Whitehaven Beach – Where Mermaids Dwell on Icing Sugar Shores

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Like many other children, growing up I dreamt that I was a magical being living hidden in the human world, and that one day someone would come and reveal my magical side to me.

Sometimes I was one of the fae folk, my wings invisible. I longed so ardently to able to fly that at night, when my eyes were closed, I’d take to the skies. Other times I was a mermaid – I love swimming under water and can hold my breath for ages. I’d delight at underwater worlds and felt there was nothing better than swimming among a shoal of fish and feeling their fins tickle my naked skin.

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As I’ve grown older, though I’ve come to realise that perhaps I would be more of a siren than a mermaid, I’ve never given up on my hopes of being something else – an otherworldly creature.

There are many places I have been that to me feel like they have been touched by some kind of magic, and none more so than Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsundays. With sand so shimmeringly silver and water so shockingly azure, it’s impossible to believe that mermaids aren’t just a breath away.

The sand on this beach is the purest sand in the whole world at 98% (sometimes quoted 99%) silica, you cannot find sand that is naturally whiter anywhere else in the world. As a result of the colour, the sea water is also the most perfect turquoise you could imagine, and so wonderfully clear. Standing with my feet bathed in water at the shoreline, I could watch first the sting rays and then the tiny reef sharks come right up to us.

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Another side effect of the silica purity of the sand is that it is incredibly fine, it feels like you’re walking over icing sugar –  a feeling unlike any I’ve ever had before which reinforced my conviction that this strip of paradise is, in fact, magical. The sand is so special, so rare that it’s actually protected – no one is allowed to remove sand from the beach, no one but NASA. The locals will tell you a story of how the lenses on the Hubbard Telescope are made from the sand from Whitehaven Beach. Whether or not this is true, I could not tell you – a journalist once tried to confirm it with NASA, but they had no records from the time. Either way it’s a lovely thought. The sand from this beach has helped dozens of people gaze at stars.

Make sure to walk up to Hill Inlet – it’s a beautiful walk through old gnarled paper trees to a beautiful view of the swathes and swirling sand below. As the tide moves in and out throughout the day, the sands move and change, and new layers are exposed. I love the idea that no one has seen exactly the same view from day to day.

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Look out for the sign that mentions the Ngaro children – though it leaves you with a mystery of far too little information – it made me smile to think of the many people who had stood where I stood over the years. The Ngaro aboriginal people inhabited this region of Australia for around 9000 years. Known also as the ‘Canoe People’, I had a vision of Aboriginal people coming to the shores and making love to my mermaids and mermen to create a beautiful race of water loving people. If there’s one place you visit in this world, make it Whitehaven Beach – this quiet natural park is so far away from anything else I’ve seen in my life, I struggle to remember whether or not it was real or all a beautiful dream.

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11 Comments
  • Joey D
    August 10, 2015

    Amazing pictures Sarah. 🙂

    • Sarah Alexandra George
      August 10, 2015

      Thanks Joey – it’s an amazing place! Wish I could have stayed longer – I love the sea <3

      • Joey D
        August 10, 2015

        Sarah, I love love the sea as well in the ocean ha ha same thing Being by the scene for some reason just makes my mood extra extra happy and I can feel the energy rushing through my body as I am in peace.

        • Sarah Alexandra George
          August 10, 2015

          It’s the sun as well as the water 🙂 One day I plan to spend all my hours riding along the shores and swimming in the water 🙂

          You must get lots of sun and beach in California! Im not so lucky in London 🙁

          • Joey D
            August 10, 2015

            Yes I have seen you ride on the horse, it is a beautiful horse. Southern California has the most son out of any place I know. But I do travel a lot at least 3 to 5 times a year whether its Hawaii, Cabo San Lucas Mexico, the Caribbean, I have never been to London, I want to visit very very badly also Paris and visit my family in Greece. I am Greek you know Yasuuuu 🙂 Sarah, what do you do for a living?

            • Sarah Alexandra George
              August 12, 2015

              That sounds like an awesome life! I’d love to go to Hawaii! 🙂 I thought you looked a bit Greek! I haven’t been to Greece (yet) but London is definitely worth visiting! 🙂

              I work in digital marketing but I’d love to be a full time writer! How about yourself, what kind of business do you own?

              • Joey D
                August 12, 2015

                Hi Sarah,

                Love your travel pics. ( just in case you didn’t know 😉 I am a debt buyer, I own a collection agency. I purchase credit card debts from banks and my company owns the rights to the debt. Now the fun part begins, my employees make calls and try to collect these debts.

                Oh and by the way, I know you love horses, Hawaii has the most beautiful horses. You belong there!! The beaches there are magical and breathtaking. I would love to someday retire by the beach. Did I ever tell you how much I love the ocean? He he he 😉

  • Emma
    August 10, 2015

    Love it – we need to be mermaids together <3
    Also – 98% (sometimes quoted 99%) silica – that's a lot of fish poop!

    • Sarah Alexandra George
      August 10, 2015

      We’d be such good mermaids too – brushing our hair every day… playing in the water, lying in the sun!

      • Joey D
        August 10, 2015

        Lol

  • Joey D
    August 11, 2015

    Lost my link to this site. Just found it

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