Behind the Blogger

I grew up in an environment where it was very hard not to develop a deep love for the outdoors. Home, where I spent the first 22 years of my life, backed onto a 571 ha State Forest. There wasn't a week go by that didn't involve bushwalking or a BMX ride through parts of it. It also made a handy shortcut on the days we had to make our own way to school.

My parents were avid campers and most school holidays would involve getting all 4 kids into the back of an 80 series Land Cruiser and finding a new camping spot in the tranquillity of the bush or heading to an old favourite. Beach spots, amongst other families to play with, seemed to happen often as well... I think that was Mum and Dads way of getting us out of their hair so they could have a holiday too! If it wasn't camping we were heading away to the lake for water skiing or off touring to one of Australia's many natural attractions. There wasn't such a thing as a 'stay at home' holiday.

As I grew so did my love for the outdoors. By my teenage years I had already begun doing many multi-day hikes trough the National Parks and Forests of South-East Queensland. When I was old enough I got into 4wding to explore even more. With the love of water and exploring new locations it didn't take much of a jump for me to get keen on Scuba diving. It quickly became another passion vying for time.

I started recording trip journals for some of the adventures, mostly as a memory and a way or organise photos. I never really enjoyed writing as a kid, much preferred building a camp fire or getting dirty, though now I like being able to go back and relive what I've done. The mistakes that turn into lessons, the highlights of trips going perfect to plan and the excitement finding that new direction when things don't.

If you're looking for ideas on where to go on your next adventure, or simply want to share in one of mine, read on!

For what I generally take on my local treks you can check out my pack list on the LighterPack website. I'll generally include a separate list for any significant trips.

Hiking - 2025 09 - Point Pure (Main Range National Park)

Finally had a good free weekend to tick off a hike that's been on my to do list for a little while, Point Pure in the northern section of Main Range National Park.

The usual pre-hike preparation the day before, seemingly blowing the dust and brushing some cobwebs off some of my hiking gear. Second time used this year, shameful. I also decided to pre-soak my water filter as it probably dried out. My brother 3d printed me a new cap for the back end of my sawyer squeeze which came in handy to stop any dripping.

The hike starts from Glen Rock/Casuarina Camp Ground, about a 2 hour drive from home. We got away just on 7 and had a smooth run up and were away hiking by 920. The first 4km are along a very well maintained mixed use trail. Crossing Blackwell's Creek a few times. We could get across dry the first 3 but no chance for the 4th so ploughed on through. Fairly exposed at the start, pack sunscreen!

The fire trail ends and you have to push though about 400m of snake country (knee-waist high grass) before linking up with some old fence trails heading up Repeater Ridge. Fairly easy going along the fence line, barely a scant trace of wire but the majority of posts are still standing strong. The the track it's easy to follow. Still pretty exposed on the Ridge.

Eventually the 4wd track ends, and it appears like the fence gets a lot better, with the trail changing more into bush scrub. Good footpad still and a bit more shade, but the incline definitely makes you work. A few rocky sections that require a bit of effort, but I would stop short of calling it a scramble. One had a cute little green snake, trying to soak up some warmth. Eventually you top out on an unnamed peak, take a sharp left, and start heading down again. 

Steep stepping down almost straight away as you walk along some fairly thin Ridge lines. Made a little more hazardous as it began to rain on us. Littered with a few more rocky outcrops to navigate you roller-coaster along the Ridge for a while. Eventually you veer right, where we almost immediately lost the footpad. Unable to relocate it we traversed across the side of the hill, often a foot slipping on the wet grass.

My shoes were mostly dry after the creek crossing, during the climb, but wet grass has made them drenched once more. This section would have been a bit annoying in the dry, so pushing through wet grass certainly wasn't making it better... type 2 fun right...? It was very slow going, carefully placing each step as the grass was hiding many rocks, logs and washouts. I managed to hold my feet, a few times just barely, but my partner did slide about 1/2 a meter and with the slope needed some help up. At least the rain had eased up... 

Eventually we started to hear rushing water, so I knew we were almost through it. Sigh of relief as we spotted a crystal clear flowing creek, gushing with water. The Valley also opened up to great views as the skies finally parted and we actually saw the sun again. Not much longer to camp from here but we stopped to collect more water for the night and tomorrow. Even with pre-soaking the filter it had more of a drip than a flow... Good excuse for a rest I guess.

Like some magical barrier the other side of the creek was more open bush, with relatively short grass. Mush easier walking. Not far from the creek we startled a wild pig that shot off into the bush. Black as night. It wasn't much further until we were at camp. Fairly spacious, obvious signs of past hikers, including a fire ring, and a great view into the valley. With the damp ground from the earlier rain and the wind picking up the valley we were very quick to cool down. I threw on my thermal top and used my rain jacket to block the wind and my partner already had almost all of her layers on. 

We ventured the ~100m from camp to the tip of Point Pure to enjoy a late arvo tea and the view. Not long after we were visited by another little busy friend. A tiny little guy, very interested in the scotch bottle. Back to the tent briefly for me to change into the rest of me warmer clothes before making dinner, enjoying the last of the sun disappearing, some good colour after it dropped behind the mountains, but fairly short lived. Soon it was time to head to bed to slip into warm sleeping bags.   

Immediately discovered a decent, unfixable hole, on the seam of my hiking pillow. It has seen a lot of use though, but it's not something you want to discover at bed time. Looks like the old lightweight trick (not carrying a pillow, just using a bunched up puffy jumper) would have to do for tonight... The wind was pretty strong for the first half of the night, and was still howling during the first pee break, but dropped off some time before early morning. I had a fairly broken sleep with my lack of pillow, drifting in and out of sleep and readjusting the puffy-pillow all throughout the night. 

In the morning it was nice and calm with the sun shinning, so it started to warm up fairly quickly and the condensation on the tent quickly dried. Still a more casual pack up with the two of us, so it wasn't until 820am that we broke camp and begun the hike home. No trail immediately apparent from camp, but it was still nice open scrub with short grass and easy going. Navigation was fairly easy... there was a cliff to our right; Don't fall off it.  

It wasn't too long before the scrub got thicker. Faint traces of a footpad appearing suddenly under foot and then dissipating just as quickly back into overgrown scrub. Some evidence of past hikers were branches were snapped off and had already regrown. Choke points that funnel hikers onto a similar route (top of peaks, around bigger fallen trees) had more defined tracks, but even these lasted barely 10-20 meters before dissipating once again into the scrub. Mostly soft scrub though, not too hard on the bare shins. At a creek crossing we could see patches of stinging nettle, but easy to avoid. Along the exposed cliff line was a lot clearer and easier going. Still fairly slow though, navigating and passing through it all. Probably averaging just over 1.5 km /hr through this stretch.   

There was another good climb to get up and over a cliff line before linking up to a ridge. On the way up almost stepped on a decent sized Carpet Python enjoying a patch of sun. Only the 2nd snake we've seen this weekend.... but I'm not sure I'd want to think too hard about all the ones we didn't... 

