Today is the big snorkel/scuba trip to the Great Barrier Reef, so just like yesterday, we were up at 6 AM to get ready and get out front of the hostel for 6:45 to catch the shuttle. We assumed it would be a quick rip to the Cairns harbour then off to sea, but first we took another 30 minutes picking up people at other hostels and resorts then drove to Port Douglas for the boat. The drive was a winding road between the ocean on one side and cliffs/forest on the other. When we pulled up to the harbour in Port Douglas it was nearly 2 hours from the pickup time this morning, but the day was bright, sunny and hot; a perfect day to be on (and in) the water. Everyone hopped aboard the Haba boat which was stabilized with 2 pontoons as well as a v-hull and off we went. The ship cruised along pretty fast for 30 or 45 minutes to the Opal reef. This is one of the 2900 individual reef systems that are known collectively as the Great Barrier Reef.
We had both signed up for the free introductory scuba dive (which in reality was built into the price) so Brennan suited up with some others for the first dive group and I slapped on my snorkel mask and flippers and got to exploring. Before scuba diving, the instructor makes each student take out the regulator and put it back in underwater, drop the regulator and find it and put it back in underwater and get water inside the mask and use a technique to clear the water out. Brennan soon came back up and said the losing the regulator and not having oxygen underwater while you look for it was too much and didn't want that to possibly happen deeper where it could mean serious trouble. So he joined me snorkelling and I showed him the clown fish (NEMO!!!) I had discovered while he was doing his scuba intro. They're so tiny in real life, and after I took a bunch of pictures, it was my group's turn to scuba dive. I suited up and aced the 3 tests and then our group began our descent down the rope diagonally into the water. Every few feet we were supposed to equalize the pressure by plugging the nose and blowing lightly. I tried this a few times on the way down, but couldn't get anything to happen. But we were moving slow enough that it wasn't an issue...yet. Got to a certain point when my right ear started to feel some significant pressure and I still couldn't equalize. So the instructor brought me back up the rope a bit then back down. Same problem. Up again and back down. No change. So he brought me back to the surface and said "you're done, go to the boat." And that was the end of my introduction to scuba diving. The group went for about 15 minutes after I left and said it was pretty awesome. Stupid ear. Did snorkeling for another hour or so then everyone got back on the boat. For lunch we were served cold meats with bread and cheese which wasn't overly delicious but it filled the void. As we ate, the skipper navigated the boat to another section of the Opal Reef. We all suited up and got to snorkelling again. This reef section was even nicer (although both today were much better for colour and visibility than the reef in the Whitsundays) and we saw some anenemone fish (like clown fish but bigger, paler orange and with only one stripe on the head) that we dove down to inspect closely, a giant clam that I poked with a pool noodle and watched snap shut, and several electric blue starfish. As we swam through the water there were noticeable warm and cold sections of water that changed with the different currents and reef patterns. After snorkeling until our legs were tired, we returned to the boat and everyone got fresh fruit to nibble as the certified divers finished up and got back into the boat. Motored back to Port Douglas and so ended a fantastic day on the water.
Took the shuttle bus back the twisting road to Cairns and fought for the shower as soon as we got to the room. There's nothing as refreshing as a shower to get off salty ocean residue after a day in the water. We ate the mediocre free meal as an appy again then had some Subway for the main course. Afterwards we met up with the Irish and a guy from New Jersey who was on our trip today and played cards until late.
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