AUSTRALIA - Second part

Australia - First part

Central Reefs

The section of the Great Barrier Reef covering Mission Beach, Townsville and Bowen offers some great diving experiences along the outer edge of the Reef. So this is a region where the serious diver will be looking to make use of the many excellent charter boats and take extended trips.
Townsville is a charming scenic, coastal city and one of the main access points for the Great Barrier Reef. The Sheraton Breakwater Casino Hotel is within easy walking distance of Flinder's Mall and has an associated. Marina Complex.
The best on-land introduction to the Reef is The Great Barrier Reef Wonderland which houses the world's largest living coral reef aquarium and the largest Omnimax theater in the southern hemisphere.

Magnetic Island

Townsville's off-shore tropical suburb just eight kilometers (five miles) by sea from the city. Fringed by golden beaches, the island is home to a large variety of wildlife including a koala colony accommodation ranges from resorts to backpacker establishments. Great for family holidays with plenty of activity for the kids while you enjoy the diving!
The island has a dive shop and there are a number of good diving locations on the island's southern and eastern shores with tropical fish and numerous soft and hard corals.
The Reefs There are too many to mention except for the most popular areas. Most offer great photography.

Bowl Reef No. 1

Has many large and varied Gorgonian fans, caves, overhangs, drop-offs, fish feeding and good night diving. John Brewer Reef is good for shallow reef diving and some shark feeding. Coil Reef features many scattered bommies away from the main reefs, small overhangs, fullies and sandy streets, a good variety of tropical fish, large Giant Clams, and huge Plate corals.

Davies Reef.

Is stunning and comprises three major bommies in a line with walls full of small caves and crevices, home of many giant Maori Wrasse.

Chicken Reef

Has large bommies on the south west side of the main reef, walls on some sides extending two thirds around the reef dropping to 35 meters (100 feet). There are may small caves and swim-through, lots of sea fans and beautiful sea stars.

Myrmidon Reef

Has the wreck of the schooner Foam driven onto the reef in 1893. Mission Beach This region is famous for clean, golden sandy beaches, the giant Ulysses Butterfly, the unusual Cassowary bird and lush green rain forests which almost touch the sea. You can see the Family group of islands about 10 kilometers (6.25 miles) offshore. Two of these, Dunk and Bedarra, are Island Resorts which offer diving. A dive shop operates from the mainland.

Bowen

Shipwrecks on the northern end of the Whitsundays, Bowen has good diving offshore at Nares Rock, Holbourne Island and the reefs between Wallaby and Fairy. Its just 30 kilometers to the inner edge of the Great Barrier Reef and dive charters are available from the local dive shop for groups of five or more. The coral reefs off the coast are littered with shipwrecks including the famous Gothenburg, which sank with great loss of life and a cargo of gold in 1854.
Dive weekends very popular with local and visiting divers, these trips will take you to areas of the Inner Reef and provide an opportunity for a variety of dives and may include a night dive. Depending on the weather you'll see Keepers, Helix, John Brewer and Lodestone Reefs.

S.S. Yongala

This coastal steamship bound for Cairns was lost in a cyclone with all hands, 121 people including officers and crew, on March 14th, 1911. Swamped continuously by giant waves crashing across her decks, she plunged beneath the sea. Discovered in 1958, the Yongala was left untouched for nearly 40 years to develop a fantastic marine life and has only been dived regularly since the 1980's.
One of the best wreck-dive experiences in the world. It is 110 meters (363 feet) long, Iying on sand and supports its own ecology system of hard and soft corals and an amazing diversity of marine animals including swarming pelagic, giant Stingrays, huge Gropers, large Green turtles and sea snakes. Submerged in 30 meters (about 100 feet) of water off Cape Bowling Green, with its funnel only 15 meters (49 feet) below the surface, the Yongala is a living museum littered with dinner plates, knives, forks, lamp shades, bath tubs and along the bow section evidence of human remains. Protected by the historic shipwreck act, the Yongala is a memorial to all who perished with her. This is a look but "don't take" zone. Apart from the wreck, in a typical five day cruise you'll also spend a few days exploring a number of reefs close by.

