Sailing the Whitsundays, Day 3

7/30: Whitsundays, day 3



Our last day of our sailing trip... it was bittersweet, knowing that it'd be some time before I had the chance to enjoy being on a sail boat of this size again.

We had a great surprise as we cruised to our last snorkel stop – with a whale surfacing about 200 meters away...



Then it was the best snorkel stop of the trip, with seriously varied and complex coral formations.

As we suited up, Josh and Cat saw that the couple of sea eagles that called this bay home were around, so they threw a bacon-wrapped onion into the water, where it floated about 25 meters away...

… the eagles were pretty used to sail boats, and one swooped in and grabbed it in a flash. What made it even more amazing is that eagles' feathers aren't waterproof, so if they even slightly misjudge the dive, they would be stuck on the water and forever unable to fly away.




Once we got in the water, I almost got lost, which is pretty funny if you think about it. The water was clear and shallow, only about 10 to 20 feet deep, but as you got going among the winding coral alleys, if you wanted to turn around, it was occasionally a very tight fit. You can't go up and over, as the razor sharp coral reached near the surface, so it was the snorkelling equivalent of a five point turn... very, very carefully.

Finally, it was time to head back to Airlie Beach, mostly under full sail and no motor. It was sad to leave, but all in all, three days was just about the right time to experience that – still a novel treat, without it getting even tinged by becoming routine.

Here's the route for the trip:



...and a pic of how we generally spent our time, when the boat was underway...



The rest of the afternoon was spent in the resort town of Airlie Beach, and then it was time for a 12 hour bus ride down the coast, to our launch point for Frasier Island in the morning!

Sailing the Whitsundays, Day 2

7/29 - the Whitsundays, day 2:

The next morning, I got up early and had the pleasure of having the boat to myself for a bit in the early light. No dawn, as the island whose harbor was sheltering us blocked it, but it was a great chance to just soak up the scene and realize (again!) how unbelievably lucky I was. Yup, no chance of me taking this sort of thing for granted...

The waves were higher as we rounded the point, so we had an hour of decent-sized swells crashing over the bow, keeping us alert by randomly dousing us with water... the best defense was a good offense, so I ended up sitting right on the bow triple-dog-daring the waves to get me. I ended up pretty wet and humbled, but it was still a very good time.



Our morning sail took us to Hook Bay, with some more snorkelling among some awesome multi-level coral formations, then it was off to Turtle Bay, named for (drum roll, please)... well, turtles. With loads of sea grass, dozens use this harbor as home, so we got to see a bunch just tooling around the water...



We took the launch ashore, and had an afternoon on Whitehaven Beach – one of the larger of the Whitsundays. First it was up to a view point... you can't see in the pic, but the shallows were rife with dozens of stingrays.



… and then we got a view of a somewhat closer nature – a (to me at least) freakishly larger Golden Orb spider in its web.



No, no – no girlie squeals here... I just made seriously sure that my camera lens was no where close to the web. Closeups are great – but that would be pushing things a bit...

We got to chill out at the beach itself, and thankfully, the stingrays bailed out while the tourists were about, so we didn't have to worry 'bout the odd stinger in the foot.

Some more sun, biscuits, and some frisbee and then we were back on the boat for a lasagne dinner, and teaching Hearts to a cool mother/daughter Alaskan duo.

Whither to go in the Whitsundays?

7/28 – Tallship Sailing in the Whitsundays, day 1



Ah, the Whitsundays... a stunning group of islands that share part of Australia's famed Great Barrier Reef, it was the destination for my next big adventure. Wayyy back in Nepal, I blatantly picked my fellow trekker John's brain for any recommendations for three weeks in Australia. After living there for 6 months, he had a good sense of what were the must-do's vs. “nice if you have time”, and he sketched out an awesome itinerary that I pretty much followed verbatim – John, you rock!

#1 on his list was a sailing trip to the Whitsundays, so I did some research and booked myself on the Alexander Stewart, an all-wood tall ship. Our itinerary? Three days and two nights of (in no particular order) sailin', snorkellin', and the odd bit of drinkin'. Good times were definitely in store...



A funny quick aside – the Stewart was originally a joint family venture in the 80's, as nine Aussie families came together to build a boat that would serve as an escape route in case of nuclear war. A s they were planning on taking refuge in hopefully fall-out free Antartica, they built in strong, uber strong, with no just one, or even two layers of Australian hardwood in the hull. Nope, they went for FIVE. This boat was STRONG.

