⚠ NOT FOR NAVIGATION. Use official charts and tide tables. This page is a planning aid only. Navigate with the current official chart, MSQ notices to mariners, official tide tables and local advice.

Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast cruising guide

Official sources and Reef Authority maps for this areaMSQ notices to mariners: North Queensland outside pilotage areasMSQ notices to mariners: Far North Queensland outside pilotage areasReef Authority: Hinchinbrook Plan of ManagementReef Authority moorings and no-anchoring areas: Mission Beach to TownsvilleReef Authority zoning Map 6: InnisfailMSQ's Beacon to Beacon series doesn't cover this coast. Free official notices, port procedures and Reef Authority zoning maps instead. Read the current notices before you go. Not for navigation.
Lucinda, the Hinchinbrook Channel, Cardwell, Dunk Island, Mission Beach, Mourilyan and Innisfail · 4 guidesLast checked: 30 October 2026Report a correction

The Hinchinbrook Channel runs between Hinchinbrook Island and the mainland, with Lucinda at its south entrance and Cardwell at its north. The south bar has 3.3 m and breaks in fresh north-easterlies; the north entrance is sheltered except from the north. Further north, Dunk Island off Mission Beach has good holding and public moorings, then Mourilyan Harbour is a small deep port with strong entrance streams, and the Johnstone River to Innisfail is a shifting bar for local boats only.

Map of the Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast region (Lucinda, the Hinchinbrook Channel, Cardwell, Dunk Island, Mission Beach, Mourilyan and Innisfail) with a numbered marker for each of its 4 cruising guide pages.
Numbers match the guide list below. Each name links to its page. Positions are approximate. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Positions are approximate and for orientation only. Not a chart. Not for navigation.
  1. 1Lucinda & the Hinchinbrook Channel · Bar entrance + channel
  2. 2Cardwell & Port Hinchinbrook · Channel entrance + harbour
  3. 3Dunk Island & Mission Beach · Island anchorage + jetty
  4. 4Mourilyan Harbour & Innisfail · Small port + river bar

Guides in this region, south to north

Lucinda & the Hinchinbrook Channel

Bar entrance + channel

Lucinda and the south entrance to the Hinchinbrook Channel: the bar, Enterprise Channel, the jetty and notices. Not for navigation.

Last checked: 30 October 2026

Cardwell & Port Hinchinbrook

Channel entrance + harbour

Cardwell and Port Hinchinbrook: the north entrance to the Hinchinbrook Channel, Missionary Bay and Goold Island. Not for navigation.

Last checked: 30 October 2026

Dunk Island & Mission Beach

Island anchorage + jetty

Dunk Island's anchorage and moorings, Clump Point ramp at Mission Beach and the Family Islands. Not for navigation.

Last checked: 30 October 2026

Mourilyan Harbour & Innisfail

Small port + river bar

Mourilyan Harbour's entrance and anchorage, and the shoaling Johnstone River bar to Innisfail. Not for navigation.

Last checked: 30 October 2026

Entrances and hazards to plan around

  • Lucinda & the Hinchinbrook Channel: South bar least depth 3.3 m, leads on 247°, heavy surf in fresh NE winds (NGA). Enterprise Channel: no clear channel between marks 1 and 2 (NtM 064/2024).
  • Cardwell & Port Hinchinbrook: North entrance sheltered except from N (NGA). Stay seaward of the stranded-trawler buoy off Cardwell (NtM 216(T)-2026).
  • Dunk Island & Mission Beach: Anchorage about 1 mile W of Mound Islet, 9.1 to 14.6 m (NGA). Bird-site 6 kn limits 1 Oct to 31 Mar (Reef Authority).
  • Mourilyan Harbour & Innisfail: Mourilyan stream up to 3 kn at springs (NGA). Johnstone River: significant shoaling; local knowledge and high tide only (NtM 438(T)-2026).

Read the current MSQ notices for North and Far North Queensland before any bar or creek entrance; the seabed at Enterprise Channel and the Johnstone River is mobile.

