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The lure to live by the beach is as strong as ever, evident by the rapidly growing cluster of subdivisions forming Mackay’s Northern Beaches. However, the idyllic lifestyle comes with a catch. There is only one road in and out, which becomes clogged and congested during twice-daily peak hours.

The Member for Whitsunday Amanda Camm MP has joined with LNP Candidate for Dawson Andrew Willcox, to launch the Build It for The Beaches – No Delays petition.  

Ms Camm said in 2020, the State Government put $750,000 aside for planning works to investigate options to deal with capacity upgrades and duplication for Mackay-Bucasia Road.

“Nothing has happened since this announcement and this planning work is not scheduled to commence until 2023/24,” Ms Camm said.

One in six Mackay region residents currently live in the Northern Beaches, which is more than 16 per cent of the total population. The current approximate population of the Northern Beaches is 21,000 people. By 2036, this is expected to grow by 43 per cent, adding more than 9000 residents.  

“The fastest growing population in Mackay needs a faster connection,” Ms Camm said.

“As it stands, there is only one way in and one way out for emergency services. This is unacceptable to adequately respond to the needs of this growing population.  

“The impacts are not just being felt by Northern Beaches residents, but the broader Mackay community.  

“The Mackay-Bucasia Road has become known for long delays, traffic jams and bottlenecks. This is now a daily part of the city commute for many locals.  

“With over 2000 estimated new constituents enrolling in the Northern Beaches since I have been elected to Queensland Parliament, we call on the Minister to upgrade this road immediately,” Ms Camm said.

Andrew Willcox has joined with the Member for Whitsunday on this campaign.

“Travel to and from the Northern Beaches of Mackay should be quicker and safer than what it is,” Mr Willcox said.

“If the State Labor Government has the money put aside for planning on Mackay Bucasia Road, what are we waiting for? Let’s get on with it.”

In response, Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said the State Government has locked in funding for a business case on an upgrade of Mackay – Bucasia Road, which is due to start next year.

“This forms part of more than $1 billion worth of roads and transport projects we are delivering across the region, including the $120 million Mackay Northern Access Upgrade which will greatly improve access to the Northern Beaches,” Minister Bailey said.

“This petition is clearly just a federal election stunt,” he added.

“No more delays or excuses – let’s Build It for The Beaches,” Ms Camm said.

The Member for Whitsunday Amanda Camm MP (right) has joined with LNP Candidate for Dawson Andrew Willcox, to launch the Build It for The Beaches - ‘No Delays’ petition for an upgrade to the Mackay Bucasia Road

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The Reef Gateway Hotel in Airlie Beach has opened the doors of its onsite liquor retail outlet with a brand-new look this month.

The newest Harry Brown store is now part of one of Australia’s leading independent retail groups, providing independent store owners with the collective buying power they need to offer local customers great deals on the products they love.

The store is the biggest liquor retailer in the area, offering an impressive variety of local, national, and international wines, beers, ciders and spirits at competitive prices.

“We have tailored our range to suit local needs and have designed our store layout to help you find your favourite choice quickly,” Store Manager Steve Wright said.

“Whether you are shopping for a gift, the perfect match for your meal or searching for that hard-to-find bottle, Harry Brown staff are here to help.”

There are currently six Harry Brown outlets in Australia, with Airlie Beach the newest store, and the company was nationally crowned Best Retail Liquor at the 2021 Australian Hotels Association National Awards for Excellence for its Bracken Ridge Tavern store in Queensland.

For locals, it’s looking good and especially for those with a crafty brew inclined palette, as Harry Brown is especially well known for its extensive craft beer selection and is already offering an everyday special of 25 per cent off when purchasing any six single craft beers.

Steve Wright, store manager at the country’s newest Harry Brown

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Our local Lions Youth of the Year winner, Mac Rogers, has returned triumphant, winning the Public Speaking Award at the Lion’s district championships which were held in Townsville last weekend.

The inspiring 17-year-old is the school captain at Proserpine State High School and this was the second year in a row that he had been awarded Lions Youth of the Year, beating participants from Bowen, Whitsundays and Collinsville to secure his place.

While in Townsville, Mac competed against six other students who came from as far afield as Cairns, west of Townsville and Mackay.

Representing Zone 9, Mac was sponsored by Proserpine Lions Club and was supported by 13 fellow Lions who also attended on the night.