Plus big... instead of the common room of bunks I was envisioning, we each shared double rooms, and two rather space-efficient bathrooms:



The other plus side of the tour was that it attracted a more chilled-out group of 15 to 20 travellers, from the late 20 to mid 30's, so there were no horror-stories of all-night drink-a-thons keeping everyone awake.

Right – so we met up with our intrepid crew, and headed out... we'd mix up sailing and using the motor, but we made good time to our first stop – a protected bay for some snorkelling, home to a massive and very friendly Maori Mauss (sp?) fish who is so accustomed to snorkellers, that he'll even let the odd person pet him.

We had to wear stinger wetsuits on the off-chance that there were jellyfish even in the winter offseason, but we saw 'nary a one.

Beyond the swarms of fish and coral, my roommate and I got a great sighting of a large sea turtle. For a few minutes, we were able to just swim above him and watch as he cruised effortlessly over the grass and coral:



… just awesome.

Our afternoon stop was an hour or two on “One Foot Island” - a low-lying spit of sand that barely peeks above the waves at low tide. We got some sun in, and wonder of wonders, it turned out that we had another pair of ultimate players aboard – from New Brunswick of all places... so throwing the disc and getting some wave layout practice was essential:



Then, after our oh-so-arduous day, it was back aboard for a drink at sunset:




Garlic/lemon fresh fish for dinner, with a whisky to wash it down, and then Josh, our captain gave us a surprisingly detailed overview of some of the wildlife in the area, and a bit of trivia behind the name of the islands... turned out that Whitsunday is the name of the UK holiday being observed on Cook's Endeavor when it first sailed into these waters.

And, more quiet taking in the brilliant night skies (why, or why can't it be easier to get a picture that does them justice??)... then being rocked to sleep, listening to the waves against the hull right by my head in our room in the bow - a great start to a great trip.

From the Big Rock to the Big Coast

July 26 and 27th - Alice Springs to Brisbane:



(Sigh. I originally had the best of intentions with this blog – updating no more than a day or two behind. How's that line go again? “The best laid plans of mice and men...” I'm currently already in SF – so I'm two countries behind. Bad Mike!)

Brisbane has the dubious distinction of playing third fiddle to the big two cities in Australia – Melbourne and Sydney. Up the coast a ways, it marks the start of the Gold Coast, a slightly over-developed bit of condos, hotels, and white sand beaches that stretches for... ??? miles. Big, but that's Australia for ya...

I only had a short bit of time here – I caught a flight out from Alice Springs, after tempting myself one last time by browsing some seriously cool abstract Aboriginal art in the local shops.



I escaped, budget mostly intact, and we landed in Brisbane 'round 3, and I rolled over to the sparkling new YHA hostel. As I was leaving the next morning, that didn't really leave a lot of time to explore the city, but I gave it the ol' college try.

And ya know what? Brisbane is pretty cool. Not the sublimely pretty of Sydney, nestled by a world-class harbor, or the more urbane feel of Melborne, city of a thousand cafes.

Nope, Brisbane is more self-conscious about it – only recently making major efforts to step it up a notch and try to carve out their own identity. They've made a great start too – with a complete renovation of the south river bank (a la London), a top-notch technical university, and a cool pedestrianized shopping district on Queen's Street. Good stuff.

So – my first afternoon was spent wandering riverside, checking out their version of the London Eye:



… and the cafes and restaurants that dot the meandering walkways. I finally got dragged in, entirely against my will, into an open-air cafe for a pint (or whatever the Aussies call the @#$! thing) of tasty Cooper's Ale, while listening to a local band's seriously credible covers of “American Pie” and other faves.

I did a very circuitous route through the downtown, eventually ending up at the Australians' version of Burger King – Hungry Jack. For you fast food fans or even marketing geeks... there originally WAS an Aussie version, so the US company had to create the HJ brand. As they finished their first years in biz, getting everything rolling, the original went out of business – alas, after all their efforts promoting Hungry Jack, 'twas too late to re-establish the BK brand. What sadness. :)



The next morning, I got up bright and early and headed back out to explore.

Weather-wise, even in winter, the Gold Coast is ridiculously sunny. I loved it.

