Another fabulous Whale Shark Adventure today! Central Station was buzzing with life including manta rays, turtles and huge cods. A small group of inquisitive bannerfish decided to follow along behind some of the divers, sneaking in close to the bubbles before flitting away again. Some very small octopus were doing their best to stay hidden in their holes - one day they'll learn to stop moving and changing colours when they want to stay hidden!
WATER TEMP: 25C
VISIBILITY: 8-10m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 16m
A couple of our whale sharks today were swimming a little bit faster than we have gotten used to, but they weren't too fast...you just knew you'd had a pretty good workout once you got back on the boat for the next drop! We also had a nice mellow whale shark who kept an easy pace, which was a nice alternative.
Humpback whales came in pretty close to us so we got some nice views of them as they head north on their annual migration.
Another really nice day!
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Dive report - West Side Wednesday 3 June 2009
Our twice weekly full day tour took us off the West Side of the Cape from Tantabiddi today as we determined that the diving and snorkelling conditions would be better than heading north to the Muiron Islands. It turned into an astoundingly great day!
Beverly Hills was first up for diving and it was going off! A gargantuan school of baitfish was getting hammered by trevally, rankin cod, potato cod, estuary cod, snappers and the odd large mackerel zipping through. The swim throughs were packed with fish of all sizes and white tip reef sharks buzzed along the top of the site. The coolest thing on this site for many of the divers was a group of 9 large bullrays just lazing around in the sand. They weren't very active, but they covered a lot of ground since each of them was huge!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 20m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 22m
We had a little reef snorkel on Three Fins before doing our second dive of the day and as we were snorkelling along, what should pass us by? Humpback whales! They are incredible to see effortlessly glide by you while you're just hanging out on the surface!
Three Fins rocked underwater, too. A huge estuary cod and a big estuary cod were having a discussion about whose territory this was - very neat to watch! Manta rays cavorted above us, right near the surface - their silhouettes outlined by streaming sunbeams were pretty spectacular. In places along the reef the baitfish were so thick you could barely see where you were going. Yellow & silver-green flutemouths hung vertically along one wall of the site.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 20m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 18m
Before heading back inside the reef for more snorkeling we took a little detour - to watch hundreds of spinner dolphins speeding along in front of the boat! Amazing!
We did another snorkel at Coral Bommies and the fish life there was outstanding, too. Quite a few larger than usual cods were patrolling the area while all of the usual colourful parrotfish, blue spotted rays, anemonefish, butterfly & angelfish went about their business.
An exceptional day out on the ocean!
Beverly Hills was first up for diving and it was going off! A gargantuan school of baitfish was getting hammered by trevally, rankin cod, potato cod, estuary cod, snappers and the odd large mackerel zipping through. The swim throughs were packed with fish of all sizes and white tip reef sharks buzzed along the top of the site. The coolest thing on this site for many of the divers was a group of 9 large bullrays just lazing around in the sand. They weren't very active, but they covered a lot of ground since each of them was huge!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 20m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 22m
We had a little reef snorkel on Three Fins before doing our second dive of the day and as we were snorkelling along, what should pass us by? Humpback whales! They are incredible to see effortlessly glide by you while you're just hanging out on the surface!
Three Fins rocked underwater, too. A huge estuary cod and a big estuary cod were having a discussion about whose territory this was - very neat to watch! Manta rays cavorted above us, right near the surface - their silhouettes outlined by streaming sunbeams were pretty spectacular. In places along the reef the baitfish were so thick you could barely see where you were going. Yellow & silver-green flutemouths hung vertically along one wall of the site.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 20m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 18m
Before heading back inside the reef for more snorkeling we took a little detour - to watch hundreds of spinner dolphins speeding along in front of the boat! Amazing!
We did another snorkel at Coral Bommies and the fish life there was outstanding, too. Quite a few larger than usual cods were patrolling the area while all of the usual colourful parrotfish, blue spotted rays, anemonefish, butterfly & angelfish went about their business.
An exceptional day out on the ocean!
Friday, June 5, 2009
Whale Shark report - Tuesday 2 June 2009
We started our Whale Shark Adventure at Central Station for a dive and snorkel today. It was an overcast day which made things a little darker, but the water was very clear and blue anyway. Our best encounter on today's dive was swimming alongside a turtle who had a whole entourage of various fish cleaning his shell as he swam. Those fish stayed with him for what seemed like miles - when one would drop off, another would appear from no where. It was great fun to watch.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15-20m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 16m
Multiple whale sharks let us swim multiple times with them again today. Our first whale shark was in very shallow water so we could see everything happening on the reef as we swam along! Later in the day we snorkeled with whale sharks out in jewel blue waters that really made their white markings POP. Another happy day!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15-20m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 16m
Multiple whale sharks let us swim multiple times with them again today. Our first whale shark was in very shallow water so we could see everything happening on the reef as we swam along! Later in the day we snorkeled with whale sharks out in jewel blue waters that really made their white markings POP. Another happy day!
