Frank's Christian Thoughts: July 2025

Saturday, 5 July 2025

Travel Biography Photo Extravaganza - Part 29.

Arrival at Arlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands.

To recap, in 1997, I flew with British Airways from London Heathrow to Singapore. After spending five days there, I carried on with the journey to Australia with Qantas Airlines to Cairns, in North Queensland. Cairns was the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, and from there, I snorkelled and took underwater pictures of the corals surrounding two coral cays, Green Island and Low Isles.

I then moved on by surface travel on the Greyhound Bus to Townsville, which served as a gateway to Magnetic Island, an excellent venue for day hiking to take in some panoramic views. It was also in Townsville where I visited the Great Barrier Reef Headquarters, the largest coral aquarium in the world. I also had a chance to visit the Billabong Wildlife Sanctuary, where wallabies, which are related to the kangaroos, were taken care of, along with the koala; such mammal species are unique to Australia.

I then journeyed on by bus to Arlie Beach, which was further south along the Queensland coast. It was here that I came close to mangrove trees for the first time in my life, and I was fascinated by them! There were several different species. For example, those flourishing at Arlie Beach were different from those at Brisbane and Coffs Harbour. With the warmer climate and suitable environment, mangrove trees at Arlie Beach were taller and looked more robust.

Arlie Beach was also a gateway to a group of offshore islands, the Whitsunday archipelago of forested continental islands, which are partially submerged hills. These islands were given that name by Captain James Cook when his ship, the HMS Endeavour, passed by those islands on a Whitsunday Bank Holiday. During my stay at Arlie Beach, a small catamaran took us to these islands, starting with Hook Island. From the air, Hook Island resembles an animal's foot with three claws. The two inlets separating the three fingers are Nara Inlet and Macona Inlet. Hook Island features ancient Aboriginal art, two ovals resembling tennis racquets. They were around 4,000 years old, so I was told.

The next island we set foot on was Whitsunday Island, the largest of the archipelago. It boasted a beach of white sand, consisting of silicon. When I walked along the beach, the fine white sand squeaked under each footstep. White Haven Beach was the rim of an ancient, submerged caldera formed when a volcano exploded. From the beach, a trailhead led into the tropical forest to an area of high ground. From the summit, I enjoyed magnificent views of the surrounding area, including Lindeman Island of the neighbouring Cumberland archipelago. As far as I was aware, I was alone during the hike and had the views to myself.

The third island we were taken to was Border Island, which boasted a fringing reef. During the sailing, we were all offered snorkelling gear. However, unlike the previous catamarans I boarded, this one was a small one and had no shop to buy an underwater camera. However, the sky was overcast over the island, and I wondered how the underwater photography would have turned out. Nevertheless, to this day, I wish that I had recorded on film the magnificent submarine garden of corals, including the recognisable Brain Coral. At Border Island, the water surrounding it was deep; hence, the corals were the most luxuriant of all three venues visited.

Arrival at Hervey Bay and the hike on K'gari.

It was time to move on. Another Greyhound Bus dropped me off at Hervey Bay, which is further south along the Queensland coast. Since leaving Cairns, I have travelled about 900 miles, or 1,446 km, along the coastal road to my latest stop. As with all stops I made already, Hervey Bay is also a gateway to an offshore island, Fraser Island, as it was in 1997, but now called by its Aboriginal name of K'gari.

Lake McKenzie, K'gari.

I found the town of Hervey Bay of moderate interest, as it was mainly a residential settlement, perhaps known here in the UK as a dormitory town. Its surroundings were a contrast to the environment surrounding Cairns. Around Cairns, the Great Divide Range reached the coastline. Here at Hervey Bay, the range begins around 40-50 miles inland. Therefore, the town is surrounded by a flat, forested plain. It's my opinion that if Hervey Bay weren't a gateway to an offshore island, most backpackers would have bypassed the town, as was the case with Coffs Harbour in NSW.

Yet it boasted several backpackers' hostels. That was easy to understand. Since its harbour was the gateway to the world's largest sandbank, the ferry crossing attracts groups of tourists throughout the year. When I was there, it was during the Australian winter, yet the numbers remained high.

K'gari is the home of the Dingo, a pure canine breed which flourishes as a wild dog. Shy by nature, in the past, tourists fed them with titbits. This was then banned, as the Dingo has since formed packs to chase tourists for their free feed. Hence, by 1997, all tourists arrived in groups. The smaller groups hired a jeep to explore the island together and without a guide. Then there was a larger group escorted by a guide. Since I had no license to drive a vehicle, I chose the escorted group.

However, I had the opportunity for a lone hike along the forested trail alongside the Wanggoolba Creek while the rest of the group went elsewhere. Some time later, I rejoined the group to be taken to Lake McKenzie, where I had a swim with just one other person, a female backpacker, Christine, from Europe, who, between us, became friends. Lake McKenzie holds the record for being the purest body of freshwater in the world. While the rest of the group sat some distance from the lake and did nothing, Christine and I enjoyed a good swim in the clean, pure water before we were all driven back to the ferry port.

Click here for the Index to the main Biography covering these venues, which are weeks 82-87.

Photos of the Whitsunday Islands Catamaran trip.