There were four finalists from across North Queensland - Alannah Falvo, who represented St Stephen's Catholic College in Mareeba, was the overall winner.

Aurelia Woods from Trinity Anglican School in Cairns won the Community Service Award and Barnabas Juhasz represented Townsville Grammar School from Castle

Hill.

Well known for his excellent public speaking skills, Mac was thrilled to take home the award that reflected his speciality.

“It’s been a really good opportunity to develop my public-speaking skills and I have met lots of interesting people, both Lions and students,” he said.

The Proserpine Lions Club would like to congratulate Mac on his achievements

and wish him well for his future endeavours.

Marc Rogers won the Public Speaking Award at the District Youth of the Year Finals

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For the first time in recorded history, a mass coral bleaching event in the Great Barrier Reef is occurring during the usually cooler weathers of a La Nina year.

This serious event also happens to coincide with a ten-day delegation of two Unesco scientists who will be collecting evidence that will help decide whether to classify the reef “in danger.”

The Great Barrier Reef has seen six mass bleaching events and this will be the fourth in six years.

Chief Scientist of Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority Dr David Wachenfield said that the thermal stress has accumulated across the reef, with the worst affected area being the central one.

Aerial surveys by the Marine Park Authority are occurring this week over the major tourism areas, but Dr Wachenfield said the stress was less in these areas.

"The majority of reefs surveyed from Hinchinbrook to Bowen were severely bleached, with some mortality observed at some of these reefs,” Dr Wachenfield said.

"These thermal anomalies have worsened since the start of March, which is counter to what we would normally expect in a typical March.”

Spokesperson for the Whitsunday Conservation Council (WCC), Tony Fontes, said that a change of reefs world status to ‘In Danger’ would only serve to help.

“The Reef is in danger. No amount of government spin can change that. Recognising that the Reef is in danger is the best way to protect the reef,” he said.

“Global warming, fuelled by the burning of fossil fuels, has caught up to us.”

Bleached coral

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Local tourist operators gathered at Coral Sea Marina last week to receive the news that, for the second year running, they would not have to pay an environmental charge to the Marine Park Authority.

This nominal fee is usually paid by each tourist who participates in a local tour and varies from business to business.

Jan Claxton from Ocean Rafting said that her company pays between $7 and $8 dollars per passenger.

“A lot of us are having to run discounts to keep staff and vessels running, so this will make a huge difference,” she said.

“We have eight boats and can take up to 230 people per day – when you add it all up over the last 20 years, it’s a couple of million!”

Minister for the Environment Susan Ley MP was joined by LNP candidate for Dawson Andrew Willcox and Chief Executive Officer of Tourism Whitsundays Rick Hamilton to make the announcement.

“I am delighted to say that the Treasurer has listened and is picking up the tab!” said Minister Ley.

“The Marine Park Authority will continue to receive the funds but you, the tourism operators, will not have to pay.”

Andrew Willcox said he was thrilled to see a 12-month extension on the funding.

“I have been lobbying for this and I am pleased to see that they have listened and that it’s come through,” he said.

“A lot of tourism operators have been absorbing the costs, so this is a huge help for that.”

Rick Hamilton said that the news is welcomed by the whole industry.

“It’s terrific news for the tourism industry – it’s been a tough few years for us,” he said.

“We are really looking forward to the next year when we will begin welcoming international tourists and cruise ships back to the Whitsundays.”

Minister Ley also announced that $15 million will be spent on improving the local marine environment through helping tourism operators to better monitor the area.

Minister for the Environment Susan Ley MP, LNP candidate for Dawson Andrew Willcox and Chief Executive Officer of Tourism Whitsundays Rick Hamilton with tourism operators at Coral Sea Marina last week

Minister Ley making the announcement with CEO of Tourism Whitsundays (left) and LNP Candidate for Dawson Andrew Willcox (right)

Minister Ley talking to Jan Claxton from Ocean Rafting

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The celebrated champions of our region, Red Cat Adventures, were among three local operators to be recognised at the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards on the weekend.

Red Cats won gold in Adventure Tourism and silver for Major Tour and Transport Operators while Pinnacles Resort won silver for Self-Contained Accommodation and InterContinental Hayman Island Resort took home bronze in 5 Star Accommodation.

