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Fitzroy Island Gabar or Goong-Gan-Jee Island Cairns, Queensland | |
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Coordinates | 16°55′49″S145°59′32″E / 16.9302°S 145.9922°E |
Population | 85 (2021 census) [1] |
• Density | |
Postcode(s) | 4871 |
Area | 11.6 km2 (4.5 sq mi) |
Time zone | AEST (UTC+10:00) |
LGA(s) | Cairns Region |
State electorate(s) | Mulgrave |
Federal division(s) | Kennedy |
Fitzroy Island (originally Koba or Gabar or Goong-Gan-Jee) is a continental island offshore from Cape Grafton, 29 km (18 miles) southeast of Cairns, Queensland, Australia. It is a locality in the Cairns Region. [2] [3] In the 2021 census, Fitzroy Island had a population of 85 people. [1]
Fitzroy Island is a large tropical island, with some rainforest covering and its own fringe coral reef system. The island has a total area of 11.6 square kilometres. [4] The highest point of the island is 240 metres (790 feet) above sea level. [5]
Fitzroy Island is a 45-minute ferry ride (about 30 km; 20 miles) from Cairns and is surrounded by a reef system that forms part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. Nearly all of the continental island is protected within the Fitzroy Island National Park. Four walking tracks have been established to various parts of the island. [6]
Fitzroy has a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen: Am) with a long, hot, wet season during the summer months, and a short, warm, relatively dry season during the winter months. [7]
Climate data for Fitzroy Island Lighthouse (16º56'S, 146º00'E, 124 m AMSL) (1968-1991 normals and extremes) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 36.1 (97.0) | 35.6 (96.1) | 35.9 (96.6) | 33.3 (91.9) | 30.0 (86.0) | 28.9 (84.0) | 30.0 (86.0) | 29.6 (85.3) | 31.6 (88.9) | 32.9 (91.2) | 34.0 (93.2) | 39.9 (103.8) | 39.9 (103.8) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.6 (87.1) | 30.1 (86.2) | 29.4 (84.9) | 27.9 (82.2) | 25.9 (78.6) | 23.9 (75.0) | 23.5 (74.3) | 24.9 (76.8) | 26.8 (80.2) | 28.8 (83.8) | 30.1 (86.2) | 30.7 (87.3) | 27.7 (81.9) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 24.5 (76.1) | 24.1 (75.4) | 23.8 (74.8) | 22.7 (72.9) | 21.3 (70.3) | 19.4 (66.9) | 19.0 (66.2) | 19.4 (66.9) | 20.7 (69.3) | 22.3 (72.1) | 23.6 (74.5) | 24.4 (75.9) | 22.1 (71.8) |
Record low °C (°F) | 20.0 (68.0) | 19.4 (66.9) | 20.0 (68.0) | 18.5 (65.3) | 13.9 (57.0) | 13.9 (57.0) | 13.6 (56.5) | 13.3 (55.9) | 15.0 (59.0) | 19.0 (66.2) | 19.7 (67.5) | 20.6 (69.1) | 13.3 (55.9) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 480.1 (18.90) | 477.5 (18.80) | 486.7 (19.16) | 303.1 (11.93) | 225.5 (8.88) | 124.1 (4.89) | 74.2 (2.92) | 72.1 (2.84) | 44.8 (1.76) | 46.6 (1.83) | 114.7 (4.52) | 214.4 (8.44) | 2,664.4 (104.90) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 14.9 | 16.9 | 18.4 | 17.3 | 15.6 | 10.2 | 9.5 | 7.6 | 6.3 | 5.8 | 7.6 | 11.2 | 141.3 |
Average afternoon relative humidity (%) | 75 | 78 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 77 | 77 | 73 | 69 | 68 | 69 | 72 | 75 |
Average dew point °C (°F) | 24.2 (75.6) | 24.4 (75.9) | 23.8 (74.8) | 22.4 (72.3) | 20.7 (69.3) | 18.1 (64.6) | 17.9 (64.2) | 18.2 (64.8) | 19.1 (66.4) | 20.7 (69.3) | 22.1 (71.8) | 23.5 (74.3) | 21.3 (70.3) |
Source: Bureau of Meteorology [8] |
The island separated from the mainland about 8000 years ago, at the end of the last ice age. There were Aboriginal visits, mainly for visiting hunting trips and recreation. The Yidiny people named the island "Gabar", meaning "lower arm", because of how it was partially submerged. [9]
Lieutenant James Cook named the island in 1770 after Augustus Henry Fitzroy. [3] [10] The island was used for a considerable time as a significant Chinese quarantine station for the Queensland goldfields. [10] Subsequently, it was used as a mission school and, during World War II, as a coast watch station. [11]
The island has also been a significant lighthouse base, with the last permanent lighthouse structure on the main island still being an important attraction. Since the lighthouse closed, the marine community has been served by an automatic lighthouse, based on the adjacent Little Fitzroy Island. There has been both a giant clam farm at Welcome Bay, and there is now a tourist resort and day visitor centre.
