The Stanage boat ramp was surprisingly quiet on Sunday morning. There were only a couple of cars parked with empty boat trailers, compared to Friday's 20 or so. Weekenders were definitely leaving, so that accounted for some, and the fishos probably weren't working - there were a few of those. Given it was such a calm, lovely day on the water we would have expected at least a couple of the longer term nomads to be out.
Early in the afternoon our neighbours, David and Noel, passed our camp towing their tinnie to the ramp. They returned a few minutes later. Mmm...strange. We were planning to put ours in that afternoon as well. When we checked out the ramp the reason was clear. The tide had gone so far out the bottom of the ramp was high and dry. We knew the tidal range was big with the approaching full moon, but it didn't occur to us that the water was so shallow at the ramp.
We had been watching the tides since we arrived 8 days earlier. With each passing day the high tide was getting higher and the low, lower. The tide charts showed a full moon Tuesday with a high of 6.3 meters and a low of 0.1 meters. Sunday's low of 0.5 meters had exposed massive sand and mud flats along with extensive reef areas throughout the bay, which is actually very shallow. We were expecting Tuesday's low to be pretty spectacular. The high was so high Sunday it completely covered the large reef in front of our camp. It came right up the beach, quite close to the bottom of the steps that lead from our van onto the sand.
Putting the tinnie in was out of the question so we entertained ourselves with some grooming. There was no spare water to wash James and he really did need a bath. He got dry cleaned instead with spray shampoo and a good brush to remove tangles. Brain gave me a hair cut. I think he has missed his calling. He fired up the generator, used the electric clippers first, then his shaver and finally the thinning scissors. I did a little touch up around my face line with the thinning scissors. We were both very happy with the result. Brian reckons he loves doing it. Quite late in the afternoon we went down to the channel to fish on the incoming tide. That didn't last long. Bloody sandflies! I reckon we both got several bites within 15 minutes. That's one bad thing about Stanage. There are lots of sandflies. Bugger!
We were on the water by 8.30 Monday, allowing plenty of time to get back to the ramp before the low tide, around 3pm. The incoming tide was not far off the turn, so the water level was high, covering many of the reefs in the bay. We tentatively headed west, through the wide channel separating Quail Island and the Torilla Peninsula. The sea was flat but absolutely boiling with undercurrents. We could feel the effect on the boat and both felt uneasy, so turned around and motored back to where a few other tinnies were anchored in Stanage Bay. With the turn of the tide approaching, the current was strong everywhere, dragging our lines off the bottom. Brian ended up putting eight sinkers on each line. He didn't have any big ones in the tackle box so had to use multiple small ones. We spent a close to three hours fishing, changing location several times, before ending up with one keeper. All in all we caught a Spotted Cod, a Batfish that fought like crazy, a small Bream and a 40 cm long silver fish which we were unable to identify, but decided to fillet anyway. It's destiny a Thai green curry. The fish were definitely on the bite and we both had some good battles that we lost. It was a fun session.
The Keeper
The Batfish
James was beside himself with joy when we returned, attaching like glue for the rest of the day lest we disappear again. Brian did some work up at the store after lunch, while James and I took a walk late in the day to Stanage Bay Marine to pick up more bait and some large sinkers. There is a Cocky in a cage at the Marine that says hello as you approach and chatters away madly. A beautiful Rainbow Lorikeet sat on a perch outside the cage. The lady shop-keeper said the wild Lorikeets often come to visit, sometimes getting into the cage to eat the seed. The cocky grabs them by the tail so they can't leave. He's probably lonely.
Our water was running low so we decided we would give ourselves one more day of fishing before heading North on Wednesday. With plenty of wood for two nights we enjoyed a big fire while we waited for the high tide at 9.20 pm. We were both interested to see just how far up it came. In the bright moolight the reefy bay and the beach were both transformed to nearly double the low tide size, the water lapping just a few meters from our fire. The sound was magical.
James didn't stay snuggled up in bed Tuesday, he wanted to go outside. While he explored his space I did my journal and had coffee. It was our last full day at Stanage so we planned to do one more early run in the boat before starting the process of cleaning it out, disassembling the trailer and loading it back on the Beast. After a quick breaky we were just about to go down to the ramp when Brian noticed that James was covered in burrs. The poor little bloke was so uncomfortable he could hardly move. He hopped on my lap, laid on his back and let me drag them all out. It must have hurt like hell as I pulled his hair, but he just let it happen without protest. It reminded me of when my girls were little and I had to brush the knots out of their hair, only they used to express their pain very loudly.
