Posted November 19, 2023 about September 20, 2022
The next morning in Brampton welcomed us with the same misty haze and scattered low clouds that we’d encountered at Keswick Island. It was another sign of the changing season, a phenomenon that would accompany us throughout our cruise through the Whitsundays. This haze tended to linger through the morning and even into the afternoon. I’ve spent a lot of time in the tropics but haven’t experienced anything like this, and I have no name for it. Below, a few photos from our morning:
Since this would be another day of light conditions and a short trip to the next island, we had the luxury of time to linger. Rich even took a nap for awhile. Meanwhile the other boats in the bay left, giving us the place to ourselves. Normally, this is a good thing, but today I felt uncomfortable, liking this place less and less while growing increasingly anxious to leave.
In spite of nice scenery and turtles in the bay, there was something unsettling about this area. Of course abandoned buildings are never a good-energy thing, and I chalked up my feelings to our proximity to the dilapidated resort.
However, during my research for this post, I learned of something sinister in this island’s past: back in the 1990s, one of the resort waitresses was raped and brutally murdered. The murder went unsolved until DNA technology was introduced, which aided in solving and prosecuting this crime. The resort guest responsible was finally brought to justice.
I don’t think this event significantly affected the resort and was certainly not a factor in its closure. But now this area has been left with the fading echoes of its past. With the bustling energy of vacationing tourists gone, this faint echo has perhaps become more perceptible. It’s more sad than scary, but combined with the regrettable aura hovering over this island, it felt unnerving, even though I was unaware of the murder during our visit.
I told Rich I wanted to go, and soon we were heading off to what would hopefully be a better place, the Smith Islands. –Cyndi
