Hinchinbrook Island lies east of Cardwell

Cardwell

Cardwell can refer to:Places:*Cardwell, Queensland, Australia*Cardwell, Missouri, USA*Cardwell, Montana, USA*Cardwell Hall, Kansas State University, USAPeople:*Dale Cardwell, American consumer advocate and journalist...

 and north of Lucinda

Lucinda

-Other:* Lucinda, Queensland, a town in Australia* Lucinda, a fictional fairy character in Ella Enchanted* Lucinda, Pennsylvania, a town in the United States...

, Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

 Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. Hinchinbrook Island is part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park protects a large part of Australia's Great Barrier Reef from damaging activities. Fishing and the removal of artefacts or...

 and wholly protected within the Hinchinbrook Island National Park

Hinchinbrook Island National Park

Hinchinbrook Island National Park is situated along the Cassowary Coast Queensland, Australia. The nearest capital city is Brisbane approx. 1240 km to the south. Cardwell is 2.0 drive north of Townsville being the closest North Queensland provincial city...

, except for a small resort. It is the largest island on the Great Barrier Reef

Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...

. It is also the largest island national park

National park

A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...

 in Australia.

On the mainland adjacent Hinchinbrook Island is Girringun National Park

Girringun National Park

Girrungun National Park is a National Park in Queensland , approximately 50 km southwest of Ingham, 110 km north of Townsville and 1,290 km northwest of Brisbane. The park was formerly named Lumholtz National Park when it was created in 1994. The Blencoe Falls Section was gazetted as...

, Kirrama National Park, Edmund Kennedy National Park

Edmund Kennedy National Park

Edmund Kennedy is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1269 km northwest of Brisbane. The national park is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area. It was named after Edmund Kennedy, a mid-nineteenth century explorer....

 and the Cardwell Range hinterland which is part of the World Heritage Wet Tropics of Queensland

Wet Tropics of Queensland

The Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Site consists of approximately 8,940 km² of Australian wet tropical forests growing along the north-east Queensland portion of the Great Dividing Range, stretching from Townsville to Cooktown, running in close parallel to the Great Barrier Reef...

. The Great Green Way spans the coastal region Cairns City to the north, with Townsville City to the south. Cardwell is a southern Cassowary Coast Town with a population of around 1,350.

Natural heritage

Hinchinbrook Island is made up of late Palaeozoic intrusive igneous. The main 16km long pluton

Pluton

A pluton in geology is a body of intrusive igneous rock that crystallized from magma slowly cooling below the surface of the Earth. Plutons include batholiths, dikes, sills, laccoliths, lopoliths, and other igneous bodies...

 in the east of the island, the Hinchinbrook Granite, is composed of various hypersolvus

Hypersolvus

In hypersolvus granites, as used by Tuttle and Bowen in 1958, crystallization at relatively low water pressures results in the formation of a single feldspar as opposed to subsolvus granites in which two distinct types of feldspar are present....

 granites and intrudes volcanics, granodiorite

Granodiorite

Granodiorite is an intrusive igneous rock similar to granite, but containing more plagioclase than orthoclase-type feldspar. Officially, it is defined as a phaneritic igneous rock with greater than 20% quartz by volume where at least 65% of the feldspar is plagioclase. It usually contains abundant...

s, and granite

Granite

Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...

s. The island and coastal ranges are thought to have been thrust up as blocks with subsidence between them to form the coastal plain with the summit level of the island being an older dissected surface that has been uplifted to approximately 1k m or more above sea level. The Hinchinbrook Channel

Hinchinbrook Channel

The Hinchinbrook Channel is a channel between the Australian mainland and Hinchinbrook Island. It runs between Oyster Point, just south of Cardwell, and Lucinda in Far North Queensland. The Aboriginal name for the channel is Bolan Milbirmi. The Herbert River flows into the channel's southern...

 that separates the island from the mainland is considered to be fault controlled.

Since the last Ice Age 18,000 years ago sea level has risen. Once there was a significant rugged coastal range, now there is Hinchinbrook Island. To the west is the mangrove

Mangrove

Mangroves are various kinds of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics – mainly between latitudes N and S...

-fringed Hinchinbrook Channel with 164 km² of robust mangrove esturaries. The channel is the valley of the Herbert River

Herbert River

The Herbert River is a river located in Far North Queensland, Australia. The southernmost of Queensland's wet tropics river systems, it is named after Robert George Wyndham Herbert , the first Premier of Queensland...

 flooded following the last glacial period. The island is only separated from the mainland at times of high sea-level such as the present and is thought to have had dry land connections to the mainland for most of the past few million years. Further west is the Cardwell Range Escarpment rainforest. East of Hinchinbrook Island lies the Coral Sea, Great Barrier Reef Lagoon and Great Barrier Reef.

To the north of Hinchinbrook Island, Rockingham Bay hosts densely vegetated continental islands e.g. Garden Island, Goold Island, Brook Islands Group

Brook Islands National Park

The Brook Islands National Park is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1246 km northwest of Brisbane, with an area of 0.9 km². It was established in 1994 and comprises three islands - North, Tween and Middle - which lie off the coast 7 km north-east of Cape Richards on Hinchinbrook Island...