After all that climbing it was time to head back down.... 600m drop over ~2.5km made for some pretty steep sections. Ground was fairly good, plenty of vegetation cover for the most part. Some of it had fairly loose dirt which lead to a few slips. Steep drops either side at a few points as well, so be careful with your feet placements, but safe enough as long as you take your time, and that we did...  

Just as you reach the creek at the bottom you run into thickets of Lantana. Fun! There is a goat trail that leads you right through a 100m gauntlet of it, then you double back along the dry rocky creek bed to almost where you started (+ down a ~2m drop off.) If I venture back again, I might drop to the creek a little earlier off to the right nearing the end of the ridge, as following the creek was a lot easier than pushing through the lantana. 

A little celebration as we made it back to the maintained shared use trail. Nice and wide, slashed grass, easy hiking. Still 9km back to the car though. Lots more criss-crossing over the creek. Some you can stay dry through, others not. Held a fairly steady 5km/hr pace most of the way, excluding the creek crossings/rock hopping, and back to the car with plenty of sunlight left. Though definitely a long day for just 15 km...  

Diving - 2025 08 - Moreton Island (Clean Up)

Trip Statistics;

• Dive Locations: Curtin Artificial Reef & The Pines
• Water Temp: 19-20°C
• Avg Depths: 10m (Pines) - 28m (Lady Norman)
• Boat Trips: 8
• Total club dives: 42
• Marine Debris Collected;
• 42kg of Lead Sinkers (Which we will recycle into Dive Weights)
• 2.7kg of Fishing Line
• 1.7kg of fishing hooks and lures
• 4.6kg of mixed materials
• 15m of rope
• 1 Dive weight belt

Heading back over to Moreton Island to complete another Marine Debris Clean Up trip. At the Club house the Wed before the trip we all met to arrange tanks, compressor, the boat etc so it was ready for the weekend. I had volunteered to drive Diver 1 over so I dropped my dry bag off with Gary then got to setting the boat.

Extra anchors for overnight mooring, some water, checking safety gear and ensuring pontoons were firm, mostly your standard pre-dive checks. Come Friday morning one of our buddies on the boat came down with a fever/headache which dropped us to 3. I called Coralie and roped her into bring a 4th so we could sneak in a dive pair, while still having a Skipper and Surface Watch on the surface. I don't think I've fully transitioned to a "Resort Diver" yet, but a few years ago I would have been pretty bummed missing out on a dive opportunity but when I got the news I was more "meh that's OK, I can just catch the next one", so I think the process has started. 

n.b. A resort Diver is one who strictly (or at least primarily) dives in nice warm tropical waters, with Dive guides who setup (and carry!) your gear. Not like us chumps that have to lug it up/down the beach and lift it onto the boat ourselves! A bit shaky to start with the Coast Guard Radio Hand taking a while to take our details, but then smooth sailing, near mirror surface conditions, to get over.

We threw some divers in at the Pines for a drift clean. Out going tide and running pretty hard, but easy to follow with the good conditions they came back with reports of lots of Grouper to see and quite a full bucket of rubbish.

Our turn to jump in, similar conditions, good vis, and we immediately saw a huge Grouper too. While cleaning up marine debris, mostly fishing waste, I stumbled upon a mostly buried dive belt. 6 x 3lb weights... more than I have ever intentionally dived with... short belt too (or maybe my waist is not-short...) So I awkwardly carried it for a bit before finding a way to clip it off and have it dangle. That much weight made buoyancy a bit more interesting. We also found what looked like a painters drop sheet along with the usual hooks, line and sinkers etc.

We were just setting the anchors before the rest of the crew (catching the barge over) arrived. SNR was quick to return to the beach ready for a dive as we awaited the rest of the crew to trickle down. 5 more dropped in for another drift but reports of much worse vis than the earlier dives, as the tide had changed to an incoming now. Still Grouper and Turtles about to see though.

Back on the beach in time for sunset drinks and to see a pod of dolphins cruise by. It wasn't long before a shower beckoned for me so I headed up and then met everyone around the fire. Soon it was dinner, a fantastic meal from "Castaways", then back to the fire. 

Around the fire was another group who joined us. They were quite excitable and engaging... and possibly a little drunk. They were determined to kick on with most divers turning in for bed before 9ish... asking if they were allowed to burn the rest of the wood we brought for the three nights... thankfully they didn't. 

A few were up at sunrise and I wasn't too far behind them to check on the boat. Still floating, good enough, so I went back to Castaways for breakfast (experts at catering for divers!!) After having our fill it was time to head to the beach. Craig collected the boat and brought it to shore for us all to load up. As I started to put on my cold, and still very wet, wetsuit I may have started to fantasise about the life of a resort diver....

We headed for Curtin Artificial reef to find a platoon of fishing boats. Luckily there was some space, near the dry dock, we could call our own. Everyone was super ready (first time ever!) when we launched so we found ourselves a bit too early waiting for the slack tide. Even when we jumped in there was a bit of current. It did turn slack towards the end of the dive though, and not long into the dive it was pretty mild anyway. 

Back to swap boat loads. I was skipper for the 2nd so I ditched my gear and hopped back on the boat. A nice drift again on the Pines. Though we dropped them a bit along (to not rehash the same ground as yesterday) and at the ~40min mark the wall stopped, turning into a gentle slope of  sand, so the divers came up a little early. 

More amazing food for lunch and then back in for the third Dive. I wasn't meant to be on it, but a few pulled out so I took up one of the spare slots. With everyone being efficient and on time we found ourselves waiting for the slack tide before jumping in near the Rock Driller. Snapped a few pictures of the Nautilus Statue, but low tide meant the water was a little murky.

Fei and I were getting a pretty good haul in the bucket and after 20min I checked in to see his air. 150bar (for a new diver) awesome I thought, we're in for a good dive, as I went to check my own air. . . . .  

60 bar. Huh? No leaking hoses nothing I could see to cause it. Before we entered I had checked my air and I could swear it was 200... but it mustn't have been. I might have gone in with yesterday's tank which was 110ish... bugger. With apologies to Fei I guided us back to Diver 1 in the blue-ish green water, so we could do a safety stop on the way. Vis was just good enough to make out the top of the Wrecks, so at least I knew which direction to head.

Despite a quick 27 min dive (probably not my shortest in my diving career if I'm being honest...) not only did we have a decent take in the bucket, but also found some pretty hefty electrical conduit and wire... so still a successful clean up dive. I think that earned me the 'Minion Award' for the day (given out to those who do something silly like jumping in without fins...or a half empty tank...)

Post dive was a little time to sort the waste and have a nice shower before heading down the beach for sunset. Another nice orange glow as the sun set behind the glasshouse mountains.

Thanks Marja and Nelly for the Clean Up Shots!

Soon the sun was gone and it had been replaced by midges and mosquito's so we retired from the beach and went to the fire. Not long there before dinner was ready so we could eat and plan the next days diving. Once dinner and planning were done it was back to sitting around the fire until it was time for bed. Another group sharing the fire pit threw in one of those colour flame packets, which made for an impressive blue.

