Leaving at sunrise to beat the tide, we said farewell to lovely Whitehaven Beach and headed south again to Lindeman Island, which promised more privacy and a nice hike up a "Mount" Olfield, more of a big hill to us, but with an incredible view nonetheless. Again we had southeasterlies on the nose, but weren't in any particular hurry once we had cleared the narrow passage at the bottom of Whitsunday Island, where the tidal currents and wave action can be rather nasty. Luckily our "area briefing" had covered this point; otherwise, we would never have bothered to get up so early.
We had a pleasant sail as it was a little less breezy and took in views of Pentecost Island, which was named by Captain Cook when he passed through on his first voyage of discovery. Pentecost Island is an eroded volcanic plug, and at least to me is reminiscent of the Marquesas with their steep slopes, but this may all be in my imagination since I've never actually been there.
Approaching Pentecost Island
Morning Sun on Pentecost Island
We arrived to an empty anchorage for the first time on our trip and happily spent the morning kayaking and fishing. We didn't do any snorkeling because the coral was all bleached and brown. I don't know if this was natural due to silt or the result of global warming or other type of disaster such as the Crown of Thorns starfish. In any event, it has been predicted that if sea temperatures continue to rise, the Great Barrier Reef will be mostly dead by the middle of this century, so if you want to see it in all its glory, don't wait too long.
The beach on the northside Lindeman where we anchored was OK but rocky and full of sharp barnacles, kind of like in the Northwest, so after gathering a few oysters and preparing our dinghy for the rising tide we started up the trail. About three kilometers later the eucalyptus forest opened up to a grassy hilltop, where we could see for miles in every direction and even down to the Club Med on the other side of the island. We felt a bit sad looking south at all the places we were not able to visit before heading back the next day to Hamilton Island to return the boat. I caught Mark saying, "Maybe we can check out those islands next time." Next time?!?
Views from Mount Olfield, Lindeman Island
For our final sail and trip back to the Sunsail base, the wind didn't disappoint and blew a steady 20 knots which generated big rolling one meter waves for a bit of surfing and a few round ups for fun. (The rudder would stall out, not just on me but Mark too.) Soon we were back to civilization and the marina at Hamilton Island.
Regrettably our trip had come to an end, and we needed to catch our flight back to Brisbane. We would definitely consider chartering again and would recommend Sunsail. The boat was in excellent condition, and although we never had need for extra assistance, the staff were very helpful and friendly.
The only thing that was not quite as nice as expected was the weather. It was cooler and much windier that the guide books had suggested, so we didn't do as much snorkeling as I had hoped (we should have rented wetsuits) and while 20 knots is great for sailing, it's not very pleasant for hanging out at the beach or on deck, especially when it's already a bit cool. Also, unlike the wind in the Northwest, it never seemed to die off at night, but blew right down the hills surrounding the anchorages, so although there were no big waves, it was never very peaceful. Maybe we just got unlucky, but I think there is a reason that peak season is in September .
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