Hamilton and the Whitsundays

Hamilton Island to Mackay.

Hamilton Island Marina

The Whitsundays and more!
 
Having enjoyed their last stint on Harlequin in the Philippines, it wasn't hard to sell the idea of a week of sun and easy cruising in the Whitsundays to my wife Jo and her pal, Chantal. Rog said he’d come along too to add some muscle to the crew and help the onboard gender balance. That was just fine.

"Look!  They're having a sale"

By the standards of other Mega-Cruz legs, this one was a minnow – a quick circuit of Whitsunday Island and about 65 miles to Mackay Marina broken into short day legs, island to island.  For a while in the planning I did think we should have kept with the spirit of the mission and aimed for more miles in the push toward Brisbane.  However, in the end it seemed silly not to take the opportunity to linger and make the best we could of Australia’s cruising crown jewels.

We flew into perfectly manicured Hamilton Island to await Jim and Harlequin who were earnestly battling against wind and tide from Airlie Beach and points north to make the planned RV.  We paid silly money for a van to take us and bags the few hundred yards from the airport to the marina and commercial centre of Hamilton where we could pick up some ice, a few last minute extra supplies and enjoy a cold one overlooking the busy harbour. Er, it's a tad expensive here (but it is pretty!).

Fuel pier RV

On cue just after 3pm, H' eased into the marina and made for the fuel pier for a quick drop off  (Frank) and pick up.  Jim’s flight out was in two days so he’d be a welcome addition to the crew until then and it also meant we could have a leisurely handover of the various little boat snags that accumulate on a trip like this.

With only a few hours of daylight left and nights in Hamilton Marina retailing at AU$120 we said ‘Auf Wiedersehen’ to able hand Frank and immediately pressed for the popular anchorage at Sawmill Bay.  The inbound run up the Hunt Channel certainly impressed upon me the need to take the notorious Whitsunday tides into account in the coming days.

As expected, Sawmill was busy but there was space enough for a comfortable swing under the lee of Whitsunday Peak.   

A large turtle stuck its head up to check us out and as darkness fell, anchor lights vied for numerical superiority with the stars overhead.  Apparently, this is as far as some charters ever get from Hamilton but it’s easy to see why.

The sun was brilliant and the SE trade was in rude blow the next morning as we weighed anchor and headed out through Hook Passage (short pause to set the second reef in the main) on the clockwise route to Whitehaven Bay and Australia’s most famous beach after Bondi. 

Perfect Whitehaven

There was a bit of a sea running but the girls took it in their stride as we beat between Border and Dumbell Islands and outside Esk for the run in to Whitehaven and a slightly rolly late lunch anchorage about 100m off the southern end of the beach.  We weren’t alone but it wasn't crowded and the day visitors were starting to head home. 
  
Going ashore was well worth the short and slightly wet dinghy paddle it took to get there.  The sight of Harlequin, our boat, sitting pretty off the perfect crescent of fine white sand struck me as an icon of just how much she’d shown us since leaving Hong Kong on this spectacular journey. 

We spent the night across from Whitehaven in the flatter waters of Chalky’s Bay off Haslewood Island.  Our ‘glow in the dark’ fishing lures proved a total failure despite Jim’s determined efforts.  This plus our constant trolling through the day had produced nothing but a couple of major line tangles so we settled for tuna from a can with dinner.

Solway swirls!

In the morning, Jim had a flight to catch so we hitched a spectacular tideride on the swift and turbulent flow through Solway Passage and past Fitzalan Island back into Hamilton Marina.

Aussie Spotted Mack.

Jim ashore in good time and we set off south through Dent Passage for Lindeman and Shaw Islands and perhaps a few less boats.  Great weather and a nice view of Pentecost Island were further improved by catching a nice Australian Spotted Mackerel on the red and white swimmer.

'Thar she blows'!

It just got better when I spied a cloud of spray ahead of us and whale and calf cruised by just 40m from us.  Justin’s dad Dave’s recommendation of the anchorage at Burning Point was spot on and we were welcomed there by more turtles and even a brief tailwag from a dugong sparking much discussion about mermaids.  Can’t imagine anyone being smitten by a dugong on looks though.

Frying tonight.

                         For dinner, Rog transformed our mackerel prize into succulent breaded gujons (gotta love those packet Japanese breadcrumbs!) and a lively thai fish curry that even Jo and Chantal agreed had raised the bar for onboard tucker.

Ankle deep at Goldsmith

The next day we were the only one of the few others at the anchorage to head further south on the rising tide.  Goldsmith Island was the target for the day and the ‘smith Group’ felt much more remote than our previous stops.  After an easy beat through the islands we crossed a shallow bar and tucked into the edge of the channel that runs between Farrier and Goldsmith.  We had enough daylight left for a trip to the beach and a sunset paddle chasing flounders around the mudflats quickly emerging in the falling tide – frustratingly I still cant spot the suckers early enough to have any realistic chance of spearing them for dinner.  It dropped so far that by the time we were done we had to walk most of the way back to the boat to find water deep enough to float the dinghy with us in it.

In the morning, the low tide had shrunk the body of water in the bay.  This probably corralled any baitfish in the area and we could see tuna around us making the most of the opportunity to feed.

Not wanting to leave ourselves with too much ground to cover on Saturday to make Mackay, we passed on the chance to explore some of the walking tracks on Brampton Island and decided on a longer sail to Keswick/St Bees for Friday’s destination.   It was another beat into a fresh Sou’easter but the crew was getting used to the tacking routine now and the benefit of the tide helped us make nearly 9kts towards target at times.  The rocky islands and outcrops south of Goldsmith offered a rugged and interesting backdrop to the trip.

The suggested anchorage on the NE corner of Keswick was a little rolly as advertised and shelved quickly on approach though the hook took easily and the wind kept us out over deeper water.  It was comfortable enough though and gave Rog and I the chance to swim on the hull and give the waterline a much needed scrub. 
 

Fixing the flag.

Low tide the next morning showed the extent of the coral in this bay and if we’d had the time it looked like it would be a good spot for a snorkel.  Once again, we saw a fair bit of fish activity around us though Rog had no luck attracting them with his baited hook.  5 days, 1 fish, not a great strike rate!  I honestly thought we’d have done better.

Sailing flat for once!

A cruise through the Egremont Channel gave us a nice view of the airstrip and the significant number of impressive houses now dotting the hillside of Keswick Island.  There also appear to be good anchoring opportunities out of the stream just north of the airstrip – perhaps we should have investigated further the previous afternoon.  Exiting the channel we were able to enjoy a relaxed beam reach across to Mackay.

As luck would have it a ship was leaving Mackay Outer Harbour as we approached and despite holding what I felt was a course to keep clear (by what would be considered miles in Hong Kong) we still got paid a visit by the pilot boat who rather directly told us to clear the shipping channel.  Of course, he might have been using it as an excuse to check out the chicks on deck!

Moored in Mackay

The entry to the impressive Mackay Marina was easy enough and we were soon tied alongside at W29.  After cleaning up the boat, cold beer, an aussie steak dinner and even a bit of bad dancing to the band in the village constituted our arrival celebration.  With the exception of our poor fishing record, the Whitsundays had lived up to their reputation as a fine place to sail and they justified the time taken over them.   

Of course, it was great to be in Mackay safely and without major incident though we all remarked that it felt like it had ended too soon.  Perhaps that's always the best way to finish.

Steve

Harlequin Whitsundays Cruise - Hamilton to Mackay