Days 39-41 Whitsunday Tall Ship Cruise.

So a lot of stuff has happened since the last post. Really difficult to keep it brief...

MIDGES
The night before leaving I was annihilated by midges. What are midges you ask...?? Tiny biting flies I'd never heard of. They hit me at 230 am and after some relief from the leaf of an aloe vera plant and anti histamines, I covered up top to tail, cranked the AC and managed to get back to sleep. Next morning Em counted 126 bites with 49 on my right leg alone. I guess they liked me as the kids thankfully didn't get bitten and Em had just the 12 bites. The bites came up in large red spots. They itch a lot and 5 days later it still looks like I have the pox.


WHITSUNDAY CRUISE:

• We boarded a tall ship called Solway Las
• 5 crew, 28 passengers, 2 night voyage
• Boat was built in Holland from German steel in 1902, stolen by the Brits soon after, served all over the world as a cargo vessel and during the war as a decoy vessel for cargo convoys (aka Q ship). 

• Re-captured by the Germans and at different times throughout it's history: 

• Was sunk 3 times, 
• had its bow blown off by a sea mine, 
• was abandoned during a mutiny. 
• Spent 5 years at the bottom of the sea.
• Was recovered refurbished and refitted countless times. Barely 10% of the original boat remains.

• It's crew throughout the decades had sworn it was haunted. Apparently for its 100 year birthday, the local indigenous in Airlie conducted a ceremony to release the spirits... and now its no longer haunted... or maybe that's just the story they told us so we wouldn't freak. Its hard to believe this vessel is still in action after all it been through

We were the only Australians aboard and we estimate the average age of the passengers (excluding us), was around 25-30. We counted 10 nationalities aboard, mostly young travelling professionals. The group was lively, sociable and heaps of fun. All of the passengers were happy to share their personal stories and show genuine interest in ours. We all have a fond spot for the people we shared this adventure with.

SOME STUFF THAT HAPPENED ON THE CRUISE (from Em):

Its not all rainbows and sunshine. The start of the cruise was hell. There was a mix up with the bookings and was not enough food so we were left with the smallest amount of dinner which we had to eat sitting on the deck in the dark as there were not enough chairs. Followed by very loud slightly drunken guests while trying to get the kids to sleep, then again at midnight. Ship cabins have very thin walls!

The following morning we were going to Whitehaven beach. Yay. However we were let out on a small beach around the corner and were assured that it was a nice easy walk. After approx 1km up steps with Mike trying to manage me a few hundred feet behind the rest of the group. I turned back to a central point and mike went to catch up with the group and the kids. Only to find out when he arrived at the lookout that Tom was missing. In the mean time I had heard a voice I recognized calling for help from a path in the opposite direction. I ran yes ran down and found Tom alone coming back from another beach, he had thought he was with our group but could not find us. So Mike has created a scene at the lookout and come running back looking for Tom, by which stage I had him. All said and done I was beyond angry. Our son had been lost and I had been sent on a massive walk that hurt and was told 'a 75 year old did it easy'. Ok. Tom and I were prepared to swim back if we had to after unleashing hell on the crew. 

Luckily we then had to spend 2 hours at Whitehaven beach before going back to the boat. Your temper cools down quickly in such beautiful water with stingrays cruising past.

During the search the four of us separated. Josh got to hang out with an Austrian member of the group - of course, he talked her ear off and she fell in love. We know cos he had the video camera and left it running (sorry too long and shaky to post here)

After that It was lunch on the boat. From there it was all clear sailing. The first part of the trip was awful, however once the crew knew our stuff, it turned around so much, that I am now half seriously looking on Gumtree for a boat as the best way to avoid the fires on the way home.

The snorkeling was the best I have seen anywhere, so many fish.

To see the kids sit down and have conversations with the rest of the group was amazing. They tried everything, snorkeling, stand up paddle boarding, diving off the boat, and rope swing from the boat. It was just amazing.

STUFF THAT HAPPENED, (from Mike):

• Two snorkel sessions. I finally ticked off a turtle sighting. Barely any wind on the final day, in fact not enough to hoist the sails, so we spent a big chunk snorkeling and water play off the boat. Incredible conditions. I may still be in the after glow, but the Whitsundays is the most beautiful playground I have ever seen.
• Mikes version on the the mission to Whitehaven beach. We marched through snow white silica sand, saw lots of stingrays and a few too many other tour groups. During this away mission, we managed to lose Tom for about 30 minutes on one of the hikes to the lookout. There were lots of tour groups here. While I was helping Em with the hike, Josh and Tom raced off to the front of the group. There was a fork in the track, we went one way, Tom went another. After several stern words with the frustratingly laconic guide and some semi frantic running around, I found Tom sitting safe and sound with Em at the fork. 

• Plunging off the boat via a giant rope swing. Despite the lack of pics all 4 of us had a go. Tom could not let go of the rope during his first attempt and we all thought he was going to hit the boat on the return swing. I was super proud of Tom who was clearly very anxious and just as determined to conqueror the rope swing. Eventually he did and the entire boat applauded.

• Josh helped hoist the sails.
• Incredible sun sets and dead calm early mornings
• Trivia night - correct questions earned you a tea spoon of Nutella, incorrect answers = a teaspoon of vegemite. Kids starred again. 
• Plenty of nature, history and geography talks about the boat, reefs and islands (of which there are 90).

Trivia nite with vegemite and nutella.

While snorkeling I was shadowed by the tiny flashy fish called an orange peel. Apparently they latch onto what ever the biggest moving creature is in the water  eh' hem.... Was this nature telling me to lose some weight?? This timid little guy stayed with me for 45 minutes

No idea what our next move is... The fires down south have us a feeling for the affected people while also wondering what our safest route home will be. Hope we stay here a little while longer and manage another Whitesunday adventure.