Rip-snorting, sand-squeaking, ant-lickin' good times

DAY  7
Location: Whitsundays
Temp: 27 C
Weather: Overcast, drilling rain on return trip
Activities: Big Fury boat ride around the Whitsundays
Accommodation: The bus (-_-) zzz

Holy frijole, this was a high octane day.

I woke up everyone again this morning, but instead of the groaning and rolling over, the girls actually woke up with me. We all had plans that morning. We ripped off our bed linens, dressed, and walked down to the office for a $5 breakfast of cereal, tea, toast, orange juice. My toast got stuck on the back of the conveyor belt and one of the hosts was brave enough to dig it out. I sat down and one of my roomies, from Denmark, joined me. I got that wide-eyed look again when I said where I was from but I shot it right back when the chick told me she was  journalist. Small world. We chatted until she had to catch her sailing boat and I took the extra hour to explore Airlie Beach since this is the only chance I would get.

And it was a beautiful beach walk. A bit overcast and wet, which would portend my night to come...

I love taking pictures of maps. It not only documents and dates the place, but also gives folks who haven't been there an idea of just what I was working with. Only trouble is gauging the scale. 

Here was the lovely lagoon at Airlie. I kicked off my slippers and stepped into the water which was cool and refreshing. I wish I could have stuck around to do some swimming, but the day's plans called me onward.

I took a stroll around the scenic and calm lagoon, snapped some pictures, and waded a bit--the water was lukewarm, then I continued down the line looking for the Domino's Pizza where my shuttle would pick me up at 9:40 a.m. Some nice Aussie ladies in a bathing suit shop pointed me in the right direction when I couldn't find it.

I was first to get to the stop and it quickly filled to 10; 9:40 came and went and I spazzed a bit when I saw a Big Fury shuttle zip by and I wondered what I would do if I didn't make the boat. Could I even get my money back? All these thoughts zipped through my mind until our shuttle appeared at 10:10 and eight of us got up to board.

Look! An Aussie post box just outside of Abel Point Marina.

 We continued on to the Abel Point Marina, paid up, and about 45 of us all went to the four-engine power boat. Our guide was hilarious, cracking wise as he went through the itinerary and safety protocols. I made friends with a middle-aged couple and we chatted as we got underway, ripping past Hook Island and the pass between it and Whitsunday Island (the largest of the Whitsunday Islands), before stopping at Border Island for a snorkel. My suit and rash shirt still stank of wetsuit from my dive on the Great Barrier Reef, but I wriggled into it, snapped on mask and flippers and jumped off the boat.

One of the only decent shots I managed to shoot around tourists flocking the rails, salt spray, and the general blurring speed of the power boat. I believe this is a stretch of Whitehaven Beach.

The threat of 'stingers' in the water made my snorkel a bit hesitant, particularly since the spot the boat anchored had no visible bottom. But I kicked hard to the reef and saw plenty of fish, coral, anemones, a clam. I was very cold though and hovered over whatever hot pockets I could find until the waves shoved me off. I dove down the dropoff and still couldn't see the bottom, but I did see plenty of large fish hiding in the secretive dark crevices.

Unable to stand the freeze any longer, I returned to the boat and practiced some French with a trio of France natives at the bow of the boat. Everyone and everything secure 20 minutes later, we headed toward Whitsunday Island's Whitehaven Beach. This beautiful stretch of coastline is composed of 95% silica and it squeaked when you walked on it. It was lusciously fine and pristine and I couldn't get enough of it as I ran up and down the beach like a 5-year-old on the sand for the first time.

PROOF!

This was our boat, the Big Fury. Aptly named. You can't see it in this shot but there are four engines on the stern of that thing and it certainly felt like it. We covered a lot of 'ground' in that ripper.

Our picnic area was thick with slinking goannas all hopeful for a dribbled morsel of lunch. I had to kick sand in the face of a persistent one. Nothing personal, mate.

I followed our funny host back while he prepared lunch to a swath of hissing goannas (I counted six around the modest bush picnic area) as he described a bit of the area and said he'd roast a goanna if we caught one. In jest. Mostly. Besides the lingering, hungry goannas was this monster spider sitting on its web in the trees and our host said that was the reason he didn't climb trees anymore. Agreed. Lunch consisted of rolls, an assortment of meats, salad, fruit, pasta salad, and prawns and I gorged! It was a pretty good lunch!

Do you see the giant spider? I take no responsibility for whiplash.

Afterward, our host fed some green ants to the ant lions hiding in their whirlpool holes below the trees and that was neat! Then he asked if any of us were brave enough to lick ant butt. It tasted like lemon. "NO WAY!" And he handed me a green ant. I took it by the head and gave its abdomen a lick while everyone else looked on in measures of morbid humor and disgust as my face puckered. Holy crap, it really did taste like lemon. A sock to the tongue indeed! Our guide explained the Aborigines used to swirl the green ants around in warm water and drink the water. It also provides an excellent source of vitamin C. No one else licked ant arse.

Yours truly on beautiful Whitehaven Beach!

I went for a 1.2k bush walk with the husband of my new middle-aged friends, because his wife squealed at the impinging goannas looking for a bite, and we went up to the lookout. I snapped some shots and we headed out the other side of the quiet forest which spit us out right back at the beach! It was absolutely lovely.

One of the views from the top of our bush walk on Whitehaven Beach. It was a wonderful walk except I was freaking out about walking into spider webs.

From there we all piled back onto the boat for the hour drive back to cookies and bicky (?) and they insisted I try a Lamington, a square spongecake layered in chocolate icing and rolled in coconut. It was very good!

The ride back was chilly, but nothing until the rain came. And since we were zipping along at 50k/hr, the rain came right in horizontally. We had two inches of water in the boat by the time we pulled into port.

I was lucky enough to board the first shuttle back because it was already after 5p.m. and I had to be at the bus stop at the other end of town at 6:55p.m. XBase was kind enough to let me use their showers and warm up before I hopped over to the Down Under Bar for a $7 thin crust pizza and a pint of XXXX Gold beer! Australia's favorite Oz-made brew! I finally drank the popular Australian beer and it's not half bad; light, simple taste. It went well with the pizza. I may be made a beer-drinker yet. I chowed down, grabbed my things and made the miserable walk to the bus stop, soaking and freezing.

Our bus was an hour late, arriving at 8p.m., I was still soaking, and would have to sleep in my damp clothes on the cramped seats. Life in transit, what are you gonna do? We stopped once at 11p.m. for a break and I chatted with our driver when he told me the fish I was gawking at were used for bait. Fish that big?? He asked where I was from, even though he knew I was an American, and told me about his plans to go through the states--all cities I've been to--and he asked what I recommended. I was happy to keep him company while he ate his dinner. Anything was preferable to sitting.

But soon enough we were back on the bus and I attempted to sleep into Day 8...