We did sleep reasonably well but the night was again rather sticky and it being only 0500 it was difficult to see whether the sun was shining or not! We readied ourselves quickly and quietly, readied the van to leave the pitch and drove as silently as we were able to the entrance of the campsite where the parking bays were located and found a perfect spot to place our 6 metres of vehicle.
We waited out on the road for the transfer coach, it was very cloudy, we felt a few spots of rain, the sun was not much in evidence, this is the first time since we have been camping that the morning has not been full of sunshine and blue skies. Ah well perhaps it wll brighten as the morning wears on as it often did when we were staying with John & Gennelle on the Gold Coast.
The coach took us to the nearby Port of Abel Point. We checked in, I found a coffee and we waited briefly to board a cruise boat on a catamaran hull and were soon ready for the off but with only a glimmer of sunshine and lots of clouds with the islands barely visible in the distance!
The journey to the first port of call, Daydream Island, was a little bumpy but we were soon on our way to the second stop to collect more passengers at Hamilton Island which also has an airstrip and several resorts. The captain gave a commentary as we travelled through the Whitsunday Passage and passed many of the islands including Pentecost and views of Passage Peak. On leaving Hamilton he informed us the sea through the normal gap in the islands they use to travel to the South end of Whitehaven Beach was too rough and that we would traverse the length of the largest island, Whitsunday, and come down from the North. It would still be bumpy he declared but we would all be fine!
Well it was a bit bumpy once we left the shelter of the island and were exposed to the open sea but the 7km stretch of almost white sand of Whitehaven Beach came into sight and the boat stopped near the shore, extending a landing pier from its foredeck. We had been warned if we wanted to swim to collect a 'stinger suit' to protect us from the very small but unpleasant creatures who are active in the water at this time of year. Lesley donned one of these suits and had a bit of a swim in the Coral Sea, she declared it as warm as a heated pool at home in the UK.
The weather remained overcast throughout our time on the island but it was still a magical place, apart from the sand flies. Fortunately, we had brought an armoury of repellents and creams so once applied they more or less left us alone to enjoy the island and beach. The purity of silica in the sand is what makes it so white and excellent for exfoliating skin and cleaning jewelry so we both cleaned our wedding rings and they now shine as new. The heels of our feet also benefitted from a bit of rubbing in the sand.
After about 90 minutes on the beach it was time to return to the boat. We retraced our journey to the North end of the island, into Whitsunday Passage and headed for Daydream Island. The captain had assured us the return journey would be no worse than the outbound trip but he forgot to inform those of us on the starboard side that the tide was going out and the boat would inevitably buck, which it did, like a fairground ride, and send up a lot of spray, which it did! Having been soaked with the first wave Lesley and decided to stay put. We did not get much wetter and the stiff breeze was warm.
We swapped from the cruise boat to a smaller ferry at Daydream after witnessing a party of guests to the island being serenaded by guitar and presented with necklaces of sea shells. The crossing back to Abel point was up uneventful and once back on land, we followed a boardwalk to Airlie Beach and our van.
We both took showers to wash out all the salt, had tasty meat ball and humus wraps for lunch in the van and left for our next campsite at Alva Beach, near Ayr. En route we did a little food shopping and arrived at Alva Beach Tourist Park about 1800, in time to catch a sunset; yes during our drive the sun had appeared and banished the grey clouds.
The campsite was beautifully laid out with groves of palms, other tropical trees and hibiscus hedges. The facilities for Roses and Guns were somewhat flowery, even the gents had vases with brightly coloured artificial flowers and, just insider the door, a table with large vase, flowers and several small plaster figures of pirates!
We dined, edited some photos, read and went to bed fairly early having been up before the dawn.
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