A Beautiful Place to Do the Washing

Saturday 16^th June 2012

20’14.416 – 149’01.003
A Beautiful Place to Do the Washing -Tongue Bay
Tongue Bay Anchorage, Hill Inlet, Hill Inlet Lookout, Tongue Bay Beach
Gentle breeze, cloudy skies, warm day, calm seas

Hill Inlet

It is the weekend for most people but to MrJ and me it is just another day, another day to look for more adventures. 0720h and we are pulling up the anchor once again this time to move not too away, just around the corner to anchor in Tongue Bay which is the long headland that overlooks Hill Inlet and Whitehaven Beach. A beautiful place to be and a beautiful place to do some chores, the washing, baking and cooking all get done.

MrJ pumped some water out of the water tanks into the jerry can to be able to fill out little plastic twin tub washing machine for each load of washing and rinsing. MrJ like does the washing, he likes to do the washing with our little machine as it enables him to be able to work out how to save water by reusing the water as much as he can. I don’t mind this at it then leaves me free to do my bread and cake baking and any other cooking there is to be done in the galley. This day I had made a big hot pot of bacon, split pea, barley, lentils, dried beans and vegies in my Shuttle Chef slow cooker.

Gary on the beach

Gary and Mercedes off Forever Dreaming had dinghied ashore to do the Hill Inlet Lookout walk when the tide was on high. This would show the beautiful Hill Inlet on the other side of the headland full of water. It was later in the day round 1400h before MrJ and I put our dinghy in the water. Taking Gary and Mercedes with us to see the view at low tide, low water, MrJ first tried to get the dinghy ashore at the Tongue Bay Beach but the tide was too low exposing the rocky coral top and reef before the stony beach making impossible for our laden dinghy to get over. Next trick was to dinghy around the headland and onto the top end of the long white sandy beach of Hill Inlet.

Lava Rock

The sea was a little choppy and the water spray was coming over the dinghy’s bow getting everyone wet. MrJ soon had us at the beach where the sloppy sea was breaking in small wavelets onto the shore. Gary was the first to jump out turning the dinghy’s nose into the swell as he did. Mercedes and I both jumped out, me tightly clutching my so called waterproof bag that carried my good camera. MrJ then drove the dinghy back around the headland, aiming to row it into the other beach and was to meet us up the track on the hill which he did and then we all walked the track up to the Hill End Lookout.

Colourful berries

Before leaving the beach Gary, Mercedes and I did a little exploring along the shoreline. We found the sand to be so fine just like a fine powder and so white against that blue, blue sky. The rock formations along the shoreline showed evidence of ancient volcanic activity with the remains of a huge lava flow, flowing all the way to the sea. It was all so very interesting and wonderful!

At the Hill Inlet Lookout we could see for miles and miles. Our eyes could sweep the vast low sand dunes left behind in the inlet by the receding tide. Whiteness everywhere with the pattern of the little water courses everywhere. There were tiny ant like people way below and a few tourists’ boats where the sand met the sea adding a splash of extra colour to the whiteness and the brilliant blue. How could one but not applaud such a magnificent scene?

Mercedes with cracked cocnut

After coming down from the hill and coming down from the adrenaline rush that seeing such a sight can cause, we sat on the little beach in Tongue Inlet to wait for a bit more tide to come in before making our way back to our boats in the dinghy. The beach was covered with coral sand and sand with a multitude of very tiny marine life hidden under the larger pieces of plate coral. I also found tiny spiders in their webs hidden in the rock crevices of the old lava flows. The water’s edge was covered in large rock coral formations with colourful live soft corals throughout. This we could see as we gently rowed the dinghy out into deeper water before MrJ fired the outboard engine.

That evening Gary and Mercedes came over for Sundowners. What a wonderful way to finish a great day, with good friends at sunset.

MrJ goes for the dinghy