Julie and Asher Telford, owners of Red Cat Adventures, said they had been dreaming of winning the prestigious Adventure Tourism category for many years as this field of tourism symbolises the very foundation of their business.

“Although we’ve been privileged to win awards in the past at local, state, and national levels, this is our first gold in the Adventure Tourism category nationally,” said Julie.

“Without international youth markets to draw on, Adventure Tourism has been one of the hardest hit sectors, and what we personally - and our industry as a whole - have been through during the pandemic, cements this as the toughest battle of them all and consequently the most cherished win.”

For the Telford’s the awards represent not only their company’s success but also their resilience and ability to pivot and overcome adversity.

With 86 per cent of their business relying on international tourists prior to the pandemic, it was just a few weeks after the company had celebrated their gold and silver wins at the 2019 Australian Awards when news of the onset of COVID caused the value of their company to be halved overnight.

“We were faced with the devastation of losing the majority of our staff and what ensued has been an insane, emotional rollercoaster ride – at times elating, at others soul-destroying, but always raw and real,” said Asher.

“Instead of closing our doors and taking a rest, we slaved – we worked 10 times harder, and made a new business plan every time the rules changed.

“We sought opportunities from challenges, took calculated risks, and actually grew our company during Covid, evolving into a better, more efficient, more sustainable business as a result.”

The Telford’s want to say a huge congratulations to all the other award winners.

“Even to be in that room after such a turbulent two years is a massive achievement that everyone deserves recognition for,” said Julie.

At The Pinnacle Of Success

Bringing home silver in the Self-Contained Accommodation category, Pinnacles Resort were another local business who were elated by their success at the Australian National Tourism Awards last weekend.

Resort Manager, Sue Watson, said that the gala dinner, held at the Sunshine Coast Convention Centre last Friday was a great opportunity for operators to get together and celebrate successes after a challenging few years.

“The event was all you would expect - the best of the tourism industry and

a wonderful celebration,” she said.

“It has been a difficult couple of years, not only for the Whitsundays but for everyone in the industry so it felt good to be back to some sort of normal.

“We are so excited, and it was just amazing to be bringing home silver for

the Whitsundays!”

The InterContinental Hayman Island Resort won a bronze award in the Five Star Accommodation category and General Manager, Arpad Romandy, proudly congratulated the winners.

“It’s an exciting time for The Whitsundays tourism sector to continue to shine and showcase our unique experiences and products,” he said.

“The recognition of being showcased on a national stage and achieving a bronze award is an honour.”

Chief Executive Officer of Tourism Whitsundays said that while we may be a small region, our world-class offerings, iconic destinations and passionate operators shined on the night.

“Tourism operators in The Whitsundays consistently deliver high-level experiences, they are dedicated to showcasing the best of our region and I am delighted that we had three national finalists up for four awards,” he said.

Brent Jones and Susan Watson, Pinnacles Resort Managers.

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Dignitaries, returned servicemen and the Proserpine community witnessed a momentous occasion as the new Proserpine Cenotaph was officially opened last Tuesday.

The old Cenotaph that previously sat in the construction zone for the new Proserpine Entertainment Centre (PEC) is now gone and in its place a revamped monument to those who lost their lives fighting for Australia.

The new memorial was celebrated with an Official Dedication Ceremony led by Proserpine RSL Sub-branch President, Jason Raiteri, and attended by Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, as well as Federal Member for Dawson George Christensen.

Both the Premier and Mr Christensen spoke solemnly on the meaning of war to the town of Proserpine and its older generations.

Mayor Andrew Willcox said the Cenotaph was co-created by Council and the Proserpine RSL Sub-branch, creating a traditional design which would have a greater impact on the community and be more functional for commemorative ceremonies

“The Cenotaph represents more than names; it is a tribute to the efforts and the hardship endured by our servicemen and women,” Mayor Willcox said.

“We wanted the new Cenotaph to be a memorial that our residents would be proud of.”

Twenty-one new names, including two indigenous soldiers, were added to the list adorning the cenotaph – each of whom lost their lives in battle.

“The Cenotaph represents a headstone for all those Proserpine Servicemen who were killed during service and lay in cemeteries across Europe and the Pacific,” said Mr Raiteri

“It is a special place for many local families with relative’s names engraved on the Cenotaph. It also provides the Proserpine community with an appropriate gathering point for commemorative ceremonies,” he said.