Up for breakfast at 7 again but a bit of time to kill before a 930am launch for the first dive. A bit lumpier today on the surface, as predicted, which made loading Diver 1 a little harder. Still we got going and were off for Curtin. I jumped in with Waz, he was having a little trouble with his 2nd stage yesterday, so I leant him my spare for the dive. 

We were waiting until the other divers were clear of the anchor line so we could have a calm descent. Just about ready when Fei and Anton popped back up as Fei had his tank slip, happens to most divers eventually... with them on their way again Waz and I jumped in soon after. 

Good vis, maybe even 15min, (well "good for Curtin") and a nice flat sandy bottom where we could sit and chill for a bit before setting off on our dive. We went and checked out the remains of the Tram before continuing on to the Rock Driller and back to the Nautilus Statue. A pair of huge QLD Grouper were hanging about it today, by god they are massive fish... 

After our slight detour for sight seeing it was back to cleaning with a bit of extra stuff along the Rock Driller wreck before finding lots of line and sinkers on the Kos II. We eventually made our way to the Hustler which had even more line and a mass of tangled rope, mostly covered in growth and not suitable for collecting though. Still plenty of hooks, line and sinkers there too. 

Felt like we had barely started to make a dent in the Hustler before we needed to head back up to the surface. Plenty more there to justify a second trip. Conditions were a little worse when we got back to the boat but not too horrible so we still went ahead with the second dive. As it was a drift, in unfavourable conditions, I dropped out of diving so I could be an extra surface watch, with Louis and Pete H.

Dropping divers south of the Curtin (so they could drift north into it) it was hard to track the bubbles even from the start. We found them on and off but with the wind and surface conditions pushing us along a slow idle into the wind we barely even kept in place. Eventually we saw one SMB shortly followed by another at the same place, then soon after their respective divers.

The first SMB apparently got a snagged reel so the second popped just in case. Just as we were getting them into the boat the other group shot their SMB up so we could cover the near 300m gap and be closer to them to pick them up. For the ride back the conditions worsened and unloading was difficult so we decided to pan the afternoon dive. Today was meant to change, and get even worse, later in the afternoon.

After lunch a few checked out the beach and conditions definitely changed from the morning.... they were now near perfect! Unfortunately with the dive already cancelled a few had enjoyed a beer with lunch, so were out, and the thought if putting on wet gear was less enticing for the rest. So we all enjoyed a relaxing arvo instead.

Yet another fantastic dinner from Castaways and more time around the fire before our last night.

Before breakfast most people had already packed and it wasn't long after breakfast most of the crew were off to beat the tide and catch the barge.

The 4 of us remaining started chatting about the days plans and strolled down to the beach to see what the water was doing. A bit lumpy and we weren't really feeling the extra dive so the call was made to save the bumpy surface conditions for a dive and start the bumpy ride back instead.

After loading the boat and pulling up the anchors we were all about as wet as you would get on a dive anyway... the ride back wasn't very smooth, slow and steady going. The was a really odd calm patch mid-way across that lasted for about 5min, I thought the wind had changed direction, or we were close enough to the mainland, but soon we were in 700mm waves and going even slower. 

I think Craig copped the worst of it, with most waves seeming to splash his side the whole way back. Finally we made it closer and were able to pick up the pace and get to shore. Good traffic back to the club house so we beat the others there with time enough to clean and tuck away the boat.

We could then help unload some of the other gear, like tanks and the compressor, before heading home for a late lunch.

Another great weekend made so by all the group pitching in and helping out. It really makes a trip so much easier with everyone pitching to help with the many many tasks that always need doing. 

Sailing - 2025 07 - Whitsundays Islands

 

 

Kicking off from the end of our Hamilton Island stay we set off sailing!

Great weather, but not enough wind for sailing so we motored around. We were looking to grab a mooring at Chalkies, a nice beach directly opposite the famous Whitehaven beach. Unfortunately another boat pulled up to the last one just as we were arriving.

Kristie and Jeremy had some boat friends around the corner about an hour away, in Tongue Bay, and they were able to let us know there were plenty of moorings spare. After hooking up there we did a short walk up to a lookout and down to the northern end of Whitehaven Beach for sunset drinks. A fairly high tide hid most of the famous swirling white sand banks, but it was still a nice spot. Back to Lazuli for dinner and fairly early to bed. 

Sat morning a few of us did the lookout walk again and with a lower tide the sandbanks were a lot more visible, the kind of shot fit for a postcard (see heading picture.) Back to the boat and the wind had picked up a little, but not too bad. Tucked in behind the headland at the southern end of Whitehaven for lunch before hopping on shore. The girls went in for a swim as I headed up to the lookout. Quite a few tourist boats out, so the beach near the walk entrance was fairly crowded. Nice lookout again, and it seems most don't bother with the massive ~2km distance, so not too busy which was nice.

Arrived back on shore to see Kristie and Jeremy already packing up the beach, good timing to head back to Lazuli. Soon off to check Chalkies moorings (there's a friendly Turtle there) but they were all full again so we set off to tuck in behind Border Island in Cateran Bay.

Sunset sips and dips on the boat for us today. As we were enjoying them a tender from a tourist boat motored by, but then stopped in front of us. I mentioned that seemed a bit weird, nothing to see there, so we investigated and found out they were paddling. Luckily wind was in their favour and it wasn't too hard to paddle for steering. They also had another load to pick up on shore, we had offered to help transfer people but it turns out the reason their engine stopped was because they forgot to refill their fuel tank...  

A little bit windy and rocky tonight. The wind seems to shoot over the saddle and hit us. Wasn't too bad though but I was soon into bed. 

Sunday we were off for a short walk to the saddle. MUCH windier on top at the lookout. Clear blue skies with the sun shining brightly so it felt warm enough for a snorkel. Along the wall of the bay was nice, though even in the 5mm wetsuit I started to get cold... loads of fish life but not much in the way of more exciting critters. Emma was able to show off her awesome free diving skills and give old uncle Scott a few pointers. 

 

After getting back to the boat and getting warm we set off for the top of Hook Island. A bit more wind today so we raised the head sail and were cruising along about 5kt, not a huge wind so not super fast but fairly comfortable. We were lucky to see lots of whale spouts on the trip over. At least 7 different groups. Two of the groups were fairly close, but they weren't sticking around to play/breach so hard to get a good photo.  

 A few bays around Hook Point were busy but we ended up in Luncheon Bay mostly protected from the wind but still getting a lot of swell wrapping around the headland. There was also a "Under 35's" tourist boat here with quite loud doof doof music. Despite the scenery being pretty nice, considering the music and swell, we decided to jump one bay over to Butterfly Bay to pull up for the night. Still a touch of swell but definitely better.

Rocked and rolled a bit over night and wasn't the best sleep but woke up fairly refreshed. Spotting some whales far off in the distance.

Tendered around to Manta Ray Bay for a good snorkel. They have some Manta Statues there and the girls (with a bit of assistance from dad) were able to free dive down and touch them. After seeing how it was done, Emma even managed a solo trip to touch them! Plenty of fish about including some huge GTs and a large Bull Mauri Wrasse. 

