Our next stop was Airley Beach – a small town with a party vibe and the gateway to some of the most beautiful parts of Australia – the Whitsunday Islands. Although in our usual style we managed not to do any partying instead choosing to spend our money on day trips, diving and discovering on beautiful deserted beaches.

Our first couple of days in Airley beach were spent chilling out, booking trips and awaiting the arrival of Emily’s boyfriend Brian who was flying over from America for a couple of weeks. The day Brian arrived Naomi, Kat and I decided gave them some space and booked ourselves a couple of days away on two different uninhabited islands.

Two days with nothing to do but exist and enjoy my surroundings – bliss.

As Emily prepared to pick Brian up from the airport a water taxi with us aboard pulled out of the port on Airley Beach full of people about to spend the next couple of days in blissful isolation on islands dotted around the Whitsundays.

Our stop was the first, as the boat docked on a deserted Paddle Bay on South Molle Island the shock at just how isolated we were was evident on the other boat passengers faces. We however were excited to see just how remote the island was. In front of me was a beach of broken coral giving way to sand at the shore line, beyond the coral was green shrubbery covering most of the island. We grabbed our bags, tent and water walked around the the other side of Paddle Bay and found a secluded spot to pitch our tent.

Paddle Bay only allows 12 people to camp at one time, along the beach about five tents were pitched each a reasonable distance away from the other, the only facilities on the island were a self composting toilet giving off a rather pungent smell and perfect breeding ground for insects! There was no running water to be found unless you walked two kilometers along an unlit path to the resort on the other side of the island.

Once we’d set ourselves up we swam and sunbathed, relaxed and enjoyed our peaceful and beautiful surroundings. A few people wondering to and from their tents urged us to walk down to the resort for a ‘slice of luxury’. Naomi having sprained her ankle tripping in a pot hole at the campsite the previous night couldn’t walk far, so Kat and I left her sunbathing and walked down to the resort.

The resort was a step up from the accommodation we’d become accustomed to. We lounged by the pool swimming, drinking cocktails and chatting to two French guys who were also camping at Paddle Bay. The resort had free use of sea kayaks and guys talked us into going out sea kayaking with them. It was fun but there wasn’t really anywhere to paddle to. We messed around for a bit with everyone but Kat managing to fall in, then paddling back I almost got run over by a large boat trying to dock nearby.

That evening we cooked before it got too dark and sat enjoying the island and playing cards with the French guys (who’s names I cannot remember). There was no natural light for miles but the moon was incredibly bright and by the end of the evening the moon was that bright we were playing cards just by the light of the moon.

That night I fell asleep content relaxed and looking forward to a ‘real’ deserted island tomorrow!

We bid farewell to Paddle Bay and boarded the water taxi to Planton Island. This island really is deserted, only four people are allowed on the island at any one time and as there were three of us we had the island all to ourselves. The beach looked like something out of a movie, either end were large black rocks the beach was covered in white coral and sand and beyond the beach the island rose upwards covered in thick undergrowth and forest that was impenetrable wearing flip flops.

There was only one tent spot on the island that had been prettily marked out with large bits of coral and shell by those who came before us. From the tent pitch there was a perfect view of the deep blue sea and another island across the water.

I spent some of the day swimming, but in the shallows near the beach were some weird sea lice that liked to bite. Naomi got attacked by about six trying to rest her sore ankle in the shallows. Kat and I tried to snorkel but the current was incredibly strong, we kept getting bitten and there weren’t many fish to be found, plus Kat got scared off after swimming through a shoal of sea lice.

After a number of hours on the beach I had to get out of the sun and went exploring the rocky areas on either end of the beach in search of shade – but it wasn’t to be found. I ended up crawling into the tent a falling asleep for a few hours out of the sun.

I woke up just before the sun went down and decided this was the ideal time for a wash! Having been swimming in the sea but not having seen running water for almost 48 hours I was starting to feel a little gross. We had plenty of water left, as we were leaving tomorrow Kat and I decided to shower by pouring saucepans of water over our heads. Not the easiest form of showering but very welcome when you haven’t washed for almost two days!

Once we’d ‘showered’ we made dinner then fell asleep shortly after sunset.

The next morning followed much the same pattern of swimming, sunbathing and reading apart from we had to pack up the tent and await the arrival of the water taxi to take us away from our island paradise and back to reality.

* Posted by j150vsc on 22/12/2007.