Haggerstone Island
Haggerstone Island is an extraordinary island experience offering the ultimate in intimacy and privacy. Accessible only by air, it is an incredibly remote and unspoiled Robinson Crusoe retreat approximately 600 kilometres north from Cairns, and a few miles from a wild stretch of the northern Great Barrier Reef mainland coast.
No words can capture Haggerstone, it is beyond description for its natural beauty and true pristine wilderness… used by Vogue magazine in their 1994 summer fashion shoot it rendered even the most experienced photographers on this global magazine speechless with its beauty.
The marine life is simply unbelievable.. shipwrecks, beach combing for WW2 artifacts, snorkeling, and the fishing… and complemented by a superb yet simple mouth watering cuisine featuring all fresh natural foods. The incredible remoteness of Haggerstone ensures an experience very rare on this planet. If you value absolute simplicity above all else – no maids, TV, mobile phones, computers, mirrors or egos, this is it.
Anna and I came to Haggerstone in April 1985 with a 70 ton barge loaded with poles, timber, fruit trees chickens and an old tractor. The island was jungle covered, uninhabited and hundreds of miles from what we know as civilization.
We were not to know we were to spend nearly six years alone on the island, but we set out to create a Robinson Crusoe style abode in the wild.
Many years later, here we are on Haggerstone. It is now truly a home in the wilderness and by our standards, truly palatial. We tend to forget that we lived in a tent for a year and carried water by bucket for two. Haggerstone Island is our home, and an Island Guest House, and we welcome you to our home and hope you
enjoy your stay.
It is a private Island – a small complex of tropical timber buildings, gardens, orchard and dams. We only cater for small numbers of guests (6-8), and with an abundance of fresh fish and vegetables we live well, eat well, and as one guest put it, “survive in style”.
Haggerstone is a truly unique and wonderful place, set amidst true wilderness country, teeming with fish and bird life and surrounded by some of the most magnificent pristine coral gardens in the world. Haggerstone provides a luxurious base from which to ramble or explore, or… just to be.
Access is generally via private charter small aircraft from Cairns to a neighboring island where we have an airstrip. We meet you there and transfer you to Haggerstone by boat, which takes approximately 20 minutes.
Sea Plane transfers are also available, and although more costly provide a breathtaking journey along the Great Barrier Reef and landing on our very doorstep. Flying time either way is approximately two and a half hours.
FISHING: is fantastic at all levels, rod, reel or fly fishing, reef, ocean or river. As there is NO human habitation for nearly one hundred miles in any direction, the fishing grounds around us are rarely disturbed. Bait is caught of the island beach.
SPEAR FISHING: is an often used method of food gathering. Catches of reef fish and tropical crayfish are easily obtained on nearby reefs.
SCUBA DIVING and snorkeling are also at their best. Two incredibly clear lagoons put their beautiful coral gardens right on your door step. The utter remoteness of the location ensures that the marine life is prolific. Adjacent to Haggerstone on the Outer Barrier Reef is one of the largest Green Turtle rookeries in the world, and turtles are abundant in the waters off Haggerstone.
Also close by we have discovered an 1840s shipwreck in a shallow reef garden. Its giant anchors, winching blocks and bronze keel bolts are all easily visible from surface snorkeling.
BEACH COMBING: The adjacent mainland beaches provide many miles of adventurous beach combing as they are all totally uninhabited and there are NO access roads into the region.
VERY LITTLE: We have a good selection of classical and contemporary music CDs on the island, as well as a well stocked and carefully selected reading library. Under a palm tree, on a verandah, or on a quiet and secluded beach – just please yourself.
We have a big 7 metre twin engine power catamaran, a 7 metre and a 6 metre fiberglass long boat, all available for fishing, diving and exploration.
Most of our food is gathered and grown on the island, and is usually cooked on the sun deck fireplace.
Tropical fruits, our own poultry, fresh fish and vegetables and an abundance of coconuts from an old coconut plantation, combine to produce a unique and rich variety of dishes; bread is baked on the island, muesli toasted with grated coconut, fish is pickled and smoked and coconut is used extensively for both meat and “cream” – not forgetting “tuba” the alcoholic beverage that is tapped from coconut trees.
Enjoy unforgettable evenings on the sun deck with the sunset over
the surrounding reef and the aroma of roasting shellfish, sipping fine
wines in a true wilderness. We also use a sand cay off the northern
end of the island as an unforgettable dining room.
We have a good selection of red and white wines and a well stocked
bar on the island, and before you arrive, we check with you if you
have any particular preference for wines or beverages, and buy these
in for you, charging you only the purchase price we pay – therefore no exorbitant markups.
We have three guest houses, each with shower and toilet, snack bench, fridge and sink plus verandahs with spectacular views out to sea. Each house has a double bed and single sofa bed and additional beds are available if required. The guest houses can accommodate up to four people.
Main building contains kitchen, two bathrooms, bar, well stocked library, dining area. Two self contained handcrafted huts Ensuites and kitchenette with solar fridge Living area, and sun decks overlooking coral lagoons. Daily room service and laundry service (if required!)
One rustic beach hut with outside shower, vanity and toilet Kitchenette with solar fridge
We have our own satellite telephone on the island for 24 a day communication world wide, although NOT FOR BUSINESS! The satellite link supports both telephone and fax. We are also connected to the Royal Flying Doctor radio service for medical emergencies. We also have various shipping radio frequencies available to contact cruise and cargo ships.
Most people opt for a 7 night stay to benefit from traveling to this incredibly remote location.
