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Lizard
Island
Lizard
Island
Exquisite island in the heart of the Great
Barrier Reef.
Located 93 km north-east of Cooktown and 27 km
from the Queensland coast, Lizard Island was known as Dyiigurra to
the Dingaal Aboriginal people and was regarded as a sacred place. It
was used by the people for the initiation of young males and for the
harvesting of shellfish, turtles, dugongs and fish. The Dingaal
believed that the Lizard group of islands had been created in the
Dreamtime. They saw it as a stingray with Lizard Island being the
body and the other islands in the group forming the tail.
The first European to explore the island was
Captain Cook, who
anchored in one of the island's bays and climbed to the top of the
hill now known as Cook's Look. There he surveyed a suitable passage
away from the island. He wrote of the island "It is mostly high
land very rocky and barren except on the NW side where there are some
sandy bays and low land, which last is cover'd with thin long grass
trees etc the same as upon the Main(land)." Cook saw numerous
lizards (Gould's sand monitor) on the island which led him to write:
"The only land animals we saw here were lizards and these seem'd
to be plenty which occasioned my nameing the island Lizard Island."
Cook's recommendation meant that most of the major
explorations of
the Queensland coast - the HMS Beagle in 1839, the HMS Fly in 1843,
the HMS Rattlesnake in 1848 - stopped at the island.
By the 1860s the island was being used by beche de
mer fishermen
who found that the waters contained substantial quantities of the sea
cucumber which was a popular delicacy in Asia.
In 1879 Captain Robert Watson with his wife, a
servant and
baby daughter, built a cottage on the island. The ruins are still
visible. Captain Watson, was a beche-de-mer (sea cucumber) fisherman
and during one of his absences Aborigines from the mainland attacked
the cottage. Mrs. Watson, accompanied by her child and a Chinese
servant, attempted to flee to the mainland in a barrel (it can be
seen in the Townsville Museum - it is a large rectangular tub) used
for boiling beche-de-mer. The vessel floated away from the coast and
all three died of thirst.
In 1939 the island was declared a national park.
Currently there
is an exclusive 40-room resort and a research station. Regular
flights to the island allow visitors an opportunity to wander the
shores or to go bushwalking. Lizard Island is popular with deep-sea
fishermen who use it as a base.
Camping is allowed here as long as a permit has
been issued (ring
the Cairns office of the National Parks and Wildlife Service on (07)
4052 3096. The research station conducts tours every Monday and
Friday, tel: (07) 4060 3977.
Things to see:
Vital Information About the Island
1. The Island
Itself
Location
Australia's northern most island
resort it is located 240 km north of Cairns and 27 km off the coast
of north Queensland.
Description of the island
Lizard Island is a national
Park covering 1 000 hectares it has 24 sandy beaches the highest peak
is Cook's Lookout 359 metres
How do visitors access it?
Regular flights are
available from all Australian capital cities via Cairns.
Charter flights to and from Cairns can also be arranged.
Activities on the island
Swimming, snorkelling,
bush walking. The walking on the island is particularly good with
easy access to Cook's Look (a vigorous walk) and a delightful walk
along the runway to the Blue Lagoon.
2. Resorts
on the Island
History
Lizard Island resort is
currently owned and operated by P&O Australian Resorts.
How big is it?
Lizard
Island Resort has a total of 40 guest rooms with four different
grades (no interconnection rooms are available).
Who does it appeal to?
Couples-orientated retreats as
well as popular haunt for divers and deep sea anglers.
Free activities
Snorkelling, glass bottom boat,
motorised dinghies, non motorised water sports
Other activities
Outer reef dives, inner reef dives,
deep sea fishing
Eating at the resort
All (gourmet) meals are
included in the tariff, served in Ospreys Restaurant overlooking
Anchor Bay.
Lizard Island Resort
Via Cairns
Lizard Island QLD 4870
Telephone: 1800 737 678 or +61 2 9277 5050 worldwide
Facsimile: +61 2 9299 2477
Rating: ****
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