During breakfast we discussed our half day snorkeling trip to the outer barrier reef and wondered why we had not gone for the full day option!
So, John went to the very helpful front desk and asked then to phone the boat owner to see if we could swap to the full day option at this late stage. Five minutes later we were on the full day excursion, which is a different boat as they also take divers.
After breakfast we hopped on the buggy and were soon at the diving shop getting our equipment which includes stinger suits. Australia specializes in growing creatures that like to maim or kill you in nasty lingering ways. They have two very small but nasty jelly fish at this time of year. One is the size of your nail and the other even smaller. Both will sting you upon contact and one can kill you. The pain is said to be excruciating and they will leave you with nasty scars!! So, we were pleased about them supplying us with the full body stinger suits.
At 9.30 we were off with about another twenty divers and snorkelers. The weather was perfect and after two hours we reached the outer barrier reef.
So, John went to the very helpful front desk and asked then to phone the boat owner to see if we could swap to the full day option at this late stage. Five minutes later we were on the full day excursion, which is a different boat as they also take divers.
After breakfast we hopped on the buggy and were soon at the diving shop getting our equipment which includes stinger suits. Australia specializes in growing creatures that like to maim or kill you in nasty lingering ways. They have two very small but nasty jelly fish at this time of year. One is the size of your nail and the other even smaller. Both will sting you upon contact and one can kill you. The pain is said to be excruciating and they will leave you with nasty scars!! So, we were pleased about them supplying us with the full body stinger suits.
At 9.30 we were off with about another twenty divers and snorkelers. The weather was perfect and after two hours we reached the outer barrier reef.
Once at the dive site we donned our suits which have hoods that squeeze you face together and make your face look very fat!
The visibility was pretty good and within ten minutes we were surrounded by the biggest shoal of bait fish we have ever seem. These inch long shiny, blue fish, swim is shoals of over a billion. As they approach you they look like a black cloud, but they move as one and the colors and shapes they make in the sun beams is mesmerizing. John took a few deep breaths and dived down through them.
Soon we were looking at a very large, adult white tip shark. It was resting on the bottom of the sea bed. Our guide swam down and soon the shark took off, swimming around the reef, looking for another sleeping spot. We also saw large wrasse, tuna, whole host of colorful reef fish and some brightly colored soft and hard coral.
After 45 minutes we were called back to the boat for a spot of lunch, after which we kitted back up and went for our second snorkel.
After only five minutes in the water, a strong current came out of nowhere and we were struggling to keep to the right side of the reef. We began to swim back to the boat, swimming hard but not making much progress. We eventually reached the boat rope. Some of the snorkelers decided the current was too strong and got back in the boat. However, to toughed it out and eventually the current subsided.
We swum out to a few coral heads a bit further away from the boat. The visibility was much better and we cruised around the shallow reef looking at all the clown fish. The barrier reef has it’s own family of reef fish which have not seen for over 15 years. They have a very large clown fish with a vivid turquoise band around it’s head. Stunning!!
After an hour we were back in the boat and heading home, which took another couple of hours. We chatted to some Aussies who are here on their honeymoon. They were not happy with their accommodation as the currently had no hot water and blocked drains!!
Hamilton island is a great place to get heat and sun, but it is certainly over marketed, over hyped and very much over priced. For the money many spend here you could have ten days of exclusive luxury in the Maldives. After New Zealand, it’s been great to see the sun, but we never come back.
After chilling on our balcony with one of our regular cockatoo friends, showering, and changing, we popped down to the main restaurant for our seafood Extravaganza evening. It is sold as the best seafood event on the planet (no pressure then).
The views over the bay were wonderful tonight. The sky was clear, the moon was full and the water glistened. The seafood we got was good. Lobster, tiger prawns, chowder with grouper, salmon with capers, peppered squid, oysters and mussels. But for the price you did not get much and it certainly was not the BBQ that the hype had promised. We have done this kind of seafood thing in the Maldives, Seychelles, Mauritius and in Europe fro a lot less money and they would all beat this attempt hands down.
We came back to the room feeling not quite replete. John went down to the pool to relax in the warm water bathed in moon light. Fiona watched some TV and then we feel into another wonderfully deep sleep.
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