Day 38 - February 10, 2025 - Monday - Whitsunday Island, Australia

We arrived in the Whitsunday Islands around 7:30 this morning.  We will be tendering into the small town of Airlie Beach for some of the excursions.  Other excursions will be leaving directly from the ship.  Unfortunately this is another overcast and damp morning.

 The 74 Whitsunday Islands lie between the northeast coast of Queensland, Australia, and the Great Barrier Reef, a massive stretch of coral teeming with marine life. They cover an area of about 110 sq miles and have a population of under 2000.  Most of the islands are uninhabited. They're characterized by dense rainforest, hiking trails and white sand beaches. The town of Airlie Beach on the mainland is the region's central hub and Hamilton Island has the largest population (about 1500).

Our excursion was for a cruise around the Whitsunday's on a catamaran.  We were able to exit directly from the ship to the boat.  We were some of the first to embark and were able to get seats on the top open seating area.  Prior to the start of the cruise, the catamaran captain came up and announced that he could not guarantee that we would not get wet and encouraged us to come into the enclosed area.  It was interesting that of the around 50 people up top, only 2 accepted his invitation.  I had studied the real-time radar and felt if we got rain it would be intermittent and light.  Fortunately, my prediction proved to be correct.  We stayed dry for the entire 2 hour cruise.  Unfortunately, it was hazy and cloudy so I don't really have any good photos to share.

A view of our ship in the distance.

This is where the catamaran docked with the ship for our transfer back on board.  As I was leaving the catamaran, one of their crew asked if I got any good photos.  I answered that I wish it had been more sunny.  The reply was that this was the best day they had had in two and a half weeks!   We just have to be thankful for what we have...

After a quick freshening up in the cabin, Kay and I went into Airlie Beach by tender.  Carl and Janet remained on board for Carl to see the medic again.  The doctor thinks he has a cracked rib.  He can't get a good x-ray to know for certain, but he feels pretty sure it is broken.  Carl was in quite a bit of discomfort today.

After a 20 minute tender ride into port, we docked at Shute Harbor.  Here we were able to board a shuttle provided by the city of Airley to take us to town.  It was about a 15 minute ride.  The shuttle was very new and modern.

After reaching our bus stop, it was only a very short walk to the main street through town.  I was surprised to see the crowd at bars watching the Super Bowl.  This was Monday morning around 11:00 AM.

We just walked through town and admired the shops and restaurants.  Airlie Beach is pretty much a tourist town.

KC's certainly has high regards for its steaks!

There were signs posted warning to not swim in the ocean due to the stinging jellyfish.  They are very bad at this time of year.  As an alternative, many of the costal cities and towns have a lagoon area where visitors may safely enjoy the water.  The one here in Airlie was beautiful and large.

This sign on the lifesavers stand says it all.

A beautiful Silver Gull.  This is probably an adolescent.  The adults have a solid red bill and the younger birds have a darker bill.  These are abundant across much of New Zealand and costal Australia.

We did notice there was a Club Wyndham in Airlie Beach.  It might not be a bad place to visit again sometime, but at a time different from the rainy season!

As we crossed back to the ship, the weather was still cloudy.  We are hoping for better weather for tomorrow in Cairns.

Our first order of business after returning was lunch.

One item on the menu was roast suckling pig.  It looked good, but I opted for lobster mac & cheese and oriental shrimp.

I mentioned the Superbowl was today, Monday.  It actually started at 9:30 Monday morning local time.  The ship was broadcasting it live both in our cabins as well as on the big LCD in the pool area.  They were also providing all kind of "Super Bowl" appropriate snacks.  For those who missed the game due to excursions and still wanted to catch the action, it was reshown in the Star Theater at 7:30 tonight.

We leave for Cairns at 5:00 PM  and expect to arrive tomorrow around 1:00 PM.