Dunk Island

Is a diver's paradise, more beautiful than you can imagine. Beautiful wildlife, balmy breezes through lush rain forest, tropical fruit and seafood fresh from the Reef.
Beautiful sunshine, golden beaches and diving on Australia's beautiful Great Barrier Reef just one hour away by Quick cat.
There are four reefs to dive : Beaver, Farquharson, Yamacutta and Potter Reefs, all home to some of the best coral and marine life on the Great Barrier Reef. All feature Feeding Stations, Coral Walls, Caves, Caves and Gardens.

Beaver Reef

Daily trips include glass bottom boat, semi-submersible rides, lunch and on-board dive instruction. Private charters are available for smaller groups with or without a full crew depending on how much of the work you want to do yourself. On Dunk, all you diving needs are catered for. Instructors provide training to international levels (PADI & NAUI) in a variety off courses catering for everyone from the beginner to the most experienced, including : Open Water Course, Advanced, Rescue, Dive master and specialist courses like night diving.
Only the very latest equipment is available for hire at very affordable prices. They say times flies so slowly on Dunk that a week spent on the island can feel like a year in paradise. Which is why life is beautiful on Dunk.

Swain Reefs

Known for excellent visibility, picturesque lagoons, beautiful underwater terrain and schools of fish. A Taiwanese trawler lies in 25 meters (82 feet) in Horseshoe Lagoon, while on the Saumarez Reefs you can explore the wreck of the American Liberty Ship, Francis Preston Blair, which ran aground during the war trying to escape from a Japanese sub. Sea snakes frequent Swain Reefs, Keppel Islands and wreck sites. They're fond of looking at their reflection in divers' masks, and although their venom is extremely poisonous, they're not unreasonably aggressive. Giant manta rays (gentle and harmless) are found all over the Reef, but with more frequency in the Capricorn Group and especially off Lady Elliot Island.

Lady Elliot and Lady Musgrave Islands

Form the southern most coral cays of the Great Barrier Reef. Lady Musgrave is uninhabited, whilst Lady Elliot has a relaxed resort offering guests the option of beach-side cabins or safari tents. Both islands are surrounded by fringing reefs and warm tropical waters which are the home for colorful fish, turtles, nesting sea birds and majestic manta rays. The perfect destination for scuba diving and snorkeling tourists. The Great Barrier Reef ends at Lady Elliot Island but it isn't the end of coral or reef wildlife. Inshore of Fraser Island are dugong, those fascinating mammals that gave rise to mermaid myths.

The Whitsunday

Located off the mainland at Airlie Beach, about 1,000 kilometers (625 miles) from Brisbane via Proserpine, these 74 idyllic islands, known as the Whit Sunday Group, are set in the Whitsunday Passage, the safest sailing waters in the world. Many islands are national parks, some are deserted just waiting for you to explores them, others offer the last word in resort luxury.
All of them are beautiful. The islands are easily accessible by aircraft, by cruise boat, or private charter and because of their proximity to the central section of the Great Barrier Reef (about 30 kilometers seaward to the east) many have dive shops where you can hire equipment, learn to dive and organize dive trips.

Mackay

A charming coastal city of some 60,000 people just 140 kilometers (87 miles) south of Airlie Beach, is also a major gateway to the Great Barrier Reef.
There are many dive charters and both one day and extended cruises servicing the Reef in the Mackay/Whitsunday region. Some islands like Hamilton and South Molle have established their own permanent diving platforms on the Outer Reef.
Other operators have boats moored semi-permanently at popular sights, so you can fly there by seaplane from the coast, stay a day and overnight in a "floating hotel" right on the Reef itself, and then return the next day.

Hardy Reef

Even has a helicopter landing pontoon with daily flights from Hamilton Island (weather permitting). Diving excursions depart from Airlie Beach, most of the major resort islands, and Mackay and Bowen on the coast. Whitsunday Island - Dive Locations Of the many scuba diving locations around the Whitsunday Islands themselves, the most popular are located at the northern end of Hook Island, which is sheltered from the southerly weather.