, Family Island Group

Family Islands National Park

The Family Islands are a group of continental islands lying a short distance off the coast, about mid-way between Cairns and Townsville, in Queensland, Australia. Most of the area has been designated as a national park...

, Bedarra Island

Bedarra Island

Bedarra Island is a privately owned island in the middle of the Family Islands National Park, located off the Queensland coast in Australia. The island is made from granite and was part of the mainland before the last sea level rise began 8,000 years ago...

 and Dunk Island east of Mission Beach

Mission Beach

Mission Beach may refer to:*Mission Beach, San Diego, California, United States*Mission Beach, Queensland, Australia...

. South of Hinchinbrook Island, the Cardwell Range gives way to the Herbert River floodplain and delta.

Missionary Bay is at the northern end of Hinchinbrook Island National Park. Natural features of this biodiverse area include 50 km² of dense mangrove

Mangrove

Mangroves are various kinds of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics – mainly between latitudes N and S...

 communities lining the shoreline. Many botanists believe the mangrove forests along the island's western coast are the most diverse in the country. 31 different species of mangrove has been identified. A shallow subhorizontal tidal zone has extensive offshore sea grass beds grazed by dugong

Dugong

The dugong is a large marine mammal which, together with the manatees, is one of four living species of the order Sirenia. It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest modern relative, Steller's sea cow , was hunted to extinction in the 18th century...

. The Beach Stone-curlew

Beach Stone-curlew

The Beach Stone-curlew, Esacus giganteus also known as Beach Thick-knee is a large, ground-dwelling bird that occurs in Australasia, the islands of South-east Asia...

 thrives on the island, unlike on mainland beaches because vehicles are banned.

The eastern coastline of Hinchinbrook Island is punctuated with headland outcrops, incised drainage conduits, forest, secluded sandy pocket beaches and sand dunes. Mangroves are in proximity to freshwater streams. At Ramsay Bay on the northeast coast, a transgressive dune

Dune

In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...

 barrier or tombolo

Tombolo

A tombolo, from the Italian tombolo, derived from the Latin tumulus, meaning 'mound,' and sometimes translated as ayre , is a deposition landform in which an island is attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a spit or bar. Once attached, the island is then known as a tied island...

 links Cape Sandwich, a granite outlier at the northeastern tip of the island, to the main part of the island. The barrier is widest in the north with a maximum width of about 1 km and narrows to the south to a width of about 100-200 m. The barrier, which consists mainly of aeolian sands, extends more than 30 m below the present sea level in places. It is thought to have been formed in two major episodes, the older dunes being partly drowned during an early Holocene

Holocene

The Holocene is a geological epoch which began at the end of the Pleistocene and continues to the present. The Holocene is part of the Quaternary period. Its name comes from the Greek words and , meaning "entirely recent"...

 marine transgression (9500-6000 C-14 years BP) with the later generation of dunes forming within the last 900 C-14 years BP.

Hinchinbrook Island is described as a "wilderness area," wild and rugged with soaring mountainous peaks. Hinchinbrook Island's highest mountain is Mount Bowen. The summit being 1121 metres (or 3,678 feet) above sea level. Terrestrial vegetation types include thick shrubs, heath

Heath

-Habitats:* Heath or heathland, low-growing woody vegetation, mostly consisting of heathers and related species* Heaths in the British National Vegetation Classification system...

, bushland

Bushland

Bushland is any area in Australia that is predominantly indigenous flora and fauna.Bushland is the term commonly used by conservation protection groups and other environmental groups as a blanket term for natural vegetation, which may cover any kind of habitat from open shrubby country with few...

 and forest

Forest

A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...

. The island habitat provides refuge for numerous endangered species

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...

, both flora and fauna such as the Giant Tree Frog

Giant Tree Frog

The White-lipped Tree Frog , also known as the Giant Tree Frog, is the world's largest tree frog. This species is native to the rainforests of Northern Queensland, New Guinea, the Bismarck Islands and the Admiralty Islands....

.

The local climate is tropical, warm to mildly cool and dry during the winter months. The summer monsoon wet is warm to hot and humid, coinciding with the tropical cyclone season. The island has no reefs in the waters surrounding it, most likely due to fresh water runoff from the island.

History

Hinchinbrook Island was inhabited by the Bandjin people, along a western coastal strip. Shell middens and fish traps are evidence of their activities. Fish were an important source of food for Aboriginal people living in the area. The Bandjin fish trap rock formations exploited the cyclic tidal regime, not only capturing fish, but also holding their catch alive for days. At times, many fish would be caught in the traps. These fish would not be killed nor eaten, instead they were left for the birds. To this day fish are still captured by these traps feeding the local birds.

In 1770 James Cook

James Cook

Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...

 and his crew on HMS Endeavour sailed past at some distance east of Hinchinbrook Island. Hinchinbrook Island was named on the 19 May, 1819 by Lieutenant Phillip Parker King RN (1791-1856). King was a naval officer, hydrographer and company manager who explored the northeastern coast of Australia on the HM Colonial Cutter Mermaid.

