First GBR Dive

First of many dives in the Great Barrier Reef

26 August 2019


Today I finally got to dive in THE Great Barrier Reef!!!! I will say my hopes were set very high for even the slightest potential of seeing a whale since they are still migrating through the coastal waters…. but alas, I did not sea nor hear one :( I guess my heart just isn’t meant to explode just yet haha. Nonetheless, it was a great dive day! I went out with a Townsville based company called “Adrenalin Dive” and I truly only have good things to say about them! Their crew had this family feeling to it and they took great care of everyone on board. They provided plenty of snacks throughout the day and a great lunch between dives. They took us out to Lodestone Reef which was only a max of 20-25m and the visibility was pretty good… just a tad chilly though since it is still winter. 

We didn’t really see any megafauna, but the detail in the little things is equally as amazing. I saw the largest sea cucumbers I have ever seen, giant clams, clownfish in their anemone homes, a beautiful little purple flatworm and huge corals! It’s always such a peaceful experience being in the water just observing the life happening around you. For instance, I saw this little black and white fish living in a small coral colony that my lecturer just talked about the other day! Those are my favorite moments where you can apply or see first hand the very things you are learning!

The staff themselves were really nice and outgoing people! Two of them, Jason and Stair, were married which I didn’t find out until the end of the day. A true commend to their professionalism working. The other diver working, Perry, was british which believe it or not I didn’t notice haha. But he was a cool guy and had a lot of tattoos that all had a story behind them, and he was only 28 haha! The skipper that drove the boat for the day was named Mike and he kept to himself, but I went up and said hi for a bit and his daughter just began her PhD in Marine Biology, how exciting! The other folks that were there to either dive or snorkel on the boat were very nice as well, but the majority of them kept to themselves as they didn’t speak english (rather italian, german, and danish). The married couple that was apart of my diving group was Matt, a pediatrician, and Kim a paramedic! Talk about a power couple… AND they dive together, wow! They were also kind enough to offer me a ride home, whereas I would have paid for a ticket to ride the bus home. 

The circle around the pictures is because I borrowed my roommates deepwater case which was meant for a different go pro than mine. The color correction for some of the pictures is from the Dive+ app. 

Comments

  1. Dwaine ZitkoSeptember 4, 2019 at 8:28 AM

    Dana, Is it the photo's or is the reef under attack from the environment/warming waters? How deep were your dives? I noticed your wet suit. What was the water temp? Sorry if I'm asking to many questions but I am living your trip vicariously with you! Have a great time. Be Blessed. Dwaine

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dana DragonSeptember 13, 2019 at 4:20 AM

      Hi Dwaine, good to hear from you! Haha no worries, there are never too many questions! Sorry I've taken so long to respond!
      The reef here is being affected by warmer water temperatures, some worse than others. I didn't see a lot of bleaching at this one, but there was some dead coral. I only went to maybe 20 feet and the water was a bit chilly, so the wetsuit helped! Hope you're doing well!!

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