Finding Nemo and coral reefs

The locals call Keswick Island "the treasured island" and we think so too. It's an idyllic piece of paradise with beautiful bays, corals and scenery.

We left Mackay Marina early on Monday morning for the islands of Keswick and St. Bees.  It took just over 3 hours of motoring all the way as there was no wind.  Robert is very happy with the repairs done to the propshaft and the engine runs smoother than when we first got the boat. There were sea swells probably as a result of the previous three days of strong wind so it was a bumpy ride and we were very glad to reach the narrow Egremont Passage which separates the two islands and anchored in a calm, sheltered bay at Keswick Island. No sooner had we anchored than a whale surfaced nearby and blew a welcome to us.

Keswick and St. Bees are relatively quiet islands owing to being far south of the Whitsundays island group and well away from the tourist center of activity. Most of these islands are national parks with at least a dozen diving and snorkeling sites. Keswick Island has a short runway for light aircraft and it was interesting to watch a small plane land and take off next to the sea.

After we anchored, we took a ride in the dinghy across to St. Bees, checked out a dive spot and a short walk on a beach.  The next day we motored Pegasos back along the passage to snorkel at Homestead Bay. At last! - we found a coral reef to explore and saw heaps of different coral and colorful tropical fish. The coral is not as vividly colored as in Thailand, but there are enough shapes and variety to make it very interesting. We didn't see clownfish but there was several species to make up for the missing Nemo. We went back to our calm anchorage for the night.

Wednesday morning was wind-free and sunny so we decided to visit the 'world class' diving site at the other end of Keswick Island. We packed up the dinghy for a day out and off we went. However, the other end of the island had a red sludgy-like pollen slick on the water. Too off-putting for me but Robert had a good time exploring the protected coral. No anchoring is allowed in this area.

Back at our boat, we found the water clear, clean and calm - my preferred type of sea water and I had a lovely swim in clear blue water. Robert snorkeled closer to the fringing coral reefs along the shoreline and saw many more fish than at the morning site. We needn't have gone far, coral and  lots of fish are in our backyard.

The next day we went ashore and walked along a tarred road to a look-out point. There are about a dozen houses scattered about, all with magnificent views and landscaped with the natural spectacular scenery. There are not many people about and it seems that many of the houses are holiday homes. The chief mode of transport along the narrow steep roads are golf carts.

Since the water was crystal clear we decided to revisit the site known as the Coral Gardens. Clear enough for me to snorkel too and I so enjoyed the many different types of corals in muted colors and all the tropical reef fish.  It was fabulous. Robert took some photos with his underwater camera, a few are at the end of this blog.

During the night we heard a few loud noises in the water near us and went on deck to investigate. It was a whale surfacing and blowing about 30 meters from the boat. It was too dark to see much of the whale but we could see the phosphorescent glow around it as it moved about. A bit scary to find one so close to us, but it was a magnificent sight in the dark night.

The next morning, we went ashore to the local shop to buy honey. The shop is only open for 2 hours a day but although we arrived at the right time, no one was there. In fact we've never seen the shop open. Business must be very good.  There is a story about the Keswick Island honey. The island's bees are fairly unique in that unlike most other bees around the world, these bees are disease free and are often used as breeding stock for the mainland colonies. The reason for using an isolated island for the bees is to maintain genetics. Keswick Island is far enough from the mainland to ensure that the drones the queen mates with can only come from the hives on the island.

On the subject of insects, we've often seen large butterflies accompanying the boat as we sail, seemingly far from the mainland. One of our comments on windless days is that the butterflies are moving faster than the boat. We also get visited by a type of swift that flies under the canopy to check us out. The seagulls like to perch on the dinghy engine and persist in coming back when chased off.

We have been on Keswick Island for 5 days and may stay another day or two. The setting is beautiful, the weather is lovely and we want to take advantage of snorkeling these wonderful coral sites around the island.

The Coral Gardens