There was a queue at the ramp. Everyone was going out early so they could get back in before low tide. We launched with a couple of guys in a tinnie about the size of ours. They were going around to the other side of Quail Island. We followed along behind them, albeit a tad tentative about going out to the open ocean - and quite some distance from the ramp to boot. As we motored along the swell became higher and the wind blew up - and that was before we had even left the relative shelter of Stanage Bay. We quickly changed our plan. We fished at few different spots but despite being on the turn of the tide didn't have any luck - a couple of bites, a small Bream and an eel that truly grossed me out. Ugh! The wind started to blow up rather strongly and the bay developed quite a big chop. All of a sudden Brian's hat blew off and into the sea behind him. By the time I managed to pull up the anchor so we could retrieve it, Brian's dearly beloved old fishing hat had disappeared. He was devastated - in tears almost. That hat had been with him on every fishing trip he'd been on for years and years. It was the mankiest, dirtiest, most moth-eaten old thing known to man, which I had threatened to dispose it multiple times, but he loved it. Poor Brian!
The Eel
Farewell beloved hat!
Wednesday we left Stanage at 8.45 heading north to we knew not where. The 100 km of dirt back to the Bruce Hwy was fairly slow going, particularly given we were held up by roadworks and the collection of firewood from the roadside on the way. Marlborough was not far up the highway. Hopefully we would get cappuccinos there. We hadn't had one since leaving Yeppoon 10 days before and were both hanging out. For some obscure reason we expected Marlborough to be a large town, but it wasn't much bigger than Stanage - it certainly didn't have a coffee shop. Sarina, 200 km further on, was the next big dot on the map, then Mackay not far past. That was a long drive for a drink. We ended up stopping at a roadhouse on the highway where we got two beautiful coffees. Nice!
With no water left in our tanks, a mountain of washing and James desperately in need of a bath, a stop over at a full service caravan park was the plan. Greenhill, some 60 km before Mackay, was on the ocean and had a dog-friendly caravan park. On paper it looked a possibility. It was 10 km off the highway, but when we got there the caravan park looked awful and there was no Telstra network. Brian was in the midst of a couple of aircraft deals and connectivity was a must, so we back-tracked to the Bruce. It was getting on for 3pm so I decided I'd better ring and book somewhere. I phoned one of only two parks at Mackay that took dogs and booked the last spot they had. It was at Bucasia, a Northern suburb of Mackay and cost $45 per night. That was a record for us....the most expensive night's accommodation in 5 months of travel.
It was getting on for 4 when we arrived. We paid for two nights and parked the van on site 47. A huge site with absolute beach frontage, it sat between the pool and an en-suite toilet and the closest neighbour was across the access road. We certainly weren't in a sardine tin and came to the conclusion that for $5 or $10 more than we expected to pay, it was well worth the money. Two of the five loads of washing went into machines, Brian set his laptop up and got stuck into work, James was given a lovely long walk on the beach and back at camp we were visited by some ducks with beautiful markings. We looked in our bird book to discover the white and chestnut ones were Radjah Shelducks and the ones with white side feathers were called Plumed Whistling Ducks. They were quite stunning. It was surprisingly cool so we spent the night INSIDE our van. That did feel strange after sitting out in front of fires every night for the last few weeks.
Site 47 at Bucasia Beach
Thursday we took a drive to the port area where modern, multi-story apartments overlook a new marina and port, across to a dozen or more islands. There is a promenade with several restaurants that front on to hundreds of moorings, many with luxurious, ocean-going yachts and cruisers. Protecting the port and marina from the ocean and weather is very long, high causeway which we drove out on. There was a long line of ships, thirty or more, which were moored off the coast. Not knowing anything about Mackay I did a bit of research. It is nicknamed the sugar capital of Australia because its region produces more than a third of Australia's cane sugar and Mackay Harbour is home to one of the largest bulk-sugar loading terminals in the world. The coal mining industry, however, is the mainstay of it's growing economy with the massive Bowen Basin coal reserves being shipped from the large port facility. That explained all the ships.