 We then took Lazuli around to Stonehaven Bay and tucked in right behind a nice finger of reef. It was very tempting to jump in for a second snorkel, but we were dry and warm so spent the afternoon lazing about on deck. Wind was meant to be dropping off but every now and then there was a pretty big gust which flapped about everything we had drying. The wind held the same pattern overnight making for a pretty broken sleep and a rocky boat.

Tuesday morning meant a 30min trip over to Black Island to drop in for a dive. Kristie and I went along the eastern wall, in the channel. Heaps of nudi and a cool flat worm on the dive with an abundance of fish and some pretty healthy coral. No Eels, Sharks or Octopuses etc but still plenty to see along the wall and some colourful nudi made it a good dive.

 

When we were finished with the dive the others joined us and one after the other Kristie took the girls for a quick dive. While that was happening the rest of us had a good snorkel before finding ourselves heading into shore. Apparently Haymen run an 'exclusive private island' tour here, for quite the pretty penny, so it's nice to experience the luxury for free!

After lunch we motored around to Nara Inlet for a very sheltered last night. On the journey we had a somewhat curious dolphin cruise past us then turn to follow us for a bit. We slowed down and it stuck with us a little before veering off towards another boat to check out.  

For Nara we did have to prepare for the mosquito's though. Close enough to land and lack of wind meant they found us pretty quickly. Before sunset we hopped to shore for a short stroll to some Indigenous rock art which was cool to see. For sunset drinks we putted over to 'Exhale', a catamaran, who are friends that Kristie and Jeremy have met on their sailing trip. Nice net with beanbags at the front to enjoy some cheese and a nice drop of scotch. We even had a turtle come visit just off the bow.

Wednesday being our last morning we had a lazy sleep in before heading back to the marina we went for one last adventure to some close by caves for a little bit more climbing and exploring. I also managed to sneak in a short Paddle Board.  

 

Soon though, it was time to head back, Lazuli had the night booked so we had a spot waiting. First up was heading to the fuel dock though to refuel before parking up for the night. Tying off lines and casting off again is a skill well practised by Kristie and Jeremy but new to me, seemed to manage on. When it was time to head to our assigned berth though we ran into a little trouble... and apparently a lot of silt... bottomed out. It was a neap low tide (very low tide) and the berth we had assigned was a touch too shallow for the deeper 2.3m draft of Lazuli... So change of plans and they popped us over on a different berth... with a few multi-million dollar yacht's The one adjacent to us, Lumir is hired out for $140,000 a week... and that doesn't even include fuel, food, drinks etc...

Before we could soak up the luxury too much we did have some of the less glamorous boat jobs to complete, empty rubbish bins (including contents of a composting toilet), fill water tanks etc etc. Jeremy also swabbed the decks (I'm getting my sail lingo down pat!) There was land chores as well, shopping/Bunnings, BCF run etc. We had the car up here so Kristie was able to use it to make the running about a little easier. There was scant time in the afternoon to relax before it was time to stroll into Airlie for dinner. Bet Jeremy enjoyed the break from cooking :p

One last sleep on Lazuli, and I swear even in the Marnia I rolled around all night. Almost as if the small wash from other boats, being sharper and less rhythmic than ocean waves, affected me worse than the more symmetrical ocean swell... Work in the morning for a rather quick pack and our final goodbyes before setting off on the ~14 hours drive back to Brisbane. 

No real traffic hold ups, though we did have to stop once for a Sugar Cane train (say that 10 times fast) to roll past before continuing on. Bu lunch we had already passed Rocky and were making decent time... but decided that a 1030pm ETA home was a bit late and decided to pull up stumps at Gin Gin. The Hotel had one Queen room left for a pretty reasonable price ($89, shared bathroom) and the Bistro did a pretty good steak. Though they also though for some reason we wanted a "Family" pizza as a second meal... so we had a bit of vegetarian pizza left over... 

With just over 4 hours of driving left we weren't in a huge rush, no point hitting peak hour traffic getting through Brisbane but I was also keen to get home and unpack so we didn't really dawdle either... Some road works slowing us down and light traffic just north of Brisbane saw us home just after lunch... so the unpacking, loads of washing, and house chores could get started... Post holiday fun, yay! 

A fantastic trip, even as a non-boatie, thanks to the Ford family for inviting us into your home for a few short days, and I hope you get the good weather next week you are expecting to allow you to some of the outer reefs!

Travel - 2025 07 - Hamilton Island

Slow pack during the week to get everything ready. Picking and choosing what makes the cut. Enough to be comfortable, but selective enough with limited space in mind.  

As we were mostly ready the day before on Friday we were able to make a quick getaway after work but it didn't matter as we still got stuck, along with thousands of others that had the same idea, in the north bound traffic. It didn't really clear until we were north of the Mooloolaba turn off... The plan was Gin Gin tonight but after a few calls, and booked out places we looked at the time and revised it to Childers. A quick stop for some food near Gympie before continuing on to a nice motel just as we entered town.

Saturday began the bigger drive. On the move just after 630 and through to the other side of Gin Gin for a quick breakfast. We made Rocky for the next stop but on the lookout for a good, not busy, servo to pull into we ended up driving straight through! We did find an OK Independent fuel about 20min north, cheaper fuel than a few we spied in Rocky but their pie selection was pretty horrible... and I saw the Chef wipe his nose onto his jumper sleeve so didn't feel like getting something made. A rather disappointing pie for lunch...

After this refuel I actually took a break from driving... it's a little more work without small luxuries like cruise control! I lasted about 2 hours before getting back behind the wheel. Another 2 hours and we were pulling into Airlie Beach. Quick stop at the shops for tonight's dinner, then a drive through town. Another tourist in front of us, unsure of their journey plans, stopped mid way around a roundabout... welcome to tourist towns... 

Whitsundays BnB retreat, in the hills just above Airlie, was a nice cosy place with a really nice garden. A pair of white cockatoos greeted us as we found our room and discovered the Spa was out of action... apparently they switched chlorine brands and read X amount of teaspoons as tablespoons... as we didn't feel like getting chemical burns at the start of the trip. Room was nice with plenty of space for 2, shared bathroom 5m down a courtyard path, but we didn't see other guests or clash when needing it. Pokey kitchen but more than enough for our needs.

 

 

Sunday was off to a good start with a fairly simple breakfast. Turkish bread, jam, butter, vegemite and pancakes supplied! Where our ferry launched was about 2km from the best long term parking (ferry has some, but 7 day max wasn't enough for us) so we went off a little early. There was meant to be a translink public transport bus with good timing, but apparently the Brisbane metro changes (1,200km away) have affected the timetables up here too... Bus was a no show. 

Never mind, plenty of time to spare. Ken picked us up in his taxi and it was a short trip to the ferry terminal. Probably worked out easier with our gear anyway. Apparently too early to have a beer while waiting for the boat with service not starting until 10am, pfft we're on holidays! You can have a beer before catching a plane... 1.5 hour boat ride via Daydream (possibly enjoying a beer on board...) and we were finally on Hamilton.

