Lizard Island

Australia, Queensland Add comments
Planet View: S14°40.101’ E145°26.750’
Street View: S14°40.101’ E145°26.750’

Temperature: 21-29°C (70-84°F)

Water Temperature: 26°C (79°F)

Panoramic of Loomis Reef

The northernmost of the Great Barrier Reef Islands, Lizard Island was a stopping for point for Captain James Cook on his voyage in 1770 and named for the prolific population of monitor lizards that inhabited (and still inhabit) the island.  Today the island is a National Park and houses the luxurious Lizard Island Barrier Reef Resort, an all-inclusive slice of paradise nestled in the foredunes at the northern end of the island.  Boasting some of the best Black Marlin fishing in the world, access to some of the most lauded of the Great Barrier Reef’s SCUBA diving locations, exquisite all-inclusive accommodation and beautiful beaches dotted around the island, we absolutely couldn’t have dreamed for a better spot to wind up our journey around Australia.

Panoramic of the Lizard Island Resort dining facilities overlooking Anchor Bay

Brilliant view of the Great Barrier Reef on the way north to Lizard IslandLizard IslandAn hour by plane or 15 hours by boat from Cairns, we spent five nights on the island with my mum, her partner Steve and his son Oliver, who made the trip from central California.  We all met in Cairns the afternoon before catching a small Hinterland Aviation Cessna north to Lizard Island, a beautiful flight over the Great Barrier Reef and some of the islands between Cairns and Cooktown.  The brilliant turquoise colour of the ocean in this area of the country is quite spectacular.  As we descended and banked around Lizard Island all of us were in awe at the beautiful fringing coral reefs visible through the crystal clear water.

Can't have Lizard Island without lizards! Lizard Island Resort as we come in to landOur pampering didn’t take long to kick in after landing: met by one of the resort concierges we were escorted to a waiting coach as soon as we disembarked and all given cool, scented flannels to wipe our hands and faces in the  A beautiful Rainbow Bee-Eater outside our windowhumidity.  The resort itself is set at the northern end of the island, a collection of private suites – most with ocean view of either Anchor Bay or Sunset Beach – connected to the main dining area by a series of pathways Lizard Island Resort dining facilities overlooking Anchor Baythrough the tropical flora.  The facilities included a tennis court, a beautiful pool, in-house gym, day spa and a beach activities hut where small catamarans and dive gear were at our disposal.  After a welcoming iced tea and introduction to some of the staff we were all escorted to our accommodation, Lisa and I had a beautiful suite overlooking Sunset Beach while our partners in crime had adjacent villas overlooking Anchor Bay.  Lisa wasn’t quite sure what to do first: spend some time in the double-headed shower, attack our well stocked mini-bar, lounge on our deck with our private view of Sunset Beach or just relax on the down pillow of our king bed! 

Oliver, Steve, Jenni and Lisa in the Hinterland Aviation loungeJenni first on the Hinterland Aviation Cessna Jenni and Steve on the way to Lizard IslandLisa excited View of the Cessna's cockpit from my seatTake off from CairnsBlue skies on our way to Lizard Island Brilliant view of the Great Barrier Reef on the way north to Lizard IslandBrilliant view of the Great Barrier Reef on the way north to Lizard IslandComing in to land on Lizard Island Lizard Island Resort as we come in to landTouch down on Lizard IslandLisa enjoying home made iced tea on arrival Our room with a view of Sunset BeachOur room at Lizard Island ResortCan't have Lizard Island without lizards!

Lisa very pumped on our double-headed shower

There’s a lot that goes into running the resort operation on Lizard Island.  At any time there’s between 50 and 80 staff living on the island to tend to the guests.  It’s somewhere we’d both Our deck overlooking Sunset Beachhappily return one day, the resort staff were all fantastic and a lot of effort goes into making sure that every guest is catered for.  We couldn’t have asked for better accommodation whilst on the island, the view of Sunset Beach and all the beautiful sunsets were just something else.  It was a very special spot, Rainbow Bee-Eaters would come in every afternoon and feed on insects just next to our balcony and the plethora of large lizards on the island were quite a sight.