While some of our Thursday was spent sight-seeing, most of it was taken up with shopping. I had been suffering a sore shoulder for a few weeks so bought 15 minutes of massage from a small Chinese lady in a shop opposite Woolworths. She gave me a good 20 minutes of the best (fairly painful) deep massage I have ever had. It cost $20. Fantastic! We picked up some new rubber-backed carpet runner from Bunnings to replace the mats in the van that had become quite manky. James got a new, thick microfibre mat that is supposed to remove moisture, mud, sand etc when he rolls on it. Fingers crossed, especially given it cost $65! When we got back to the van a mobile dog-grooming unit pulled in behind us. How convenient. James got $20 worth of attention as well as a mat.
James loved his mat
Bucasia Beach is a lovely spot. Where we were staying is primarily a residential area with beachfront and parkland opposite. Our small caravan park was nestled ocean-side of the esplanade, a river and boat ramp at the Southern end and a long walking/cycling track through the park, running parallel to the beach for miles heading North. There was a quaint little cafe on the esplanade just up from the caravan park. It was the only shop on the esplanade. Never having visited Mackay before, we wanted to get a feel for the city and its surrounds. There was no way we would do the area justice in one full day, particularly since most of it was spent in shopping centres, so we booked another night. That meant we would have all of Friday to really check out some of the sights.
We spent Thursday evening inside yet again, booking airfares from Cairns to Melbourne for a week in September. We are heading back for the birth of a new family member who, if all goes to plan, will arrive via cesarean on September 16. The van will go to Jayco in Cairns for service and a few repairs while we are south. Very convenient. We save on storage costs and won't require alternate accommodation while the van is at Jayco. James, poor bugger, will have to go into a kennel. I haven't told him yet!
Brian was having trouble with his laptop, so he made an early call to a local repairer and dropped it off before 8am. on Friday. When he returned we moved the van to another spot in the park as 47 was booked Friday night. That was ok. It was a large site, bordered by trees and we could still see the sea. During the course of the relocation Brian noticed some loose wiring under the van. On closer investigation he found the that brake cable on two of the four wheels had disconnected and a third wheel appeared to never have been connected in the first place. That explained why he had trouble with the brake unit on departure from Stanage. Only the rear right was working. He spent some time on his back under the van rectifying the problem - at least on the two that he could.
Jobs done, we checked out Mackay. Our sightseeing tour started with a short drive up to Shoal Point, the Northern-most suburb of Mackay. It was a pretty place with some flash houses looking out over the Coral Sea to the islands. Next stop was Eimeo Pub. It was an old, hotch potch sort of building that sat atop a high point overlooking, once again, lots of islands. I counted thirteen of them. The location was simply magnificent and the ambiance was delightful. We sat outside in the sun and enjoyed the view, an antipasto platter and a glass of chardy.
Eimeo Pub
We did another tour of the marina area before going back into the city centre and following the river Eastward. River Road came to an end at a riding/walking track called Sandfly Creek. It went for miles. We hoofed along it at a fast pace for a couple of kilometers before returning the same way. The view back was over the city and the ranges to the West. They form quite a rugged backdrop to Mackay. James had a great time. Before dinner the three of us wandered back up to the cafe on the esplanade and had a couple of glasses of wine. That preceded a Weber roast lamb dinner and a night outside the van where we met a lovely couple, Leann and Glen, who arrived after dark and set up their tent on the site beside us.
There was no rush to leave Mackay on Saturday morning as Brian's laptop was still getting fixed. We were only going an hour and a half North to Airlie Beach anyway, and we had already booked a site for a couple of nights. While we were slowly packing up Leann and Glen came over for a chat. They both worked at a coal mine 150 km West and came to Bucasia every weekend. It was really interesting to hear about how different, and tough life is, when you live in a tiny donger at the same place you work, especially in the mining game. Glen gave Brian some information about traveling up to Cape York as they had recently driven up there, and Brian showed off the Beast. He loves any opportunity to do that. We were sorry we didn't have a chance to spend more time with them, though they did invite us to visit them at the mine, which we will try to do when we eventually start heading South. By the time we were ready to leave Brian had got the call to say his laptop was done. That was a relief as it carries a heap of information he requires to work. We picked it up and headed North on the Bruce, driving through extensive canefields bordered by mountain ranges. It's amazing how tall the cane grows.
