Three Whitsundays Panoramas
Whitsunday Islands. The Whitsundays are a group of 74 islands, divided in 4
groups, and named by Capitan Cook as he sailed through them in 1770. These
islands are the tips of underwater mountains, 5 miles off the coast and 15
from the Great Barrier Reef on the other side. The area is the most popular
pleasure boating area in Australia. The gateway to the islands is the small
hamlet of Airlie Beach. Many package tours of the islands are available, but
most are beyond the budget of travelers without limitless funds. The only
way I was able to see them was as a part of my tour group.
Only 12 of 74 islands have actual settlements, and of those 6 are resorts
for the very rich. Most of the rest are uninhabited, and mostly used for
their beaches and hiking. Hamilton Island is probably the most well
recognized of these, as it is a playground for the rich and famous. It is
the only one with a airport, the only one with a high rise development, and
with a population of 1500, by far the most populous. I didn't visit here, it
was a little out of my range, but we did sail by it. The island I stayed on
was Long Island, which is home to the Club Crocodile Resort, another very
nice resort where I felt a little out of place. Long Island is one of the
biggest of the group, and it is only 6 miles long and less than 1 mile wide,
so it goes without saying that most of the islands are very small. The only
other island I had time to visit was Whitsunday Island, the largest of the
group. This island is uninhabited, except for the hundreds of day trippers
who come here for the 6 mile long Whitehaven Beach. It is truly one of the
most lovely beaches I have ever seen. The sand was white silica, which is
soft and quite powdery. The waters were turquoise, and since I have not been
to the Caribbean, I had never seen water this color except in pictures. Just
one more note to make all of you beach lovers a little jealous, the water
temperature was 86F.
