Whitsunday Island - 11/25/25

 

The Whitsunday Islands are an archipelago of 74 islands on the upper east coast of Australia.  They were inhabited by aboriginals for 8,000 years before Captain Cook came sailing by in 1770.  He named the islands Whitsunday as he mistakenly believed the day to be Whit Sunday, a Christian holiday.  

They are part of the Cumberland Island Group, the largest offshore island chain along the entire Australian coastline.  The islands are actually peaks of drowned mountain ranges, separated by rising sea levels starting around 19,000 years ago, when the polar ice caps started melting after the last ice. 

My sister and I were both doing the included Whitsunday Islands boat tour but at different times.  That ended up being a great thing because it was raining when my tour went out and all my photos were horrible as they were taken through rain-streaked windows. 

The Venus is anchored somewhere in the red circled area.  You might have to click to enlarge so you can read the names of the islands.  Of the 74 islands, 66 are part of the Whitsunday Islands National Park.  The other 8 islands are inhabited.  I included a portion of the mainland as, after my boat tour, I ended up at Airlie Beach.

The tour boat tied up to the Venus so we could walk right onto it. 

It's hard to take photos and notes while on a boat navigating waves so I wasn't always able to identify each island or sight we were passing.  I did write a note that the guide told us that what Australians call dugongs, Americans call manatees.  Well, he's not quite right about that.  They are in the same order of animals but not in the same family.  You could say they are close cousins and share similar characteristics.

Seagrasses are a major component of the Mackay-Whitsunday marine ecosystems. Extensive seagrass meadows occur on intertidal mudflats and in nearshore and offshore subtidal areas in the region. Seagrasses are recognized as a powerful carbon storage system, capable of capturing and storing up to 55% of atmospheric carbon known as "blue carbon."  Seagrasses can capture carbon from the atmosphere up to 35 times faster than tropical rainforests like the Amazon. Despite their significant role in carbon storage, seagrasses have faced centuries of decline.  

As you scroll through the photos of these islands, notice the differences.  Some are dry and others are more treed.  This is Dent Island.

We sail along the shore of Hamilton Island, the most populated and main commercial center for the islands. Here's where you will find a significant marina and the airport. 

This photo is just for you to compare with the next photo.  I took the top one during the cloudy morning through the window of the boat.

My sister took this photo 2 1/2 hours later when the skies had cleared.  The only difference between our phones are the years.  The model year of hers is known to take photos that are a bit too-oversaturated.  But I like that. 

Titan Island is definitely occupied. 

Looks like a landslide.

The first island that Cook named in the Whitsundays was Pentecost Island.  Kinda looks like Homer Simpson's profile, right?

The boat had a display that showed our location.  Here we are on the south side of Whitsunday Island.

As we threaded between Whitsunday Island and Teague Island to the east side of Whitsunday, the most popular place on the island, Whitehaven Beach, came into view.  This beach is so popular because the sand is 98% silica.  That means that it doesn't get hot.  Imagine a beach in a hot area without hot sand.  

The only way to get to Whitehaven Beach is by boat, seaplane or helicopter.  More on that later. 

The beach is over 4 miles long.

Helicopter on beach. 

Various lodging has been erected on many of the islands over the years, but cyclones have wiped them out of business.  A luxury eco-lodge is now being built on Hook Island with the reality of weather conditions playing a large part in the construction of the accommodations. 

We're through the passage between Hook and Whitsunday Islands. Now we off to the Molle Island group. 

The Molle Islands, North, South and Middle Molle (how original), do not have lodging, but Daydream Island does.  Daydream Island was originally West Molle.  It's a small island, only 6/10 mile wide and 437 yards wide.

As we headed back toward the ship, the captain made an announcement that we would have the option of going ashore.  Now I hadn't listened well to the Whitsunday Island port talk, and I thought we were going ashore on Whitsunday Island.  Figured I could pick up some Whitehaven Beach sand for my sister since she collects such things.  So, I got off at Shute Harbour.

Boy was I wrong!!! Shute Harbour is on the mainland!!!  

I took the shuttle to Airlie Beach, collected some sand from there and headed back to the shuttle bus stop. 

At least the bus stop wasn't that far from the beach.  It's where the blue canopy is.  After a 20-minute wait for the shuttle, I got a ride back to Shute Harbour. 

As I waited under a canopy, this bird rested on a support bracket.  I didn't figure out what kind of bird it was, but he was a poser.

I waited 30 minutes for the shuttle only to find it was one that didn't have any seating up top.  At least it wasn't crowded in the stifling interior for the 30-minute ride back to the ship.  

After a hot shower, lunch and some time relaxing, I went out on the verandah to see that at least one tender hadn't been hoisted back on board.