At Proserpine we turned off to Airlie, 25km East through the ranges. The last time I was in the area was over 30 years ago and I remembered it as being stunning. That certainly hadn't changed, but man - has the area grown! The steep hillsides behind Airlie Beach town are positively crammed to bursting with terraced apartments. There is a massive new marina and a delightful waterfront park with huge swimming and wading pools. The main shopping precinct is a tourist and backpacker haven, the streets lined with open-air bars, cafes, restaurants, souvenir shops and Whitsunday tour booking businesses. We could only imagine how the place would throb into the wee hours with the young, international traveling set kicking up their heels. Probably not the kind of space you would find too many grey nomads on a Saturday night!
We drove through the main street and 2.5 km further on to Airlie Cove Resort and Van Park, which is where we were booked. Our site was tucked in beside a creek and surrounded by tropical shrubbery. It was fairly private and reasonably large. Once set up we headed toward Shute Harbour, stopping on the way at the aerodrome which services the Whitsunday Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. Shute Harbour is 10 kilometers past Airlie. The terminal at the harbour is used to load visitors onto all manner of water craft to commute to the islands or do tours.
There are 74 islands in the Whitsunday group with 8 offering a variety of resort accommodation, all with the Great Barrier Reef and fringing coral reefs at their doorstep. The most renowned islands include Hamilton, Hayman, Daydream, Lindeman, Brampton, South Molle, Long Island Resort and Paradise Bay Eco Escape. Whitehaven is well known for its beach, rated as one of the most beautiful in the world and Hook for it's coral gardens. We figured that while in the area we really should visit some of the islands. There are dozens of different tourist packages to choose from but we think we'll probably do the 'Three Island Discovery Cruise'.
After checking out Shute we drove back to Airlie Beach, parked the car and walked the main streets. The beachfront area is full of restaurants looking out across parkland to the bay. It's very pretty. All the shops and bars were open and the place was buzzing. It had a really lively holiday feel about it. Brian was quite taken with the place and decided it must rate pretty highly on our livability scale. I'm not so sure. Maybe a bit too commercial for me and I have yet to see a golf course!
Early in the afternoon our neighbours, David and Noel, passed our camp towing their tinnie to the ramp. They returned a few minutes later. Mmm...strange. We were planning to put ours in that afternoon as well. When we checked out the ramp the reason was clear. The tide had gone so far out the bottom of the ramp was high and dry. We knew the tidal range was big with the approaching full moon, but it didn't occur to us that the water was so shallow at the ramp.
We had been watching the tides since we arrived 8 days earlier. With each passing day the high tide was getting higher and the low, lower. The tide charts showed a full moon Tuesday with a high of 6.3 meters and a low of 0.1 meters. Sunday's low of 0.5 meters had exposed massive sand and mud flats along with extensive reef areas throughout the bay, which is actually very shallow. We were expecting Tuesday's low to be pretty spectacular. The high was so high Sunday it completely covered the large reef in front of our camp. It came right up the beach, quite close to the bottom of the steps that lead from our van onto the sand.
Putting the tinnie in was out of the question so we entertained ourselves with some grooming. There was no spare water to wash James and he really did need a bath. He got dry cleaned instead with spray shampoo and a good brush to remove tangles. Brain gave me a hair cut. I think he has missed his calling. He fired up the generator, used the electric clippers first, then his shaver and finally the thinning scissors. I did a little touch up around my face line with the thinning scissors. We were both very happy with the result. Brian reckons he loves doing it. Quite late in the afternoon we went down to the channel to fish on the incoming tide. That didn't last long. Bloody sandflies! I reckon we both got several bites within 15 minutes. That's one bad thing about Stanage. There are lots of sandflies. Bugger!
