Great Barrier Reef!

HUGE day for us!!! We set off from the harbor at 9:00 for a 1 ¼ hour boat ride on the Big Cat Island Cruiser (who names these boats?) to Green Island, a national park located within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. (The island formed from sand that ended up on top of the reef.)

Upon disembarkation we headed to the beach, where Claire and I tried snorkeling for the first time. What fun! Amazing and relaxing to float along with fish swimming right by, some so close they nearly touched us. Big, small, all different colors, and such a wide array of coral and rocks it’s hard to describe. (How’s this: it really does look like all those photos in the magazines.)

Backing in with the flippers is a bit odd, but otherwise we caught the hang of snorkeling pretty quickly. About half of the snorkelers were decked out in wet suits (mostly Asians). Most of the Aussies and white newbies like us had our swim suits on in the face of jellyfish. (Actually our snorkel outfitter said jellyfish counts weren’t high in the area at the time and recommended we pass on the full gear.) And the water was so warm it felt like a bath. Right up my alley.

After a lunch break on our boat we went to a different beach for more snorkeling and playing, where coral and fish were even more prevalent.

Then it was on to a glass-bottomed boat, which took us out on the reef and we saw a wide range of fish swimming beneath, plus two BIG turtles. A few of the fish clung to the boat – they don’t have a dorsal fin and have a low red blood cell count (one guide told us lower white blood count, the other red – I’ll go w/ red) so they need to conserve their energy by “hitching.”

We also saw a wide array of coral and algae. (Lettuce and brain coral, to name two, per Claire, who learned more about oceans in 6 weeks at Davidson than I’ll absorb in the next 10 years.) Our driver fed the fish at one point, so we got to see dozens rise to the surface to fight for the food.

After the glass bottomed boat we took a ride on the semi-submarine; we went downstairs in the boat and sat on benches, looking left and right as fish, turtles and other marine creatures swam by.

Our last soiree on Green Island was a dip in the swimming pool (center island). We all feel asleep on our return trip on the top deck of the Big Cat. Each of us brought back a bit of sunburn (naturally the parents suffered the worst.)

After a dip in the hotel pool we headed to a lively indoor/outdoor restaurant with thin crust pizzas and a wide array of bar food. Best (and only) pizza I’ve had since October.