeling and I think the clouds made for some nice pictures.




Snorkeling…. Holy cow! This was the most amazing reef I have ever seen! The only downer is we had to wear a “stinger suit” to protect us against all the various types of killer jellyfish, one being an Irukandji only 2 centimeters in size and almost transparent (barley noticeable in the water). If they sting you, you’ll probably die, sometimes in as little as 25 minutes. The suit covers every square inch of your body except the tip of your big toe, if your fins don’t cover it, and the small space between your mask and snorkel around your mouth. This lycra suite is basically a bright blue, funny looking uni-tard thing that made us all look like space men. Good times. Doesn’t Blaine look hot! haha





People come to these amazing beaches in the summer when the water is warm and they can’t even enjoy the ocean. In each city we have gone to they have big pool “lagoons” and have a small section of beach that is netted off. Not so fun and inviting. However, you can always wear a stinger suite, but you won’t get a tan.





Hiking… The shots I took from up here barely do it justice. I didn’t have enough time to photoshop the panorama, but I thought it would give you a good idea of where we were.





Whitehaven beach… In all the amazing places I have been in my life Whitehaven beach was by far the most beautiful beach with the most tranquil water I have ever experienced.



Hopefully we will be able to dive the Great Barrier Reef. Snorkeling just isn’t enough! We have to wait on the weather though because of the storm, but maybe it will have died down a bit in a day or two.