We were on the water by 8.30 Monday, allowing plenty of time to get back to the ramp before the low tide, around 3pm. The incoming tide was not far off the turn, so the water level was high, covering many of the reefs in the bay. We tentatively headed west, through the wide channel separating Quail Island and the Torilla Peninsula. The sea was flat but absolutely boiling with undercurrents. We could feel the effect on the boat and both felt uneasy, so turned around and motored back to where a few other tinnies were anchored in Stanage Bay. With the turn of the tide approaching, the current was strong everywhere, dragging our lines off the bottom. Brian ended up putting eight sinkers on each line. He didn't have any big ones in the tackle box so had to use multiple small ones. We spent a close to three hours fishing, changing location several times, before ending up with one keeper. All in all we caught a Spotted Cod, a Batfish that fought like crazy, a small Bream and a 40 cm long silver fish which we were unable to identify, but decided to fillet anyway. It's destiny a Thai green curry. The fish were definitely on the bite and we both had some good battles that we lost. It was a fun session.
The Keeper
The Batfish
James was beside himself with joy when we returned, attaching like glue for the rest of the day lest we disappear again. Brian did some work up at the store after lunch, while James and I took a walk late in the day to Stanage Bay Marine to pick up more bait and some large sinkers. There is a Cocky in a cage at the Marine that says hello as you approach and chatters away madly. A beautiful Rainbow Lorikeet sat on a perch outside the cage. The lady shop-keeper said the wild Lorikeets often come to visit, sometimes getting into the cage to eat the seed. The cocky grabs them by the tail so they can't leave. He's probably lonely.
Our water was running low so we decided we would give ourselves one more day of fishing before heading North on Wednesday. With plenty of wood for two nights we enjoyed a big fire while we waited for the high tide at 9.20 pm. We were both interested to see just how far up it came. In the bright moolight the reefy bay and the beach were both transformed to nearly double the low tide size, the water lapping just a few meters from our fire. The sound was magical.
James didn't stay snuggled up in bed Tuesday, he wanted to go outside. While he explored his space I did my journal and had coffee. It was our last full day at Stanage so we planned to do one more early run in the boat before starting the process of cleaning it out, disassembling the trailer and loading it back on the Beast. After a quick breaky we were just about to go down to the ramp when Brian noticed that James was covered in burrs. The poor little bloke was so uncomfortable he could hardly move. He hopped on my lap, laid on his back and let me drag them all out. It must have hurt like hell as I pulled his hair, but he just let it happen without protest. It reminded me of when my girls were little and I had to brush the knots out of their hair, only they used to express their pain very loudly.
There was a queue at the ramp. Everyone was going out early so they could get back in before low tide. We launched with a couple of guys in a tinnie about the size of ours. They were going around to the other side of Quail Island. We followed along behind them, albeit a tad tentative about going out to the open ocean - and quite some distance from the ramp to boot. As we motored along the swell became higher and the wind blew up - and that was before we had even left the relative shelter of Stanage Bay. We quickly changed our plan. We fished at few different spots but despite being on the turn of the tide didn't have any luck - a couple of bites, a small Bream and an eel that truly grossed me out. Ugh! The wind started to blow up rather strongly and the bay developed quite a big chop. All of a sudden Brian's hat blew off and into the sea behind him. By the time I managed to pull up the anchor so we could retrieve it, Brian's dearly beloved old fishing hat had disappeared. He was devastated - in tears almost. That hat had been with him on every fishing trip he'd been on for years and years. It was the mankiest, dirtiest, most moth-eaten old thing known to man, which I had threatened to dispose it multiple times, but he loved it. Poor Brian!
The Eel
Farewell beloved hat!
Wednesday we left Stanage at 8.45 heading north to we knew not where. The 100 km of dirt back to the Bruce Hwy was fairly slow going, particularly given we were held up by roadworks and the collection of firewood from the roadside on the way. Marlborough was not far up the highway. Hopefully we would get cappuccinos there. We hadn't had one since leaving Yeppoon 10 days before and were both hanging out. For some obscure reason we expected Marlborough to be a large town, but it wasn't much bigger than Stanage - it certainly didn't have a coffee shop. Sarina, 200 km further on, was the next big dot on the map, then Mackay not far past. That was a long drive for a drink. We ended up stopping at a roadhouse on the highway where we got two beautiful coffees. Nice!