“The new Cenotaph will ensure that the names of all Proserpine’s fallen to date are forever displayed and their sacrifice will be remembered by future generations.”

Many of the regions’ veterans placed wreaths at the feet of the new cenotaph in honour of fallen comrades

Veterans were out in droves to respectfully herald in the new and improved Cenotaph

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Mayor’s Message:

On Tuesday, March 28, 2017 Tropical Cyclone Debbie smashed the Whitsunday region and our recovery five years later is a story about the courage, spirit and resilience of our community.

For 48 hours torrential rain and winds up to 260 kilometres per hour smashed Airlie Beach, Bowen, Proserpine and wreaked havoc as far west as Collinsville.

We live in a country of cyclones and flooding rains, and in 2017 it was the turn of the Whitsunday Region, and its 35,000 plus community and thousands of stranded tourists, to struggle against what mother nature could throw at us.

As Mayor of the Whitsundays I am in awe of the amazing community spirit of our residents that were always willing to lend a hand to a mate or neighbour in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Debbie.

Mates helping mates is Our Whitsunday Way, but when a disaster as massive as Tropical Cyclone Debbie hits, it is up to community leaders to unite and lead the recovery.

In total, Debbie caused $2.4 billion in damage and fourteen deaths across Australia, primarily as a result of extreme flooding making it the most expensive and deadliest cyclone to hit Australia since Cyclone Tracey in 1974.

Looking back, 2017 was shaping up as a bright year for the Whitsunday Region with strong economic growth forecast.

We had record tourism numbers, one of the fastest growing regional airports in the country and possibly the largest-ever mine, rail and port development in Australia’s history.

But then mother nature threw us a curve ball!

TC Debbie was a horrific experience for our community but the support of the military, SES and emergency services was huge and we’re indebted to them for their dedication to serving our community in its hour of need.

The mission to source Federal and State Government funding to assist us to restore and build resilience into our region’s infrastructure and rebuild community assets has been a long journey.

However, five years later I am proud of the efforts of my Council to lead our region’s recovery and the relentless lobbying and advocacy to secure over $250 million in funding for new capital projects and restoration works.

This funding allowed us to improve key infrastructure, leading to increased resilience and making our community Stronger than Before.

We also brought forward several major projects to make our Whitsunday region better than ever.

We had only started to emerge from the shadow of Debbie when the world-wide Covid-19 pandemic struck.

2022 is hopefully the year our community can regain its mojo and it is off to a flyer with a new airline in Bonza announcing direct flights to Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba and Newcastle and the $18.8 million state of the art Proserpine Entertainment Centre officially opened on Tuesday.

My Council is confident that the Whitsunday Region is perfectly positioned for a bright and prosperous next decade and beyond.

Mayor Andrew Willcox

Whitsunday Regional Council

Projects Completed Since Cyclone Debbie

• Airlie Beach/Cannonvale Sustainable Water Pipeline and Cannon Valley Reservoir tanks $21.3 million

• Cannonvale Lakes boardwalk and landscape upgrades $700,000

• Bowen Sewage Treatment Plant $27million

• Increased capacity for network capability Ergon upgrades $360,000

• Airlie Beach Lagoon facility upgrades $2.5 million

• Bowen Front Beach Seawall rebuild $1 million

• Collinsville Water Park and Swimming pool upgrades $2.3 million

• Bi-Centennial boardwalk upgrades $900,000

• Proserpine Main Street upgrade and Proserpine RV Park $2.9 million

A washed-up boat on Airlie Foreshore with trees damaged by the cyclone and two sunbathers nearby

Mayor Andrew Willcox flying over the region shortly after the cyclone

Left to right: Major General Chris Field, Nicky Oatley, Sandy Oatley, Glenn Burke (all Hamilton Island), Steve O’Connell, Ian Haughton, Mayor Andrew Willcox, Inspector-General Emergency Management Alistair Dawson and Nathan Blain.

Volunteers clearing roads to allow emergency service vehicles through

Cannonvale Beach Park clear-up after the cyclone

Mayor Andrew Willcox discussing progress with Major General Chris Field

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Almost five years to the week that the Proserpine Entertainment Centre shut its doors following substantial damage in the wake of Cyclone Debbie, the new $18.8 million cultural heart of Proserpine has officially re-opened.