Fairly smooth ride over with the quick stop at Daydream for a few people to transfer. We ended up at the Marina jetty (at the suggestion of staff this morning) but it turns out our specific accommodation check in was at the airport jetty... not to worry as they soon had a transfer shuttle on the way and picked us up. Apartment wasn't ready but we were able to set off with our golf buggy so we headed by the water and had some lunch. 

Afternoon was checking in and getting orientated at the apartment before heading down to the island IGA. Everyone had the same idea it seems. It. Was. PACKED! Long line and busy but we eventually got some food and went back to the apartment for a quiet dinner.

 

 

Monday was time for activities, after a generous sleep in of course! First up was a trip to Catseye Beach. Nice spot. We arrived around 930 am to a moderately busy area, but still plenty of beach lounges to claim. After enjoying the sun we jumped in for a snorkel... not a whole lot to see. Quite a bit of dead coral, crushed under the feet of thousands of tourists. 

A bit of kelp and small patches of coral still alive though, and after about 45min in the water we managed to find a turtle! Very chill, pretty accustomed to tourists I guess... we followed along slowly as he drifted about before feeling the cold and needing to get out.

 

 

Back on the beach and it was a lot more crowded, I guess everyone else had an even longer sleep in... There were ~20-30min wait lines for the hire gear (Stand Up Paddle Boards / Kayaks) every lounge was taken and plenty of people on their towels. Tourists in the little catamarans darting about, not knowing how to steer and some just ramming into the beach... I have no-idea how there wasn't any accidents... but the staff in the Zodiac buzzing around helping some and telling others off (so many people outside the marker buoys) was a very very busy lad. When witnessing all this the family next to us (not the "Instagram" couple on the other side taking 1,000 photos) were having a conversation and the husband turned to the wife and said "This is heaven." A crowded loud tourist beach, and people operating machines they were definitely unfit for? Closer to my idea of hell...

 

After warming back up in the sun it was back to the apartment for lunch and then off for a short hike. It turned out the short hike (2km return) was closed... that we didn't see until the turn off 600m into the Hike... so we settled on a 5k return hike to Middle Head instead. Following a few management trails up the hill to be rewarded with a great view.

 

Back down was a bit easier. Getting around the rest of the island is a lot easier with the golf buggy. Would make it quite a bit longer hike without it. It was getting a little late so we headed up to 'One Tree Hill' for sunset views, with half of the rest of the islands habitants.... spectacular views though. Another quiet dinner in the apartment and early to bed. 

 

 

Tuesday was the day for the "big" walk around the vegetated half of the island. A loop of all the main hiking trails including the highest peak, giant chair, hammock, swing and resort lookouts. A few trail runners already out and about when we were starting, pretty keen... especially those finishing just as we started.

First up was Passage Peak, the highest point on the island, a few people about but not too crowded and some spectacular views. The last section just before the peak involves a lot of steps, so be warned.

 

 

After the turn off for some of the longer trails it felt a bit more isolated. First stop was a very Instagram worth comically large chair. Then off to a very uncomfortable kopper log hammock before finally reaching the swing, where I relented to peer pressure and got my own Instagram worth pose photo. Each bay was really beautiful and you could kill a day just relaxing on the beach.

 

 

We were having some snacks near the swing when we heard the rumble of an ATV tour group descending down the hill. Six ATVs arrived (1 guide and 5 following) which signalled our time to depart. Very steep exit from the beach straight up the hill. Often passing other tourists carefully descending, in sandals, trying not to slip on the gravel.

Eventually we reached the second highest point, the resort lookout, before heading back down via another small side trail to the Flat Top hill lookout. More steep trails down (a different way than we went up) and groups starting just after midday without any water in hand... 

When we checked in we asked the staff about the walks and were told "for the full loop you definitely need the full day, at least 8-6, plan to be back late!" The minimum '10 hours' was done (with the additional lookout) in 5 hours and 3 minutes... and that included 30min for lunch at the swing and time enjoying the lookouts... 

After we got back we had a rinse off and headed to the resort pool with the intention of being typical tourists ourselves and using the swim up bar. One toe in the pool water and I knew it was going to be a struggle, but I plunged in... and it almost took my breath away. After my partner put her foot in the water we decided maybe just staying on the sun lounges was enough. We still wanted a fancy cocktail... at 25 bucks a pop, but how often are you in a place like this...? (Once is probably enough for me.) I have to admit that they were pretty tasty though. Back to the apartment to enjoy the sunset from our balcony. Can't quite see the actual sun, but still get nice colours in the sky.

 

 

We decided to have a relaxing Wednesday, long sleep in before taking the golf buggy for a cruise around checking out some of the developed half of the island. In our travels we confirmed a few logistics for pick up day, stopping by the Marina office to work out which Finger Lazuli would berth at etc.

We also arranged a later return for the buggy, so we could have it to use for Marina chores if needed when Lazuli arrived. Back to the apartment for the afternoon we lounged on the balcony enjoying the view. About 4pm a pair of Whales came into view. Really far off at first but we could see some huge breaches. By the time they were a bit closer for a picture (still about 1km away) they had finished playing and were just sailing on by.

A little while later we headed out for dinner (other dinners we just made in the apartment) at 'The Palms'. Very busy but we managed to arrive just as a young family were leaving and got a table. We saw others come and wait for a long time before there was space.

Great Brisket from the smoker, though not sure it was the full 300g as advertised. My partner got the roasted eggplant, a full intact eggplant rather than the grilled sliced eggplant you normally find. Apparently it was very tasty. We also had 2 sides each which were fantastic. Chat potato's, tomato salad and really nice garlic bread. The only slightly disappointing one was the fries, which must have been sitting a while, still warm... but not hot. 

I'm a little surprised by the stars out here, though the full moon doesn't help. Lots of light pollution from the resort too I guess. We've noticed a bit of noise pollution too this trip. With the buggies they have a constant reversing alarm, when in reverse gear. People take a lot of time reversing (it did take a sec to get use too) but they also put it in reverse waiting to pull out... even when there's a bunch of traffic... so they just sit there going "BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ" for ages. Three active areas of construction probably don't help either.

Various areas of the resorts have music pumping, which we can still hear clearly on the balcony. I don't mind the noise for happy/excited kids splashing and jumping into the water, that's expected. Kids having fun is loud, but some adults, especially with their sunset/post sunset drinks with friends on the balcony, could afford to turn it down a notch.

Thursday morning we were up a little early to catch the low tide. Water temp was a bit cold and we didn't feel like another snorkel, but a reef walk seemed like a good idea. Nice flat reef shelf so I thought we would see a bit... we did not. 

A lot of crushed coral, thousands of tourists a year wouldn't help, with only fairly shallow rock pools. Heaps of little Crabs dashing about but not too much else. We managed to find a few small Giant Clams but no Sea Hares, Nudi, Epelept Sharks or Octopus. Some Cucumbers about, but nothing compared to Musgrave. The walk was saved though as we stumbled across a cool decorator crab. Not seen one like this before, can you spot it?  