With no water left in our tanks, a mountain of washing and James desperately in need of a bath, a stop over at a full service caravan park was the plan. Greenhill, some 60 km before Mackay, was on the ocean and had a dog-friendly caravan park. On paper it looked a possibility. It was 10 km off the highway, but when we got there the caravan park looked awful and there was no Telstra network. Brian was in the midst of a couple of aircraft deals and connectivity was a must, so we back-tracked to the Bruce. It was getting on for 3pm so I decided I'd better ring and book somewhere. I phoned one of only two parks at Mackay that took dogs and booked the last spot they had. It was at Bucasia, a Northern suburb of Mackay and cost $45 per night. That was a record for us....the most expensive night's accommodation in 5 months of travel.
It was getting on for 4 when we arrived. We paid for two nights and parked the van on site 47. A huge site with absolute beach frontage, it sat between the pool and an en-suite toilet and the closest neighbour was across the access road. We certainly weren't in a sardine tin and came to the conclusion that for $5 or $10 more than we expected to pay, it was well worth the money. Two of the five loads of washing went into machines, Brian set his laptop up and got stuck into work, James was given a lovely long walk on the beach and back at camp we were visited by some ducks with beautiful markings. We looked in our bird book to discover the white and chestnut ones were Radjah Shelducks and the ones with white side feathers were called Plumed Whistling Ducks. They were quite stunning. It was surprisingly cool so we spent the night INSIDE our van. That did feel strange after sitting out in front of fires every night for the last few weeks.
Site 47 at Bucasia Beach
Thursday we took a drive to the port area where modern, multi-story apartments overlook a new marina and port, across to a dozen or more islands. There is a promenade with several restaurants that front on to hundreds of moorings, many with luxurious, ocean-going yachts and cruisers. Protecting the port and marina from the ocean and weather is very long, high causeway which we drove out on. There was a long line of ships, thirty or more, which were moored off the coast. Not knowing anything about Mackay I did a bit of research. It is nicknamed the sugar capital of Australia because its region produces more than a third of Australia's cane sugar and Mackay Harbour is home to one of the largest bulk-sugar loading terminals in the world. The coal mining industry, however, is the mainstay of it's growing economy with the massive Bowen Basin coal reserves being shipped from the large port facility. That explained all the ships.
While some of our Thursday was spent sight-seeing, most of it was taken up with shopping. I had been suffering a sore shoulder for a few weeks so bought 15 minutes of massage from a small Chinese lady in a shop opposite Woolworths. She gave me a good 20 minutes of the best (fairly painful) deep massage I have ever had. It cost $20. Fantastic! We picked up some new rubber-backed carpet runner from Bunnings to replace the mats in the van that had become quite manky. James got a new, thick microfibre mat that is supposed to remove moisture, mud, sand etc when he rolls on it. Fingers crossed, especially given it cost $65! When we got back to the van a mobile dog-grooming unit pulled in behind us. How convenient. James got $20 worth of attention as well as a mat.
James loved his mat
Bucasia Beach is a lovely spot. Where we were staying is primarily a residential area with beachfront and parkland opposite. Our small caravan park was nestled ocean-side of the esplanade, a river and boat ramp at the Southern end and a long walking/cycling track through the park, running parallel to the beach for miles heading North. There was a quaint little cafe on the esplanade just up from the caravan park. It was the only shop on the esplanade. Never having visited Mackay before, we wanted to get a feel for the city and its surrounds. There was no way we would do the area justice in one full day, particularly since most of it was spent in shopping centres, so we booked another night. That meant we would have all of Friday to really check out some of the sights.
We spent Thursday evening inside yet again, booking airfares from Cairns to Melbourne for a week in September. We are heading back for the birth of a new family member who, if all goes to plan, will arrive via cesarean on September 16. The van will go to Jayco in Cairns for service and a few repairs while we are south. Very convenient. We save on storage costs and won't require alternate accommodation while the van is at Jayco. James, poor bugger, will have to go into a kennel. I haven't told him yet!
Brian was having trouble with his laptop, so he made an early call to a local repairer and dropped it off before 8am. on Friday. When he returned we moved the van to another spot in the park as 47 was booked Friday night. That was ok. It was a large site, bordered by trees and we could still see the sea. During the course of the relocation Brian noticed some loose wiring under the van. On closer investigation he found the that brake cable on two of the four wheels had disconnected and a third wheel appeared to never have been connected in the first place. That explained why he had trouble with the brake unit on departure from Stanage. Only the rear right was working. He spent some time on his back under the van rectifying the problem - at least on the two that he could.