Neighbouring regions

About these guides

These are planning notes written by a working delivery skipper from public sources: Maritime Safety Queensland notices and port procedures, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Transport and Main Roads boating facilities data, Queensland Government croc and stinger advice, Marine Rescue Queensland, the Bureau of Meteorology, NGA Pub. 127 and OpenStreetMap. They are not for navigation. Use the official chart, current notices, official tide tables and local advice. Each page shows when its facts were last checked.

Sources & credits

Maritime Safety Queensland. Contains Maritime Safety Queensland data (notices to mariners, and the port procedures and information for shipping for Abbot Point, Townsville, Lucinda, Mourilyan, Cairns, and Cape Flattery, Cooktown and Port Douglas) © State of Queensland (Department of Transport and Main Roads), licensed under CC BY 4.0. Facts restated and summarised in our own words. Not endorsed by MSQ or TMR.

Transport and Main Roads. Ramp, jetty and pontoon details from the Recreational Boating Facilities Queensland dataset © State of Queensland (Department of Transport and Main Roads) 2021, licensed under CC BY 3.0 AU, fetched 30 October 2026. Not endorsed by TMR.

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Zoning, site-specific management, plan of management, no-anchoring area and public moorings information © Commonwealth of Australia (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority), licensed under CC BY 4.0, summarised in our own words. Zoning maps are linked, not reproduced; the official maps and the zoning plan prevail. Not endorsed by the Reef Authority.

Queensland Government. Crocodile and marine stinger safety advice from qld.gov.au (CC BY 4.0), summarised. Marine Rescue Queensland unit details from the MRQ website, checked on the date shown in each rescue box.

Bureau of Meteorology. Tropical cyclone season information, forecasts, warnings and tide pages are linked, not reproduced.

NGA. Background from NGA Pub. 127, Sailing Directions (Enroute) East Coast of Australia and New Zealand, U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, a US Government work in the public domain. Parts of it are old; where a page leans on it, we say so. Not endorsed by NGA.

OpenStreetMap. Map tiles, facility positions and the Ashore lists © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Spotted something wrong or out of date? Report a correction and tell us what you saw and when.

Need a boat moved through the Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast region?

Get a delivery quote

Need a delivery skipper for this coast? Get a quote from Garry Hartshorne, AMSA Master <45.

⚠ NOT FOR NAVIGATION. Use official charts and tide tables. This page is a planning aid only. Navigate with the current official chart, MSQ notices to mariners, official tide tables and local advice.

Townsville, Magnetic Island & the Palms cruising guide

Official sources and Reef Authority maps for this areaMSQ notices to mariners: TownsvilleMSQ Townsville port procedures (May 2026)Reef Authority: Townsville and Whitsundays site-specific managementReef Authority zoning Map 7: TownsvilleMSQ's Beacon to Beacon series doesn't cover this coast. Free official notices, port procedures and Reef Authority zoning maps instead. Read the current notices before you go. Not for navigation.
Townsville's marinas and Ross Creek, Magnetic Island's bays and the Palm Islands · 3 guidesLast checked: 30 October 2026Report a correction

Townsville is northern Queensland's main port and the base for this stretch: Breakwater Marina sits by the harbour entrance, and Ross Creek, behind the port's swing basin, has the yacht club and ramps. Every vessel in the port keeps a watch on VHF 12 and 16. Magnetic Island, across Cleveland Bay, has Nelly Bay Harbour, public moorings and marked no-anchoring areas. North-west, the Palm Islands have anchorages on their west sides, with Orpheus Island's best-known bays now partly marked as no-anchoring areas.

