Heron Island - Part 2

The beaches on Heron Island are stunning white and mostly empty since there are no day tourists this far out from the mainland. Only the people who stay at the resort. One can walk around the island in less than an hour. There is always something to look at. Lots of birds, coral, giant clams and sea cucumbers at low tide and at high tide the reef sharks and stingrays coming in close to the beach to feed on smaller fish. There is also lots of poisonous life in the water. One of the small cones has a nasty sting with enough poison to kill a human being.

Since this small coral cay is situated right on the reef, by low tide you can walk ankle deep in water all the way out to the drop off where the deep blue ocean begins and the waves crush.

Giant clams come in beautiful colors, purple, blue, turquoise, pink.

Being a Chiropractic Neurologist I just had to take a picture of this coral. And yes, the offiicial name is Brain Coral.

Heron Island is all about turtles! This time of the year Loggerhead and Green Turtles come up on the beach to lay their eggs. Every night or early morning during high tide they seek up to the highest point and dig a hole with their front fins, big enough to fit themselves.

Then they dig a 50 cm deep vase formed hole with their back fins where they lay 100-120 white eggs, the size of ping pong balls. When they are done they cover up the eggs with sand and return to the sea. About two months later the eggs break and the little turtle hatchlings run out to the sea.  A grown up turtle is not mature until she is 30-40 years old. She always returns to the exact same island and spot she was born herself to lay eggs. And that after having been roaming oceans or thousands of miles! I didn’t know about the turtle laying eggs when I booked the four nights at Heron Island but what a nice surprise!

And off she goes. .. back to see, not even looking back once.

This big one returned to sea too late when the tide was low and got trapped behind some rocks. She’d have to wait for the next high tide to come. However she was gone a couple of hours later so she must have chosen to make the strenuous crawl over the rocks.

This big one returned to sea too late when the tide was low and got trapped behind some rocks. She’d have to wait for the next high tide to come. However she was gone a couple of hours later so she must have chosen to make the strenuous crawl over the rocks.