Tannum
Sands and Boyne Island - Gladstone’s twin aquatic and recreational
playgrounds. Only 25km south of the city, Tannum Sands beach is one of
the safest beaches in Australia and the water is warm all year-round.
The estuary behind the beach is a haven for anglers who like to tempt
the fish with fly, lure and live bait.
Across a road bridge, Boyne Island might be the site a huge alumina smelter,
but the plant is well out of sight and mind on the golden beaches and secluded
picnic areas. Tranquil Turkey Beach, one of the closest mainland points to
the Great Barrier Reef, is less than an hour’s drive to the south.
Turkey Beach owes its name to the fact that a member of Captain Cook's crew
shot a scrub turkey or bustard while Endeavour lay off what is now the Town
of 1770. Protected Rodds Harbour is a fisherman's paradise which boasts some
of the best mud crabs in the country.