 

The afternoon was spent mostly relaxing again before consolidation of gear to make packing and check out easier in the morning. It's quite amazing how much things cam spread out in just 5 days...

We headed out to the Marina lookout to catch the sunset. The view isn't as good as from One Tree Hill (and no bar here) but it was a lot less crowded. Dinner at the apartment again before heading to bed.

Friday morning was time to check out. Bags packed and ready for an 8am pickup... but we weren't in a rush so we hung around alirtle finally leaving the apartment at 945. Handed our room keys in, but requested an extension to the buggy time (which was kindly granted and is free!)  

We cruised up to a good lookout of the Marina to await our ride (Kristie and Jeremy picking up on Lazuli, their 47.7' 2001 Beneteau First, yacht) we could follow them on the tracker and were ready to take pictures when they arrived.

 

 

Took Kristina and Emma for a spin on the golf buggy as Kristie did some shopping and Jeremy did some boat jobs. Just up to a lookout, then back via the bakery. Few pies and Saussage rolls, but the girls had already eaten lunch so they picked up some cupcakes as a treat. 

 

Then we set off to return the buggy and collect our bags... they hadn't collected them from the rooms yet... so they sent someone off to collect them. I had a mild panic when we eventually got the bags, as I thought my wallet was in there... but I couldn't find it. 

They were very helpful and sent another worker to have a look and thankfully found it, phew! With bags (and wallet) collected it was time to set off on Lazui for part 2 of our trip!

Diving - 2025 03 - Palau, Micronesia

 Water Temp:    29-30°

Current: Nil - Strong 

Max Depth:     31m

Total dives:     17

 

 

 

Day 1 - Transit

Off for another great diving trip with a few mates made over the years. This time we're back to Palau. Just over a decade since the last time I had ventured that way. These days access is A LOT easier with a direct ~6 hour flight from Brisbane.  

Sure beats the Brisbane to Cairns to Guam, where you were stuck with a day use room for ~10 hours... then finally to Palau.... It's a very fresh route offered by Qantas and not many people seemed to know about it. 

We arrived to a surprisingly quiet international airport and dropped our bags and exited customs. It wasn't long before we found the Tasting table and enjoyed a few scotches to see what we wanted with us on the trip. After making our selection (including a very fancy bottle of Dark Lark) we joined the others for a light meal for lunch and wandered to our gate.  

Like check-in the gate looked pretty quiet and it started that way after boarding. With most of us ending up with our own row of seats! Some in flight movie, the usual offerings, to soak up the time but it wasn't long before the sun was setting and we were landing. 

 

A short transfer to the Cove Resort where we all dropped bags into rooms and met for dinner. Meals were a bit pricey here, but we weren't planning to head out. $9.50, USD, for a schooner of the local (Red Roster) beer. It did taste good. After dinner and a bit of reminiscing we retreated to showers and air-conditioning. 

Day 2 - Check Out Dives

Sites: Sand Bar, Saies Corner, Ulong Channel

After a very decent buffet breakfast the van from Sam's Tour's eventually arrived... to pick up a different group. The driver was pretty on the ball though and got another to swing by to take us diving. apparently they had us down for a 9am pickup... with our paperwork stating 745 we were ready a little early... when we heard they were going to be a little later we ducked next door to grab some reef safe sunscreen (most sunscreens are banned in Palau) and at $25.30 (USD!) per 90ml it better be good!

Checking certs, setting up gear, getting the local dive/safety/boat brief and then we were on our way. Boat looks to be setup for 20 divers doing a double dive, so plenty of space, much like the plane, for the 9 of us. Like most trips the first dive is the guide assessing your group, to see what your air consumption, buoyancy, general skill level is on an easier, and pleasant site. 

First dive was OK along a reef slope. A few other divers near by and lots of fish to see plus a few sharks. One or two common Nudibranch almost not worth taking a picture. We must have been OK because they were happy to let us alert them about Air, rather than constantly checking us... 

Second dive was at one of the reef corners. We all swam up and hooked in to stare into the deep blue. A bit on show today with large schools of fish and a few Grey Reef Sharks that cruised by and maybe a dozen bump-head Wrasse. Again another OK dive, nice warm water, pleasant conditions. Lunch was a pre-ordered Bento box with lots of yummy food inside.

 

Third Dive was a drift, a very gentle drift that turned mid dive... through a channel. Giant Clams and the biggest Lettuce Coral in all of Micronesia, apparently. A few more sharks hugging the walls of the channel avoiding divers and a cool Nudi which I'm not sure I've seen before.  

 

 

Back to Sam's dock to rinse the gear and have a beer before returning to the hotel for a shower. Our dinner option Kramers (a place we remember fondly from last trip) was closed so we settled on Indian, and they arranged a pickup. 

The Taj served up an amazing meal. With the group we specified a few requirements (3x vegetarian options, a selection of Naan bread etc) but then said surprise us. All the food was fantastic, to the point some were already claiming it was the best meal of the trip. I'll grant them it was great, but will reserve that award until we've more than 2 dinners...

Day 3 - Deep Blue Sea

Sites: Blue Corner, Blue Hole, New Drop Off

We were all down fairly early for a other very filling breakfast. They do have a few interesting options, like potatoes drizzled in cheese... or marinated pork, but also the staples like an egg station, bacon, fresh fruit, cereal etc etc. Something everyone should be happy with. They must have felt bad about arriving late yesterday because although we were told an 815 pickup they showed up at 8. Of course half our group was up in the rooms getting last minute things...

First dive was off to Blue corner with some good current and loads of sharks. Positioned on the edge of the reef wall we hooked up and enjoyed the show floating past. Some big schools of Barracuda and loads of other fish. 

 

Second was into the Blue Hole. With 4 big skylights leading into a massive chamber. Off the main chamber, through a much smaller entrance, is another big chamber... without sky lights. Very dark in here so you definitely need torches and you can just go far enough back, and around a bend, to not see any natural light. Right back in the corner is a fairly intact Turtle skeleton. There's a chance we were advised not to enter this particular chamber... and definitely recall something to the effect of not going to the area you could find the skeleton....

Back into the main chamber Yuki found a cool flat worm and we exited to follow the wall. Were seeing a bit of fish life and a few morays etc but not too much of the small stuff yet. Though Palau is known more for its Blue Corner type diving looking for the big stuff.  

Third Dive was on a similar wall but this time we had loads and loads of turtles. A pretty cool (and weird) flounder swimming about, first I've seen swimming in blue water. Had a fairly vibrant blue tinge but within a few seconds of landing on a rock, matches its dull grey almost perfectly. Was great to watch the change. Soon a horde of other divers descended on our spot, so we moved off. 

 

Dinner at Kramers tonight, winding through huge oil tanks through what feels like an industrial dock, but we remembered the food being amazing. Our memory was on point and of the 10 meals it seemed like they only missed it on one where Nelly's fish wasn't prepared as good as it could have been. 

It wasn't until I read the menu that I remembered the Hammerhead Hot Sauce. So good I bought a bottle to take home last trip. Sadly they can't print labels any more and I wasn't confident I could get an unlabelled bottle through customs... so I settled to just having it with my fries.

