Scribe Rick Phipps
There were three of us who took part in this trip, the boats being paddled being two Nordkapps and a North Sea Tourer. Those taking part were myself, my brother Tony, and his and now my good friend Tony Preen. Because of our diverse residents (ie. Tony is at Australian National University, Canberra; Tony Preen at James Cook University, Townsville; and myself at University in Armidale) there was considerable car travel involved before we could put paddle to water. However when that moment came we were full of enthusiasm to get under way.

Although we had been planning the trip for a fair time all three of us had been unable to sit down and figure out the fine details. The letters sent had been our only previous communication, however all was well. Our only major handicap was lack of experience in real sea touring which reflected on our slightly ill equipped expedition. Our enthusiasm and determination however overcame these aspects.

DAY 1 (10th May)
We left Townsville after picking up Tony Preen and his borrowed North Sea Tourer. Drove south to Proserpine and bought our last supplies and then went on to Shute Harbour.

After a slight lunch and final packing we left Shute Harbour at about 1400. The weather was fine with about a 5 knot wind from the north and under these conditions we made good time. We were planning to find a good camp spot on Whitsunday Island and after short stops on South Molle and Cid Islands we made camp on a coral beach on Whitsunday Island.

Conditions were good at this stage. However it was colder than all of us had expected.

DAY 2
The wind had switched to the south (10 - 20 knots). We were on
the water and paddling by 0900. We stopped briefly on Hamilton and then made a short jaunt across to Dent to fill up all our water containers. After considerable admiring of our boats and intentions by the tourists that were on the island we paddled on to the end of Hamilton Island where we had lunch. The usual cheese and biscuits with chocolate etc. After this we began the longer paddle to Lupton Island. This was not where we intended to camp since we had thought that Hazelwood would have provided better camp-sites than Lupton. However on inspection this proved not to be so and we found a good sandy beach with a grassy spot on Lupton.

At this stage the wind was not of great concern, however the sun had left us early in the day and conditions did not look promising to the south, and as we were setting up camp it began to rain. This rain was fortunately only light and passed shortly. However it did continue to shower throughout the night.

DAY 3
Strong winds, about 30 knots, combine with no prospects of clear skies to the south so we decided to spend the day land bound. We walked over the island to a sheltered cove where we swam and looked at some good coral.

We managed to get a crayfish for lunch and three nice fish for dinner.

DAY 4
The wind was still very strong and the seas quite big but the weather, cloudwise, seemed to be clearing southward. Not wanting to be forced to stay yet another day we set off about 0800, battling south-east into the strong winds for about a mile until we rounded the southern point of Lupton. The reefs forced us to go south instead of north between Lupton and Hazelwood.

The seas just around the southern point of Lupton were extremely rough and Tony was forced to roll twice. However once heading north with the wind behind us we made exceptional time. Surfing with the chop and swell going our way made the day a great success. The lunch stop on Border Island was a welcome stop, but once paddling again we continued to surf the chop  up to the north-east point of Hook Island. Once around this point we were instantly in calm conditions. The sharp change from the very strong winds and rough seas into calm sheltered waters was a relief. Although the paddle was long it was made easier by the wind behind our backs. We were not by any means untired and the calm paddling up to Butterfly Bay where we made camp was good.

The skies cleared considerably by night-fall and in the sheltered bay where we made camp it was very pleasant.

DAY 5
Sunny weather at last.

With the sun out and a good reef we resolved to spend the day here. We swam over the coral and managed to spear a fish for lunch.

In the afternoon we made a quick trip to Hayman Island to replenish our water supplies. This was very easy paddling with empty boats and we soon returned to our sheltered bay.

The two Tonys climbed some of Mr Ansett’s coconut palms on Hayman Island to gather some of the nuts. This was done discretely since we thought someone may have thought it a bit strange. It was amazing to see the tourists were paying for their artificial environment that was not typical at all of the real beauty on the untouched outer islands such as Lupton. We found their tropical paradise quite amusing.

DAY 6
Sunny but very windy.

We left the camp-site in Butterfly Bay at about 0800 and once out of the sheltered waters battled southward against the adverse conditions. It was here above all that the Nordkapp proved superior. Although we did not paddle all that far the conditions made the distance seem far greater than it was on the map. We had a fairly long rest at lunch.

It was here that we decided to change our course a bit. We originally intended to go south to Cid Island and then across the passage the next day to Shute Harbour. But the strong winds and chop that would have been coming straight into us decided us to paddle across the passage to one of the Mole Islands where we could find a suitable camping spot. This, although about the same distance to Cid, we felt would have been a slightly easier paddle.

So we set out on our new course.

It was this stretch where we made our biggest mistake of the whole trip and one that will never be forgotten. Under the adverse conditions we were separated by quite some distance and if any mishap had befallen anyone at that stage we hated to dream of the possible consequences. We all made our way back together however without a mishap much to our relief but it did not stop a few minutes of heated exchange. However we soon realised no one was really responsible and we made our way to a sandy spot on the small beach on the island between North and South Mole. When we landed we
felt a great sense of achievement. It was by far the hardest day’s paddle we had ever done and having completed it with success made it all the more gratifying.

The sunset on this our last evening was great, and since Tony Preen had been waiting the whole trip to capture a sunset, the day came to a great end. As it was to be our last night out camping we thought the trip was near its end and were looking forward to the small trip to Shute Harbour.

DAY 7
The lazy days paddle was really only 5 miles and an hour or so paddle.

The wind had dropped to about 15 knots and it was a relatively easy paddle back to civilisation and the end of our first sea touring expedition. We all were sad it had ended and the hard days paddle was forgotten and would have been done again instead of finishing the trip.

We packed the car up and tied down the boats which dwarfed my brother’s small Corolla. After a very much enjoyed counter lunch at Proserpine we set off back to Townsville to get Tony Preen back in time for an excursion the following day to the mangrove swamps. And also to a much talked about game of canoe polo in Townsville that night.

The trip was really incredible and the three of us were and still are anxious for more. It will be a while before the beauty and wildlife seen on this our first trip will be forgotten.

A fitting epilogue was that Tony Preen came fourth in the Queensland K1 championship and won the C1 event at the same meeting.