A quick 15 minute walk and I was back on the south bank, getting there early enough to squeeze in the full circuit, a breakfast crepe, and a quick browse at the crafts market, all in time to get to the airport for my 12:00 flight. Brisbane was going to be my first “no shopping” city where I avoided adding any goodies to my by-now dang heavy rucksack, but I'm a pepper junkie, and couldn't resist a gourmet Aussie fire pepper blend. Curses!

The rest of the afternoon was a quick flight to Hamilton Island, in the Whitsundays a fair ways up the coast.



A fast ferry ride amongst the islands, and then checking into my Airlie Beach hostel, facing a gorgeous beach:



...and I had the afternoon to chill out, stock up and get ready for my 3 day sailing adventure leaving the next day. Some blogging and then a beer and entirely too much pizza and squid at Mangrove Jack's and I called it a day.

What a Long (Outback) Road It's Been...

7/24: Adios to Ayer's Rock (or "How We Really Really Needed a Shower!")

Our last day of the trip, we got up at the luxuriously late time of 5:45, then made it to the park for the classic sunrise view of Ayer's Rock. After the sunrise and sunset of yesterday, I was initially a little blasé about yet another viewing, but sure enough, once there, Ayer's Rock was stunning as always.

Alas, we had to share the view with the hordes of other tourists this time, but it was still pretty special...




After climbing Uluru yesterday, today was our chance to wander around the circumference, which was pretty fascinating. There are sacred sites all over the rock, including a 'waiting cave' for boys wanting to become men, where as a test of supreme patience, they have to wait days until called.



Aboriginal DreamTime stories say that the four formations are the bodies of four boys who waited, literally forever, for word from their elders, who had been tragically killed earlier in a far-off accident.

Another spot took us to some communal cooking and painting areas... with up to 16 hours a day spent in just finding enough food/water to survive, art wasn't a huge priority beyond a means of communication. So the paintings weren't incredibly ornate, but still had a vibrant energy and feel to them. In this case, each cross marked a successful kill of a relatively scarce large animal, to be shared by all.



… more recently, the cross represents the Aboriginals' sighting of a plane in the 1920's, showing their awareness of Westerners a full 30 years before they were 'discovered' by the Aussies.



After a stop at the very informative cultural center, owned and operated by both Aboriginals and modern Aussies, we had to hit the road, with at least six hours on the road.

Fortunately, just like little kids, we had the trip broken up a bit, with lunch stops at Mt. Connor:



… and some fun bus games, including bowling down the aisle to knock over 10 cups, and the dreaded Wheetabix challenge where it was a race to eat a very dry biscuit as fast as possible.



Another highlight was learning to sing a classic folk song... "Among the Gum Trees":



Once we got back in town, it was mostly laundry and a truly much-needed shower for me, then another pizza at the same pizza place I hit coming in. I had some beers at a cool bar called Bojangles – a locals/tourist common watering hole, and done in an Aussie/Country vibe. Good time, and while waiting for the rest of the group, I had beers and chats with some pretty hammered Alice Springs teachers, blowing off steam on a Friday night. They had some interesting stories of the challenges of trying to teach Aboriginal students who might get dropped into class at age 14 with no experience of school or reading/writing. I have no idea how to solve this problem, but seriously hope the Aussies do a better job than we've done in the States...

But to end on a lighter note... for all the ultimate frisbee players out there - here's a cool tagline I found on an Aussie camper van:

Ayer's Rock is Big. Really, Really BIG.

7/23: Ayer's Rock, 2nd Day

You know, tour companies are often a dime a dozen – most are happy to just provide a convenient way of getting from A to B. It's the rare company that really makes your trip special, with their combination of local knowledge and organization.



With our first day at Ayer's Rock, Mulgas really set themselves apart here. Hayley got us up at a truly ridiculous hour (4:45am!), but it all paid off.

Her main objective was to get us at the main gate first, which would allow us to beat the rush to the best place to view sunrise over the rock. And, like most things on the trip, it worked to perfection.

We were into the park at 6:30am, and pulled into a semi-secret spot for sunrise. 99% of the tourists go to the other side, giving the view of the Rock being lit up from the early light.

Hayley had another idea. For our first view, she had us on the other side, which gave us a truly stellar silhouette view – which really gave us a sense of the sheer SIZE of the dang thing. Plus, we had it all to ourselves, enjoying over tea and breakfast. Here are some pics, but remember, these are at 4km away.




