The Solway Lass

I've been crazy-busy since getting back but finally have a moment to breathe and thought I'd work in another post.

I first saw a photo of Whitehaven Beach about two years ago. I've been obsessed ever since. When we decided to plan a trip to Australia, we knew we couldn't pass it up. We love boats and sailing and decided to see Whitehaven and the rest of the Whitsundays on the sea.

There are a lot of party boats leaving out of Queensland's Airlie Beach but I think we found a good one. There were some very young backpackers on board but the rest of the group was is their twenties - making us the old foagies (and I'm still in my twenties!). Drinking a beer with a guy born in 1992 is something that was difficult to get used to. A CERTAIN SOMEBODY celebrated his birthday on board, the crew helped me to arrange a cake but the complimentary prosecco was best enjoyed the next day at sunset.

Our boat was the Solway Lass. She's a wooden tall ship with two masts - she was gorgeous when all sails were up. Built in 1902, she's criss-crossed the globe as she traded from Dutch to British to Scottish to German and finally to Australian possession when she was purchased for Whitsunday Cruises. Quite a change from her original cargo ship days carrying coal, produce, and stone.
We slept in a tiny compartment down below but it did the trick. No sailing at night but when we set off early the first morning, the rocking did get to me a bit. Nevermind though, the fresh air outside did the trick. A quick dip into the water (making sure to wear the scuba suit protecting against deadly invisible jellyfish - no joke, basically my worst fear - an invisible enemy) was even better.

It's hard to decide what we liked more, our time on or off the boat. On board, we had the gorgeous islands, crystal clear waters, cool breezes, and a rope swing. Ashore, well, stay tuned....