Airlie Beach (15.-22.12.2018)

Ben and I were really looking forward to Airlie Beach. Not only because the next big adventure awaited us, but also because we stayed here a bit longer and could really relax.

On the first day, after arriving on the Greyhound bus, we went to our first accommodation: the Base Hostel. At the beginning of the planning, we thought we would spend one night in Airlie Beach and then go sailing. However, we exchanged messages with the organization and tried to sail on another day. The weather on the original sailing date looked very bad and a few days later the weather forecast was fantastic. This worked out in the end. Instead of the 16th, we could go on the boat on the 19th and the weather was really good. But one thing at a time...
So we spent one night (which was already booked) at the Base Hostel. On the day we arrived, we also explored the town.
Airlie Beach is very small and mainly caters to travelers visiting the Whitsunday Islands or engaging in other expensive activities like skydiving. There isn't much to do in the town itself. Airlie Beach also has a lagoon, a large public swimming pool, which is the highlight there. One thing we noticed on the first evening was that there are many backpackers who throw away their food or make it available to other backpackers. We took advantage of this many times. On the first evening, we had freshly cooked Bolognese.
On the second day, we didn't do much. The weather was rainy and we were both very tired. We used the time to sort our more than 1000 photos and organize other things.

On the third day, we had another day of rest. The weather was not good again. In the evening, however, we felt like swimming and went to the lagoon. It was fantastic. The water was still pleasantly warm from the day and the whole town was beautifully lit up. The lagoon was also empty. We were able to have diving competitions and even a swimming race, which I actually won (Note from Ben: Jule had a ten-second head start)
The next day, we went to a lookout and packed our things for the upcoming sailing trip. We were only allowed to bring a small backpack each. The rest of our things could be left at the hostel. This was very convenient as we had one more night here after the sailing trip.

The next day, the highlight began. We set sail at 2 p.m. and got to know each other. "Broomstick," our boat, had space for 25 people plus 3 crew members. Luckily, we were only 14 people (plus 3 crew members) and had a lot of space on board. Everyone was very nice. Especially the crew was very funny. There were 3 typical Australian "surfer boys" who also liked to show off their tanned six-packs. After leaving the harbor, we immediately hoisted the sails. I initially held back, also because I still remembered the boat trip to the Great Barrier Reef. But it went well. The sails were set and we sailed away, slightly leaning. But everything was fine on board, I didn't get seasick. When the wind subsided a bit, we were also able to snorkel at a spot (Hook Passage). However, the water was very stirred up from the recent rainy days and the visibility underwater was not good. After snorkeling, we went to Scrubhen Beach. We enjoyed the sunset with delicious crackers and vegetable side dishes. Then we went back on board where we had dinner. DELICIOUS! Chicken, mashed potatoes, bread, spreads, and vegetables. We all ate so much. Everything was freshly prepared on board. One of the crew members had been in the restaurant business for years and always delighted us with delicacies. When we were all full, there was dessert too. There was cheesecake. We also found out that our captain had a birthday, so we all sang a birthday song.
The next day, we were woken up by the engine. It was turned on at 6:45 a.m. and we set off to our first snorkeling spot. Everyone was in a great mood, partly because we were treated to a delicious breakfast buffet. It was so delicious: fruit salad, different types of toast and spreads, and varieties of muesli. We sailed past Tongue Bay towards Whitehaven Beach. We stopped there and first went to the lookout with the entire crew. Fantastic. Whitehaven Beach has a quartz content of about 98%, which makes it very white and very fine. The water is turquoise blue. It is one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. It is part of a nature reserve, so people can only be there from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. You can imagine how crowded it was. Especially at a famous spot, you had to be patient to take a photo without tourists in it. Many people were also very bold and sat down right at the point where everyone wanted to take a photo, relaxed and enjoyed their lunch. Everyone else stood around and waited for them to finally leave. But luckily we had enough time to really enjoy it and take a photo without so many people. There were also small sharks in the water, which the crew showed us. After we were back on board, everyone had sunburn. We all applied sunscreen very well beforehand, but the sun was too strong. The water and the white sand also reflected the sun. When we were back on board, it was already lunchtime again! Homemade burgers that you could top yourself... once again very very delicious. After the lunch break, during which it rained heavily, the clouds were blown away and we sailed to Luncheon Bay. The underwater visibility was fantastic. It was not cloudy and you could look very far and deep. There were a lot of fish at this bay. The crew also threw fish food at us (they asked if anyone didn't like it beforehand). This brought the fish so close that you could take unique photos and videos. It was really beautiful. We also saw so many different fish. For example, a rainbow fish, like something out of a children's book. The crew also saw a very large fish, so the whole crew went snorkeling. After we were all back on board, we had nachos. Again, very good! We continued on to Butterfly Bay. There we could see unique corals. The visibility was very clear again, so we could see really amazing things. The corals looked like they were painted. The chance of seeing a sea turtle was very high there, but we all searched in vain. Then we sailed into the sunset. We hoisted the sails again and were able to take very nice photos. Since the crew was in a very good mood, anyone who wanted could also steer the ship. We didn't have to be told twice and I was already at the helm, followed by Ben. We went back and forth on our way to our sleeping place. Steering a sailing ship is not that easy. You have to jerk the helm in the right direction to make a small turn, for example. When we arrived at Stonehaven Bay, we had wraps and chocolate cake for dessert. Again, fabulous. Then we all sat together and played sailor games. This was very amusing.
The next morning, we had another delicious breakfast and were allowed to jump from the boat into the water to cool off. Also, very popular. The crew also had fun and swung with a Liliane-like thing from the boat. Then we sailed back to Airlie Beach. The farewell was very heartfelt and we all went our separate ways again. So we went back to Magnums, where we were glad to lie in a bed that doesn't wobble. We also enjoyed a fresh shower and spent the whole day applying lotion to our little sunburn. It was a beautiful experience. We spent the day sorting the photos and saving the most beautiful ones. Then we repacked all our things and got ready for the journey to Rockhampton. The next morning, we took the bus again and drove for over seven hours to Rockhampton.