mike & rhonda's latest adventure: Resume Update ---- "Crew Member on a World Class Ocean Sail Racing Boat"

......I might be embellishing that a little bit. The sailboat we chose for our 2 day cruise around the Whitsunday Islands is a legendary racing boat, Siska, 23 metres long, that twice won the Sydney-to-Hobart Ocean Race and many other international races. I helped trim the sail (OK, awning) and hoist the jib.....35 years later.

We drove to Airlie Beach (in between Cairns and Brisbane) because we knew they had several opportunities to sail around the Whitsunday Islands which is part of the Great Barrier Reef. During two days of perfect weather, we were actually praying for more wind so that the sails could go up, and it happened twice for several hours, making it a highlight of the trip along with Whitehaven Beach. There was lots of marine life but it was not as crazy-good (less spectacular coral) as the Outer Reef. There were 20 passengers and 3 crew members (other than myself)...........18 of them were in the 20-30 year old range........that leaves 2 people in the 60 and over category. This group couldn't party as hard as our friends....so we fit right in :-) We did two snorkelling trips while we were on the boat. There were still colourful fish and coral but it wasn't as superb as we saw last week.....other than Elvis, a 4 foot Maori Wrasse who was friendly and swam close to us. Cruising through the islands was a treat. It looked a lot like Northern Ontario above the water (interesting trees, rock and bays (no habitation) but the colour of the water and the everything below made it special over here. They gave us the senior suite on the Siska which was at the very front of the boat and the only spot without bunk beds......it was a little tight but turned out to be the best “suite” on board. Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island might be the best beach I have ever been on (keep in mind my memory is not increasing). It has pure silica sand which has the consistency of very fine grains and non-reflective materials which is never too hot and similar to walking in soft butter when you are near the shoreline. While walking in knee-deep water we spotted a 3 foot shark and several small sting rays. It was a good 2 day trip and when the sails were up it was a very peaceful adventure.

Prior to our second GBR tour we spent some time in the Ingham area, driving west to Gurringum NP and the Wallaman Falls, at 268 metres the longest single-drop waterfall in Australia. The hike to the base was a workout and the constant mist spray at the bottom was nice but the swim in the rock pool at the top was totally refreshing. The bandicoots, small possum-like creatures, seemed more comfortable than we were,walking around our campfire that evening.......we resolved it peacefully.

Tomorrow we will drive inland to another National Park before continuing our journey south along the east coast.