Whale Shark report - Monday 1 June 2009
Super day out! We of course had to check out Central Station for our dive on Ningaloo Reef and schools of fish were the order of the day. There were good sized school of threadfin pearl perch hanging in the blue on the edge of the reef and a large school of surgeonfish rolled over the reef in a nearly endless march. Some of the divers with good eyes managed to find the tiniest eel poking out of a hole and porcelain crabs were waving their mitts around from under their host anemones, hoping to catch dinner. We also had manta rays!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 10-12m
CURRENT: mild
SURGE: slight
DEPTH: 16m
A gorgeous blue water day made for terrific snorkelling with the whale sharks on our Whale Shark Adventure. As has been the norm for almost this whole season, we had multiple whale sharks and multiple drops with most of them again today. Their spots and stripes really shimmered with the sunlight - it was gorgeous! Oh, wait, we said that already (but it's totally worth repeating!)
We got to watch some traveling humpbacks come very close to us with a group of three surfacing not more than 20m from the boat! And there were manta rays.
Like we said, gorgeous!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 10-12m
CURRENT: mild
SURGE: slight
DEPTH: 16m
A gorgeous blue water day made for terrific snorkelling with the whale sharks on our Whale Shark Adventure. As has been the norm for almost this whole season, we had multiple whale sharks and multiple drops with most of them again today. Their spots and stripes really shimmered with the sunlight - it was gorgeous! Oh, wait, we said that already (but it's totally worth repeating!)
We got to watch some traveling humpbacks come very close to us with a group of three surfacing not more than 20m from the boat! And there were manta rays.
Like we said, gorgeous!
Dive report - Lighthouse Bay, Monday 1 June 2009
Blizzard Ridge was super active with more baitfish schools and more predator action again today. Not quite as much as back in April, but strikingly more than even a couple of days ago. Olive sea snakes were also really active, we didn't see any sleeping - only swimming to the surface and back or searching crevices with their tongues poking in and out. Superb fish life thick all over the site again today.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 8m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: mild
DEPTH: 14m
Labyrinth was crazy with batfish and turtles today. There were a couple of mutantly huge batfish getting cleaned at the back of the site; one of them had three cleaner wrasse busily scrubbing away at one time! Lots of colourful nudibranchs were out and about - many of them not even pretending to blend in or hide.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 6m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: slight
DEPTH: 12m
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 8m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: mild
DEPTH: 14m
Labyrinth was crazy with batfish and turtles today. There were a couple of mutantly huge batfish getting cleaned at the back of the site; one of them had three cleaner wrasse busily scrubbing away at one time! Lots of colourful nudibranchs were out and about - many of them not even pretending to blend in or hide.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 6m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: slight
DEPTH: 12m
Dive report - Muiron Islands Sunday 31 May 2009
It was a day of big things surrounded by beautiful colours out at the Muiron Islands today. We did Cod Spot first and our favourite find was a big shovelnose ray. He rose out of the sand, trailing a jet stream of debris then circled and swam carelessly down the reef a ways before settling on the sand again. They are such fascinating creatures to see with their funky noses sticking out! Wobbegongs and white tip reef sharks, tumbling schools of yellow convict surgeonfish and a couple of turtles were just a few of the other highlights from this very active dive site!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: very slight
DEPTH: 16m
We headed to the amazing colours of Whalebone for dive two. There were more parrotfish of every possible colour combination and every possible size covering the site. Honeycomb cod lined the walls of one of the swim throughs while a big potato cod hung out a few meters off the sand, keeping his googly eyes on the divers. Gorgeous dive!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: mild
DEPTH: 12m
The snorkellers had a great time at both of the dive sites and then everyone enjoyed a leisurely drift through Turtle Bay. Turtles, rays, sharks, eels, anemonefish, bannerfish, butterflyfish...colour and action all around!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: very slight
DEPTH: 16m
We headed to the amazing colours of Whalebone for dive two. There were more parrotfish of every possible colour combination and every possible size covering the site. Honeycomb cod lined the walls of one of the swim throughs while a big potato cod hung out a few meters off the sand, keeping his googly eyes on the divers. Gorgeous dive!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: mild
DEPTH: 12m
The snorkellers had a great time at both of the dive sites and then everyone enjoyed a leisurely drift through Turtle Bay. Turtles, rays, sharks, eels, anemonefish, bannerfish, butterflyfish...colour and action all around!
