We'd been looking forward to getting to visiting Great Keppel, even since we started 'planning' this adventure 7-8 years ago, being as how we'd visited the island 3 times before with the kids(and friends). What a dissappointment!
We anchored in leckies beach and walked over the island to the resort, which we knew was now closed. The walk and the island was good, but what a dissappointment the resort was. It was all fenced off, with signpost telling us about the penalties for trespass (loss of first born child, testicles removed etc). Obviously we totally ignored them. The resort was like a ghost town slowly falling apart. Seems like the money men had taken all their money away, but somehow forgot to take their shit with them - there were 40 gall drums and rusting machinery over at the airport and the whole resort. BASTARDS! Couldn't help but think about the great times we'd spent there with the UK Furleys and the Hutsons so many years ago, and thought about the next generation of kids who would be denied the privilage,
the photo above is of the main resort pool, which used to be so appealing that it used to be on the front of Queensland travel brockures. It has the resort on one side and uninterupted views of the ocean and the mainland, which is only a few miles away. This is a picture of the wading pool in which the kids had so much fun. Tragic.
There are a few facilities still remaining on Keppel, Wapparraborra - probably not spent right I can only just pronounce it - which is the low cost cabin part of the resort and just a few of the shops. The rainbow shop remains selling shells & beach apparel, and this little beauty can be found sitting peacefully on his knees - backwards. Didn't believe he was alive at first as he was so motionless, but he definitely does move.
This is Lekes Beach - somehow the money men could not make a profit out of an island that looks this good!
Not really sure whether it is the fault of the money men, The aborigine council, National Parks or some other government agency, but who ever it is should be totally ashamed of themselves.
