Whitsundays

My parents arrived Thursday the sixth of April, and we have been busy since! After allowing then just enough time to get over their jetlag, I had Mom and Dad on the move, flying off to the Whitsundays for a week's vacation with Erik and I. Mark, not being one to sit around poolside at a resort, decided to stay in Brisbane and save his vacation for a yacht charter adventure or a trip to New Zealand.

We had a good time, but it was a learning experience. We flew JetStar into Proserpine then took a shuttle to Airlie Beach, but in retrospect it would have been better to Hamilton Island, avoiding the transfers and extra night in a hotel on the mainland. After a night in Airlie Beach we took a taxi out to Shutte Harbor and caught the ferry out to Hook Island, where we had booked a cabin on the beach. The accommodations were a bit rustic, but we didn't spend much inside, and the whole resort atmosphere was very relaxed. The dining area consisted of two long picnic tables end to end and a few smaller round tables scattered between the pool and bar. Most of the guests and staff went barefoot and the only time Erik bothered with his sandals was on the hike out the underwater observatory about a kilometer away.

The beach and snorkeling were literally a stone's throw away. The visibility for snorkeling wasn’t great; nothing like the brochures you see, but my dad figured out that if we went at a lower tide and had less water to look through, the colors of the coral and fish were much brighter.

I think April is perhaps a bit early for the Whitsundays, as it was overcast a lot of the time and the locals seemed to think it was still the rainy season. It was also still “Stinger Season” (October-May) so most people still were wearing lightweight lycra/nylon stinger suits, which while fine for diving are a bit ridiculous for swimming. Erik seemed happy just swimming in the pool, so it wasn’t really an issue. Nonetheless, it’s sort of sad to see all these beautiful beaches and not feel safe swimming. I had read that stingers weren’t really a problem in the Whitsundays or out on the reef, but all the dive boats and resorts provide stinger suits (ours were free), so there must be some degree of risk from the Irukandji if not the Box Jelly. When I have more time, I’ll post a link or write up a summary of dangers.

On the social front, we had a great time. Erik and the seven year old boy in the unit next to us became fast friends spending hours collecting coconuts and playing at the beach. His parents were avid divers and were thrilled to find such convenient entertainment for their son. My dad and I were also able to get in a lot of snorkeling and reading as Erik found the company of another child far preferable to us adults. At dinner, the boys went as far as sitting at their own table leaving the grown-ups to sit together and discuss travel and cultural differences.

We also met Misuki, an adorable four old girl, and her Japanese mother and Swiss grandmother. She had joined Erik and his new friend for an afternoon of sandcastle building and then came up to our veranda for a game of Crazy Eights. As fate had it, the grandmother didn’t speak English and was glad to have someone else to talk to, so I got a chance to practice my French and hear what French with a Japanese accent sounded like.

Then it was time to leave. My dad went on a trip to the outer reef while we took a ferry back to Airlie Beach. We made one stop at Southe Molle Island to pick up some campers, so that's an option too for any of you who might be contemplating a visit.