Day 120 - 123 Magentic Island Peppers Resort Nelly Bay

On our travels around Magentic Island we had a look at the marina at Nelly Bay. It is a part of the Blue on Blue Peppers Resort and we decided this was the place for us while we waited for Jim to join us from race week in Hamilton Island. We spent time around the pools (one of which is the second largest in the southern hemisphere) Everything is very easy with the supermarket in walking distance and the parks are great for the dog walks. Here are some pictures:

This is pool side:

Day 118-120 Magnetic Island

Magnetic Island is located just 8 kilometres off Townsville, Queensland's northern capital. The Island has a relaxed tropical lifestyle, quiet secluded beaches, natural unspoilt beauty, abundant wildlife and the weather lets you know you are in Australia's Tropics. The days range between 25-28 degrees and the nights are balmy at around 20 degrees. (definitely only need the sheet at night) We arrived at Horshoe Bay and were surprsied to find over 30 boats. The esplanade had many take away shops, shopping mart, art gallery and of course the pub. The sand stretch for 3 kilometres and there are many water sports such as jet ski and kayaking as well as horse riding.

We spent time exploring the island by bus (excellent service) and did some of the many bushwalks. These are some of the snapshots from around the island.


All in all the island is very interesting and one we were glad we had stopped to have a look.

Day 116 -118 Travelling to Magnetic Island

We moved further north and stayed overnight at a few different anchorages on our way to Magnetic Ilsand just off Townsville. The weather has been very good for travelling north with s/sw winds up to 30 knots and unfortunately the swell that comes with it. (Up to 3 metres) Our first day was a bit of a shock after having such a relxing time at Airlie Beach. We were skimming down waves and averaged about 8 knots. We ended up at a place called Cape Upstart. This is a fishing village and can only be reached by boat. Here are some pictures. The landscape is changing now we are further north with huge moutains and very large boulders.

The next day we went to Cape Bowling Green but unfortunately we could not stop the wind was very strong and the short sharp chop made anchoring impossible so we headed off to Cape Cleveland. We could see the lights of Townsville and we were very relieved to anchor as we had 40 miles to do before sunset. The boat went very well and the ancorage wasn't too bad although there were some worrying time with the tide. Think we only had about 1 metre under us at low tide which made sleeping a little uncomfortable.The next day we went to Magnetic Island and had a very easy sail and will have a rest for the next couple of days.

Day 113 - 115 Gloucester Passage

Moved on to Gloucester Passage and went ashore to the eco resort. (This even has a short video of the place.) Here we are pool side having a seafood platter. Lovely sunset.

Time to Leave the Whitsundays Day 112

After being at the Whitsundays for 6 weeks we finally moved on. Here is a final photo leaving Airlie Beach. We said our goodbyes to our good friends on Europa as they are not heading any further north. Jim is staying with them over the next week sailing in the annual Hamilton Island Race or photos. We headed off today to Woodwark Bay and will meet Jim in Townsville next weekend. It was a very peaceful night and a lovely anchorage.

Award winning moments Whitsundays July-August 2008

Sorry about the delay - we have been so busy 'resorting it' - as well as contending with the most fickle of internet reception around the different islands. It's been awesome though!

Luckiest break:

Sneaking (undetected) into Club Lindemann Resort on Lindemann Island. One of the best parts about this resort, apart from the beautiful swimming pools and tennis courts, is the fact that it's all you can eat and all you drink, which is something that we may have taken advantage of ... :)

Most random item: At Long Island Happy Bay, we met this really nice guy at the bar. Having drunk quite a lot of beer, he proceeded to tell us that that day was in fact his wedding day (a Wednesday afternoon) and he was getting married in 30 minutes. Rare.

At South Molle Island, the 'activities co-ordinator' was this guy named Chris. He proceeded to show us how to shoot archery, 'husk' a coconut, and organised trivia. He seemed to be everywhere we were on South Molle, at the activities, at the bar, at the pool - everywhere. Even more random than this, was when leaving South Molle, we saw him at the shopping centre in Airlie Beach - shopping!

Also at Daydream Island Resort, the water aerobics was random: jogging in circles, and doing random arm stretching above the water.

Playing beach volleyball at Daydream Island, the game was interrupted by a streaker. Yes, a male streaker - stark naked. It is probably best to point out at this point that he was about 3 years old.

Also, when listening on the radio - there was a hire boat that contacted base about a holding tank that was overflowing into the bilge (boat speak: we are sinking, we are sinking!) to which the radio control replied: 'Go two miles out to sea, and see if you can fix the problem.'

