Hamilton Island - Day 3

 

A new morning, another sunrise to behold.  I've woken up with a slight sore throat that my cup of tea has not soothed, but today is the day we are going to Whitehaven Beach and I won't let anything spoil this day.

We are booked on a half day Hill Inlet at Whitehaven Beach tour.  We meet at the marina at 8.00am and set sail in a high-speed catamaran.  

It is only an hour boat ride before we are greeted by the famous white, silica sand that stretches over 7kms along Whitsunday Island.  Our catamaran anchors in a small bay (where I saw a few turtles) and we catch a dinghy to the shore.  Before heading straight to the beach, we take a short bushwalk to a lookout with views of Hill Inlet and Whitehaven Beach that were incredibly magical and breathtaking.  

It is another scorcher of a day and I can't wait to get in that turquoise water.  We were given stinger suits to wear to protect us from any stinging jellyfish, but they were also great to protect us from the sun.  On any other beach with the sun so hot, you'd be running as fast as you could over the sand trying to stop the soles of your feet from burning.  However, the silica sand on Whitehaven does not get hot, so it was easy to walk barefoot.

As for the water, it was beautiful and clear.  It was warm but refreshing at the same time.  When it was time to head back to the catamaran I did not want to leave.  If it wasn't for a fear of getting sunburnt, I could have stayed there all day.  Bucket list item ticked, but it left me wanting more.  If I'm fortunate to one day return to the Whitsundays, I'd easily do another trip to Whitehaven Beach.  

After we returned back to Hamilton Island, it was another quick swim in the pool for Buster and a photo opportunity when some wildlife hopped by.  We were booked into one of many restaurants for dinner, so we needed to clean up and get ready.

I think we were all a little tired from the heat (and my throat was still sore).  It was quite a muggy night and we were dining on a terrace, so we basically ate and left.  It was an early night for us all.