We didn’t quite know where to start when we came across the bar pictured below on our first night at dinner.  With a healthy selection of signature cocktails and plentiful choices of almost any spirit we could think of, we all enjoyed sampling some of Josh’s (the bartender) concoctions before and after dinner each night.  One libation of particular note was the digestive Chartreuse that Josh had Lisa try one night after her A welcoming sight at an all-inclusive resortmeal, a 110 proof French liqueur that immediately opened the sinuses with its unique aroma.  The food throughout our stay was an absolute highlight.  The breakfast menu stayed constant with a selection of six or so dishes – my staple was usually a Moreton Bay Bug omelet or Eggs Benedict – served alongside fresh fruit and freshly squeezed juice.  For lunch and dinner the menu was constantly changing, four or five dishes to choose from at each sitting, we often couldn’t Anchor Bay sunset from the Lizard Island Resort dining roomdecide and just had to sample the entire menu!  Just amazing food, I’m pretty sure Oliver has a photo of every meal and menu we were delivered.  I took quite a few food photos (all of which are viewable in the album to the above left) and included some of the standouts below.  I can honestly say that we’ve never eaten such an extensive array of delectable, well-presented food in our lives.  The wine list was also quite a standout: an impressive array of wines from across the world, beers from every state in Australia as well as a few international brews, and a very accomplished bartender who could create just about any cocktail one could imagine.  I took photos of the wine list included in the album to the above left, I’m pretty sure Lisa sampled almost every by-the-glass wine on offer!

Lisa's French MartiniJennni and Lisa enjoying a pre-dinner drinkOliver and Steve enjoying a pre-dinner drink All of the food was exquisiteThe Lizard Island Resort dining roomLizard Island dining Lizard Island diningFriendly Anoet manning the barJosh's red, white and blue Fourth of July concoction

Lizard IslandSam after a morning sailWe made the most of the water sports on offer during our five night stay.  Lisa and Jenni ventured out on the resort’s glass-bottomed kayaks during our first afternoon on the island, both commenting that it was a great way to see the reef from above.  The shallowness of the reef in some sections of Anchor Bay in front of the resort dictated that the catamarans pictured here could only be taken out when the tide was above a certain level.  Dodge tides for most of our stay – and high winds when the tide was high enough – unfortunately kept us from training for the America’s Cup team.  We were, however, lucky enough to score a high tide with acceptable wind conditions on our last morning on Lizard, Oliver and I grabbing an early breakfast before heading out for a hell of a fun sail in Anchor Bay.  We both realized quickly why the resort doesn’t allow the catamarans out in high winds: without a keel the boats easily find their way up on one hull.  I had quite a giggle when I tacked in Watson’s Bay to see Oliver’s catamaran flipped on its side!  Luckily he was able to right it quickly, such fun scooting across the water with the beautiful reef below.  There’s a quick video of us sailing as part of the Lizard Island Movies blog if you have a fast internet connection…

Anchor Bay and the resort catamaransResort activities hutAnchor Bay and Lizard Island Resort Jenni and Lisa getting ready for a sea kayakJenni and Lisa paddling the waters of Anchor BayJenni and Lisa paddling the waters of Anchor Bay Oliver out for a morning sailOliver on his way in from a fun sail across Anchor BayOliver on his way in from a fun sail across Anchor Bay 

The dive boat: SerranidaeIf you don’t enjoy being in the water then Lizard Island is probably not the place for you.  Surrounded by the striking coral of the Great Barrier Reef and roughly an hour by boat to outer reef dive locations, Lizard is a snorkeling and SCUBA diving Great Barrier Reef coloursparadise.  During our first full day on the island the five of us ventured out on M.V. Serranidae to the outer reef.  After the rough trip between Lizard and the edge of the Great Barrier Reef we were all ready to hop in the water, the brilliant turquoise colour of the water was unbelievable.  I’m pretty sure I heard Oliver say that he didn’t Leaving Lizard Island for the outer reefknow the ocean could be such a striking blue.  Our first dive site was the world famous Cod Hole, named for its resident Potato Cod.  All of us were quite excited to jump in the water to explore the world below after running across a couple of Minke Whales on the boat ride to the outer reef.  Steve, Oliver and I donned our SCUBA gear while the girls snorkeled on the surface.  The giant Potato Cod were like big puppy dogs, the largest of them rubbing up against us as we explored the reef and quite happy for us to scratch him under the chin as he swam around us.  An amazing experience, I’d never interacted with such friendly fish in the wild before.

