Arguably the high point of any trip to Australia is a visit to the Great Barrier Reef. This marvel is listed as one of the seven natural wonders of the world…and rightly so with its 2000 kilometer stretch of living, or once living matter. The reef is said to be visible from the moon and hosts thousands of species of fish, coral, shellfish and other marine denizens.
In February we found ourselves in Cairns, Queensland with a little time on our hands. We booked a trip with Quicksilver Wavepiercers for a trip to the Agincourt Reef, an untouched ribbon reef on the outer portion of the GBR. The large speedy craft hold several hundred people and are comfortable and air conditioned with fresh water showers and provide a luncheon. This was hardly roughing it!
Even in the high speed catamarans it takes about 90 minutes to get to the reef…but well worth it. You can see the reef in a variety of ways…scuba diving, snorkeling, in semisubmersibles or viewing chambers where you don’t even have to get wet. We chose an advanced snorkeling tour with marine biologist Tom and did a tour of both shallow and deeper reef areas.
I’ve snorkeled in many places including the Galapagos Islands. While the Galapagos features creatures such as sea lions, penguins and marine iguanas, the GBR is unequaled for the sheer variety and color of coral formations. Sea turtles and reef sharks can be seen as well and we had a curious white-tipped reef shark cruise by to check us out. These sharks rarely if ever attack humans and great whites, that will attack humans, don’t frequent these waters during the day.
If there’s an item that should be on any nature lover’s bucket list the Great Barrier Reef is one!
For more information, check out Quicksilver Cruises.
Photo Credits
All photos by George Burden – All Rights Reserved
Recent Dr. George Burden Articles:
- Grand Prix Weekend in Monte Carlo
- Inside the Big Bang? Literally!
- How The Real Doctor Frankenstein Cured Lead Poisoning
- The Day The Sun Blacked Out
- Hot Times In Varadero At The Sol Caribe Beach Hotel
[…] months previously I had been playing tag for real with sharks on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. This time though I had the security of Toronto’s Ripley Aquarium’s thick Plexiglas […]