from Gold Coast, AUS
Having had enough of warm weather (or being entirely off our rockers), we headed south from Cairns, making our way through Innisfail, an area ravaged by a category five cyclone (hurricane) only last month. The damage was obvious (downed trees, tarp-covered roofs, dirt everywhere, sparsely-vegetated trees), but rebuilding efforts were well underway, and there were plenty of road crews out. We paused for an hour or two at Mission Beach, enjoying the afternoon sun and feeling slightly guilty that we were lazing on the beach while the locals continued to clear away the storm-strewn mud and trees. Fortunately, the official line is that they are desperate for the tourists to return in order to prop up that part of the local economy.
We enjoyed low stress and ease of toilet access by stopping overnight at a legal highway rest area, followed by the drive down to Townsville. The biggest town in North Queensland seems like it would be a great place to live: beautiful long beaches, warm and sunny weather, great architecture and deserted streets (it was a Sunday). We again opted for the low stress option and drove another hour south to the next legal rest stop.
Liz on the beach at Townsville
We finally arrived to sun and sand at Airlie Beach, gateway to the Whitsunday islands, the jewel of the East Coast with warm weather, white sand beaches, and the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef. Since the area is famous for its sailing opportunities, we promptly visited a number of the local booking centers, coming away with a good standby rate for a 3 day / 3 night package on an eighty foot Maxi racing yacht called Spank Me. We set sail at 3pm, everyone asked to toss their shoes in a bag as they boarded. Twenty-six passengers and four crew spread out on the open deck of the yacht as we rode the winds out amongst the islands, relaxing and enjoying a gorgeous, fiery sunset. As darkness closed in, we came to rest in a little bay and dropped the anchor. Unfortunately, once the wind shield had been dropped down from the boom, creating an open-ended tent on deck, the smoke from twenty lit cigarettes was trapped in the poorly ventilated structure, and the only respite for the rest of the evening was either to duck out into the biting wind, or head down below to the close and stuffy bunks below deck. Food on board was necessarily bland given the number of different palates and restrictions created by a four-square-foot galley, and resulted in overdone spaghetti and meat sauce the first night.
Day Two began with a deafening rumble as the skipper started the engine at 6:30 in the morning, before any of the passengers had thought to roll out of their bunks. Given that the inside of the boat was really just one big room lined with bunks and centered on the engine block, sleeping was made somewhat difficult once we had gotten underway. With most people still making a valiant effort to ward off the demons of consciousness, I made my way above deck to take in the colourful sunrise over patchy cloud and green islands. Unfortunately, as we munched on cereal and croissants (everyone in Australia and New Zealand seems to drink whole milk – grrrr), rainshowers settled in, making our stop at Whitehaven Beach, apparently one of the top ten beaches in the world, an exercise in imagination: what would it be like in sunshine and warm weather? Amazing! Incredible! Very fine hot white sand and crystal blue water. Fortunately we’d brought our books, beach towel and rainjackets, and settled into the shelter of some rocks to wait the hour and a half until the launch came back to get the lot of us. Back on the boat, we sailed around a few islands and moored at a public buoy, eating lunch and getting into our wetsuits for our first diving and snorkeling in the fringing reef. Liz and I took the shuttle over to the beach and took in some sun before snorkeling for a bit. Unfortunately, by the time our group was up for diving, the sun was too low in the sky, and our complimentary dive was postponed to the following day. By the time we’d gotten back to the boat, all the afternoon tea and biscuits had been gobbled up. Burritos for supper were followed by some jolly drinking and conversation under the wind shield. I ducked out for a while to escape the smoke and sat on a folded sail in the bow, contemplating the moon and stars.
We were supposed to sail to the outer reef in the morning of Day 3 to dive and snorkel at the real reef, but the sea was so rough that even the hardiest dive boats had come in to the shelter of the islands. We therefore had to settle for the fringing reef around the islands, and went for our morning dive in the bay where we’d spent the night. Despite having to settle for the fringing reef, my first diving experience was great! We went down about 15 meters and swam around the coral, seeing many many colourful fish and a sting ray. No giant fish or sharks, but there’s always next time. There’ll be plenty of next times once I get my PADI certification, which I’ve been meaning to do for a few years now. Diving with an instructor is somewhat restrictive. After some plumbing trouble that delayed our departure by a couple of hours in the afternoon, we set sail once again, heading around the islands to a calmer bay for our overnight mooring. We finally got to see what our racing yacht was made of, cruising along over the big swell of the open ocean, the boat tipped way over to make the most of the wind, waves crashing over the bow, drenching all the passengers clinging to the deck, wind whipping their clothes. Liz and I were perched up on the higher side, soaking up the experience and trying to take photos with our disposable underwater camera. Very bland Thai curry chicken was again followed by rowdy drinking and lively conversation. Along with a few friends, the Irish contingent stayed up quite loudly and quite late, telling jokes and drinking the boat dry.