Sam, Steve and Oliver ready for a dive at Cod HoleOliver, Sam and Steve ready for a SCUBA dive at Cod HoleAfter our first dive we were dished up a brilliant lunch of roast chicken, king prawns and all manner of accompaniments.  I’ve never eaten so well on a dive boat before in my life!  Oliver jumped in the water with his underwater camera and snapped a video of the largest Potato Cod (see Lizard Island Movies) before we ventured north along the reef to nearby Dynamite Reef, named for its electric coral.  Unlike Cod Hole, which is a slot in-between two reefs, Dynamite is a wall dive on the edge of a deep channel.  While we did see some good-sized sharks in the water with us at Dynamite, we unfortunately didn’t come across any of the Black Marlin or Minke Whales during our dive that the dive masters sometimes see at the site.  An awesome day, with underwater visibility in excess of 25 meters (82 feet) and some of the most amazing aquatic life on the planet it’d be hard not to have a memorable experience!

Tawny Nurse Sharks and the resident Queensland Groper in for the daily feeding in Anchor BayTawny Nurse Sharks in for the daily feeding in Anchor BayOn our return to Lizard Island one of the dive masters pulled out a large Scaly Mackerel from a compartment at the back of the boat, sloshing it in the water while we all got ready to disembark.  Before long there was a small school of huge Tawny Nurse Sharks poking their heads out of the water for a feed, obviously quite used to humans as the dive master was able to give them all a pat on the nose.  But the sharks weren’t the main event: after a few minutes a gigantic Queensland Groper reared its head and swallowed the three foot long mackerel whole.  The groper was awesome, he had to have been six feet long and weigh in excess of 200 kilograms (440 pounds).  Lisa, Oliver and I jumped in the water with the sharks and groper on another day, having quite an adrenaline-filled experience as some of the Black Tip and White Tip Reef Sharks got themselves a little frenzied at feeding time.  There’s a video of us in the water with the sharks on Lizard Island Movies (third movie from the bottom), it’s quite long and has a lot of blue water but there’s plenty of sharks flying across the screen.

Anchor Bay in the morning lightGetting ready for a day diving on the outer reefGetting ready for a day diving on the outer reef Lizard Island Resort Getting ready for a day diving on the outer reefLizard Island ResortJenni in her favourite spot: at the helm Jenni on the boat to the outer reefRough seas on the way to the outer reef with North Direction Island in the distanceLizard Island from the boat on the way to the outer reef The famous Cod Hole SCUBA diving spot on the outer reefSteve and Oliver ready for a dive at Cod HoleJenni and Lisa being briefed by Scott before diving at Cod Hole Lisa suited-up to dive at Cod HoleThe famous Cod Hole SCUBA diving spot on the outer reefDamien getting a Scaly Mackereal ready for the resident Queensland GroperTawny Nurse Sharks in for the daily feeding in Anchor Bay Tawny Nurse Sharks in for the daily feeding in Anchor BayTawny Nurse Sharks in for the daily feeding in Anchor BayTawny Nurse Sharks in for the daily feeding in Anchor Bay

Lisa leaving Trawler BeachGiant clams around Lizard IslandSnorkeling at Loomis ReefWe didn’t leave too many of Lizard’s snorkeling spots unexplored.  Sunset Beach and Anchor Bay were adjacent to the resort, an easy walk to coral at our doorstep.  Watson’s Bay housed the Clam Gardens and Watson’s Wall, both fun snorkeling sites with a plethora of colorful fish and even a turtle or two grazing along the sand next to the Clam Gardens.  We hiked to the southern Lisa relaxing at Mermaid Bayside of the island one morning to explore the huge expanse of Blue Lagoon, a sweeping area between Lizard and nearby Palfrey and South Islands.  It was quite windy away from the protective hills shielding the resort, Lisa didn’t last too long in the water at Blue Lagoon but Oliver and I swam a couple of kilometers out to the wall demarking the edge of the coral with the open Turtle at the Clam Gardenocean.  We made a beeline for the beach when Oliver spotted a Tiger Shark off in the deep blue, no thank you!  The kids’ (Lisa, Oliver and me) favourite dive spot was at Mermaid Bay at the northeastern tip of the island.  A location we could only access via boat, we dove at Mermaid twice and loved it both times.  An unprotected wall drops off into the open ocean on the eastern side of Mermaid Bay, a few bommys on the edge of the wall were home to an unbelievable number of colourful reef fish.  We were lucky to see some bigger pelagic fish cruise by when diving at Mermaid both times, some of the biggest Trevally I’ve ever seen and flighty mackerel whipped by in the distance a few times.  On our second dive at Mermaid we all saw a giant Loggerhead Turtle cruising the ocean floor in the deeps.  I dove down to have a closer look, Oliver and Lisa both commented that the turtle’s head was at least as big as mine. 

