We’ve had the most incredible week here in the Whitsundays, we were visited by Santa, and almost overrun by pirates!
Santa needs a little R&R before the big day, so he took some time out in the Whitsundays to soak up some sunshine, and go sailing on the Derwent Hunter, before heading back to the North Pole to get back to the biggest job of the year.
Turns out ol’ Santa is quite agile! He even popped up the mast to check out the delivery route into Hayman Island and some of the bareboat anchorages, to make sure all the children who have been good receive their Christmas presents this year.
Christmas and School Holiday Special
As our Christmas present to you, you can travel with Derwent Hunter at a discounted rate. Book now for travel right up until 20 January 2017.
Adults sail for just $175pp, concessions $155pp.
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What days are we operating?
We will be sailing every day throughout the holidays except Christmas Eve (booked out!), Christmas Day, New Years Eve and New Years Day.
Freeze! Mannequin Challenge!
The Derwent Hunter was overrun by pirates this week, and what a good looking bunch of pirates they were too! Unfortunately, it didn’t go so well for our crew. See if you can spot all the crew members and the predicaments they find themselves in!
(There’s one “mannequin” crew member struggling to keep a straight face, and you can see why!)
False headlines give bad impression of Reef health
Claims in the media that the Great Barrier Reef is dead are irresponsible and untrue. Headlines that disempower people will not help us protect the Reef’s long-term future. GBRMPA’s preliminary analysis of last summer’s coral bleaching event indicates its impact was highly variable across the Great Barrier Reef with an overall coral mortality of 22 per cent.
The most severe bleaching occurred in the remote northern third of the Marine Park, which experienced the greatest heat stress, while most reefs south of the Port Douglas–Cairns region escaped major impacts. This includes the reef in the Whitsundays region of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
The Reef is a very large and resilient ecosystem. While the bleaching this year was very serious, recent studies have shown that in the three years prior to the bleaching, coral cover increased by 19 per cent across the Marine Park.
The Great Barrier Reef still remains in a much better state than many other coral reefs around the world; however, the severity of the global mass bleaching event reinforces the need for a concerted international effort on climate change as well as national and local actions to reduce all other pressures on the Reef.
Our message should be one of empowerment — working together, we can make a difference.
Excerpt of a Statement from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Dr Russell Reichelt.
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Save a turtle, dugong or dolphin
If you are getting out on the water, like many in the Whitsundays will be, you can now sign up for a free online training course to better understand how to report and help stranded marine wildlife. For course details, click on the ‘Learn more’ link below.
IN BRIEF:
Who to call
To report strandings of sick, injured or dead turtles, dolphins, dugongs or whales call the RSPCA Qld on 1300 ANIMAL (1300 264 625). A Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) officer in the relevant region will be contacted with your information and will determine the appropriate response.
You will be asked to provide:
- location (GPS coordinates if possible)
- a description of what is wrong with the animal (e.g. stranded on beach, injuries, entangled in a net, injured)
- a description of the animal (type of animal—dugong, turtle, whale, dolphin; condition; size and any
- identifying tags)
- photos (if available)
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Turtle Hospital tally so far
Our on board donation tin has only been going for 3 months, and we have already managed to donate over $1000 to the Whitsunday Turtle Rescue Hospital. What an amazing cause, from our very generous guests!
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“One of the most glorious messes in the world
is the mess created in the living room
on Christmas day.
Don’t clean it up too quickly.”
-Andy Rooney
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