Wow, where to start. This tour was definitely a major highlight of our trip so far. We considered it one of those once in a lifetime opportunities, because you can’t even imagine a place like this exists until you have been here.Around noon on Tuesday, we boarded the Emperors Wings along with 22 other backpackers from all over the globe, whom we’d get to know over the next 3 days. The weather was fantastic, and as we left the marina we saw a leopard shark, which was really cool as our guide informed us it’s not a common occurrence. The whole group was given a crash course on basic diving skills straight away. It set the excitement on the boat as we headed to our first reef destination which was Hook Island. The fact that we were on a boat sailing over blue water, under sunny skies, towards the Great Barrier Reef through the Whitsunday Islands was surreal.
After enjoying a few hours on the boat, our world was suddenly turned upside down. The skipper approached Willy about his arm and based on his own opinion, would not let him dive. This was overwhelmingly disappointing because Willy had previously filled out a medical questionnaire before boarding and was declared “Fit To Dive” by the certified diving instructor on board. Adding to the frustration was the fact that by the time the skipper mentioned anything, we had been on the boat for several hours already and were now outside of cell reception, so we couldn’t even call a doctor for clearance or second opinion.We didn’t want this news to get us down or miss out on any opportunities so Willy got in the water for some snorkelling and I did my diving skills. The tank was so heavy it was hard to stand up; additionally, they strap on a weight belt on you, which was a little concerning.
Every evening our group got together after dinner, and sat down for a slideshow of pictures and videos from the day’s events. The skipper would show us where we were on the map, where we had travelled and the plans for the next day (weather depending).
I thought for sure I was going to sink like a stone.
Every evening our group got together after dinner, and sat down for a slideshow of pictures and videos from the day’s events. The skipper would show us where we were on the map, where we had travelled and the plans for the next day (weather depending).We enjoyed many sunsets from the boat, followed by a full moon that lit everything up. That night we anchored at Tongue Bay on Whitsunday Island (which is one of 74 islands that make up the Whitsundays).
On Wednesday, we took a short hike across the headland to Whitehaven Beach, which is renowned for its incredibly fine white sand that actually squeaks under your feet. While we were on the beach taking pictures, the tides changed and the sandbars we had walked on had disappeared from underneath us by the time we walked back. After spending some time at the beach, we got back on the boat for a 5 hour journey to the Outer Reef.
We went to a place called the “stepping stones” at Bait Reef and got to do some snorkelling together. It’s great to be a good swimmer because we were able to dive down and get close to the reef. The closer you get to it, the brighter the colors get, it was amazing. We were so excited to see “Nemos” (true name Clown fish, but nobody calls them that anymore). We saw so many colorful fish and beautiful spotted coral trout.
Then I got ready for my first dive. I stepped into the little boat that was going to take us out to a place on the reef, and within minutes our instructions were to “hold your regulator and fall backwards into the water”. Once in the water, everything was really calm and our small group slowly sank to the bottom.I was able to equalize the pressure in my ears, which I was worried about before the dive. We took some underwater pictures and then started to explore the reef. My first dive was 30 minutes long. It was a very unnatural feeling to be able to breathe underwater for such an extended period of time, but very cool.
After my dive, Willy and I put on our goggles, left the snorkels behind and jumped right back in the water.
We were able to dive down and explore the reef by just holding our breath. It was getting later in the day so the water wasn’t so bright anymore, but we ended up seeing a couple of reef sharks about 3 feet in length. As we headed back to the boat, we saw these giant Wrasse Fish hanging out under the boat. Once the sun went down, and it was dark out, the certified divers headed out with their flash lights for a night dive. It was pretty cool to watch the glow in the water from their lights, slowly make their back towards the boat. Talk about crazy.
On our last day (Thursday), we had the opportunity to spend the morning snorkelling and diving before making our way back to the Whitsunday Islands.
When we were snorkelling, we saw a turtle, and were able to swim around with it for a while and as we got back to the boat another small reef shark swam by us. The currents were so strong that if you position yourself correctly, you could float all the way back towards the boat, so that’s what we did. On the way to the islands, a giant yellow sail was put up to take advantage of the winds blowing us back. The crew told us that whenever the yellow sail went up that the dolphins would show up and follow the boat. A very short time later a pod of dolphins came around and swam the waves in front of the boat. It was a great way to finish off our time at the Great Barrier Reef.