Giant clams around Lizard IslandThe Clam GardenGetting dropped off at Mermaid Bay Scott taking us to Mermaid BayLisa at the helm on the way to Mermaid BaySnorkeling at Mermaid Bay Snorkeling at Mermaid BaySnorkeling at Mermaid BayLisa walking along Mangrove Beach on the way to Blue Lagoon Panoramic of Trawler Beach and Blue Lagoon with North Direction Island in the distance Mangrove Beach on the way to Blue LagoonLisa and Oliver walking alongside the runway on the way back to the resortGetting dropped at Loomis Reef for a morning of snorkeling (Damian gets a cameo in the background) Lisa happy with her wetsuit bust!Jenni hopping out of the water after a snorkel at Loomis ReefLisa and Jenni on the beach by Loomis Reef Getting picked up by Damian after a morning of snorkelingSnorkeling at Mermaid BaySnorkeling at Mermaid Bay 

Beautiful Watson's Bay on the way to Cook's LookLisa, Sam and Oliver in the clouds at the top of Cook's Look with Watson's Bay in the distanceWatson's Bay (near), Anchor Bay (far), Palfrey Island (island on right) and South Island (island on left)Lizard Island is only small – a few kilometers across – but there’s a great hiking trail making its way up to the top of the only peak on the island.  The walking trail to Cook’s Look was a roughly 1100 foot (335 metre) climb, the first half of the trail a steep clamber over sticky granite boulders.  It was a little cloudy on the day we climbed the peak, had it been clear we would have had unparalleled views of the island, Blue Lagoon and adjacent Palfrey and South Islands.  Regardless of the clouds it was a fun climb, all of us completely drenched in sweat in the near-100% humidity by the time we’d reached the top.  A couple of days later Oliver found three thick books in his backpack, no wonder his bag was so heavy on the way up to the island’s peak!

Lisa and Oliver walking across Watson's Bay on the way to Cook's LookBeautiful Watson's Bay on the way to Cook's LookBeautiful Watson's Bay on the way to Cook's Look Watson's BayLisa and Oliver walking toward Watson's Bay on the way to Cook's LookBeautiful Watson's Bay on the way to Cook's Look Wild oysters on the rocks in Watson's Bay on the way to Cook's LookWatson's Bay on the way to Cook's LookLisa and Oliver on the way up to Cook's Look Lisa and Oliver on the way up to Cook's LookLisa and Oliver on the way up to Cook's LookOliver drenched in the humidity at Cook's LookSam in the clouds at the top of Cook's Look with Watson's Bay in the distance

Watson's BaySam, Lisa and Oliver enjoying Fourth of JulyWhat an awesome way to cap off our journey along the Queensland coast!  A truly amazing location, Lizard is a part of our trip that we’ll remember fondly for the rest of our lives.  Thank you so much to Jenni and Steve for having the idea to bring us all together on Lizard for a week, we both had a blast.  And thanks to Oliver for all the underwater photos and Lizard Island Movies, we both enjoyed meeting you and will no doubt see you Stateside in a few months!

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 6th, 2010 at 5:24 PM and is filed under Australia, Queensland. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

10 Responses to “Lizard Island”

  1. Diana says:

    Looks fabulous! Thanks for all the great photos!

  2. margot says:

    Looks awesome guys!

  3. Javi says:

    I want to live there! Did you guys swim with those sharks??? Freakin’ amazing!!!!

  4. Brooke says:

    yep still jealous over on this side of the world!

  5. Harksy says:

    Epic photo’s Volt’s….man I was hoping to get some work done this morning but it’s all over….

  6. Marcia Monahan says:

    Hey what a paradise ! Thanks fnor the pictures. We are impresed of the size of the clams !
    Warm Regards
    MM

  7. Cathy says:

    Beautiful!! Would they have good scuba diving courses there? Not sure if I can come to your party yet but if cant make it for that will be down there first week August so see you then.

  8. Sue and John says:

    What a great place to finish off your trip..good idea Jenny!! The pictures are fantastic as usual. John and I are very jealous!!

  9. The Long Road To Bedourie | Our Walkabout says:

    […] It’s 1729 kilometers (1074miles) from Cairns airport – where we hopped off the plane from Lizard Island – to the remote western Queensland settlement of Bedourie.  If you’re wondering why we […]

  10. Adelaide | The Pink Lemon says:

    […] Lilia enjoyed seeing the bed where she spent her first few weeks as an embryo when we traveled from Lizard Island through the Central Deserts and back to Adelaide last […]

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