While the water clarity here is not as spectacular as on some sections of the Outer Reef, diving is very rewarding with many species of beautiful soft corals, sea fans and spiralling sea whips and hundreds of varieties of marine life. There are many day trips and extended cruises departing from Shute Harbour at Airlie Beach and island resorts.

Sea Fan Drop Off

A popular day trip, located near Hook and Hardy Reef. A permanent pontoon is moored here by South Molle Island resort and serviced three times a week by the luxury cruiser Capricorn. There's something here for the whole family, underwater exploring in a submarine, fish feeding, snorkeling and wall diving among beautiful corals teeming with many fish including giant humphead wrasse and the occasional shark.

Hamilton Island

Maintains a reef dive site here in a channel between Hook and Hardy Reefs. Located 86 kilometers (53 miles) from Hamilton Island, you'll travel in comfort aboard a giant air-conditioned wave piercing catamaran. The dive site is a permanent location with a large lie aboard pontoon and the diving is spectacular, running in a northerly direction about 15 meters below the surface you'll see Black coral trees and Gorgonian sea fans.
There are domes, archways and caves teeming with Angel fish, small Wrasse, Coral Trout, large Gropers and many other species.

Bait Reef

Its famous Stepping Stones to the north-east, about an hour by fast boat, is the closest reef to the mainland. Comprising a beautiful coral lagoon with pinnacles and drop offs, this reef is famous for its diversity of great dive experiences and locations.

Black Reef

Just south west of Hardy Reef is a fantasy land for scuba diving exploration. There are many excellent dive sites but since they're off the beaten track you'll have them all to yourself. Diving Mackay Thirty two kilometers north of Mackay lies Brampton Island which boasts an excellent resort and a resident diving instructor.

Credlin Reef

It's a short trip by the luxurious vessel Spirit of Roylen which departs from the mainland and most times calling on Brampton Island on the way. There are at least ten excellent sites here along the permanently moored giant pontoon, for both beginner and advanced divers. This is an excellent family excursion with plenty of excitement for the kids while the parents dive.

Pompey Complex

Located 150 kilometers offshore south-east of Mackay, is a vast intricate reef system extending south for 200 kilometers and known as the Pompey Complex. Here strong tidal currents have scored great coral rivers as deep as 80 meters (264 feet) between the reefs, flowing up to 12 knots and creating giant whirlpools and undersea currents.
Although rarely visited this is one of the most spectacular stretches of coral along the entire Great Barrier Reef. Deep circular lagoons called Blue Holes drop like wells into the coral just waiting for you to explore them.

Mystery Cay

Manta Rays Located in the far northern section of Swain Reefs (south of the Pompey complex), Mystery Cay is famous for its Manta Ray Bommie. Exotic underwater wildlife including giant Manta Rays (up to 500 at a time) school here at this huge natural fish cleaning station covered in soft coral.

Southern Reef

The Gneering Shoals off Mooloolaba offer interesting diving with deep water and a rugged section of reef. Coral trout, surf parrot, barracuda, Venus tusk fish and pearl perch and other warm water tropical species mix with common southern species such as blue groper and red morwong.
Occasionally you'll see big pelagic fish such as Mackerel, Kingfish and Amberjack. Come and take a closer look. The Melbourne, tugboat sunk in 1979 to create Curtain Artificial Reef has successfully attracted corals, fish and animals seeking shelter or a surface to grow on. Since 1979, numerous other vessels have been sunk in the immediate vicinity creating one of the largest artificial reefs in the Southern Hemisphere. The sheltered waters of Moreton Bay make it possible to dive this Reef on most days.

Flinders Reef

At the top end of Moreton Island doesn't have the density of coral as found on the Great Barrier Reef but has beautiful soft corals and oceans of fish. Delicate Dendrophyllia corals grow thickly in the shade under coral or rock ledges and caves. And black coral is frequently seen growing in only 12 meters (40 feet) of water. Crayfish abound in this area. On the seaward side of the southern end of Moreton Island can be found Flat Rock - the winter home of the graceful and friendly gray nurse shark. These sharks present fabulous photographic opportunities during the winter months of June and July. The average water temperature at this time of the year is a balmy 19° C (67° F). Nine Mile Reef is also renowned for the big fish and sharks that can usually be found along its spectacular drop-off.