Hervey Bay

I was invited up to the University of Southern Queensland's Hervey (pr Harvey) Bay campus to present a regional development seminar to local leaders this afternoon. We arrived however two days ago - Dot is accompanying me on the trip. Hervey Bay is a nice destination and, unlike most of the east coast of Australia, has incredibly calm waters as the pictures show. The Bay is protected from ocean swells by Fraser Island lying off-shore - the largest sand island in the world being 120+ km long (75 miles). As one of the pictures below shows, the island is also quite hilly. It was taken in the soft light of dawn.

Hervey Bay's main reputation (other than as a jumping off point for Fraser Island) is as a whale sanctuary. Whales migrate here from Antarctica in about May and they stay as long as 6 months to calve in the warm and shallow waters of the bay and raise their offspring for the long swim southwards. Still, it's not whale-watching season right now and very warm and humid at the end of summer and at about 25 degrees south - just outside the tropics - the temperature is hovering around 29C and it rains on and off during the day. It lies about 760 km north of Armidale, a good 9 hours drive with breaks.

We're staying at the posh end of Hervey Bay at the Pepper's Pier resort. The photos show the 5 star resort (paid for by USQ!) and one of the images was taken from half way along Pepper's Pier, which is shown in another photo.

This long jetty has been in situ for about a century and was used to export local sugar cane. A railway ran its entire length to deliver the cane to waiting ships until about 1960 when that trade stopped and it was then used to import fuel oil. At the entrance to the pier is a statue of a young boy holding what I think is a whale! Hervey Bay is built up most of the way around with tourist and retirement facilities and has a population now of about 70,000 people, so it's not small. And the entire beach front - all 18km of it - has a lovely walking track behind it going from Boat Harbour in the East (pictured here) to Point Vernon to the north-west and part of the track is also shown here at the Boat Harbour end.

Dot has enjoyed walking and driving around the district, but my time has, alas, been spent in committees, talking to people over cups of coffee, and writing my presentation. My walks have been from about 6am to 7am in the morning when the climate is nice and cool! Just around the corner from us are are some lovely homes - I wouldn't mind the one shown and a beautiful Moreton Bay Fig tree which as has just about strangled its host!

AS