Favourite meal: Baked dinner at the Whitsunday Sailing Club (all you can eat - great food and great company) and prawn pizza at Mangrove Jack's in Airlie Beach. Although Macca's after a night out in Airlie Beach is hard to beat (Amy and Jim) :) Special mention should also go to the Cold Rock found in Airlie Beach (Ferrero Roche chocolate and Peanut M&M's)

Least favourite meal: SPAM pizza (what the hell is SPAM anyway???!!!)

Funniest moment: At Airlie Beach, Amy, Lisa (Amy's best friend) and Jim all went out clubbing one night. Dave, Jo and Mick, Tanya and Hayden (our friends from a boat that is travelling with us) also decided to go out to dinner together while in Airlie Beach. After dinner, they were making their way back to the boats when they saw Jim run past. With no shirt on. No shoes on. No wallet, and really, no idea. Jim had locked himself out of the hostel, and was looking for Amy and Lisa to borrow their key. Given that he had been drinking all afternoon with Amy and Lisa, this is not really surprising. Also funny in this story - Amy and Lisa were in the club (smashed) and suddenly Jo appeared in the club! (very funny.)

When playing tennis with Mick, Tanya and Hayden at Long Island, Happy Bay - someone hit the ball up heaps high in the air. As it come down, everyone was watching where it would land. Dave was closest, and after taking a huge air swing at it - was sconed straight in the head. Full on falcon. Funny.

Also - Dave and Mick, emboiled in an intense battle with Mick for a caramel milkshake, did a courageous dive at the net, and ended up on his back, needless to say but he lost that point, the game and the milkshake.

When playing mini-golf at Daydream Island, there was a whole that resembled the Sydney Harbour Bridge, that was about two metres wide. Upon hitting the ball, Jo ended up getting hers between the 'pylons' and her ball landed in the 'harbour' (what was really a dirty river guarded by a fearsome group of barramundi.) Jo had to get Jim to 'fish' it out for her.

One night, after playing cards, Jo was seriously pissed, having had too much red wine (and Southern Comfort and Coke) to drink. While moving around the boat, she ended up stacking and falling down the port-side hull. There she remained for serveral minutes, until the laughter died down, and Dave went to help her back up, and put her to bed. So funny.

Most painful experience: Listening to the radio calls of the charter boats. These boats, with the names like 'Tornado,' 'Broomstick,' and 'Hammer' would constantly call base on their radios, and would repeat these names every time they answered or asked a question. This proved to be VERY painful.
Also painful about these hire boats was what they would be reporting back to Charter Yachts Australia about: e.g. 'broken DVD player' (emergency of course)
'we are down to two minute noodles' (life-threatening emergency)
'the wife isnt happy, she wants to move on' (IN THE MIDDLE OF A GALE FORCE WIND WARNING- but still an emergency all the same)

Amy being hung-over on the boat was pretty painful, the dinghy (on the trip back to the boat) was almost too fast and nearly made her sick again! Funny for everyone else though I'm sure!


Number of hours of television watched: Not many, given that SOMEONE on board (who will remain nameless......) broke the TV lol. However, we did get to watch some V8 supercar racing (boring) and the Bledisloe Cup, we well as some riveting local news. Luckily, given that we have been visiting so mnay resorts, we have managed to watch some some Olympic highlights, including Michael Phelps, Hackett and most recently, Australia dominating in the Men's 10m Platform Diving (yay!)


Favourite place: There is much conjecture in this category, and everyone on board probably has there own opinion. The obvious mentions are of course: Daydream Island (beautiful resort)
Whitehaven Beach (beautiful white sand and clear water!) South Molle Island (Dave's choice - he just seriously could not get enough of this place) and Butterfly Bay (beautiful for snorkelling.) Other honourable mentions include: Shaw Island, Happy Bay and Blue Pearl Bay.


Least favourite place: Nara Inlet. While not actually a bad place, this place was so overcrowded by charter boats - it was ridiculous. And even worse than this, the Parks and Wildlife people ended up doing a massive burn-off the day that we were there - covering everything and every boat in ash and smoke.



Skills learnt: A special mention at this point for a 'group skill' : tennis.



Jo: How to drive the dinghy, and how to make bread.

Dave: When running down wind in the boat, with good wind pressure, I can bear away and pick up more speed: and then catch more waves with better boat speed, which (apparently) enables the boat to plane at 10+ knots. (Seriously, no idea what this means.... more boat speak!)

