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Hamilton Island - Great Barrier Reef
14.-17.02.02
Manta Ray Bay
On the way to our destination three briefings were held in the cabin: one for certified divers (which was the smallest group), one for students taking a course and one for the snorkelers (the biggest group and containing my wife). Darren, our dive guide briefed us thoroughly -
Diveguide Darren
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in fact, it was the most comprehensive briefing I've ever had. A great part of it was spent on safety issues, but we also discussed in detail the marine life we would encounter during our dive. Afterwards he put the buddy teams together. As there was an uneven number and I was by far the most experienced diver among the guests, Darren took me as his buddy. 10 minutes before our arrival we started kitting up. The sea was quite rough and choppy and the boat rolled and pitched considerably, therefore it was quite difficult to get into the dinghy that was to take us to our entry point.
Although the rough sea had a considerable impact on the visibility (reduced to about 5- 10m), I was blown away by what I saw - the bay was teeming with life, and I hardly knew where to look. Blue-Banded Angelfish, Beaked Coral Fish, and Long Nose Butterfly Fish were only three of the many different kinds of fish swarming around me. In terms of coral beauty and abundance, this reef beat Mexico hands down and we weren't even at the outer reef! Darren proved to be a perfect dive guide, never obtrusive; he showed us plants and animals which were either too small to be seen (or appreciated) by untrained eyes or which were well hidden among the corals. As it was a drift dive, I only had to open my eyes and enjoy the ride!
After about half an hour one of the buddy teams was sent up, as they were getting low on air. The other team, Darren and I still had enough air for quite some time. Suddenly I noticed that Darren signalled for us to ascend as well. Although we didn't know what had brought on this change of plan, we followed him, and after a few meters the reason became clear: there was an enormous current between 10m and 5m, which quickly swept the other two (and now us) out of the bay and into the open sea.
Max towing in the the snorkelers
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Under these circumstances Darren thought it better for the group to stay together. Shame about the dive, but he was right, of course. While we were slowly ascending, we could hear the dinghy's engine - Max was already on the way to collect us. On the surface we realised how far outside the bay we had drifted in those few minutes and how much rougher the sea was. Obviously there was no point in trying to get into the dinghy in these conditions, so Max dropped us a line and towed us to the boat. For us divers it was great fun, but not so much for the snorkelers who were likewise towed from their calm snorkelling place to the boat. Once on board some of the passengers immediately felt sea sick and were quite glad when the boat finally started to move back towards Hamilton Island, thus at least reducing the rolling from side to side.
The excellent pre-dive service was matched by a likewise excellent after-dive service. Fresh fruit, fruit cake, tea and coffee were free for all. The dive de-briefing and log book entry completed an exciting dive!
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