After the sunset and we were safely anchored for the night we had the chance to watch something really neat. The dolphins came around our boat and began feeding on the fish that were hanging around the lights at the back of the boat. In an effort to avoid being eaten the fish would bounce along the top of the water (pretty much any maneuver possible), they even ended up jumping into the boat! It was hilarious to watch.
The next morning we awoke to the boat already moving, and unfortunately it meant that we were only a few short hours from Airlie Beach. We enjoyed breakfast in the sun on the front of the boat while exchanging emails with our new friends. It was an awesome trip, and neither of us had done anything like it before. The weather was always warmer then the water temperature (and the water temperature was between +29-30° C) and the people we were with were easy going and great to be trapped on a boat with for 3 days. We couldn`t have asked for anything better.
Back on dry land, we spent the morning at the Airlie beach lagoon and fell asleep for 4 hours! The feeling of being on solid ground was weird, because it kept feeling like the ground was pushing up against me after being on the boat. In the evening, we went out for a seafood dinner at a place called Shipwrecked, and ironically ate the beautiful coral trout that we had just seen on the reef. It was delicious! We capped the night off with some drinks at the Down Under bar with the few remaining people who were still in town from the boat.
We went to a place called the “stepping stones” at Bait Reef and got to do some snorkelling together. It’s great to be a good swimmer because we were able to dive down and get close to the reef. The closer you get to it, the brighter the colors get, it was amazing. We were so excited to see “Nemos” (true name Clown fish, but nobody calls them that anymore). We saw so many colorful fish and beautiful spotted coral trout.
Then I got ready for my first dive. I stepped into the little boat that was going to take us out to a place on the reef, and within minutes our instructions were to “hold your regulator and fall backwards into the water”. Once in the water, everything was really calm and our small group slowly sank to the bottom.I was able to equalize the pressure in my ears, which I was worried about before the dive. We took some underwater pictures and then started to explore the reef. My first dive was 30 minutes long. It was a very unnatural feeling to be able to breathe underwater for such an extended period of time, but very cool.After my dive, Willy and I put on our goggles, left the snorkels behind and jumped right back in the water.
On our last day (Thursday), we had the opportunity to spend the morning snorkelling and diving before making our way back to the Whitsunday Islands.
When we were snorkelling, we saw a turtle, and were able to swim around with it for a while and as we got back to the boat another small reef shark swam by us. The currents were so strong that if you position yourself correctly, you could float all the way back towards the boat, so that’s what we did. On the way to the islands, a giant yellow sail was put up to take advantage of the winds blowing us back. The crew told us that whenever the yellow sail went up that the dolphins would show up and follow the boat. A very short time later a pod of dolphins came around and swam the waves in front of the boat. It was a great way to finish off our time at the Great Barrier Reef.
After the sunset and we were safely anchored for the night we had the chance to watch something really neat. The dolphins came around our boat and began feeding on the fish that were hanging around the lights at the back of the boat. In an effort to avoid being eaten the fish would bounce along the top of the water (pretty much any maneuver possible), they even ended up jumping into the boat! It was hilarious to watch. The next morning we awoke to the boat already moving, and unfortunately it meant that we were only a few short hours from Airlie Beach. We enjoyed breakfast in the sun on the front of the boat while exchanging emails with our new friends. It was an awesome trip, and neither of us had done anything like it before. The weather was always warmer then the water temperature (and the water temperature was between +29-30° C) and the people we were with were easy going and great to be trapped on a boat with for 3 days. We couldn`t have asked for anything better.
Back on dry land, we spent the morning at the Airlie beach lagoon and fell asleep for 4 hours! The feeling of being on solid ground was weird, because it kept feeling like the ground was pushing up against me after being on the boat. In the evening, we went out for a seafood dinner at a place called Shipwrecked, and ironically ate the beautiful coral trout that we had just seen on the reef. It was delicious! We capped the night off with some drinks at the Down Under bar with the few remaining people who were still in town from the boat.