First impressions of Bowen were bad. Entry to the harbour is narrow, shallow and somewhat confusing as much of the waterway has been given over to pile moorings ($8/night). We were forced to drive around in circles as no one was at the Yacht Club to allocate the berth that we had pre-arranged for our 1030am arrival. At this stage things were rapidly going downhill on Raven however the threatened mutiny was averted through the intervention of some of the locals, who as it turns out are a very helpful lot. In no time we were tied up at the marina of the North Queensland Cruising Yacht Club (NQCYC) with only 43 paces separating ‘Raven’ from the entrance to the club (which, by the way, serves a twice daily $9.95 special for lunch and dinner, and thus far has always been nothing less than DELICIOUS). The berth is $23/night for a week. There is live entertainment twice each week; great if your musical inclinations lean towards country and western. A new, small, private marina has recently been opened as well. They charge $1/ foot / night and have all amenities and are nicely situated next door to the retail fish outlets and opposite the NQCYC..
We’ve decided to stay for at least a week and have had a goodly amount of time to explore the stunning local beaches which must be a real investment opportunity (shame about the clobbering some of us have taken on the stock market). Although too early for mangoes, it is tomato picking season in Bowen and consequently they are very cheap ($1 /kilo at roadside barns). Seen from the Reservoir Lookout, the farms extend for miles in every direction from Bowen.
The townsfolk of Bowen are still on a high as a consequence of the filming of “Australia”. It is the main topic of conversation in town and all reports are that the cast and crew were nice people, notably Hugh Jackman and his family. Many of the locals scored roles as extras in the movie.
We’ve decided to stay for at least a week and have had a goodly amount of time to explore the stunning local beaches which must be a real investment opportunity (shame about the clobbering some of us have taken on the stock market). Although too early for mangoes, it is tomato picking season in Bowen and consequently they are very cheap ($1 /kilo at roadside barns). Seen from the Reservoir Lookout, the farms extend for miles in every direction from Bowen.
The townsfolk of Bowen are still on a high as a consequence of the filming of “Australia”. It is the main topic of conversation in town and all reports are that the cast and crew were nice people, notably Hugh Jackman and his family. Many of the locals scored roles as extras in the movie.
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