On the 22nd, I got a plane from Sydney to Brisbane and then a seven hour train from there to Gladstone. Gladstone is a small industrial town on the east coast of the country, but more importantly for me, the gateway to Heron Island.
Lying 72km off the mainland, Heron Island is 40 acres of coral cay in the southern section of the Great Barrier Reef. I got a job there on the 20th, and would travel there on Monday.
So on the 23rd, I went down to the marina in Gladstone and boarded the daily ferry to the island, with the trip lasting just over two hours. Sailing to Heron is about the equivalent of going to France and back from England at the nearest point.
When I got to Heron, I was immediately struck by its beauty. It's literally like walking into a postcard or travel brochure, with white sandy beaches and crystal clear water. One of the chefs, James, met me at the jetty and took me for a short walk through the main parts of the resort where I would be working, before handing me over to Steve, my roommate. He then showed me all around the island, explaining how everything works. Believe me, it's a lot to take in!
Basically the whole island is split into the resort, a research station and the rest is national park. The staff village is where I live in the middle of the island and accommodation is in twin-share rooms, each with cupboards, verandahs, tables, chairs and fridges. It's not on par with what the guests are used to, but it's certainly more comfortable and relaxed than many hostels. Toilet and shower facilities are shared, but the facilities block - nicknamed Siberia for some reason - is only a short walk away from my room.
I started work on Tuesday and worked every day of last week up to Sunday (the 29th, if you're keeping track). I work in the resort's kitchen as a 'stweard', which basically involves cleaning up, washing dishes and some simple food preparation. It's hard, intense work, but the numbers of guests is declining all the time at this part of the season and it's worth it to live on Heron Island.
The main benefit of living on Heron is that you can enjoy the same lifestyle that guests do, to an extent. All of the activities are available at a hugely reduced price; fishing is $2.50 instead of $65, while a trip in the semi-submersible is $0.40 instead of $30. You can also just relax at the beach, have a swim or go for a walk amongst the coral any time you're not working and beacuse the island is so small, you can get to the beach in about two minutes (walking around the island only takes 20).
All but one of my shifts so far has been 3pm to midnight, thus allowing me to have the entire morning and much of hte afternoon off. I've taken the oppurtunity to fill up this free time with all sorts of activities that we can do for free or a low cost. On Wednesday I went for a free two hour reef walk, which is a guided tour of the inner coral reef. Because coral surrounds the island, you can walk straight off the beach into it and get up really close at low tide. It was a really interesting walk because I've never seen coral up close before and even though it isn't the colourful type that you see in the media, it's fascinating.
On Saturday I went on the semi-submersible, where you sit in the hull of a boat which is lined with windows, so you can look out over the coral and see it like you would if you were diving. They take you out over the outer section of the coral reef, where it's much deeper and more colourful. You can also see all sorts of animals swimming by, from turtles and fish to eagle rays and sharks.
Talking of sharks, Heron Island's beaches and coastal waters are surprisingly safe. There are no box jellyfish - the worst type - and even the less harmful ones are never seen at the beach. There are reef sharks, but they only grow up to about a metre and are more scared of humans than we are of them. Cutting yourself on coral is the only other real danger and that can be easily treated. The best part of the beach apart from the sand is the water temperature though, a warm 25 degrees celcius.
On Sunday I went fishing for three hours before work, which was enjoyable even if I was the only person on the boat not to catch a thing! There's time yet though, especially if it only costs us $2.50 for each trip.
What else is there to say about living and working on Heron Island? Well, it's like living in an aviary sometimes, with about 300,000 birds on the island and only about 300 people at the moment. It's not uncommon to be the 'target' of birds as you walk under trees, so you just walk around a bit quicker than usual! Food on the island is also pretty good too. There's a self-service staff canteen that you can go to at any time during the day where you can help yourself to the three meals served per day along with an ever-present salad bar and (even better) an ice cream freezer.
So I've enjoyed my first week on Heron Island and intend to stay the remaining twelve. It's hard work in the kitchen for sure, but the benefits of living on Heron make it all worth while. It's so relaxed there and such a great experience. Let's hope it stays that way!