Day Three-and-a-half dawned cold, wet, and windy, but after some consideration, Liz and I took a deep breath and put on our wetsuits for morning snorkeling, two of only six to risk the water. With so many fish and an underwater camera, we had a great time splashing around. That experience, along with the incredible sailing on the way back into port, tipped the scales, making the trip a success rather than a drizzly, cold flop.
Sailing in the Whitsundays
Back in Airlie Beach, we got right back on the road, staying the night at a cheap, but well-provided caravan park on the side of the highway. We passed quickly through Mackay and turned inland, making our way through the increasingly sparse landscape to a tiny little village of ramshackle houses and caravans called Sapphire. We’d pre-arranged to meet up with Bob and Joy, retiree friends of Liz’s uncle Martin, who head in to Sapphire for two weeks to fossick for sapphires. They are among the large number of Australian city-dwellers who own a claim on a little patch of hinterland, spending two months of every year living in a caravan on their claim and digging holes in the hope of finding gemstones. We spent two nights with them, scraping a few buckets of stones from a buried riverbed, sieving, washing, and searching through them during the intervening day. Although we found a few tiny sapphires in our efforts near their claim, we had far more success with the bucket of wash (excavated riverbed) that Bob and Joy bought for us to search through at one of the many local cafés. We had a great time and got a few little souvenir sapphires in the process.
Fossicking for sapphires in Sapphire, QLD
After the Saturday market, we headed back to the coast, driving six hours to Hervey Bay, where we planned to park in Bob and Joy’s driveway. While creeping around the perimeter of the house in the dark, looking for the eighty-year-old house-sitter whom we later learned had departed the day before, we were interrupted by the neighbours from down the street. Fortunately Bob and Joy had given us a package for them and we quickly made friends. They were more than happy to give us a key to the house so that we could cook, take showers, and relax in front of the TV. We stopped by the neighbours’ for tea the next morning, before going to the tour booking office and deciding against a trip to sunny and sandy Fraser Island because of the cost in time and money. We decided to laze around for the day and pamper ourselves, renting a movie and making nachos and pizza; more indulgence than in three months. Following a quick stop at the gym the next morning, we began driving down the coast again through Noosa, finally stopping for the night at a rest area just south of the town of Nambour.
Sunset on the highway south of Rockhampton
We were at the Big Pineapple for opening, a pineapple farm and tourist operation owned by the big Australian pineapple firm Golden Circle (Liz wants to re-live all of her childhood memories 
). Although we decided that $15 was too much for the tour, we had lots of fun climbing up the big pineapple and looking out over the pineapple fields. Then off to our big stop for the day: Steve Irwin’s (the Crocodile Hunter) Australia Zoo!!
Liz at the Big Pineapple and Ettamogah Pub, indulging her nostalgia
Although entry was quite steep at $43, the pain was mitigated by the knowledge that Steve and his wife Terri use the proceeds of the zoo for conservation and wildlife rescue operations, including an adjacent animal hospital and rehab center. We spent the entire day at the zoo, hand-feeding elephants, taking in the big snake-tiger-crocodile-bird main event at the Crocoseum, learning about introduced camels and feral foxes, watching a Tasmanian devil chase its tail, being amazed by overactive koalas, hand-feeding kangaroos, gawping at cheetahs and cassowaries, and cringing at sight of deadly snakes. The zoo was almost deserted by the time we finally left as the sun dipped towards the horizon. Figuring that Brisbane would simply be another big city and we could visit late in July if need be, we skipped it in favour of making the Gold Coast for the night so that we could stay at Liz’s grandparents’. This is where we have been relaxing for the past day and a half, enjoying the sun that we’d finally found.
Sunset over the smoky Glasshouse Moutains south of Australia Zoo
We’ll take off again tomorrow to make the most of our campervan, winding our way towards Sydney and Melbourne, bracing ourselves for record cold temperatures (it dipped below freezing down there the last few nights!!). Once we drop the campervan in Adelaide at the end of the month, we’ll likely take the train to Alice Springs and join a nine day tour up to Uluru (Ayers Rock) and up through the outback to Darwin, visiting the wild and famous Kakadu National Park along the way. Due to financial constraints, we’ll probably fly back to the Gold Coast for our last two weeks in Australia rather than making a whirlwind journey out to Perth on the west coast.
Gold Coast at dusk
Everyone who’s been a bit jealous of us the past few months will surely feel a little better once we’re freezing our butts off again. You’ll be happy to know that ESPN Australia bought the broadcast rights to the Stanley Cups finals at the very last minute, and we were able to catch Game 5 here on the Gold Coast. Since Edmonton is being pesky and managed to scratch out a win, we’re left with the task of finding somewhere to watch Game 6 while we’re wandering down the coast!