Proserpine Entertainment Centre – “Built Back Better”

With all levels of government working together to see the project come to fruition, the new entertainment centre tells a story of how Councils, State and Federal Government have all been united in rejuvenating the cultural heart of Proserpine.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said that she has personally followed the journey of the rebuild following her visit to the Whitsundays shortly after Cyclone Debbie.

She remembers talking to a group of local ladies who asked her what she was going to do about it and has since made it her mission to help in any way she could.

Mayor Andrew Willcox sad that initially they had expected to fix instead of rebuild the centre and estimated the cost to be around $500,000.

“This project was a bit like an onion – the more we peeled back, the more problems we started to find,” he recalled.

With structural damage proving too significant, it was decided to completely re-build the facility with $5 million funding from the Federal Government thanks to Federal Member for Dawson George Christensen and $5 million funding from State Government thanks to Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.

It wasn’t long, however, before Council realised that the new building would cost significantly more and Mayor Andrew Willcox asked the state government to increase funding.

“This Mayor’s pretty good at knocking on my door, but that’s what you do when a community is so impacted,” said Premier Palaszczuk.

“I could see how much you needed a community centre to be built back and renewed and built back better and what you see now is a really modern, dynamic community and it’s good to have that infrastructure.”

Last year the State Government provided an additional $8 million in funding.

“Without you this project wouldn’t be where it is today, I can’t thank you enough,” said Mayor Willcox.

Federal Member for Dawson George Christensen said the facility was now a valued community venue, acting as an arts and cultural centre, local cinema, conference venue and a social activity hub.

“I am pleased to see the rebuilt centre open and looking better than ever,” Mr Christensen said.

“This is a fantastic example of Australian Government funding in action, increasing the liveability and amenity of our regions by delivering locally important community infrastructure.”

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Dynamic rock vixen Sarah McLeod from legendary Australian band, Superjesus, has just been announced as the face of the 10th anniversary of the Airlie Beach Festival of Music.

Having wowed the crowd in 2019 with her full-band performance, the three-time Aria award-winner, returned as a solo act in 2019 with an additional unplugged-style set at the event’s boutique after-party.

She was also the star judge for the national ‘Passport to Airlie’ talent search.

An inductee to the South Australian Music Hall of Fame, and more recently immortalised in the Adelaide Festival Centre’s star-studded Walk of Fame, Sarah McLeod accolades are equally as impressive as her credentials.

Festival founder, Gavin Butlin, said he was immensely proud to announce Sarah McLeod as the 2022 ambassador, effectively cementing her as the face of the milestone anniversary event.

“Sarah is an artist who comes with both a loyal fan base and significant industry recognition, so this feels like a fitting tribute to our achievements in bringing live music to the heart of the Great Barrier Reef for an entire decade,” he said.

When the opportunity to be the 2022 ambassador arose, she literally jumped at it.

“I’m privileged to have played at so many great festivals and I know people love them all for different reasons, but the Airlie Beach Festival of Music is my personal favourite,” she said.

“The Whitsundays really is one of the most beautiful places on earth and I can’t wait to get back there.”

Tourism Whitsundays Chief Executive Officer, Rick Hamilton, said it was fantastic news.

“Having a high-profile ambassador as an outward ‘face’ is a powerful addition to any brand so I congratulate Sarah and the Airlie Beach Festival of Music on this partnership,” Mr Hamilton said.  

The Airlie Beach Festival of Music takes place from November 4-6 and early bird tickets can be purchased for $275 until March 28.

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Thousands of people across the country participate in annual Clean Up Australia Day events each year, and the local team at Coral Sea Marina Resort (CSMR) decided they were going to join in and make a difference in their own backyard.

In partnership with Tangaroa Blue Foundation and the Rotary Club of Airlie Beach, Coral Sea Marina Resort put the call out to the Whitsunday community on Sunday, March 6, to come and clean up a slice of paradise.

“The first Sunday in March is generally a scorcher in the tropics – and that was especially true this year – so we were thrilled to have a dedicated group of volunteers brave the heat and help us do our part by joining in Coral Sea Marina Resort’s Clean Up Australia Day event,” Kate Purdie, CEO of Coral Sea Marina said.

Ms Purdie said that, even with the scrupulous cleaning and maintenance practices of the marina, it was surprising to see just how much rubbish we found.

