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| Condor deck |
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| Whitehaven Beach |
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| Lena and me on Whitehaven Beach |
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| Sailing! |
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| Sunset |
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| Sleeping quarters |
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| Awwww. |
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| More awww. |
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| Whitehaven Beach |
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| Whitehaven Beach |
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| Whitehaven Beach |
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| Whitehaven Beach |
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| Sunset |
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| Whitehaven Beach drop-off |
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| Whitehaven Beach |
** Sorry I can't adjust those couple pics. You'll have to turn your head!
AIRLIE BEACH, AUSTRALIA
It was such an uncomfortable 10 hour ride to Airlie Beach. We checked into Beaches backpackers after hearing that the other hostel had bed bugs! People had horrible rashes on their arms and legs from the infestation. Lena and I hung by the lagoon for the afternoon to catch some rays. It was not as hot as Cairns but that was expected since we were heading south down the coast. We went
to the hostel bar that night and had a ton of fun with a young English guy and girl. We were trying to guess ages and nationalities of surrounding guests and had a ton of fun with it. I met my first American on the trip- a soldier on his 2 week leave from fighting in Afghanistan.
Airlie Beach was a small beach town stuffed with partying backpackers either beginning or ending their sailboat trips around the Whitsunday Islands. The next afternoon, we boarded the Condor, a retired racing ship that would be home to 19 passengers and 3 crew members for the next 2 days and 2 nights. We had some great weather on day 1 and we were able to help in hoisting the sails! We
were leaning sharply to the right when we caught the wind and were cruising toward a beautiful sunset. Our group was young and kinda BLAH but the overall experience was wonderful! I felt like I was in the movie “White Squall” with hopes of no tragic ending. That night Lena scored us a private cabin so we didn’t have to sleep with the entire group in the main barracks! There was only one couple within the group so the crew didn’t mind us taking it over. Lesson learned: you don’t get anything you don’t ask
for.
The highlight of the sailing trip was definitely Whitehaven beach. I had heard good things about it and it surpassed expectations. The green waters surrounded the white sands composed of silica and formed the most beautiful beach I’d ever seen. Lena and I spent the majority of our time taking pictures amongst the sand and water. It was nice to have someone who will patiently take pictures so we took
advantage. I think we had more fun on Whitehaven beach than anyone else!
The snorkeling and scuba diving off the boat were pretty good. There were tons of fish and beautifully colored coral! We hit a good amount of rain in the afternoon and overnight that dampened our spirits (and all of our clothes). I was recently told that if you want to go sailing you should put on a jacket, jump in the shower, and tear up $100 bills. There is definitely truth to that. You need wind to
sail and wind is usually accompanied by rain. Everyone and everything was soggy when we made it back to land two days later!
Again we boarded a midnight bus. We were better equipped for the 14 hour trek that took us to Hervey Bay. We brought pillows, sleeping bags, eye masks, ear plugs, and food. Ain’t no stopping us now! Stay tuned for the next adventure: 4WD Camping Safari on Fraser Island!
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