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What's On · Hervey Bay, QLD
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Jul–Sep 2026
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What's On in Hervey Bay — July, August & September 2026
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Whale season is back. From July through October, more than 8,000 humpbacks pass through our calm, K’gari-sheltered waters — and the whole town leans into it. Here’s what’s on around Hervey Bay this quarter, a little local history, and a crossword to test how well you actually know your own postcode.
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What's On
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July
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Blessing of the Fleet
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Friday 10 July, 4–7pm · Urangan Harbour Boat Ramp
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The Whale Festival's traditional season-opener — a blessing of the whale-watching fleet, live DJ set, food and market stalls, face painting and jetpack performances.
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Markets at the Pier
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Every Wednesday & Saturday morning · Pier Park, Urangan
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Weekly waterfront markets right by the pier — fresh produce, flowers, crafts, coffee and regular live music.
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August
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Sea Kin Stories
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Sunday 9 August · Hervey Bay Regional Gallery
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A cultural storytelling event exploring the relationship between Indigenous peoples and sea-kin, tied to this year's whale theme.
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City and Sea + Parade of Lights
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Saturday 29 August · City Park & Seafront Oval, Pialba
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A full day of family entertainment across two sites, capped off after dark by the “Magical Migration” lantern parade and a fireworks finale.
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Paddle Out for Whales
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Sunday 30 August · Hervey Bay foreshore
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A community paddle-out on kayaks and boards — part ocean tribute, part conservation awareness event.
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Strange Kinship (exhibition)
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23 August – 16 November · Hervey Bay Regional Gallery
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International and Australian artists explore the connection between humans and marine life, inspired by the bay's whale-watching reputation.
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September
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Sounds of Rock Music Festival
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Saturday 19 September, from 1pm · Seafront Oval, Pialba
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A big one for the foreshore: Pete Murray, The Screaming Jets, Diesel, The Black Sorrows, Richard Clapton and more. All ages.
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How the Pier Nearly Disappeared
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Long before it was a sunset-walk landmark, Urangan Pier was industrial infrastructure. Construction began in 1913 and finished in 1917, stretching over a kilometre into the bay — long enough for ships too big for the shallows to load sugar, timber and coal straight from a railway line that ran all the way out onto the deck.
By the 1980s, bulk shipping had moved on and the pier was considered obsolete. It was closed to commercial traffic in 1985, and roughly 239 metres of the seaward end were pulled down soon after. That could easily have been the end of it — but locals fought to keep what remained, arguing the pier had become part of the town's identity as much as its economy.
They won. The pier was restored to 868 metres and reopened to the public on 27 November 1999 — the version everyone knows today, repurposed from cargo wharf to the town's favourite place to watch a whale breach.
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Local Crossword
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A small one for the locals. Answers in next issue.
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Across
6. Waterfront strip through Torquay and Scarness
7. World's largest sand island, just offshore
8. Captain who named the bay in 1770
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Down
1. Type of whale that fills the bay each winter
2. Harbour suburb where the whale-watching boats depart
3. Suburb hosting Seafront Oval and City Park
4. Historic Urangan structure, once a cargo wharf
5. What gets blessed each July to open whale season
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Hervey Bay What's On · test build · reply to this email with feedback
https://isaacpeterson.au
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