Exploring Magnetic Island: Australia!

By: Sophie Jacobs

This semester I have had the wonderful opportunity to explore the Australian outdoors while studying abroad at James Cook University. This university is located in Townsville, North Queensland. Just off the coast of Townsville is the beautiful Magnetic Island. Just a 20 minute ferry ride and you are on white sand beaches, crystal clear waters, and get to see some of the most unique wildlife like KOALAS and WALLABIES!

This particular post is about my ‘camping’ adventure on Magnetic Island!

 

Saturday morning, we began the journey at Nelly Bay, and then hiked to Picnic Bay to do some scuba diving! All around the island there are amazing places to snorkel, dive, and see some shipwrecks. The coral reefs are like nothing I have seen before – there are sooo many fish and colorful corals. We even saw a lionfish and a stingray!

After the dive, we cut open a pineapple on the beach, went for a swim, and watched the sunset. The night consisted of sleeping on just a blanket on a secluded beach and falling asleep to the Milky Way galaxy. One thing I have noticed is that the moon crescent is actually upside-down from what it looks like in America! I got to wake up to an orange sunrise (and many bug bites). Then we walked along the beach to go find some cheeseburgers to eat for ‘brekkie’.

Overall it was a great weekend trip – I am excited to do some more exploring as I head down to backpack the east coast of Australia when the semester ends :))

 

About the Author:

Name: Sophie Jacobs

Year: Junior

Majors: Environmental Biology and Exercise Science

Hometown: Annapolis, Maryland

Favorite Outdoor Activity: Anything in the water or on land!! (new interest in diving)

Fav camp food: peanut butter

Ideal Outdoor Trip Destination: Fiji

If you were stranded on an island, what would you bring: a machete to cut coconuts