Townsville - Cairns (22nd July 2019)
After a few days of travel we arrived at an old favourite which is Horseshoe Bay at Magnetic Island. We again caught up with our old friends Oscar and Graciella on Zenitude who we will leave at this point but may catch them when we go south again.
We always enjoy our time at Maggie and this was no exception. We explored some of the island on foot with walks past all the bays, Balding, Florence and Arthur and maybe a few more before picking up the bus at the Forts and also did the walk along the ridge from Horseshoe Bay to Nelly Bay where again we hopped on the bus for the trip home. The walks at Maggie are pretty much all up or all down but very scenic and picturesque.
On the 6th July we headed off early to go into the Breakwater Marina in Townsville for a week to explore the local surrounds and more importantly attend a very significant iconic event - the V8 Supercars. We went on Saturday and were treated to a great day of motorsport fun.
After much ringing around we finally managed to get a rent a ute and were able to do some exploring. We found a great kiting spot down at Pallerenda Beach and did have a go but not really enough wind for kiting but have put it on the list and may look to revisit on the way south. We also went for a trip to check out the dam which recently burst its banks during the recent Townsville floods. There are plenty of houses which are still under repair and still not occupied.
After a fun week we departed Townsville on the 13th to Orpheus Island and were hoping to spend a couple of nights but with the cool evening temperatures we have been getting early morning SW winds which makes some of the normally great anchorages a bit uncomfortable so after a bumpy morning it was time to keep moving.
We stopped at Agnes Island om the east side of Hichenbrook island for a night and then it was up to Dunk Island. Luckily we arrived around lunchtime which gave us some time to explore the sand spit at Dunk for kiting opportunities. We think we may have found the new Kite Point and had a couple of great afternoons out kiting while the wind was up. Once the wind stopped we checked out the island and did a couple of the walks - one up Mt Kootooloo and the other was the around the island walk. Both incredibly beautiful - still think Dunk is one of the prettiest islands on the coast!!
During our stay at Dunk speaking with our fellow cruisers we heard that they are putting in a break wall over at Clump Point which is just north of Mission Beach so we thought it was worth a visit so on our way to our anchorage at Mourilyan so we stopped in and checked out the works and also walked into Mission Beach for a coffee and picked up some bread and pineapples whilst we were there. This will definitely be a good stopping point in future once the break wall is finished.
We spent the night at Mourilyan which doesn't have a lot of redeeming features but does always provide a good nights sleep as it is always as calm as.
After Mourilyan we stopped into Fitzroy Island for a couple of nights. The last time we stopped at Fitzroy was on Windward II when Mark travelled up the coast in 2003. We have been hoping to stop in on our several trips up the coast but it has always just been two damned windy so we were very pleased to have the weather to enjoy it although the nights were still very bumpy.
There is a great walk at Fitzroy which takes you to the lighthouse and then on the scenic lookout at the top of the hill. It was again all up and then all down. We were hoping to go out an explore some of the near by reef systems being Michelmans and Vlasshoff Cay while there is some calmish weather but unfortunately I developed a bit of conjunctivitis in my right eye so it was up early on the 21st and into the Blue Water Marina which is up the Half Moon Creek next door to Yorkey's Knob. It is quite an interesting trip through the Mangroves to get here but the locals have been really friendly and welcoming so sure we will enjoy our stay. Being Sunday finding a doctor open could have been a bit of a challenge but luckily we are in Cairns so there are a couple of 24hr clinics so on to the bus and off to the doctor for me. I now have some wonderful drops so the eye is feeling much better although the vision is a bit blurry in one eye which provides it challenges. I have to go back for a check up on Wednesday before normal service resumes for me. Whilst I was otherwise detained at the clinic Mark was very resourceful and organised a little hire car for us so that we also have wheels for the next week of exploring and adventure.
We always enjoy our time at Maggie and this was no exception. We explored some of the island on foot with walks past all the bays, Balding, Florence and Arthur and maybe a few more before picking up the bus at the Forts and also did the walk along the ridge from Horseshoe Bay to Nelly Bay where again we hopped on the bus for the trip home. The walks at Maggie are pretty much all up or all down but very scenic and picturesque.On the 6th July we headed off early to go into the Breakwater Marina in Townsville for a week to explore the local surrounds and more importantly attend a very significant iconic event - the V8 Supercars. We went on Saturday and were treated to a great day of motorsport fun.
 |
| Mark feeling right at home |
 |
| Local from Townsville |
 |
| Part of Operation Talisman Sabre - Wargames off Townsville |
After a fun week we departed Townsville on the 13th to Orpheus Island and were hoping to spend a couple of nights but with the cool evening temperatures we have been getting early morning SW winds which makes some of the normally great anchorages a bit uncomfortable so after a bumpy morning it was time to keep moving.
We stopped at Agnes Island om the east side of Hichenbrook island for a night and then it was up to Dunk Island. Luckily we arrived around lunchtime which gave us some time to explore the sand spit at Dunk for kiting opportunities. We think we may have found the new Kite Point and had a couple of great afternoons out kiting while the wind was up. Once the wind stopped we checked out the island and did a couple of the walks - one up Mt Kootooloo and the other was the around the island walk. Both incredibly beautiful - still think Dunk is one of the prettiest islands on the coast!!
 |
| The new Kite Point at Dunk!! |
During our stay at Dunk speaking with our fellow cruisers we heard that they are putting in a break wall over at Clump Point which is just north of Mission Beach so we thought it was worth a visit so on our way to our anchorage at Mourilyan so we stopped in and checked out the works and also walked into Mission Beach for a coffee and picked up some bread and pineapples whilst we were there. This will definitely be a good stopping point in future once the break wall is finished.
We spent the night at Mourilyan which doesn't have a lot of redeeming features but does always provide a good nights sleep as it is always as calm as.
After Mourilyan we stopped into Fitzroy Island for a couple of nights. The last time we stopped at Fitzroy was on Windward II when Mark travelled up the coast in 2003. We have been hoping to stop in on our several trips up the coast but it has always just been two damned windy so we were very pleased to have the weather to enjoy it although the nights were still very bumpy.
There is a great walk at Fitzroy which takes you to the lighthouse and then on the scenic lookout at the top of the hill. It was again all up and then all down. We were hoping to go out an explore some of the near by reef systems being Michelmans and Vlasshoff Cay while there is some calmish weather but unfortunately I developed a bit of conjunctivitis in my right eye so it was up early on the 21st and into the Blue Water Marina which is up the Half Moon Creek next door to Yorkey's Knob. It is quite an interesting trip through the Mangroves to get here but the locals have been really friendly and welcoming so sure we will enjoy our stay. Being Sunday finding a doctor open could have been a bit of a challenge but luckily we are in Cairns so there are a couple of 24hr clinics so on to the bus and off to the doctor for me. I now have some wonderful drops so the eye is feeling much better although the vision is a bit blurry in one eye which provides it challenges. I have to go back for a check up on Wednesday before normal service resumes for me. Whilst I was otherwise detained at the clinic Mark was very resourceful and organised a little hire car for us so that we also have wheels for the next week of exploring and adventure.
Comments
Post a Comment