Day 4 - Search for Manta Ray's

Sites:  Blue Corner, German Channel, Turtle Cove

Slightly earlier today with a 745 pickup... which was bang on time! During dinner last night an old rumour bubbled to the surface about air pressure underwater and the ability to... off-gas (cut the cheese, break wind, pop one off, give a toot, let some breeze out the back door, empty the gas tank.... ahem... fart) underwater. The rumour had 10m as the hard limit ... but some of us doubted this information, recalling times in the past where we sent a few extra bubbles to the surface... so we decided to put this theory to the test, with a little healthy competition. 

 

Back out to Blue Corner, current was a lot stronger than yesterday and we still had quite the show. Flapping in the current a bit more as it was running hard and slightly on an angle but we all managed to find a spot to call our own. Barely back on the boat we were already getting a range of new scientific data, ranging from an adventurous 0.4m deep to an impressive 14.6m, a clear front runner.Limited data still at this point though, so we bravely all decided to continue our scientific pursuit. Though we clarified that any follow through would be an instant disqualification!

 

 

Second dive off to German Channel in search of Manta Ray's. We kneeled on the sand a bit looking but nothing to see. The best entertainment came in the shape of cleaner Wrasse attacking SNRs ears. A few others got swooped too but I had the perfect view of them attacking his head. We then went off to look elsewhere and found a few Nudi before a single Manta glided over head and off into the distance. If you look hard enough you can see it off in the blue...  

 

 

We went off for lunch on an island which was really nice. A few other groups here, it's always a good show seeing the Instagram photo shoots. Ages of time and poses to get the perfect shot... 

Third Dive was through a chimney hole then onto a wall. Not a huge amount of life to see but I really loved the structure. Lots of small/medium caverns and holes and overhangs in the reef worth poking your head into. Again not too much in the way of any Nudibranch, but very cool geography. 

 

Taco Tuesday at the Drop Off bar, with $6 margaritas... I had a beer. The Tacos were really good but I was a bit hungry after so I also got quesadilla which Tracy had to help me finish. Others also wanted another taco as they were still a bit peckish, but instead of getting 4 tacos they got four sets of 3 tacos... but still managed to polish them all off. They had a great local singer doing covers of heaps of classic songs. We thought the Mexican might help in our scientific endeavours.

Day 5 - Get Wrecked!

Sites:  Iro Maru, Siaes Tunnel, Ulong Wall

First dive on a old Japanese oil tanker, used in WWII. Sitting pretty in the sand at around 35m, the deck is flush at 18 ish. Absolutely coated in coral and quite a bit of life. Lots of Nudi to find... but all the exact same kind :o We were able to enter the loading doors of the hull (blue ocean above us) and look around, but no actual penetration. Other ships sunk as a similar time have collapsed recently, and they didn't want to risk a Diver getting stuck... The Guns were very overgrown with Coral, but you can still make them out.

 

Second dive was on a really nice wall. Huge cavern entrance in the wall with 2 large 'window' exits. At the far back of the cavern Nelly, Craig and I witnessed a giant Green Moray eel darting in and out of the rocks. It was really cool to just sit there and watch. The rest of the dive along the wall was really nice too and I got to see one of my favourite underwater critters, Marg found a Persian Carpet Flat Worm. Love their vibrant colours. 

 

On the way to the third we came across a huge pod, at least 50 strong, of spinner dolphins. Driving past them we picked up a few that were playing in the bow wave of the boat. At one stage about a dozen were right in front of us. The third dive was along another wall with a really gentle current to push us along. A few more Nudi and loads of healthy coral, plus some big schools of fish. Yuki also managed to find a cute little white Nudi, far too small for me to attempt taking a picture, that was maybe 5mm total in length. 

 

At one point I was tapped on the shoulder to bare witness for an off-gas record attempt at 18.6m deep. Jury is still out, but being the honour system, we let the record stand. 

 

After the dive we hit up a beach for lunch and to give SNR his birthday cake (and sing, of course). As we took a little bit longer than expected we got caught with the boat getting stuck on the low tide. Lucky we had some boat beers to kill the time. Eventually the boat floated off the reef and we made it back to Sam's dock around 530. Quick turn around and shower before heading out to dinner.

 

A short 10 ish min walk to dinner tonight but the restaurant we were planning to head to closed early. Luckily Zigu was right next door. Japanese style restaurant with pretty reasonable prices, service was a little haphazard but I thought the food was fantastic. 

Day 6 - Holey Moley

Sites:  Virgin Blue Hole, Blue Corner, Fairy Lands/New Drop Off

Another filling breakfast and back on the boat. Once again cruising through some beautiful islands on the way to the dives, this time diving in Virgin Hole, which I don't remember from our last trip. A great hole down into a ~100m large tunnel out to the reef wall. At one point it feels a bit dark, but nowhere are you at a point you can't see natural light. Just as we exited the tunnel I found a cool flat worm. We followed along the wall where we found a bit more macro stuff, more flat worms, nudibranch etc etc. On the surface one of our strongest scientists also confirmed a new trip (world!?) record for managing to Sound the Horn at a very impressive 21.6m deep (or was it 21.7m...? I really should have better record keeping in the pursuit of science...)

 

 

 

Second dive we looked at a spot but the current was apparently too strong so we changed plans and went back to blue corner. Not as much action, fish life wise, this dive but there was a huge school of Barra that hung around a while. The main entertainment came from watching a different boat load of divers deal with the surging current. There was one Diver being dragged around by their Guide. The guide had a strong grip on their tank stem and was struggling to move both of them through the current as the Diver flailed their arms and bicycle kicked, which gets you nowhere...  

Third was on Fairly Lands with a drift to New Drop off. Not too much in the first third of the dive but close to Drop Off we started to see a few sharks, a huge school of barracuda and absolutely loads of green and hawksbill turtles. Probably the most turtles I've seen in any one location.

 

When back at the dock Coralie and Marg dropped in on residual air to search for mandarin fish, which they found. Others enjoyed a nice Red Rooster Beer while they waited and some of us headed straight back to the hotel. 

Next door to the Drop Off bar for dinner again. It was fairly busy and we had to wait until a few tables were free for them to rearrange for us. Eventually we sat down and had a fairly reasonably priced meal. Pizzas were absolutely massive!

Day 7 - Cozy Caves

Sites:  Haf Adai, Sea Plane, Chandelier Cave, Sam's Wall

Up and ready for our last day of diving, another great breakfast at the Cove Resort before being picked up. Only 7 of us on the boat today and we headed to a wreck for the first dive. It was raining pretty heavily all morning, and the boat ride out was no different getting some of us a bit soaked before we even arrived. Loads of Blue Dragon (pipe cleaner) Nudibranch and a new to me Flat Worm was cool. Lots of fish life, no current and all round a good dive. We surfaced to clear blue skies, as if there was never any rain at all. With the remaining dives to be shallow we would no longer have the chance to set any more records, but that's not excuse to stop practising... I think we need to move to phase two trials, and include a wider range of participants.

