TROPIC WONDERS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22444, 13 June 1936, Page 16

TROPIC WONDERS

IDLE HOUR'S CRUISE

barrier reef region CORAL ISLETS VISITED p'v RARE BEAUTY OF SCENE v / BY IVAN FALMF.It In the following article, the second of two, a Now Zealand member of th« i crew of the 32ft. American ketch Idle Hour, in which Dwiprht Long ig making a world cruise, describes the passaee ■ ~ through the Barrier Reef region to Townsville, on the trip from Sydney to Port Moresby. TOWNSVILLE. May 30 The stop at Lady Elliot Islet was * the first the Idle Hour made after leaving Sydney. The owner and skip, per, Dwight Long, went ashore to in- . quire from the lighthouse keepers about '.* the anchorage at Lady Musgravo Islet, . 22 miles further north. After a good run of three hours we reached Lady Musgravo Islet, the most southerly of the Bunker group of coral formations. It has a pass into the lagoon, which ' provides a calm anchorage.

Negotiating the pass was a hairraising experience. On the outer edge of the reef it is no more than 50ft. wide and our motor had to contend with a strong head wind. Twice the four-knot current running with ->the tide into the lagoon carried Idle Hour dangerously near ugly coral heads. Once inside wo had still to pick our .way cautiously among coral patches—"niggerheads," as they are called in this part of the world. It was a relief to drop anchor in the beautiful, bluegreen lagoon. Exciting Goat Hunt Next day we explored Lady Musgrave Islet. It is only 660 yards long, oval-shaped, and covered with trees, with tangled undergrowth and occasional grassy patches. It is a good example of a pseudo-atoll. It is on the leeward side of a reef enclosing a lagoon two miles long and a mile wide; Formerly the islet was over-run with goats, but constant visits by tourists have greatly reduced the herd and made the survivors very wary. It was only after a systematic search that we came upon a herd of about a dozen goats. A most exciting hunt ensued.

Timi, and Bill, the Englishman, each caught a small kid. Then we drove the rest of the herd down to the beach. We all raced after them, but onlv Bill, the English man, was successful. With a flying tackle worthy of a ".Rugger" international, he brought down a fine half-grown goat. That raised our total "bag" to threeenough fresh meat for many «days. We had already eaten some "kid's" meat given to us by the lighthouse keepers of Lady Elliot Islet and found it delicious. V

Exploring a Coral Reef As the tide receded, baring the reef, we went exploring among the coral. As the water cascaded toward the outer edge of the reef we saw entrancing visions of life in the coral. In, crystal clear pools there were beehe-de-mer, red and blue starfish,^clams, crabs and sea-urchins. With the Tahitian boy for mentor, we sampled many varieties of raw shellfish. Bill revelled in the reef, for, of the four of us, he was the only one who had not been W on a tropic isle before. With the wind still holding strong" '■ from the south-east we headed north . again. We skirted to the.eastward of the two other islets .of the Bunker. Group—Fairfax and Hoskyn—and on past the Capricorn Group, a cluster of over 20 coral islets or reefs. As we , passed close to North Reef, we saw the skeleton of the 4000-ton inter-State steamer Cooma, wrecked 10 years ago. North Reef, the most northerly part , of the Capricorn Group, comprises a very small sand cay covered with stunted foliage and situated on the west side of an almost solid reef a mile in diameter. On it is a lighthouse. We hastened on through the southernmost of tho Northumberland Islands and to the eastward of St. Bees Island and through tho Sir James Smith Group. All the islands of the inner reef * are high and rocky, representing mountains which once ranged round the coastline of the continent. South of the Sir James Smith Group they are barren and uninteresting, but farther north they are wooded and take on a rare beauty. Dawn in Whitsunday Passage We reached Whitsunday Passage at dawn. We had sailed all the previous night instead of anchoring, as it was a clear, starry night. We had stood double watches as we picked our way carefully through a maze of islands and rocks. When dawn broke we were almost surrounded by islands. Purple merged into pink as we ghosted along oil a smooth sea. Then, in one stupendous moment, the whole sprang into being. It was as though we were in some New Zealand sound or Norwegian fjord. Tho Whitsunday Passage, which is used by steamers taking the inner route to Torres Strait and on to such places as Singapore, Java, New Guinea and the Far East, is 30 miles long, the least width being two miles. In response to an invitation received by letter in S.vdney, we visited Long Island, where 3lr. . Walter Tronson has a property of 400 acres fronting Port Molle, tho safest anchorage among the islands of tho 1 hitsunday Group. The island is halfway along the Whitsunday Passage on > the west side, only lialf-a-mile from the Queensland coast in one part. We reached Port Molle by way of Long Sound between the island and the mainland. Here we" encountered a btrong tide rip and, in attempting to avoid the worst of it, ran aground on a shoal inshore. Fortunately we were able to pole tho vessel off without undue difficulty.

Luscious Tropical Fruit In addition to having a splendid an* chorage, the Tronson property is » glorious spot. It is only a mile from the Queensland coast and 14 miles from the nearest mainland settlement, Cannonvaie. The island lias a wonderful combination of tropical and sub-tropi-cal foliage. There are coconuts and bananas, paw-paw and pineapples, mangoes and sweet potatoes. Oysters are there for the picking, and iish abound in the coral reef which fringes the foreshore beyond the pearly white beach. From the hills at either end of the bay one commands a magnificent view, of tho Whitsunday Passage, along which overseas vessels pass continually. From one peak we could distinguish 37 islands of the inner Barrier. Timi, the Tahitian boy, who had been out of tho tropics for nearly a year, was glad to be back in a warm • zone again. The first thing he did when we landed at Long Island was to climb the nearest coconut tree. And then he went fishing. We spent many pleasant hours on Long Island fishing and swimming, gathering oysters and tasting again luscious tropical fruits, tramping through the bush and riding on horseback. As if at our command the strong .s south-east wind, which had carried us northward, lulled to a gentle breeze tlie day after our arrival. After a stay of four days we reluctantly weigne anchor and resumed our course for man Island, 20 miles distant. The 1° mile run from there to Townsville tv accomplished in good time. ✓