Jobs done, we checked out Mackay. Our sightseeing tour started with a short drive up to Shoal Point, the Northern-most suburb of Mackay. It was a pretty place with some flash houses looking out over the Coral Sea to the islands. Next stop was Eimeo Pub. It was an old, hotch potch sort of building that sat atop a high point overlooking, once again, lots of islands. I counted thirteen of them. The location was simply magnificent and the ambiance was delightful. We sat outside in the sun and enjoyed the view, an antipasto platter and a glass of chardy.
Eimeo Pub
We did another tour of the marina area before going back into the city centre and following the river Eastward. River Road came to an end at a riding/walking track called Sandfly Creek. It went for miles. We hoofed along it at a fast pace for a couple of kilometers before returning the same way. The view back was over the city and the ranges to the West. They form quite a rugged backdrop to Mackay. James had a great time. Before dinner the three of us wandered back up to the cafe on the esplanade and had a couple of glasses of wine. That preceded a Weber roast lamb dinner and a night outside the van where we met a lovely couple, Leann and Glen, who arrived after dark and set up their tent on the site beside us.
There was no rush to leave Mackay on Saturday morning as Brian's laptop was still getting fixed. We were only going an hour and a half North to Airlie Beach anyway, and we had already booked a site for a couple of nights. While we were slowly packing up Leann and Glen came over for a chat. They both worked at a coal mine 150 km West and came to Bucasia every weekend. It was really interesting to hear about how different, and tough life is, when you live in a tiny donger at the same place you work, especially in the mining game. Glen gave Brian some information about traveling up to Cape York as they had recently driven up there, and Brian showed off the Beast. He loves any opportunity to do that. We were sorry we didn't have a chance to spend more time with them, though they did invite us to visit them at the mine, which we will try to do when we eventually start heading South. By the time we were ready to leave Brian had got the call to say his laptop was done. That was a relief as it carries a heap of information he requires to work. We picked it up and headed North on the Bruce, driving through extensive canefields bordered by mountain ranges. It's amazing how tall the cane grows.
At Proserpine we turned off to Airlie, 25km East through the ranges. The last time I was in the area was over 30 years ago and I remembered it as being stunning. That certainly hadn't changed, but man - has the area grown! The steep hillsides behind Airlie Beach town are positively crammed to bursting with terraced apartments. There is a massive new marina and a delightful waterfront park with huge swimming and wading pools. The main shopping precinct is a tourist and backpacker haven, the streets lined with open-air bars, cafes, restaurants, souvenir shops and Whitsunday tour booking businesses. We could only imagine how the place would throb into the wee hours with the young, international traveling set kicking up their heels. Probably not the kind of space you would find too many grey nomads on a Saturday night!
We drove through the main street and 2.5 km further on to Airlie Cove Resort and Van Park, which is where we were booked. Our site was tucked in beside a creek and surrounded by tropical shrubbery. It was fairly private and reasonably large. Once set up we headed toward Shute Harbour, stopping on the way at the aerodrome which services the Whitsunday Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. Shute Harbour is 10 kilometers past Airlie. The terminal at the harbour is used to load visitors onto all manner of water craft to commute to the islands or do tours.
There are 74 islands in the Whitsunday group with 8 offering a variety of resort accommodation, all with the Great Barrier Reef and fringing coral reefs at their doorstep. The most renowned islands include Hamilton, Hayman, Daydream, Lindeman, Brampton, South Molle, Long Island Resort and Paradise Bay Eco Escape. Whitehaven is well known for its beach, rated as one of the most beautiful in the world and Hook for it's coral gardens. We figured that while in the area we really should visit some of the islands. There are dozens of different tourist packages to choose from but we think we'll probably do the 'Three Island Discovery Cruise'.
After checking out Shute we drove back to Airlie Beach, parked the car and walked the main streets. The beachfront area is full of restaurants looking out across parkland to the bay. It's very pretty. All the shops and bars were open and the place was buzzing. It had a really lively holiday feel about it. Brian was quite taken with the place and decided it must rate pretty highly on our livability scale. I'm not so sure. Maybe a bit too commercial for me and I have yet to see a golf course!
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