Another day on the reef today. We figured that, since we were unlikely to ever get back to the Great Barrier Reef, we should do it up right the first time. This second trip was on the Ocean Freedom out of Cairns. Our trip was to an area much closer to shore this time. Although yesterdays and todays trips are both considered technically on the "Outer Reef" todays was on the inland side compared to yesterday's which was on ocean side, if that makes any sense. The two locations on the reef were Upolu Cay and Wonder Wall. Wonder Wall was first. A sand bottom at about 50 feet and a vertical wall of coral rising straight up to about 15 feet. The reef then continueed to slant up until the water was only 4 or 5 feet deep. Though not as clear as yesterday, there was plenty of coral to see and plenty of colourful fish. Unfortunately the wind was a little higher today and the waves and swell meant we were getting pushed around a bit. Di did a quick swim around but found it tiring and had trouble with the seal on her mask. I stayed in the water for an hour before a quick break then back in for 45 minutes. The water here seemed warmer when you went deep so it was more comfortable all in all than yesterdays diving.
The best part of this site was the stuff I saw. Right off the start there was a big Barracuda hanging around the back of the boat. I swam over to the wall and dove around checking out everything. For the first hour it was all just cool fish. On the second swim there were a lot fewer people in the water. I was lucky enough to spot a black tip reef shark (video to follow at a later time) and a green sea turtle. I spent about 10 minutes swimming around with the turtle, very cool!
After a lunch we headed on to Upolu Cay. Here there are a series of bouys set-up. They drop everyone off at the first bouy, along with a bunch if interpretive guides, and you drift back to the boat that is now moored at the last bouy. Di came along and we had a nice float as we let the current take us along. It still required a forceful swim to avoid being carried past the boat. The depth was a constant 12 feet or so and we manged to spot several blue spotted reef rays. Is was a shorter stop and by 3:00 we were steaming back to shore. The trip back took about an hour but the waves and swell were way bigger once we left the reef area. I was feeling a little green by the time we reached calmer waters. Another 10 minutes and I would have been leaning over the side, feeding the fish!
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