The Great Barrier Reef....

Wow...what a great day we had today on the Great Barrier Reef!

After being picked up at 7.45am (ouch) we set sail for the Reef on a lovely boat with 'Poseidon'. We were advised to take some sea sickness tablets on the way as it was a little choppy but really wasn't too bad. Jack and Chris had opted for a scuba dive and unfortunately Sam was not allowed to do this due to his history of asthma. However Sam, Will and Caroline were looking forward to snorkelling.

On the 1 hour journey to the Reef Jack and Chris were briefed on how to use all the scuba gear etc and on a couple of tests you have to do before they let you dive (such as learning how to blow air out of your face mask). There were 3 different dive areas in total.

At the first area Will, Sam and Caroline went for a snorkel and saw a lot of brightly coloured fish moving in and out of the coral and also some larger fish who were being cleaned by lots of little fish. Jack and Chris experienced their first ever scuba dive and went down to a depth of about 10 metres. It was a fantastic experience for all of us - being right amongst the fish and coral was absolutely amazing.

At the 2nd dive location Will, Sam and Caroline spotted a Reef Shark which was about 1.5m long and lots of giant clam shells (which are up to 150 years old). Jack and Chris saw a squid and a couple of cuttle fish (which suddenly turned white and darted off really quickly). We were also lucky enough to get really 'up close and personal' with a turtle (which was quite big - about a metre long)...brilliant.

Jack enjoyed the scuba so much he decided to do a 3rd dive but Chris joined the others for a snorkel. We saw a huge fish that was really tame and was happy to move in and out of us all. Will and Sam were able to touch the fish and he felt all slimey...

It really was a great experience and the boys were all saying how it was the best thing they have ever done. Jack was enquiring how long it takes to get a diving certificate so maybe this will be a new hobby for him!!!

There are more photos on our Flickr site here including some of the boys taken underwater!!!!

Tomorrow is our last full day in Port Douglas so we are heading to the local market and Will is interested in returning to the Rainforest Habitat Centre that he and Caroline visited yesterday where they held a Koala, snakes etc.. and hand fed Kangaroos and birds...