Happy Birthday Flight

The day dawned early, sparkling, warm, and full of promise. It was Sunday, 7^th August, Johnny’s 25^th birthday. Johnny is the cornerstone of the Seabird crew. Our ears are assaulted regularly with shouts of “Johnny!” broadcasting from the mouth of Michael, Johnny’s father, as he is issued orders to hoist, haul or hurl! The long-suffering Johnny disserved his day in the limelight and wow did he have a day not soon to be forgotten!

At 08:30 the Seabird crew arrived onboard Irene IV. They were treated to a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday, sung by the Irene IV crew of 6, all lined up, at attention on the port side deck. A scrumptious breakfast followed. We toasted our good friend with Mimosas all around, soaked up with eggs, bacon, sweet potato hash browns, smoked salmon, asparagus, goat cheese, muffins, breads, berries, granola, and yogurt. A breakfast of kings befitting our birthday boy.

Louis had been beavering away over the last few days booking a special treat for the crews of both boats with perfect birthday timing. At 11:30, after Rob, ably assisted by George and Freddie, had washed up the breakfast bombshell, we walked, full of anticipation, to a prearranged meeting point. A white bus, adorned with airplane graphics, (clue #1), greeted us, and we all clambered aboard. Beck, our driver, showed us a pre-flight safety video, (clue #2), the video we all have seen a million times, during which we usually fall into a daydreaming daze. This time our curiosity was aroused. We listened with rapt attention as the penny began to drop. We were going on a small aircraft flight around the Whitsunday islands and the Great Barrier Reef!

The excitement was evident. Ten eager bodies piled into the Cessna Caravan, 12-seater aircraft, after a short safety reminder from our pilot, Jai. We were asked to load from the front, because if too many were in the rear, the plane would tip up! We had all previously been weighed while in the waiting lounge, the weight results were sensitively hidden from view and were never spoken out loud!

The hour-long flight was a rainbow of exhilaration.  We took off from Hamilton Island airport with Johnny in the co-pilot seat, lifejackets strapped to our waists, seat belts fastened, anticipation palpable. It was a windy day, but Jai (and Johnny with David Clarke headphones’ in place) kept us steady and away from any turbulence. High above these beautiful Whitsunday Islands we experienced Google Maps in real time. The nuanced island shapes, the curvaceous sand banks, the shimmering, rippling waves, transparent, revealing copious charms below- all added to the sensational experience. Cries of whales, turtles, coral reefs, and more punctuated our astounding vista. Passing over the dazzling white sand of Whitehaven beach, on Whitsunday Island, (the biggest in the group), whetted our appetite for a stroll along the reputedly squeaky sand. The sand particles are triangular, rather than circular, which creates a squeak as you walk along. We saw abandoned resorts, destroyed by Cyclone Debbie in 2017, uninhabited islands, and busy marinas, anchorages, and resorts. The pièce de résistance was flying over the outer reef, the Great Barrier Reef itself. We have all seen aerial photos of the reef, however, to experience it in the flesh is quite something. A swirling array of colors, contours, and textures spread out beneath us, (including the famous heart shaped reef), resembling a melting mixture of sugar and butter being stirred in a saucepan. The mountainous valleys and peaks beneath the water, were tinted according to depth and height, forming nature’s magnificent masterpiece – the largest structure on Earth created by living creatures (350,000 square kilometers), the Great Barrier Reef.

The hour raced by and soon it was time to land. We were all overcome with delight, gushing with enthusiasm. Like children back from a day at the beach we basked in our reveries, sleepy now and ready for a nap. What a day! And it was only 13:30!

Join us if you can:

Our new plastic bottle pledge is to avoid, if at all possible, buying any drinks that come in plastic bottles. Even though PET, which is the stuff of plastic bottles, is very recyclable, we find that most countries just burn them, as they do not have the facilities to recycle adequately. Australia is of course an exception and has a fabulous recycling infrastructure.

Why not join us in this pledge?