Sailing the Whitsundays

For the past 3 days and 2 nights Jordan and I have been sailing around the Whitsundays, which consist of 74 beautiful islands, aboard the stunning Alexander Stewart.

We went for a package deal when booking Fraser Island and the Whitsundays so whereas we had scrimped on the Fraser tour we decided we wanted to sail in a bit of luxury.  After all, this boat would be our home for the next 3 days and 2 nights and we wanted to make the most of the experience.  I have to say that neither of us were disappointed when we strolled up and first viewed the Stewart – it is a stunning ship and it was worth every penny!  The crew consisted of the Skipper Tony, Deckie Ben and Host Stacey and they all looked after us incredibly well – especially Stacey with all the beautiful food she provided!

On the first day of our trip we enjoyed a couple of hours of sailing before we were dropped off for our first snorkel of the day (a bit of a theme of the trip)!  As it is still ’stinger’ season in Australia we had to wear some specially designed suits to protect you against the dangerous stingers and had to sign some forms confirming that if we died it was only our own fault – yay!  After this fun activity we jumped into our sexy stinger suits and took to the water.

Incredibles anyone?!  This picture was actually taken on the last day but only example of us donning the beautiful suits!

After a fantastic snorkel we hopped back onto the boat and we were treated to coffee, tea, biscuits and cakes.  Then there was time to enjoy some rays on our sun deck before having lunch although Jords did help out with some ‘deckie’ duties in raising the main sail. 

I swear all we did on this trip was snorkel, sunbathe and eat eat eat!  This was actually perfect for us starving backpackers though and we made the most of it I can tell you!  After lunch we were again taken to another site where we could snorkel and we saw a fantastic array of marine life.  Once back on the boat we enjoyed the last of the sunshine, some more sailing, and we arrived at our night spot in time to watch the sunset.

Whilst the sun was setting Stacey provided us with a huge bowl of chip and dip, crackers, cheese, celery, carrot, olives – the works!  These were our pre-dinner appetisers and we all tucked in with a glass of wine or beer in hand.  After dinner everyone got into socialising and drinking and we were all ready for bed by a respectable 10.30!  I had been a little concerned about how I would sleep on a boat but I found it surprisingly easy and went out like a light! 

The next day we woke at around 7am and within 15 mintues the boat was off to get us to our next destination – Whitehaven Beach.  I think I will let the pictures do the talking for us in this instance.

Thought we’d get out the way so you guys can actually see the beach…

Our guide (Ben) then took us to a secluded beach called Betty’s Bay which was around the corner from Whitehaven - not many people seem to know about this one!  We were the only group on this beach and we exploited that fact!

After Whitehaven we went back to the boat and gorged ourselves on Stacey’s cooking once again.  In the afternoon we went for another snorkel but there wasn’t as much to see on this snorkel (although Jords saw a stingray swim right underneath him – scary!).  On the upside, we were located on a beautiful beach (yet again deserted) and we chilled there for a couple of hours – Jords and the guys played some rugby and football whilst I strolled up the beach to take some snaps of the Stewart.

From the Stewart we did actually see quite a few dolphins and huge turtles and it was such an amazing experience to be able to see these animals in their natural environment – just awesome!!! 

We were lucky enough to have another beautiful sunset to enjoy on the second night too.

For our final night on the boat we did much of the same – ate delicious snacks, had a gorgeous dinner and then sat up on deck drinking some wine watching the stars. 

Our final day consisted of a bushtucker walk on a nearby island where we saw a Goanna (big lizard-like thing) but not an awful lot more!  Still it was nice to stretch the legs on land – I already had the bobbing sensation on land which did not bode well for when we actually left the ship for good!  We were able to sail a good deal of the way back to Airlie Beach with all the sails up – wish we could have taken a photo of the ship from afar with all the sails hoisted but sadly not!  You will just have to use your imagination!

Sadly, all good things have to come to an end, but this was possibly one of the best experiences we have had out here.  It was worth every dollar spent!!!  I am still trying to adjust to being on land (bobbing all over the place!) but we are now in Mission Beach enjoying some relaxation!