Whitsunday Islands, Australia: Hydeaway Bay

Hydeaway Bay lives up to its name, it is a tiny, unspoilt hamlet nestled at the end of a gravel road.

There are no holiday crowds, busy traffic or noisy shopping centres, just plenty of opportunity and space to relax ‘mess about on the water’ or fish. Hydeaway Bay can be reached by taking the Airlie Beach turnoff on the Bruce Highway, then following the signs to Dingo Bay. Hydeaway Bay is a turning off of this road. It is found north of Proserpine. The last 10 km of gravel road is rough, but easily travelled by a normal car.

There is a caravan park and Camping area with powered and non – powered sites, just 250 metres from the beach. A small shop here has most essentials, but does not stock fresh meat or vegetables; they must be purchased on the way. There is a good chance of catching your own feed here; there are Spanish mackerel, mangrove jack, jew, bream and flathead to be found in the waters. It is also possible to gather black – lipped rock oysters from the rocks at low tide. Hydeaway Bay’s crescent shaped beach is one of the most beautiful places in the world to fish at sunrise or sunset.

Because of the isolated location, wildlife is abundant in and around the Camping area. It is not unusual for kangaroos, wallabies and potoroos to wander amongst the caravans and tents; and also a multitude of birdlife can be seen and heard at feeding time.

Hydeaway Bay is the ultimate retreat, away from the pressure of modern day life. So take a trip, turn off your mobile phone, leave the computer unplugged and take the time to re – connect with nature for a day or two, or even longer if you like it.