The Aussie escape perfect for nature lovers
The place is packed. Absolutely chocka.
Heron Island, a tiny coral cay 90kms from Gladstone in central Queensland, is billed as an isolated tropical retreat where you can escape from the rest of the world and enjoy the Great Barrier Reef.
But when our family of five lurch off the 34-metre catamaran that gets you there, we have barely taken a step ashore before being hit by the crowds. It's standing room only, and these overseas guests are noisy and, well, they smell.
In fact, the "crowds" are part of the reason we're here: because this tiny piece of paradise is packed with wildlife: up to 100,000 black noddy terns are in residence, nesting in the ancient pisonia trees that you walk past within seconds of coming ashore.
The birds are, literally, in your face, complete with fluffy chicks that are being sat on by their mums for protection.
Dashing crazily along sandy pathways are buff-banded rails, looking like some kind of demented chickens, chasing each other to and fro.
And then, at night, in come the wedge-tailed shearwaters (muttonbirds), which nest at ground level, and whose eerie cries caused sailors to believe the island was haunted. Then, of course, there's the eponymous eastern reef egrets, which were first spotted on the island in 1843.
Ironically, given its past as a turtle cannery in the 1920s, the biggest tourist drawcard today is not the prolific birdlife, however, it's the turtles.
Between December and March, Heron is home to one of nature's greatest – and, it has to be said, clumsiest – miracles.
The white coral sands act like a homing beacon for hundreds of green turtles (and the occasional loggerhead). The reptiles, so graceful in the water, drag themselves up the beaches at night to lay scores of ping-pong ball-sized white eggs.
This is a ritual hundreds of thousands of years old and is a living link to primitive life forms emerging from the sea. There's something oddly comical about it, as turtles, which have travelled up to 3000kms to get here, move with all the grace of a sack of potatoes as they lumber up the sand dunes.
Queensland Environment & Heritage Protection volunteer researcher Janine Ferguson has spent more than four decades working on the conservation of turtles. During that time she has become close to her charges, often referring to her "girls".
"You do get to know some of them. They come back year after year and you do get a bit of a sense of them and their personality," she says.
The greens lay from mid-December through to mid-January, with hatchlings emerging about eight to 10 weeks later.
The odds are stacked against them. From the moment the credit card-sized hatchlings emerge from their nest, the battle for life begins.
Squadrons of birds hover overhead, waiting to pick them off before they've even made it to the water. Their first journey is an epic one, as they often emerge high in the sand dunes and have to instantly orient themselves, using their sight to head for the brightest object – which should be the sand and the water.
Even if they safely make the run through the dunes, once they finally hit the water, tiny heads bobbing as they come up for air, reef sharks are waiting to scoop them up. No wonder it's estimated that only one in 1000 make it to maturity.
Unless you're conducting turtle research, access to the island comes exclusively via Heron Island Resort, the only accommodation on this small piece of land, which is not open to daytrippers. The resort has 109 rooms and can accommodate up to 300 people, although even in peak season it feels half empty.
It's run by US firm Delaware North, which also operates El Questro station and Lizard Island in Australia.
It's about as laidback as you can get, with no mobile reception, extremely limited Wi-Fi and no locks on the doors. "With no daytrippers, security isn't really an issue," says long-time resident and island guide Jason Killen.
The resort has a range of rooms, from one and two-bedders, through to a larger beach house. We stay in one of the reef rooms. These rooms have no airconditioning but good ceiling fans, and are well shaded by pisonia trees.
The best part is it's only a few steps to a gorgeous white coral beach. Our room has a decent queen-size bed, and two singles in a recess with a sliding screen to close it off. You can make tea and coffee and there is a bar fridge.
The resort is low-rise and designed to fit in among the trees and minimise impact on the wildlife. Power comes from a generator, they make their own drinking water and wastewater is treated before discharge. The island has an advanced eco-certification by Ecotourism Australia.
With all the birds nesting above your head in the trees, guests quickly divide into two groups: those who use brollies and those who don't. We choose to run the gauntlet and the only person who gets nailed is my eldest daughter Grace. Unluckily for her she gets hit twice.
There is the large poolside Baillies Bar, which has snacks, cocktails, an espresso machine, pool tables and a giant chessboard. Nearby is the Shearwater Restaurant, which offers a la carte and buffet dining options.
When you're not bird or turtle watching, the water is the big drawcard, with plenty of options for snorkelling and diving.
This island is surrounded by a shallow fringing reef, so finding a spot to snorkel is not difficult. And on low tide, reef walks are popular.
One of the highlights is swimming out over the main harbour to the wreck towed there in 1943 by Captain Christian Poulsen. On the way you pass dozens of rays, reef sharks, schools of trevally, giant clams and scores of small tropicals.
Grace is simultaneously keen and terrified to swim with a shark, so she holds my hand tightly as we fin through the water. When I quickly spot a black tip circling nearby I can't find her – until I realise she has already seen it and has clambered onto my back.
There are multiple dive trips each day on the island's fringing reef and the adjacent Wisteria Reef.
One day I go diving out to Coral Canyons, just outside the main harbour. It is an epic dive, consisting of layers of plate, stag and brain corals, and is rich in marine life, with turtles, nudibranchs, clown fish and damselfish.
Another dive site, Heron Bommie, has been singled out by French underwater legend Jacques Cousteau as one of his top 10 sites in the world.
If you want to see the marine life but keep your feet dry, you can either hire a clear plastic kayak or take a tour on a glass-bottomed boat called iSpy that visits many of the dive sites around the reefs. Fishing charters are also available.
For those not so interested in water or nature activities, the island has the Aqua Soul spa, offering facials, massage and steam treatments.
Children under 12 stay for free, which probably explains why the place is full of families. However, the kids' meals are basic. Breakfasts are the pick, with a range of fresh fruit, cereals, pastries and hot foods on offer, including made-to-order omelettes. However, lunch and dinner feature limited buffet choices, which had our 12-year-old begging for the a la carte menu.
A la carte offers fresh fish, meat and vegetarian dishes. However, while the food is decent, it's fair to say you wouldn't come here for that alone. It's about getting up close and personal with all the aquatic and bird life. Just don't mention turtle soup.
Written by Liam Phelan. First appeared on Stuff.co.nz.