Rahul Sharma (Editor)

Whitehaven Beach

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Whitehaven Beach wwwhamiltonislandcomauHamiltonIslandmediaOri

Similar
  
Whitsunday Islands, Hamilton Island, Great Barrier Reef, Shute Harbour, Daydream Island

Day trip to whitehaven beach things to do in the whitsundays episode 1 with summersite


Whitehaven Beach is a 7 km stretch along Whitsunday Island, Australia. The island is accessible by boat, seaplane & helicopter from Airlie Beach, as well as Hamilton Island. It lies across from Chalkie's Beach on Haslewood Island.

Contents

Map of Whitehaven Beach, Whitsundays QLD 4802, Australia

Tourists and locals visit Whitehaven Beach for a Whitehaven Beach BBQ lunch, too swim or just take in the bright white sand, as well as campers who stay by booking the National Parks camp facilities.

The Whitehaven Beach Ocean Swim is a 2 km open swimming competition held on the beach in November each year since 2009 as part of the Hamilton Island Triathlon. The 2012 event was held on 11 November 2012.

Travel to whitehaven beach the whitsunday islands queensland australia


History

The beach was named and discovered in 1879 by Staff Commander EP Bedwell. Being one of the many names from the then English county of Cumberland Bedwell brought to the area following James Cook's 1770 naming of the island group The Cumberland Islands.

Geography

The beach was awarded Queensland's Cleanest Beach in Keep Australia Beautiful's 2008 Clean Beach Challenge State Awards. In July 2010, Whitehaven Beach was named the top Eco Friendly Beach in the world by CNN.com. Dogs are not permitted on the beach and cigarette smoking is prohibited.

Whitehaven Beach is known for its white sands. It has a beautiful scenery and the sand consists of 98% pure silica which gives it a bright white color. Local rocks do not contain silica so it has been suggested that the sands were brought to the beach via prevailing sea currents over millions of years.

Unlike regular sand, the sand on Whitehaven Beach does not retain heat making it comfortable to walk barefoot on a hot day. This sand is also very fine, and can damage electronic equipment such as telephones and cameras, although it is good at polishing up jewellery.

References

Whitehaven Beach Wikipedia