Staying at Cid Harbour, Whitsunday Peak walk

Wednesday 12^th July 2017

Unfortunately the weather forecast was correct and it is already blowing 25 knots this morning with the boat sailing around on the anchor. We will see if it abates before moving on, as it is expected to be stronger North of here. There is still plenty to do at Cid Harbour so we are in no hurry.

After breakfast, we hop in the dinghy and motor into Sawmill Beach. It is now gusting over 30 knots, so it is a bit of a bumpy dinghy ride but we manage to keep dry. We decided that we might as well do the walk to Whitsunday Peak. It is a pretty steep climb and a good workout.

The destruction from Cyclone Debbie is apparent everywhere, and it must have been a major effort by National Parks to clear the walking trail of all of the debris.

By the time we reached the summit, everyone was ready for a rest  and the view as usual was spectacular. On the western side we get a great view looking back down into Cid Harbour and the Molle Islands. On the Eastern side, it is blowing a gale and the breeze is very cold, so we do not spend much time admiring the view of Hamilton Island and to the South East.

Looking down on Cid Harbour from the Summit

Looking SE towards Hamilton Island

Once rested we wound our way back down the trail, which was a lot easier than going up. As we get closer to the water level the wind becomes a bit more tolerable, and once back in the dinghy and heading back to Mica, we move very slowly to avoid getting wet from the wind waves.

I had another look at the updated weather forecast, and decided to stay anchored here, as there was no better shelter anywhere else.

By now Cid Harbour is full of boats as arrivals to get out of the strong winds have been steady all day. There are very few departures !

The fish have also gone to sleep, obviously also unimpressed with the weather. It should ease over night and we will head off to Stonehaven in the morning after breakfast.

Another great sunset