Day 89 28-8-2007 Great Barrier Reef
The Really Great barrier reef
28.08.2007 - 28.08.2007
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Nothing could have prepared me for the experience i had today. I jumped on one of the many tour boats that are available from Cairns and set off passing Green Island, heading for the Great Barrier Reef about 20 miles out from the coast. The weather was due to change over the next few days to stormy , so i was fortunate to get this day in for a chance to do a bit of snorkling.
The tour boat i went on, was recommended by most people in Cairns and it had the advantage of a station permanently based at the reef. The boat took a couple of hours to get there, but there was plenty to see on the way including whales travelleing back to Antartica.
Once at the reef station, there was a lot of activities to do including a glass botom boat, semi sub, even the new type of air filled helmets for people who can't swim, (they just stand on a gantry that lowers down).
I decided to give scuba diving a go, i'd kicked my self not doing it when i visted the Cayman Island last year. Since the tour was to try lots of new things and diving was on the list, it seemed the best place to try it. After a brief instruction and breathing checks 5 minutes later we were in the water with the instructor and diving amost the reef.
The 45 minutes whilst under is probably the most memorable experience i've had so far on the tour, and that's saying a lot. Swimming amost clams 5 feet wide, diving and investigating sea cummbers and starfish and lots of other marine life around was. . .
There are no words i can think of that explain how amazing it was. Just no words.... not even Awesome.
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The highlight though was meeting the local Maori Wasse fish "I called him Dave, he looks like a Dave" who is about 4 to 5 feet long and is named afer the markings tattooed in his face. 
There was hundreds types of different fish swiming around and hiding amongst the reef. these included various Clownfish (nemos), Angelfish and countless types of coral all in vivid colours, shapes and sizes (I was very lucky with the sun being out all day)
After the diving, i went back to snorkling around the reef, for about another hour. But the time raced by. Before i had chance to take many photos, the boat was signalling me in to return.
The reef streches for hundreds of miles, passing the whitsunday islands, so with a bit of luck i'll get another chance to visit the reef further down the east coast. Once is nowhere near enough, neither is twice.
Posted by I Langley 28.08.2007 5:17 AM Archived in Australia
Damn you Krabotkin!!
Really miss scuba diving, i have to agree with you it's most definitely one of the best things that i've ever done. When i did it i got one of those disposable cameras (waterproof, obviously) you can get some pretty decent photo's so long as you're fairly close to your subject, you should give it a go. New Zealand & Oz seem to have tons of cool stuff to have a crack at, i think i'll have to get myself over there sometime in the future.
No funny comments at the minute either, too busy seething with jealousy...........
so you went diving & came up smelling of fish, sounds like a typical Saturday night in town....
OK, lame i know but it's the best i can come up with.
04.09.2007 by ANDY T