Our Air New Zealand hotel purchase came with an optional NZD$1 add-on (normally worth AUD$180) for an excursion to the Great Barrier Reef, specifically Moore Reef. Naturally we took up this offer.
Our Sunlover Cruises catamaran departed Cairns at 1000 bound for Moore Reef. The 90 minute journey proved bumpy and I felt a bit sick but things got better once we got to the reef. We tied up next to the company’s pontoon which was like a big eating hall with platforms for snorkellers and divers.
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- Waiting to board at Cairns.
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- At Cairns ferry terminal.
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- The pontoon in the reef; essentially a large feeding hall.
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- The pontoon in the reef.
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- From the observation window of the pontoon.
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- From the observation window of the pontoon.
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- View of the reef from the pontoon when the tide is lower.
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- Our ferry tied up to the pontoon at the reef.
We elected to do two dives and to be honest, the best part was the first five minutes of each … they had a big Napoleon fish (and a few other types) trained to hang around the entry point for photo shoots. The rest of each dive was pretty sad with lots of damaged coral. The dives were also short at 30-35 minutes using tanks that were half the size of what we normally use.
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- Just as we entered there was a huge Napoleon fish.
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- Walk into the water using ladder. That’s a new way of entering the water for me compared to Giant Stride and Backroll!
