Cairns Part 2 August 2011

Great Barrier Reef

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Tuesday 9th August we headed out to the Great Barrier Reef aboard Reef Magic.
Well what can i say, i think our smiles say it all. The crew said we had the best day they have seen all year. The water was crystal clear, cobalt blue. On the trip out we saw dolphins and whales. As we traveled the water just got bluer and bluer the further out we went, when we began to approach Marine HQ the water was so clear, we looked over the edge and could see the bottom and the suns rays were cutting through the water, it was gorgeous.
We couldn't wait to get in the water. Even though Tyler had gotten sea sick on the way out and was coming down with a cold, he still got geared up for a snorkel, while he seemed unsure to start with once he put his head under water and looked at the reef for the first time, any fear went out the window. As i snorkeled around with him i could hear him saying wow, and look mum through his snorkel. His eyes were like saucers.

Jas and Cooper took to the reef like a fish to water (ha)! Just like Tyler they were astounded when they looked down at the coral and the trevally and wrasse swimming around underneath them. We were hardly out of the water all day. We saw heaps of beautifully coloured parrot fish, huge trevally and huge wrass as well as loads of small reef fish. We all went for a ride to the 'drop off' and the outer reef in the semi submarine. While out there we saw large schools of trevally, a white tip reef shark and a turtle.

Later in the day Lee and I went on an adventure snorkel to the drop off and outer reef, we drifted around the edge of the reef for 45 mins. The fish life and coral were different to the inner reef. We saw schools of massive red bass, trevally a metre long, barracuda and Lee and  I saw a couple of cruising mackeral. We also spotted a white tip reef shark down on the sand 30 metres below us, and yes the water was that clear. On the way back in we spotted some anemone and clown fish, Lee saw some giant clams but i somehow missed them.

In the afternoon Tyler slept where ever he landed, be it on the ships seats or the deck of the marine station. While Jas, Cooper, Bailey and I snorkeled for hours. Jas and I were officially the last out of the water, hoping to grow gills and be left behind!

Jas and Cooper's eyes were like saucers all the way home, they were bursting with adrenalin.
Our day at the reef got voted number one on our list of awesomness!!! Can't wait to do it again one day.

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