 

On the way to the second dive site we had a bit of a history tour seeing some Pill boxes and gun placements before finding a crashed sea plane to dive on. Fairly shallow at 13ish meters but the plane is fairly intact for how long its been down. Yuki found a Shaun The Sheep Nudibranch on some coral growing on the mooring rope. With the size of them, and the sway of the rope, it was impossible to get a picture. 

 

 

Third Dive, on residual air, was Chandelier Cave. We arrived there alone but as we were receiving our dive brief 2 boats from a Live Aboard approached with at least a dozen divers each. So we skipped ahead, threw on our gear and jumped in. As we were in the first air pocket half of them swam under us, heading for the 4th hole. 

I love the cave system with huge stalactites hanging from the ceiling. As we entered the 2nd room the other half swam under, in a bit of a rush.... By the time we reached the third they were already heading out and we had the 4th (much smaller) room to ourselves. After enjoying the Caves for a while we headed out. I hung back a little to enjoy the darkness and quiet with my torch off and everyone else gone. 

 

We were going to do a 'black out' exit, using only the faint light from the entrance to guide us, but the other group was still in hole three shining their torches down onto us. When we exited we had a look around for Mandarin Fish and eventually found a very skittish one. No good pics as it was deep in some coral so we eventually gave up.

When back to the boat I found out Nelly had lost her torch, so Nelly and I went back in to have a look. No luck. Once again back on the boat and the last of the other dive group were just making their way to the surface. One of them had found Nelly's torch on their way in! Yay. No wonder we couldn't find it!

Back to Sam's for our 8th dive for the day (my dive watch counting surfacing at the cave air pockets as individual dives...) We jumped in on their dock wall, didn't see much for the first 5 or so min but eventually the Mandarin fish started coming out of hiding and there were loads to see, some in good places... not sure I managed to get a good picture anyway... there was also quite a few pipe fish. Including one we thought might be pregnant.  

 

When we hopped out it was time to sort gear. Hanging some up to dry and shaking off other quicker drying stuff to take back to the hotel. Enjoyed the poolside drinks before heading back to Sam's for Dinner (they have a limited bar menu) they were meant to have live music and a bit of a celebration... it was a bit bigger than we expected. Loud. Very Loud. 

I took a break from the noise and walked out on the boat jetty and found a cool squid. While looking at the squid and a bunch of fish whirl-pooling I saw a white tip shark dart in and take something before speeding off into the dark. With that done it was time for me to head back and get some sleep :o. 

 

Day 8 - Rest (?) and Recover (and dry gear!)

Some enjoyed a later sleep in but I was still down to breakfast around 7 to find Alan already mostly finished his. We mulled around ideas for the day and some of us settled on visiting the Ngardmau Waterfall, the tallest waterfall in Micronesia, while others were going shopping and others were relaxing in their rooms. 

Our pickup was 930 am and it was about a 35min drive, with our driver Ben getting upset at the slow drivers, otherwise I reckon he could have cracked 30min... $10 entry to the falls area, but it didn't look like a whole lot of that made it through to track maintenance. There use to be a monorail to/from the falls, but all that is left now is the rusting infrastructure. Some cool pitcher plants and Orchids just off the track as well. 

Lots of steps and due to yesterday's rain quite a few muddy patches. Some cool native orchids and pitcher plants lined some of the path, very pretty flowers. We eventually joined along side a creek, that was flowing towards the falls... but it turned off as we crossed it over a nice suspension bridge and we saw where the falls flowed into it. Falls themselves were fairly impressive, definitely not as tall as some we have close to home, but a nice flow and great greenery behind them.

 

 

It was definitely getting pretty hot though. High humidity to boot, but there was a cool breeze. All those steps on the way back out took a bit of effort, so we took it slow and had a few breaks. Not really a 'rest' day! On one break there was a cool little lizard sitting on the hand rail rope... apparently. I walked right past it! At least I got to see Nelly's picture. Before we set off to the falls we noted the little shop had a decent price for Ice creams, so in the heat we all (well, definitely at least me) were really hanging out for one... but they lost power yesterday... so they didn't have any...

On the ride back to the hotel our driver got a call saying someone had dropped a card near the pay booth, and asked if it was us. We didn't get a name, or description, so it was a guessing game before a few phone tag calls later the driver got a name, it was one of us, but they would send the card with another group leader to our hotel. Phew!

When we got back Nelly and I walked down to Sam's to collect the last of our (sort of dry-ish) dive gear. They were kind enough to have a van drop us back, even though it was only a 5min walk, not having to wheel the gear back was very welcomed. The Drop Off bar had fairly reasonable prices, so we went back there for lunch. 

After lunch we went to the store to get some snacks for the trip home, the Qantas hostie mentioned that sometimes the catering on the home flight form Palau can be a little light on... Luckily the mini-mart also had Ice cream! 

I then jumped into the pool... might as well use it once... and sit on their in-pool stalls to finish the last of our duty free scotch. Others came down and we got a card game going until it was time to get ready for dinner.

 

Back to the Taj for our farewell dinner was a fantastic choice. We had a mixed table meal again and everything tasted amazing. Craig read out a few 'awards' for the silly things we did over the week and I think we could all collectively agree that The Taj gets the award for the best meals of the trip. Soon though it was time for bed, our last night in Palau.

Day 9 - Homeward Bound. 

Up a bit earlier to pack away gear. Mostly dry, with just my tech shorts a tiny bit damp still. Down for breakfast for another good feed... though the hash browns were hollow and see through... Bacon was still nice though not how I would cook it... they even had chicken tenders in the mix today...  

Bus turned up a little early but we were mostly ready anyway. Quick traffic free drive to the Airport and Nelly made sure to make time for a Geo-Cache in the car park before checking in. The Airport was like a ghost town when we arrived. Slowly a few more people trickled in. 

I think this might be the only Airport I have ever been in with a fancy departure board and only one flight up on the schedule. Other smaller airports I've been in also only had 1 flight, but they were so small that they didn't have/need a departure board... Another game of cards started while we were waiting while some read books and others took advantage of the free WiFi. 

Flight was half empty again so we were able to spread out this time too. Nice way to fly! At 6 hours it's just enough time to fit in 3 in-flight movies. The warning about snacks was somewhat justified, no hot meal service, but a decent snack pack with dried fruit, chocolate biscuits, olives and a few other nibbles.  

 

After landing we had the usual Customs and Immigration fun, but it didn't take too long. Due to the waterfall walk we had to declare our shoes, but we gave them a good clean in the hotel before we left so we got waved through without issue.  

Lift home (thanks mum!) via take-away for dinner. It was a fantastic trip, though living expenses over there were a bit higher than I remember... Good to be home, unpack all the dive gear ready for tomorrow... still a bit of washing to do before the trip is officially done :o

Thanks again to my dive buddies for making it another smooth and easy trip. The Sam's crew was good to dive with and its great Yuki and Danny took our experience into account when leading our dives! Big thanks to Bax, our skipper for the week, dropping us in the right spot and taking care of surface watch too!