Thursday 27th July 2023

Well, we have finally hit the warmer weather. It was about 15°C during the night and once again I am overheating. We had a considerable amount of rain overnight which slows us down a little getting away as we wait for the tent to dry a little.

We headed off towards Airlie Beach at about 10am. Depending on the weather, the aim is to do an 8km return hike to Honeyeater Lookout, a section of the Great Walk in the Conway National Park. It is quite a steep incline, about 400m elevation. It felt pretty easy with just a day pack and we moved along quite well. The track was quite wet and slippery. We enjoyed being back in the bush, there were some good plants and fungi, but only a couple of birds along the way.

We saw a few people along the way and also at the lookout. The view was impacted by the weather as it was very overcast and hazy. All in all, it was good to be walking again. The walk was only 2:15hrs as we hotfooted it on the way down.

We then went for a drive to Shute Harbour and through the Main Street of the town for old time sakes. There were so many more resorts up on hillside than last time we were here and the marina seems to be new as well. There was a lot more development than when we were here last and it looks like there is more in the making. There were still many international back packers and a lot of young Aussie tourists as well.

We then headed on the drive to Alva Beach. We have booked a cabin so we can pack for our hike tonight and just get a bit organised before we pick the girls up on Saturday. Tomorrow we will drive to Townsville, unpack all the unnecessary stuff in the car so we can fit the girls and their packs/luggage in for our next little adventure. Hopefully the weather improves.