After completing my theoretical exam, I was off to the great barrier reef the next day. We were picked up at 7 in the morning and we were brought to the office of the diving company. There we had a short briefing about what was going to happen. Afterwards we were brought to the harbour and we got onto a small boat which was going to bring us to a larger boat which floats around the great barrier reef. A 2-hour, very very bumpy ride later we arrived in the great barrier reef at the boat we were going to stay for the next 2 days. We were briefed about the procedures on the boat and we were shown our rooms, which was a nice room with ensuite toilet and hot shower. We then had all-you-can-eat lunch in the cafe of the boat.
About an hour later we had to prepare ourselves for the first dive. The first dive was going to be a snorkeling dive, without any scuba gear on. We dove in and we had to dive 4 meters down to a big clamb on the bottom of the ocean. The cool thing about these clambs is when you touch them, they close down. We all got to touch it and see it. Afterwards we went back to the boat and grabbed our cylinder tanks and the rest of the gear. We went down together with the instructor and his assistant. We grabbed the line of the anchor of the boat and slowly we went down to about 12 meters.
It was an amazing experience going down that deep. We swam a little bit around and then we had to sit on our knees on the bottom of the sea to do our first skill tests, which included taking off your mask and putting it back on and clearing the water out of it. The other skill was throwing the regulator out of your mouth and grabbing it back and putting it back in your mouth. We all completed the skill tests with great success. We went back up to the boat and had some tea and coffee. About 90 minutes later we were briefed about our second dive.
We went back into the water and completed a few more skill tests. Within those two dives we had completed all skill tests nescessary for the open water certificate. We also cruised a little bit around the bottom of the sea and we found a turtle laying between the coral. We were all able to scratch its shield, which they actually really enjoy. I just couldn’t believe my eyes! We headed back to the boat and chilled out on the sundeck. We had the oppertunity to do a night-dive that night as well. It costed a little bit extra, but we were able to dive in the night and see the whole ocean asleep.
I decided to do it, since it’s not everyday you’ve the chance to dive in the great barrier reef, especially at night-time. We had dinner around 18:00, and around 19:30 we entered the water again. The sun had just gone down into the ocean. We all received a flashlight to use in the dark, as the ocean is obviously pitch black at night. We cruised around for a little while, then the instructor was pointing his torch into one direction, when I looked close we found out it was a leppard shark swimming by, about 10 meters away from us. It was awesome to see a real shark like that really close.
We also got to see some other creatures I don’t remember the name of, but it was awesome. The ocean looks really different at night. Once we got back out of the water we had a shower and had a few beers on the sundeck. After a few beers we decided to go to bed, as we had to get up at 5:30 in the morning again for our 6’o’clock dive!
I didn’t sleep really well, I kept waking up.. Prolly of excitement. We were woken up at 5:30 and around 6 I was up and awake. We got into our wetsuites and waited for the sun to rise. Around 7:15 we entered the water. As we already completed the skill tests, we were able to just cruise around the ocean for a bit. We went down to 18 meters and got to see beautiful coral and loads of tropical fish. It was amazing! Once we got out of the water again, we had breakfast. After breakfast we had to get up and ready again for our last and final 8’o’clock dive.
This time a cameraman came down with us to the bottom of the ocean to film us all in action. We got to see loads of tropical fish again, including the famous Finding Nemo fishes. We also did some funny tricks on the bottom of the sea for the video, which will be send home within about 2 weeks. The guy edited the video right after we got back on the boat and I must say; it’s bloody brilliant! After that last dive, we were officially certified divers. We received our certificates and from now on I’m able to dive where-ever I want in the world!
The next day I booked myself on a daytrip to Cape Tribulation, positioned in the rainforests north of Cairns. Unfortunately I almost missed the whole daytrip as I slept in when my alarm went off. Thankfully the staff of my hostel woke me up and the bus came back to pick me up. It turned out to be a really nice trip, although the weather was awfully bad. I asked the guys why they called this the dry season, as it was coming down like mad.. We got onto a small boattrip through the Daintree river and got to see a crocodile which was sleeping on the main land. It was a nice day. That night was my last night in Cairns, and also the last time I would hang out with most of the people I’ve been traveling with. We went partying like crazy in Cairns and it became a nice night.
Today I can chill out for a little bit, since my plane leaves at 18:30 tonight. It gives me the time to update my blog and buy some souvenirs as well.
I’ll report back soon with my last week of adventures up in Darwin!!
Check out the map below for the divesites I’ve been diving; I’ve been diving the Briggs Reef and the Moore Reef..
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