Whale Shark report - Sunday 31 May 2009
Another brilliant day with the whale sharks and on the Ningaloo Reef! We started once again at Central Station and were rewarded with manta rays on our dive. Blue spotted rays are everywhere at the moment and some of them have blue spots that glow so brightly they look electrified! A white tip reef shark was practicing for the Shark Olympic Sprints as he was zooming full speed back and forth across the top of the reef with no apparent goal in mind.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 16m
In addition to the fabulous multiple swims with multiple whale sharks today, we also got to snorkel with a manta ray who charged right at us and then started doing barrel rolls for more than 10 minutes with us! There were also several humpback whales cruising up the reef and we stopped to watch them for a bit. Super day!
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 16m
In addition to the fabulous multiple swims with multiple whale sharks today, we also got to snorkel with a manta ray who charged right at us and then started doing barrel rolls for more than 10 minutes with us! There were also several humpback whales cruising up the reef and we stopped to watch them for a bit. Super day!
Monday, June 1, 2009
Whale Shark report - Saturday 30 May 2009
Gorgeous day! We started at Central Station and all of the colourful reef fish were darting to and fro, their bright colours sparkling in the streaming sunlight. We saw quite a few octopus, including one brave occy gliding across the reef, tentacles searching a safe path in front of him, colours & patterns flashing. A huge bull ray had buried himself so well in the sand that only the tip of his tail gave his hiding spot away.
WATER TEMP: 25C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 16m
Our whale sharks were excellent again. We had multiple sharks and multiple drops throughout the day so we all got a good workout even though most of the whale sharks were swimming along nice and gently. One was cruising underneath us at about 12m and then tipped his head up and came straight up to the surface to swim beside us. No matter how many times we see one of these behemoths rise from the depths it's always amazing!
We had some great humpback whales swimming along the reef and flicking their tails out, too. It was another great day!
WATER TEMP: 25C
VISIBILITY: 15m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 16m
Our whale sharks were excellent again. We had multiple sharks and multiple drops throughout the day so we all got a good workout even though most of the whale sharks were swimming along nice and gently. One was cruising underneath us at about 12m and then tipped his head up and came straight up to the surface to swim beside us. No matter how many times we see one of these behemoths rise from the depths it's always amazing!
We had some great humpback whales swimming along the reef and flicking their tails out, too. It was another great day!
Dive report - Lighthouse Bay, Saturday 30 May 2009
We had such a great time on our dive sites yesterday that we did the same two again today. There's obviously something in the water as all of the big guys - cods, reef sharks, trevally - were super active. One white tip reef shark was zooming all over Blizzard pausing only briefly to snuffle in a hole then he'd shoot out and zoom around again. It was pretty neat to watch as usually they aren't quite this active!
WATER TEMP: 25C
VISIBILITY: 10m
CURRENT: very mild
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
Gulliver's had a surprisingly strong current today. The schools of fish were loving it: they'd smoosh together, drift a little ways and then each fish would start wiggling its tail and they'd move back to where they were before. It was like watching the Mexican Wave at a football game! Lots of critters that normally hang under ledges and way back in holes - various cardinalfish, shrimps, eels - were venturing out a little further than normal, maybe to grab drifting snacks?
WATER TEMP: 25C
VISIBILITY: 10m
CURRENT: strong
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
WATER TEMP: 25C
VISIBILITY: 10m
CURRENT: very mild
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
Gulliver's had a surprisingly strong current today. The schools of fish were loving it: they'd smoosh together, drift a little ways and then each fish would start wiggling its tail and they'd move back to where they were before. It was like watching the Mexican Wave at a football game! Lots of critters that normally hang under ledges and way back in holes - various cardinalfish, shrimps, eels - were venturing out a little further than normal, maybe to grab drifting snacks?
WATER TEMP: 25C
VISIBILITY: 10m
CURRENT: strong
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
Dive report - Lighthouse Bay, Friday 29 May 2009
Beautiful day of diving in Lighthouse Bay today. We did Blizzard Ridge first and enjoyed all of the big schools of fish, the active cleaning stations and the colourful nudibranchs scattered everywhere. This sites ledges hide all sorts of cool creatures - our pair of banded pipefish are still there, wobbegong sharks were sound asleep under several bigger ledges and schools of bullseyes screened off others.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 8m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
Gulliver's had some cute turtles swimming around and every cleaning station had a line of waiting fish. Pink anemonefish were crazily swimming in and out of their anemones all over the site; not sure why they were so active today but it was cool to see them out in blue water! Several of the white tip reef sharks had big cobia hanging out with them today.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 8m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 8m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
Gulliver's had some cute turtles swimming around and every cleaning station had a line of waiting fish. Pink anemonefish were crazily swimming in and out of their anemones all over the site; not sure why they were so active today but it was cool to see them out in blue water! Several of the white tip reef sharks had big cobia hanging out with them today.
WATER TEMP: 26C
VISIBILITY: 8m
CURRENT: none
SURGE: none
DEPTH: 14m
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