Yup, the rock is huge. We've all seen pics, but you've really got to see it to believe it. Ayer's Rock (Uluru) is 3.6 km long and 9.4km around, and wow, it simply looms over everything out there - over 1,000 feet above the flat plain. The bit that makes it special... Uluru is the largest single solid rock (monolith) in the world, we actually only see the tip of it. The rest of it, about 6km, extends underground. Like I said, gi-normous.

We then headed off to Uluru's cousin – a rock formation of 36 massive domes called Kata Tjuta. Not to overuse the word, but just like Uluru, it simply looms over everything. Even 40km away at the Rock, you can see it in the distance.




Different rock formation – with each of the domes being composed of layers of sandstone, Kata Tjuta is still pretty cool to check out. We did a circuit hike over two hours, then I had to bust out the frisbee in the parking lot, as we had to wait for some of the slower folks in our group.

The afternoon was what we had been looking forward to... getting to explore the Rock up close and personal.

To climb or not to climb?

There has been a controversy over tourists climbing the rock. Just like Half Dome in Yosemite, there's a seriously steep cable/step path up the rock. In recent years though, the Aussie gov't has put out a guideline asking tourists not to climb on what is, after all, a sacred rock to the local Aboriginals. In addition, the gov't seems to have pushed for this policy, as it has to rescue a large number of poorly prepared tourists each year.

Fair enough, until I heard from Hayley that this is by no means a universal belief among the Aboriginal folks. Pretty much, the one constant is asking for tourists to respect the rock, but the actual climbing isn't as hot button an issue as you will read on your tickets and so on. Renate, another girl on our tour, had the same conversation with a guy in Melbourne, who's brother's wife was a member of one of the local tribes. Basically, respect the rock, don't die on the rock (which in their beliefs requires a multi-week purification ceremony to convince the non-Aboriginal soul to leave), but that was 'bout it.

So... five of us decided to give it a shot.

And, just like Half Dome, it's a serious butt-kicker of a hike. 1.6 km all told going up – the first part is the hardest, with near vertical climbs and only a cable and your sandals to keep you upright



On a logical level, I wasn't too worried. I figured that there must be thousands of climbers each year, with many incredibly out of shape and poorly prepared, who don't die, that I should have no issues. Heck, even on my climb, I passed a group of Irish folks that included a portly woman in a skirt and cowboy boots – NOT the best choice for traction on rock!

Logic, schmogic - on the emotional level, that sort of reasoning goes out the window once you are gassed, halfway up, and holding on to the cable. It's the sort of place that if you slip, you die – which doesn't inspire a fair amount of thoughts of “why the @#$ am I doing this again?”

The rest of the climb wasn't nearly as bad – and reaching the top was an amazing feeling... with 360 degree views of the Outback stretching away, plus Kata Tjuta and other rpcl formations at up to 70km away.




The hike down was fun – but a bit aggravating, as I ended up waiting for a Vietnamese girl on our tour, who literally stopped and took pics every ten feet. No big deal, but the rest of the group was waiting for us, as we had a deadline to meet. So, by the end of it, I was somewhat irritable at having to keep prodding her along.

'course, not too grumpy to enjoy the views:



Oh, and I have to give incredible respect to the fit 72 year old Aussie guy who climbed up... he had to stop after the hardest third, but still... that guy rocked. I want to be like him when I grow up... *wink*

We then headed off to catch the famous sunset... where the rock changes colors from every shade of orange to purple in a matter of minutes.

Again, Hayley got us to the right place at the right time. There's only one place to really watch this, and we were able to set up our chair and beers at the best location. As bus after bus came in after us, we really appreciated the planning!

To kill some time before sunset, we had the team challenge of coming up with some perspective shots with Ayer's, including trying to jump over it... which I was able to do, even with my near-legendary lack of vertical ability:



Beers and dinner followed...



...witnessed by some cool 'punk rock' local birds, with mohawks and bright colors:



Our campsite was the best yet, with Mulgas having exclusive right to camp on Aboriginal land literally in the middle of nowhere. Some more party games followed, including 2UP/2DOWN, Magic Pig, Goon Box, Good Train/Bad Train and Magic Spoon... don't worry if you have no idea about what these are – I wrote them down and look forward to busting them out at a family gathering or ultimate game near you... be wary of Magic Pig though, very wary indeed.