Amy: Not to drink beer (at all - even Strong Bow) or have too much wine (I think that Jo has learnt this skill aswell!) Have also learnt how to do the washing, a skill that may not sound like much - but let's face it, I didnt even know where to put the washing powder before this trip.
That people from Melbourne sound nothing like those from Wales (it's a long and embarassing story....but lesson learnt!)

Jim: TBA... Jim is still in the Whitsundays racing in the Hamilton Island Race Week 2008 - so we will be waiting to hear all he has learnt there!

Feel good moments:

When we were in Luncheon Bay (also a great place for snorkelling) we had all been swimming around looking at coral and fish, and had just climbed back into the dinghy. Only 30m away, a mother whale and its calf swam between our dinghy and our boat. It was absolutely incredible - we havent seen anything like it before - and it is something that we will always remember from this trip. Randomly: at this point, the whales had been spotted by a dive instructor that had a group of pupils just near where our dinghy was. Upon seeing the whales, he started screaming for the people nearest him to swim TOWARDS the two whales. Conservation and respect for nature at its best.

Olympics - lots of fell good moments - Phelps winning the eight gold medals, as well as Australia's awesome moments too - Go Australia.

New category- WORST name for a boat: On a boat with the numbers 007 (James Bond style) were the words: 'Pussy Galore.' Need I say more?

Lessons learnt:

Stay clear of the backpacker boats and charter boats.
That six weeks in the Whitsundays is probably enough :)
That when staying in a Backpacker Hostel - always take your own linen!

Plan for the next week: To travel to Townsville by this weekend - and then onto Cairns!

Whitsunday Resorts

Whilst in the Whitsundays we have been going to some of the resorts and enjoyed some great times. Our tennis has truly improved so to our trivia and puttting. Some great times. These are some of the resorts we have been too:

Daydream Island: Stunning rainforest and relaxing shaded walkways are representative of just some of the island's innate natural beauty. 3 pools, spas and sauna. Jim one three cocktails for winning Bingo!! Yeah Jim!!

Long Island: Relax under the palm trees on the beach or spend the day waterskiing, parasailing, island hopping, cruising, playing tennis or exploring the 20 kilometres of bush walks considered by many to be some of the prettiest in the Whitsunday Islands group. Must have played at least 10 games of tennis!!

South Molle: offers the opportunity to play a 9 hole golf course on the resort with wonderful views over the Whitsunday's and surrounded by National Park, go snorkelling or swimming at one of the many easily accessible bays and inlets or take in one of the many walks in the National Park. Won a round of drinks for winning Trivia Pursuit!!Yeah!

Lindeman Island: at the southern end of the whitsundays!Luxury Plus!!

The Whitsundays

We have now been in the Whitsundays for 4 weeks since arriving 7th July. It truly is an amazing place with so much to see and do. I will give an overview of what we have seen and done.

Airlie Beach is part of a picturesque peninsula that reaches out to the Whitsunday Passage and a great place to restock. Although the marina was disappointing we anchored just off the beach. A very cosmopolitan place with backpackers from all around the world.

We headed off to South Molle Island. An hour sail from the mainland and one of our favourite places when we did our trip many years ago. It has a relaxing South Seas ’ atmosphere and the palm-fringed beach set amongst sheltered waters. We swam in the pool and did all of the walks. The island has over 420 hectares of National Park and 16 kilometres of trails to explore that lead to beaches, bays and great views from Mt Jeffreys. Great place to relax.

Langford Reef

Langford Reef is a beautiful sand and coral spit extending from Langford Island in the Whitsundays.
Butterfly Bay (Click here to watch a video) to see the coral.

Stonehaven: Stonehaven is on the North Western side of Hook Island. It's a nice anchorage with views of Hayman, Bird, Langford and Black Islands.

Blue Pearl Bay is located at the North Western corner of Hayman Island. It offers excellent snorkelling and diving with a large variety of coral and plenty of sea life.

Manta Ray Bay, at Hook Island in the Whitsundays, has an array of underwater valleys, caves, and swim-throughs leading all the way to the seafloor 25 metres below. Considered one of the best dive & snorkel sites in the inshore islands, Manta Ray Bay has a good coverage of hard and soft corals and abundant marine life including Maori Wrasse and Manta Rays in winter.


Cid Harbour is a large, mostly sheltered, harbour on Whitsunday Island, Whitsundays.

Whitehaven Beach is located in the Whitsunday Islands and Airlie Beach Region. Whitehaven Beach is almost 6km long and consists of a very fine dazzling white sand that is 98% pure Silica!

Hill Inlet offers spectacular views of Whitehaven Beach.


These are some of the places we have been. In the next post I will show some of the resorts we have been too!!