“After dedicated campaigns to reduce the use of plastic straws and plastic bags it was great to see fewer of them this year, but they have been replaced with disposable masks and shopping receipts among other items – a compelling reminder that the real issue is single use anything, not just plastics,” Ms Purdie said.

Volunteers, young and old, came out in heatwave conditions to do their bit and collect litter on land and at sea.

Collection bags were provided by Tangaroa Blue as part of their ReefClean program, with all the litter collected being sorted, monitored, and weighed with the data then being inputted into the Australian Marine Debris Initiative database for further analysis.

In total, 131kg of litter was collected, with the main items being plastic food packaging and hard and soft plastic fragments.

Clean up efforts at the Coral Sea Marina Resort Clean Up Australia Day Event

CSMR and Rotary Airlie Beach volunteers

More exceptional clean up volunteers

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A Whitsunday local will be representing not just the region, but the all of Queensland as a National Finalist in the Miss Grand Australia 2022 beauty pageant in July this year.

Born in Townsville, Paitin Powell moved to Airlie Beach 14 years ago with her family, and the young local woman will be heading to Sydney in a few months to compete against 19 other finalists from around the country for the title of Miss Grand Australia.

Miss Grand is similar to the Miss Universe and the Miss World competitions, where contestants are judged on their presentation through a series of criteria, such as their physical appearance, but also their intelligence, the eloquence of their speech, and more.

Gone are the days of beauty pageants that objectify women and enter the age of empowerment and representation.

For Paitin, the opportunity Miss Grand presents is to show the world that, regardless of where you come from, you can achieve your dreams.

“A lot of these girls who go into these pageants grow up or come from major cities in Australia,” Paitin said.

"I want to let girls from the regional areas know that you can be born in Townsville and grow up in the Whitsundays and still go on to represent Australia at the international level.”

Miss Grand will judge its competitors in three major categories: evening gown, swimwear and interviews.

“I’m so excited to be a part of this all again and to represent the region,” Paitin said.

Paitin will head to Sydney in July and said that she’s excited to work with Destiny Rescue, the sponsor charity Miss Grand Australia works alongside which has the mission to help children from sexual exploitation and human trafficking.

Paitin Powell represents Queensland at Miss Grand Australia 2022

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In modern times we tend to take for granted the ease of transport when we can hop into our cars, onto a bus, train or plane and arrive at our destination in a relatively short time? Not so in the early days.

In Proserpine in the 1930s, many residents relied on bus transport. One such bus was MacPherson’s Bus Service that was used by Strathdickie families.

The bus was a 1935/36 two-ton Bedford truck with a tray body fitted. There were two bench seats with back rests near the front just behind the cab. The rest of the tray was space for groceries. Thursday was the allotted town day. MacPherson’s farm was at the top end of Strathdickie. Families were collected along the way; others waited to drop off orders. There was no regular timetable - sometimes 9 o’clock, sometimes 11, dependent on how much livestock had to be caught and loaded. At times, there would be one or two pigs in a crate, wire cages with turkeys, ducks, geese.

It was an open-air trip but was not uncomfortable as the bus travelled at only about 3mph, what with the condition of the roads, frequent stops, hills and gullies. Mrs Mac, as everyone called her, was a pretty rough driver and the brakes didn’t always work - it was a miracle that there was never an accident.

On livestock days, the bus would pull in behind Foxlee’s Butcher shop and on other days, passengers alighted at Faust’s corner in Mill Street.

Leaving town was the highlight. Pickup would begin at 4pm at Foxlee’s Butchers for meat, then to the Co-op where groceries would be on the footpath, then around to Fausts for meat and groceries. The last stop was at the mill gates to collect bread orders from Sam Killian’s Bakery. By then, it was about 5pm and the fun would begin. Some passengers would be in the hotel so a couple of people would take off to get them. They in turn would disappear. The original ones would turn up and volunteer to go back for the others. This took about half an hour and departure time was usually later than 5.30pm.

Groceries were loaded haphazardly so there would be much shifting and searching as passengers were dropped off. Mostly the groceries were put in cases with a docket. Often there were big brown paper packets of pollard and bran. Meat was wrapped in paper and tied with string and a name tag. Frequently, with all the sorting, the tag would fall off. Winter time was the worst as it would be pitch dark by the time the bus reached the hall. Striking matches and looking for people’s goods took up more time but at least the further along they travelled, the fewer parcels there were to sift through.