The Big Rock Beckons...

7/22 – Mulgas and Ayer's Rock

One thing about traveling – you quickly get accustomed to waking up at weird times. My first day on the Mulgas tour was no different... waking up at 5 to catch the 5:40 pickup.



I've got to give props to my friend Becky, who recommended these guys – what a great company. Mulgas has been doing these tours for about 15 years, and basically take about 20 tourists the few hundred kilometers out to Ayer's Rock, camp for two nights, then head back. For $250 AUS ($175 US), it's a ridiculously good value on transport and entry tickets alone.

But, they do so much more... our guide was a pint-sized bundle of energy and Aboriginal knowledge named Hayley, and man, was she fun! It's always a crap shoot when you go with a tour group – and she was awesome; well organized, enthusiastic, and all without being over the top.

For you 'shotgun'-calling fans, I somehow scored the front passenger seat on the first day without a single game of paper/rock/scissors, and even though I offered, no one seemed to want it later. That gave me sweet views of the countryside, plus I got to help out Hayley with the iPod music selection, running the various car games and so on. Good times.

Our trip even started off on the wrong foot – about 50km outside the city, our bus started having some engine issues. Just like so many times on my trip, this potential snafu actually worked out far better in the long run.

We pulled over at a rest stop, complete with some rather unhappy looking 'roos and camels:



…and a new bus was sent out our way.

The plus side is that this put us about two hours behind the flock of other backpacker buses. We rejiggered the schedule a bit, and this allowed us to basically have all the sites to ourselves, as we were pulling in as they were leaving. Sweet.

Our major stop the first day was King's Canyon – a massive red sandstone canyon about halfway to Ayer's Rock.

We had a few hours to hike the rim, and soak up the views of the cliffs, plus the sheer emptiness in the distance:



Hayley was full of good info about the place, including that this is actually one of the biggest 'canyons' in the world, as opposed to the mere common 'gorges' like the Grand Canyon. Alas, I've, uh, forgotten the difference – I think gorges are gaps eroded by water, where as actual canyons are cracks in the earth caused by plate tectonics. I guess.



It was a fun hike around the surprisingly green canyon – it served as an oasis to roaming Aboriginals for centuries, who must have been absolutely gobsmacked to see running water and green growing things after months in the Outback.

We even had time for some silly pics on a dangerous-looking, but very stable outcrop:



As a result of the changed schedule, Hayley whipped up a mean camel bolognese for us on our return (yeah, that's right... camel) which sounded pretty exotic, but tasted mostly beef-like. Still, delicious!

The rest of the night was pretty special. First things first, we stopped off for some 'flats' of beers to go in the coolers and ice that ever-prepared Hayley just happened to pack along. We all chipped in, and was a great way to avoid the near-extortionate $5 AUS a beer the other stores were charging.

On the way to the campsite, our late start did have some disadvantages... namely, we were driving in the Outback after dark. Just like the rest of Australia's animals, the kangaroos do things a bit differently. When THEY cross the roads and see headlights, rather than merely freezing like our deer, nope, they actually jump towards the bus! They're not suicidal – merely reacting to an ancient instinct, and once they see 'holy @#$, that's a BUS!', they then frantically try to hop away.

Two problems: one, they often hop straight back down the road. Two, amazing though they are, they ain't as fast as a bus.

Fortunately though, we somehow avoided hitting any of them in the dark, although a wayward cow on the side of road did give us a scare. Hitting a 1500lb animal at 50 miles an hour would be a bad thing. Very bad.

Mulgas has an arrangement with some ranchers and Aboriginal folks, and are able to just pull off the road into dirt tracks, and camp in the middle of nowhere. Setting up camp is a doddle, merely lighting a fire, and rolling out a bunch of 'swags' (super cool self-contained mattress/waterproof coverings – you just unroll, toss in your sleeping bag, and zip up) – 10 minutes flat, and we were all drinking beer and gazing at the stars.

Oh, and a quick work about the stars – I've seen some pretty amazing displays of stars on this trip. The Outback puts 'em all to shame – there were gazillions, with a super-bright Milky Way to boot. Just awesome.

Some fireside fun and games, including getting to practice my increasingly rusty Spanish to three women on the tour, and then it was bed to get ready for the 4:45am wake up the next day!