Map of the Townsville, Magnetic Island & the Palms region (Townsville's marinas and Ross Creek, Magnetic Island's bays and the Palm Islands) with a numbered marker for each of its 3 cruising guide pages.
Numbers match the guide list below. Each name links to its page. Positions are approximate. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Positions are approximate and for orientation only. Not a chart. Not for navigation.
  1. 1Townsville: Breakwater Marina & Ross Creek · Ship port + marinas
  2. 2Magnetic Island · Island bays + boat harbour
  3. 3Palm Islands & Orpheus Island · Island anchorages

Guides in this region, south to north

Townsville: Breakwater Marina & Ross Creek

Ship port + marinas

Townsville for small craft: Breakwater Marina, Ross Creek, Ross River channel, VTS on VHF 12 and current dredging. Not for navigation.

Last checked: 30 October 2026

Magnetic Island

Island bays + boat harbour

Magnetic Island by boat: Nelly Bay Harbour, Horseshoe Bay, public moorings, no-anchoring areas and the wreck. Not for navigation.

Last checked: 30 October 2026

Palm Islands & Orpheus Island

Island anchorages

Orpheus, Pelorus, Fantome and Great Palm: anchorages, Reef Authority no-anchoring areas and moorings. Not for navigation.

Last checked: 30 October 2026

Entrances and hazards to plan around

  • Townsville: Breakwater Marina & Ross Creek: Breakwater Marina channel by the white sector light; Ross Creek through the swing basin, not while the port busy signal shows (MSQ). Ross River channel 1.2 m (NtM 549(T)-2026).
  • Magnetic Island: No-anchoring areas at Florence Bay, Picnic Bay and Arthur Bay; 6 kn buoys in Horseshoe Bay (Reef Authority; MSQ).
  • Palm Islands & Orpheus Island: No-anchoring areas at Pioneer Bay and Yanks Jetty on Orpheus (Reef Authority). Challenger Bay 7.3 to 9.1 m, sand (NGA).

Read the current MSQ Townsville notices before you go: dredging runs in the channels and the Ross River through November and December 2026.

Neighbouring regions

About these guides

These are planning notes written by a working delivery skipper from public sources: Maritime Safety Queensland notices and port procedures, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Transport and Main Roads boating facilities data, Queensland Government croc and stinger advice, Marine Rescue Queensland, the Bureau of Meteorology, NGA Pub. 127 and OpenStreetMap. They are not for navigation. Use the official chart, current notices, official tide tables and local advice. Each page shows when its facts were last checked.

Sources & credits

Maritime Safety Queensland. Contains Maritime Safety Queensland data (notices to mariners, and the port procedures and information for shipping for Abbot Point, Townsville, Lucinda, Mourilyan, Cairns, and Cape Flattery, Cooktown and Port Douglas) © State of Queensland (Department of Transport and Main Roads), licensed under CC BY 4.0. Facts restated and summarised in our own words. Not endorsed by MSQ or TMR.

Transport and Main Roads. Ramp, jetty and pontoon details from the Recreational Boating Facilities Queensland dataset © State of Queensland (Department of Transport and Main Roads) 2021, licensed under CC BY 3.0 AU, fetched 30 October 2026. Not endorsed by TMR.

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Zoning, site-specific management, plan of management, no-anchoring area and public moorings information © Commonwealth of Australia (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority), licensed under CC BY 4.0, summarised in our own words. Zoning maps are linked, not reproduced; the official maps and the zoning plan prevail. Not endorsed by the Reef Authority.

Queensland Government. Crocodile and marine stinger safety advice from qld.gov.au (CC BY 4.0), summarised. Marine Rescue Queensland unit details from the MRQ website, checked on the date shown in each rescue box.

Bureau of Meteorology. Tropical cyclone season information, forecasts, warnings and tide pages are linked, not reproduced.

NGA. Background from NGA Pub. 127, Sailing Directions (Enroute) East Coast of Australia and New Zealand, U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, a US Government work in the public domain. Parts of it are old; where a page leans on it, we say so. Not endorsed by NGA.

OpenStreetMap. Map tiles, facility positions and the Ashore lists © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Spotted something wrong or out of date? Report a correction and tell us what you saw and when.

Need a boat moved through the Townsville, Magnetic Island & the Palms region?

Get a delivery quote

Need a delivery skipper for this coast? Get a quote from Garry Hartshorne, AMSA Master <45.