Story and photo courtesy of the Proserpine Historical Museum.

Killian's Bakery Waite Street 1934 L-R Phyllis Gannon (nee Leeds), Sam Killian, Snow Matthews, Hew Strickland

Fausts Bros - a major port of call on the trip to town

Proserpine's Main Street in 1938

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Unmarked graves dot the Whitsundays, their location and their occupants are largely unknown - lost to time - and it falls upon the patient few to track down these lone resting places.

Hundreds of burial sites dating back as far as 1861 have been found across the state, and in our own region the hunt for lone graves is in the hands of Whitsunday Regional Council senior information officer Kia Ellem.

Ms Ellem has been leading the council’s lone grave project since 2018, keeping track of not only where people are buried, but creating public databases which include their personal histories.

Along with finding missing graves along riversides, roads, and up through the backroad properties of the region, Ms Ellem has helped locate 70 unmarked graves in the Proserpine cemetery.

She uses ground-penetrating radars, metal detectors, maps and old records, as well as information from long-time Whitsunday families to find them.

“I wish I had started 20 years ago so that I could ask a lot of those people who’ve since passed away about the vague locations of graves on properties,” Ms Ellem said.

In many cases Ms Ellem finds not only graves of Australians, but also those of other countries – particularly ones brought here against their will.

“Blackbirding” of South Sea Islanders by Australian settlers was a common practice of the late 19th and early 20th centuries which brought over 50,000 Islanders to Australia to work as indentured labourers on cane fields in Queensland.

They were tricked, kidnapped, or lured to the country.

Their graves have since been unearthed in cane fields, farmsteads, and some local cemeteries across Queensland.

“We have South Sea Islanders buried in Proserpine and Bowen cemetery, and I know of some on private properties,” Ms Ellem said.

“When the old Crystalbrook sugar mill in Glen Isla was active, we know there may be 20 graves out near there somewhere.”

Ms Ellem has found 20 graves underneath a section of the old road in Proserpine’s Cemetery, 17 of those were South Islanders that were not given headstones.

As part of the operations, families of the deceased are told that the grave of a family member has been found, but usually not the exact location, and Ms Ellem said she was always looking for more information.

“We don’t want to intrude on properties or encourage people to do that,” she said.

“It is for future generations because these people deserve to be recognised.”

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In the Whitsundays we are spoiled for choice when it comes to pristine beaches and exquisite, untouched beauty, but there’s nowhere better than Whitehaven.

One of the region’s very best scenic experiences to one of Australia’s best beaches is SeaLink’s Big Island Day Tour.

With ample time to explore the crystal-clear waters of both north Hill Inlet and south Whitehaven, the tour offers a relaxed journey of pure comfort to the backdrop of the Whitsunday’s incredible islands.

SeaLink’s air-conditioned, modern catamaran comprises three levels including an observation deck with 360-degree views of the turquoise panorama. Your comfort is paramount, and that extends to both the service and food aboard the vessel.

Departing from the brand-new Shute Harbour Marine Terminal, SeaLink’s MV Nancy Wake glides past the unique view of the Molle Island Group and Cid Harbour.

The scenic tour then cruises to Whitehaven, taking in the pristine coastline’s remote island locations along the way.

The vessel has the feel of a large ship, with the intimacy of a private cruise.

Guests sip champagne and can With full bar service available, guests can sip champagne and head outside to enjoy the experience if they so choose or stay inside the cabin and listen to the captain’s entertaining commentary over the intercom.

The interactions with crew members and their incredible knowledge of the region’s water ways are worth the price of admission alone. With education, interaction, and experience at the forefront of this unique tour, every guest will leave feeling both inspired and informed.

If you’re looking for a relaxed, comfortable, and scenic ticket to Australia’s best beach at the hands of the region’s most knowledgeable skippers and most amicable deckhands, there’s no better choice than SeaLink.

The tour departs from 9am and returns at 5pm, operating daily from Friday through to Sunday.

DID YOU KNOW?

Some of Whitehaven’s silica sand helped to reveal the universe when it was used to make parts of the Hubble telescope.

SeaLink’s premier vessel, the Nancy Wake

The tour of Whitehaven Beach is spectacular

An experience unlike any other, dipping your toes into the cool sand at Whitehaven

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