In the following decades Europeans settled on Hinchinbrook Island. Their main activities were fishing, farming and mining. In 1932 Hinchinbrook Island was declared a national park. In 1942, a US B24 Liberator bomber crashed into a mountain on the island, killing all 12 people on board. After World War II commercial crocodile hunting in the area, nearly reduced numbers to the point of extinction by the 1960s.

The 2008 movie Nim's Island

Nim's Island

Nim's Island is a 2008 Australian adventure-fantasy film directed by Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin and starring Abigail Breslin, Jodie Foster, and Gerard Butler. The story is based on the book Nim's Island by Wendy Orr. A young girl, Nim, seeks help from the author of her favorite adventure...

 was partly filmed on the island.

Tourism

The island has a single provider of accommodation called the Hinchinbrook Island Wilderness Lodge. It is located on the north-eastern corner of the island at Cape Richards.

Destinations and Regulations

Hinchinbrook Island, Hinchinbrook Channel and the coastal plain south to the Herbert River Delta is a unique biogeographical region. Due to past, present and ongoing conservation efforts this region embraces Nature Tourism i.e. ecotourism

Ecotourism

Ecotourism is a form of tourism visiting fragile, pristine, and usually protected areas, intended as a low impact and often small scale alternative to standard commercial tourism...

. South of Cardwell the Port Hinchinbrook Marina provides public year round safe boating access to Hinchinbrook Channel, offshore islands and the Great Barrier Reef.

Along the east coast of the island is the 32 km (19.9 mi) long Thorsborne Trail. The trail is recognised world-wide and was named in honour of environmental activists Arthur and Margaret Thorsborne

Margaret Thorsborne

Margaret Grace Thorsborne AO is an Australian naturalist, conservationist and environmental activist. She is notable for her efforts, with her husband Arthur Thorsborne, in initiating the long-term monitoring and protection of the Torresian Imperial-pigeon on the Brook Islands, north east of...

.

Marine nature based activities include; sightseeing cruises, sailing, outrigger canoeing, swimming, snorkelling and scuba diving. Sea kayaking is possible east of Hinchinbrook Island; west, the island is known saltwater crocodile habitat. Outdoor enthusiasts and angler's target this region for prawns, mudcrabs, lobster, estuarine, benthic and pelagic species. Spearfishing, luring, bottom fishing and sports fishing are possible. For sustainable conservation of marine natural resources the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park has a detailed zoning map.

Hinchinbrook Island camping

Camping

Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...

 is by permit only. Visitor numbers to the island is restricted. The aim is to preserve the islands biodiversity

Biodiversity

Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...

 and limit environmental degradation. Open fires are not permitted. Day trip visitors, hikers and campers should be aware that saltwater crocodiles are a protected species and present in the islands waterways.

Conservation and environmental activists continue to monitor visitor numbers, boat activities, coastal canal development, marina dredging activities, coastal infrastructure development and the wilderness values of Hinchinbrook Island National Park.

Access

The Bruce Highway

Bruce Highway

The Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is a part of the Australian National Highway and also part of Highway 1...

 connects Townsville, Cardwell, Port Hinchinbrook and Cairns. Locally the Bruce Highway within Cardwell town limits is known as Victoria Street. Regular scheduled coach services operate from the transit zone in Brasenose Street, Cardwell. Queensland Rail has regular services operating, transiting from the Cardwell Rail Station in Roma Street. The northern Hinchinbrook Island Ferry timetable has seasonal regular scheduled services departing Port Hinchinbrook Marina.

Shipwreck

In 2011, the shipwreck of a 30 m longboat

Longboat

In the days of sailing ships, a vessel would carry several ship's boats for various uses. One would be a longboat, an open boat to be rowed by eight or ten oarsmen, two per thwart...

 was discovered on the shores of Ramsay Bay by a fisherman. It is thought that the wreck is about 130 years old and was uncovered by Cyclone Yasi

Cyclone Yasi

Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi was a tropical cyclone that made landfall in northern Queensland, Australia in the early hours of Thursday, 3 February 2011. Yasi originated from a tropical low near Fiji. The system intensified to a Category 3 cyclone at about 5pm AEST on 31 January 2011...

.

See also

• Agnes Island
  Agnes Island
  Agnes Island is a very small island a few hundred metres east of Hinchinbrook Island. At low tide, it can be accessed from nearby Banksia Bay....
  
  
• List of islands of Australia
• Oyster Point
• Protected areas of Queensland
  Protected areas of Queensland
  Queensland is the second largest state in Australia. It contains 470 separate Protected Areas with a total land area of 69,388 km² . 223 of these are National parks, which is the highest number of any Australian state or territory, totalling 65,871 km²...
  
  

Further reading

• Matthew Fletcher et al.: Walking in Australia. Lonely Planet 2001. ISBN 0-86442-669-0

External links

• www.hinchinbrook.info - A community site documenting development pressures on Hinchinbrook Island and Channel
• Hinchinbrook Island National Park - Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service