⚠ NOT FOR NAVIGATION. Use official charts and tide tables. This page is a planning aid only. Navigate with the current official chart, MSQ notices to mariners, official tide tables and local advice.

Cruising guides: Whitsundays to Cooktown

Official sources for this coastQueensland notices to mariners, all areas (subscribe)Reef Authority (GBRMPA): zoning maps, all areasReef Authority: moorings and no-anchoring areasMSQ Townsville port procedures (May 2026)MSQ Cairns port procedures (August 2026)MSQ publishes the notices to mariners and port procedures; the Reef Authority publishes the zoning maps and the moorings and no-anchoring maps. Free official pages and PDFs. Read the current notices before you go. Not for navigation.

Free planning notes for the run north from the Whitsundays to Cooktown, written by a working delivery skipper. There are 14 place guides in 5 regions: Bowen and Cape Upstart, Townsville with Magnetic Island and the Palm Islands, Hinchinbrook and the Cassowary Coast, Cairns and Fitzroy Island, and Port Douglas to Cooktown. It's reef country inside the Great Barrier Reef, with working ship ports at Townsville and Cairns, shallow river bars, crocodiles, stingers and the cyclone season. Pick a region, or click a spot on the map.

Section: Whitsundays to CooktownSources: Maritime Safety Queensland, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Transport and Main Roads, Queensland Government, Marine Rescue Queensland, Bureau of Meteorology, NGA Pub. 127, OpenStreetMapLast checked: 30 October 2026

Map of the North Queensland coast from Bowen to Cooktown with a numbered marker for each of the 14 cruising guide places, coloured by region. A small inset map of the Queensland coast from the Tweed to Cooktown shows this stretch boxed in gold.
Numbers match the list below; each name links to its guide. Inset locator drawn from Natural Earth (public domain). Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Positions are approximate and for orientation only. Not a chart. Not for navigation.
  1. 1Bowen · Bowen & Cape Upstart
  2. 2Cape Upstart & Upstart Bay · Bowen & Cape Upstart
  3. 3Townsville: Breakwater Marina & Ross Creek · Townsville, Magnetic Island & the Palms
  4. 4Magnetic Island · Townsville, Magnetic Island & the Palms
  5. 5Palm Islands & Orpheus Island · Townsville, Magnetic Island & the Palms
  6. 6Lucinda & the Hinchinbrook Channel · Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast
  7. 7Cardwell & Port Hinchinbrook · Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast
  8. 8Dunk Island & Mission Beach · Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast
  9. 9Mourilyan Harbour & Innisfail · Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast
  10. 10Fitzroy Island · Cairns & Fitzroy Island
  11. 11Cairns & Trinity Inlet · Cairns & Fitzroy Island
  12. 12Port Douglas & Dickson Inlet · Port Douglas to Cooktown
  13. 13Low Isles · Port Douglas to Cooktown
  14. 14Cooktown & the Endeavour River · Port Douglas to Cooktown

Regions, south to north

Bowen & Cape Upstart

Bowen's boat harbour, Edgecumbe Bay, Abbot Point and Cape Upstart · 2 guides

Region overview →

Townsville, Magnetic Island & the Palms

Townsville's marinas and Ross Creek, Magnetic Island's bays and the Palm Islands · 3 guides

Region overview →

Hinchinbrook & the Cassowary Coast

Lucinda, the Hinchinbrook Channel, Cardwell, Dunk Island, Mission Beach, Mourilyan and Innisfail · 4 guides

Region overview →

Cairns & Fitzroy Island

Fitzroy Island and Cairns, with Trinity Inlet and Marlin Marina · 2 guides

Region overview →

Port Douglas to Cooktown

Port Douglas and Dickson Inlet, Low Isles, and Cooktown on the Endeavour River · 3 guides

