Fitzroy Island — i am nicole

Since Ryan and I's first island trip didn't last, we decided to try again. A few girl's I met from Adelaide recommended Fitzroy Island. It is a 45 minute ferry ride outside Cairns and almost entirely a National Park apart from one resort and bar next door. Our only plans were to hike and relax for Ryan's last few days in Australia.

Our first area to explore was Nudey Beach. We're told it is named Nudey for a captain who helped in discovering it, not because of a lack of clothing. The beach is a short trail from the resort and instead of only sand, is covered in coral. Fitzroy Island is surrounded by reef that is part of the Great Barrier Reef and the old, dead coral gets washed ashore. Unfortunately, because Cyclone Debbie was wrecking havok a few hours south, we were unable to do any snorkeling or kayaking. We still had plenty of fun above the water though!

If you're looking for a dramatic entrance somewhere, the hard dead coral sounds like glass shattering with each step.

Right past Nudey Beach is an area with huge boulders, trees, and beautiful clear blue water.

Fitzroy Island's resort has a fancy dining room with ocean-view windows, but the bar next door is a covered outdoor deck on the beach. We had all our meals here, outside with the ocean breeze and a beautiful view.

On night I had a kangaroo Asian salad. Mmm.

Fitzroy Island is covered with a rainforest like every other part of Queensland it seems. It has a couple hikes, the best being the Summit Walk. We bushwalked through the rainforest trail, up countless stairs, to the very top of the island for breathtaking views.

Looking down on the trail we just hiked and the mainland in the background.

One side looks out to the Pacific and feels like you're on the edge of the world.

After the Summit Walk, we hiked over to the old lighthouse. It wasn't the most impressive structure, but the side of the hill it stood on was beautiful. After taking in more views, we had to hike down a ridiculously vertical, ugly road on the Lighthouse Track. If you ever happen to visit, don't start with the lighthouse. You'll regret it.

On the island, there is also a sea turtle rehabilitation center. For a small donation, a volunteer will tell you about their wonderful work and even show you turtles that are nearly healthy enough to get released back into the wild. They treat all kinds of injuries: boat propellers, fishing lines, and worst of all, starvation from eating plastic. When a turtle eats plastic, it creates an air bubble and blockage in their intestines. The air bubble messes up their ability to dive down in the water to feed or regulate their body temperature. Most of the turtles are floating on the surface of the ocean, starving, baking, and at risk for boats and preditors. PSA time: please recycle! Don't litter! You're killing sea turtles.

Feeding time! These turtles get fed fish bits and greenery.

To end our time at the beautiful Fitzroy Island, we visited Nudey Beach again and did what we'd been waiting to do since we heard the name...got a little nudey. Don't worry parents, it was empty and just my top for the photo. Fitzroy Island was gorgeous and relaxing, and had the best views- from the top of the mountain to the coral beach to the incredible sunsets.