We Go to a Land Down Under -- VIII

Reef-er madness

Sunday, Oct. 9

This is it. We’re going to the Great Barrier Reef! We are going to snorkel for the first time. At the Great Barrier Reef!

I wouldn't have minded being up early today, but we don't leave 'til mid-morning. We've all our stuff ready to go – including a towel pinched from the pool area. Tony told us yesterday that

Our chariot to the reef

he was obliged to tell us we could rent towels from the concierge, which would have been A$4 or so, but the hotel kept towels at the pool area. Then he gave us directions for finding the pool. Sure enough, when we reached the hotel he gave us a whole spiel in the lobby, loud enough for hotel personnel to hear, about renting towels and then told us that if we were interested in a swim in the pool, we would need to go to the third floor and then walk down the spiral staircase, omitting any reference to towels at that location.

As you can imagine, most everyone in the group wound up taking a towel to the reef with them.

After breakfast we meet with Tony in the lobby to go over some details and then take a short walk to the pier where the boat that takes us to the reef is moored. Several companies make runs to various parts of the reef. Ours will take us to a section known as the Norman Reef, about 35-40 miles away as the crow flies, or two hours on the boat.

We’re on a catamaran, which is fairly stable, but we will hit a couple of patches that make for a bumpy ride. A woman on the port side of the deck we’re on tosses her cookies not long after we leave. The crew treat her very kindly and rapidly take care of the mess. If I hadn’t happened to glance over there at the right time, I’d never have known anything about it.

Green Island

We make a stop at Green Island, an island that part of the larger reef area on which they've built a resort, and some of the passengers debark to partake of the resort's entertainment while we continue to the reef. A barge -- they call it a pontoon, but it's huge, unlike the pontoons I'm used to at the lake -- lies at anchor with a heliport anchored nearby. Almost everything we’ll need for the next few hours is on that barge.

We go to collect our snorkeling equipment, and the guy who helps Sharon and me asks if we are taking any medications. We tell him that we take cholesterol meds, and he says we have to sign a release. The release lists a bunch of conditions and medications, none of which have anything to do with cholesterol control. We point that out, but it doesn’t matter. After signing, he gives us a different mask and tube that apparently mark us out for the lifeguards so they can keep an eye on us.

Tony has volunteered to help the newbies, and after we are kitted out, we go find him. He’s helping one of our group who doesn’t even swim. He’s going to need to take some time with her, and we had seen a video on the ship that gave basic instructions on what to do, so we decide we’ll just jump in and give it a go.

An area is roped off around the barge representing the limits of where we’re allowed to go. It seems pretty large until you’re in the water with a couple of hundred other people. The side where we entered the water is to windward, so the waves and wind tend to push up against the rope. Also, the coral in this part is deeper, so we can’t see much detail. Wearing a mask in the water helps some with our myopia, but not that far away.

We push out toward the center and encounter Tony, now finished with the non-swimmer. He asks if we have any questions or problems and suggests we swim over to the other side of the boundary.

This is a good suggestion. We come much closer to the coral on that side and spot fish swimming by. But it’s still crowded, and another swimmer smacks into me, causing me to lose my mouthpiece and swallow a mouthful of water, which being saltwater is not a pleasant experience. I've been bumped entirely too many times and feel like I'm being pushed around by the waves, I need a break.

Shot this fish with the cheap underwater camera set
up I use when sailing. The wires anchor on of the rings
in the snorkeling area where swimmers can take a
break. That's not the barracuda, by the way.

They have some rings anchored around the area where swimmers can hang on for just such a break, and we head for it. As we near the ring, we spot a large, long fish floating not far away and start swimming toward it. Just about the time I think I could reach out and touch it, it swims off to a spot on the other side of the ring. Which is OK because we're not supposed to touch the animals or the coral. (And yes, I know living coral is an animal. You know what I meant.)

Another couple is hanging on the ring when we arrive, and I ask them if they saw the big fish. The woman says they did and says she thinks it’s a barracuda. Later we’ll be in an observation deck part of the barge, with pictures of the kinds of fish likely to be spotted. Sure enough, we recognize the photo of the barracuda. Sighting confirmed.

Best shot I got of the reef with my waterproof rig

I’m still feeling pushed around and not quite so excited about being there, so I get Sharon and we snorkel our way to a platform on the other side of the barge. I’m done for the day but tell Sharon I’ll see if I can find the boys so she can snorkel with them. Turns out lunch is being served, so I go back and get her to go to lunch, where we meet up with the guys.

By the time we’ve eaten, we discover that not much time remains until another attraction we’d thought about taking advantage of, a semisubmersible submarine, will be making its last run soon. We spend a bit of time on the observation deck watching fish go by. Some guy in scuba gear floats by, and one of the other folks on the deck says he’s the official photographer -- the one who takes pics of the guests in their various activities. She says he told her he has a couple of fish who follow him around, he’s become so familiar to them.

We catch that last sub ride and enjoy the short trip viewing the reef and associated fish. Then it’s back on the boat and back to shore. I know it sounds as though I didn’t enjoy the snorkeling, but I did. Given the chance, I’d do it again in a heartbeat, especially in calmer waters with fewer people bumping into me. Ultimately I would call it the high point of the trip.

The semi-submersible in the background. A rope and float
set up like the one the yellow boat is moored to marked
the boundary of the snorkeling area.

You may wonder, as I did, about all this tourism going on at the reef so short a time after news outlets had reported on a study that said the reef is somewhere between 80 percent and 95 percent bleached. All I can say is that the government is supposed to strictly regulate reef tourism with an eye to its impact on the reef. I can hear the “hmmphs” being said while you read this. And honestly, I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Back in Cairns we meet for a group dinner at a place called Dundee’s. I honestly don’t remember what I had, but I do remember it was delicious. Drinks we supposed to be included, but a couple of folks don't seem to understand that the selection is limited to a choice of beer, wine or a soda, and those of the restaurant's choosing. We've been sitting at the table Tony joins, listening to him entertain us with hilarious stories about eating food in America when a waitress approaches him to discuss how he wants to handle dealing with the mixed drinks that a couple of someones in our party ordered. Sadly story time is over.

We’ll have another group dinner in Sydney before we leave, and this one I remember because it’s a seafood linguine.

Foodie break: Someone asked me when we got back if we’d tried any exotic foods while there. Pfft. Of course we did, Aaron had an emu burger one day -- I tried a small bit of the meat and found it tasty. We tried kangaroo, also pretty good, and crocodile, a white meat that looks like chicken but that, to me, has less flavor and a softer texture. I can live without it. Our seafood linguine on the last night has baby octopus in it. Tastes OK, but you have to get over seeing an entire small octopus show up in your food.

Sharon and I often felt like we weren’t getting enough veggies in our meals and definitely not enough fruit, so we would often leave the guys to go explore the various available cuisines and go find a Woolworth’s to buy some fruit, which will be our supper.

Woolworth’s? Yep. In Australia it’s a grocery chain, though the larger stores are almost like a Walmart, carrying a variety of products in addition to the groceries. (The other big chain store is IGA.) While we’re in country we’re delighted to discover that TimTams are on sale at Woolie’s, as it's called locally, so whenever our stock ran low or out, we’d buy a package to go with our fruit. We also discover that cheddar cheese tends to be marked as tasty and extra tasty, which we take to be equivalent to medium and sharp here at home, though we didn't buy any cheese to find out. Don't remember what they called the cheese we decided had to be mild. Probably mild. Oh, and the cheddar is white.