Region overview →

Entrances and hazards on this stretch

The whole stretch is inside the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park: check the zoning map, keep out of the no-anchoring areas and use the public moorings where they're laid (Reef Authority). Townsville and Cairns are working ship ports with VTS on VHF 12 and 16; Abbot Point has a coal terminal and a space-launch exclusion area that is broadcast when active. River and creek entrances shoal and shift: the Johnstone River bar at Innisfail, Enterprise Channel at Lucinda, Molongle Creek and the Daintree are all subject to current notices about mobile seabed. Cooktown is a small river port that NGA strongly advises against entering without local knowledge. From April to November the south-east trade current sets north-west at about 0.5 to 1.2 kn north of Cairns; the cyclone season runs from 1 November to 30 April (NGA Pub. 127; Bureau of Meteorology).

Weather, cyclones, crocs and stingers

The official tropical cyclone season runs from 1 November to 30 April, though cyclones can form outside it (Bureau of Meteorology). On 30 October 2026 the Bureau had not yet published its 2026–27 tropical cyclone outlook. Check the Bureau's coastal waters forecasts and warnings before every leg.

Crocodile habitat starts near Gladstone and runs north, and estuarine crocodiles can be in any waterway or the sea in that area. Marine stingers, including box jellyfish and Irukandji, are in tropical Queensland waters all year, with higher risk from November to May (Queensland Government). Read the croc and stinger advice linked on each page before you swim or take the tender ashore.

Other sections

The Australian coast is split into 8 sections, from north to south and then west into Victoria. 8 Australian sections planned, 6 written, plus Tonga:

  1. Whitsundays to Cooktown (this section)
  2. Bundaberg to the Whitsundays
  3. Mooloolaba to Bundaberg
  4. Tweed to Mooloolaba
  5. Tweed to Newcastle (planned)
  6. Newcastle to Wollongong
  7. Wollongong to Gabo Island (planned)
  8. Gabo Island to Melbourne

Pacific: Tonga (4 regions, 11 place guides)

See all sections on the map →

How to use these guides

Every guide is a planning aid: what to expect, who to call, and where to look for the official word. None of it replaces the current chart, the MSQ notices to mariners, the Reef Authority zoning maps, the tide tables or a chat with the locals.

Spotted something wrong or out of date? Report a correction.

Sources and credits

Maritime Safety Queensland. Contains Maritime Safety Queensland data (notices to mariners, and the port procedures and information for shipping for Abbot Point, Townsville, Lucinda, Mourilyan, Cairns, and Cape Flattery, Cooktown and Port Douglas) © State of Queensland (Department of Transport and Main Roads), licensed under CC BY 4.0. Facts restated and summarised in our own words. Not endorsed by MSQ or TMR.

Transport and Main Roads. Ramp, jetty and pontoon details from the Recreational Boating Facilities Queensland dataset © State of Queensland (Department of Transport and Main Roads) 2021, licensed under CC BY 3.0 AU, fetched 30 October 2026. Not endorsed by TMR.

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Zoning, site-specific management, plan of management, no-anchoring area and public moorings information © Commonwealth of Australia (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority), licensed under CC BY 4.0, summarised in our own words. Zoning maps are linked, not reproduced; the official maps and the zoning plan prevail. Not endorsed by the Reef Authority.

Queensland Government. Crocodile and marine stinger safety advice from qld.gov.au (CC BY 4.0), summarised. Marine Rescue Queensland unit details from the MRQ website, checked on the date shown in each rescue box.

Bureau of Meteorology. Tropical cyclone season information, forecasts, warnings and tide pages are linked, not reproduced.

NGA. Background from NGA Pub. 127, Sailing Directions (Enroute) East Coast of Australia and New Zealand, U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, a US Government work in the public domain. Parts of it are old; where a page leans on it, we say so. Not endorsed by NGA.

OpenStreetMap. Map tiles, facility positions and the Ashore lists © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Natural Earth. Locator and card maps drawn from Natural Earth (public domain).

Need a boat moved between the Whitsundays and Cooktown?

Get a delivery quote

Need a delivery skipper for this coast? Get a quote from Garry Hartshorne, AMSA Master <45.