Heron Island - Day 1

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After our relatively comfortable trip on the Greyhound we arrived at the Gladstone bus stop a couple of hours before we needed to checkin on our ferry, so decided to walk the 2km to the terminal which turned out to be relatively straight forward.

Once we were checked in it wasn't long before our ferry transfer to Heron Island departed in the bright sunshine, and as there were 20 guests aboard there was loads of space.

During the two hour cruise we got to see a couple of infommercials on the island telling us all about the wildlife and the islands luxurious facilities that includes private secluded island you can glamp (posh camping) on for $1000 a night with your own chief.

When we arrived at the Island the first thing you come to is the wreck of the HMS Protector sunk there to act as a wave break; although apparently its a great site for snorkeling with abundance of fish and reef sharks.

The first thing we were given upon arrival was a cocktail before listening to the welcome speech; we were happy to listen as we sipped our drinks! The indulgence continued as the next stop was the restaurant with an all you can eat buffet of roast lamb, chicken and beef accompanied by a selection of salads. We filled our faces to make up for the last few days of eating to a budget!

Haven eaten far too much for lunch we went to check out our room before exploring the island. Keen to see turtles on our visit we stopped in at information centre to listen to their briefing on turtle spotting. With the sun starting to Fall in the afternoon sky and our recently gained knowledge we headed out to North Beach to see the tide go out encase any turtles were hatching. Unfortunately we didn't see any turtles although it was clearly evident there was plenty of activity out there and as we rounded the corner to Shark Bay it was easy to understand why with the dorsal fins poking out the water and the ripples of water from the schools of fish being chased. We even saw a small ray jump out the water! After a couple of further close encounters with Shovel Nosed Rays and Black Tipped Reef Sharks we headed round to the wreck to catch a couple of last pictures of the sunset as the spectrum of colours across the sea was amazing.

It was soon dinner time, and with a wide selection we happily picked out Morton Bay Bugs, Beef Carpaccio, Roast Duck, Fillet Steak, Chocolate Mud Cake and a selection of Cheeses to help put a bit of weight back on!

Still not having seen a turtle on the Island we went back to the beach armed with a torch, and when Will shone that into the bushes we were dive bombed by a Mutton Bird chick. The next thing we came across was a Ghost Crab which Will regrettably picked picked up as it pinched his thumb! Further down the beach we found a large hermit crab who was less aggressive! Our next discovery of a Huntsman Spider was somewhat surprising given we were on the beach!

Continuing our search we found a large number of turtle tracks heading towards the sea, then we had the unfortunate luck of finding a dead baby turtle that looked as it had been killed by a large crab that was sitting next to it, although he too was dead, so we assumed another spotter had taken revenge on the turtles behalf. Haven walked back and forth along the stretch recommended for turtle spotting without any further signs of life we decided to head for our room and enjoy a good night sleep in our personal luxury.

Make sure you look at all 22 photos!

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