In the 2016 census, Fitzroy Island had a population of 44 people. [12]
In the 2021 census, Fitzroy Island had a population of 85 people. [1]
The island is home to a 99-room resort with a restaurant, pool, swim up bar as well as a dive / activity centre. [13] Originally opened in 1981, property developer Doug Gamble bought and renovated the resort in 2010. [14] Island visitors can also spend time at Foxy's Bar and Cafe, a large Pacific Islands bar with a 70’s structural theming, situated right on the beach front, about 100 metres from the resort buildings. [15] The resort manages the camping area. [10]
Queensland is a state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous of the Australian states. 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 the Pacific Ocean; to the state’s north is the Torres Strait, separating the Australian mainland from Papua New Guinea, and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north-west. With an area of 1,723,030 square kilometres (665,270 sq mi), Queensland is the world's sixth-largest subnational entity; it is larger than all but 16 countries. Due to its size, Queensland's geographical features and climates are diverse, and include tropical rainforests, rivers, coral reefs, mountain ranges and white sandy beaches in its tropical and sub-tropical coastal regions, as well as deserts and savanna in the semi-arid and desert climatic regions of its interior.
Fitzroy Island National Park is a gazetted protected area covering Fitzroy Island, in Far North Queensland, Queensland, Australia. Fitzroy Island, is a continental island located 22 kilometres (14 mi) east of Cairns on the mainland.
Cairns is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the 2021 census, Cairns had a population of 153,181 people.
Yungaburra is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, the locality of Yungaburra had a population of 1,272 people.
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Lady Elliot Island is the southernmost coral cay of the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. The island lies 46 nautical miles north-east of Bundaberg and covers an area of approximately 45 hectares. It is part of the Capricorn and Bunker Group of islands and is owned by the Commonwealth of Australia. The island is home to a small eco resort and an airstrip, which is serviced daily by flights from Bundaberg, Hervey Bay, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Far North Queensland (FNQ) is the northernmost part of the Australian state of Queensland. Its largest city is Cairns and it is dominated geographically by Cape York Peninsula, which stretches north to the Torres Strait, and west to the Gulf Country. The waters of Torres Strait include the only international border in the area contiguous with the Australian mainland, between Australia and Papua New Guinea.
Ellis Beach is a coastal locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Ellis Beach had a population of 5 people.
Green Island is a marine island and locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Green Island had a population of 20 people.
Palfrey Island is an island in the offshore locality of Lizard in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. It is 270 km north of Cairns and is part of the Lizard Island Group and south of Lizard Island. There is an automated lighthouse structure situated on this island.
Palm Cove is a suburb of Cairns in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Palm Cove had a population of 2,450 people.
The Tablelands Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia inland from the city of Cairns. Established in 2008, it was preceded by four previous local government areas which dated back more than a century. On 1 January 2014, one of those local government areas, the Shire of Mareeba, was re-established independent of the Tablelands Region.
The geography of Queensland in the north-east of Australia, is varied. It includes tropical islands, sandy beaches, flat river plains that flood after monsoon rains, tracts of rough, elevated terrain, dry deserts, rich agricultural belts and densely populated urban areas.
Balgal Beach is a coastal suburb and a beach in the City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. The town of Balgal is within the locality. In the 2021 census, Balgal Beach had a population of 998 people.
Fitzroy Island Light is an inactive lighthouse on Fitzroy Island, a continental island 29 kilometres (18 mi) southeast of Cairns, Queensland, Australia. It was only active between 1973 and 1992 but, together with Little Fitzroy Island Light, there has been a light station in the area since 1929.
Hamilton Island is an island of the Whitsunday Islands in Queensland, Australia. It is approximately 887 kilometres (551 mi) north of Brisbane and 512 kilometres (318 mi) south of Cairns.
East Russell is a coastal locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, East Russell had a population of 83 people.
Coral Cove is a coastal locality in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia. It has been used as a diving point by tourists and contains the Coral Cove Golf course. In the 2021 census, Coral Cove had a population of 1,462 people.
Low Isles is an offshore locality in the Shire of Douglas, Queensland, Australia. Located in the Coral Sea, the islands are due east of Rocky Point and approximately 14.5 kilometres (9.0 mi) north-east of Port Douglas on the Queensland mainland coast. In the 2021 census, Low Isles had "no people or a very low population".