This year continues to be a fantastic year on the Great Barrier Reef with fantastic weather and great spectacles on show for the world to see on a regular basis. Lighter winds and calm seas for the most part this year have made diving and snorkeling on the outer reef defy the imagination with awesome visibility and active marine life.
Our guests on the extended private yacht charters earlier in the year got to enjoy some of the reefs that are rarely visited and some of the small uninhabited islands that dot the Great Barrier Reef. Dolphins seem to have adopted the bows of our yachts as a playground to surf the waves.
The reef surveys again were carried out by Reefcheck Australia, and continue to show the health and resilience of the reef with positive growth being shown across our dive sites.
We were privileged in June and July with regular Minke Whale visits around the reefs and now the humpback whales are continuing the show. The whales head north for the warm sun and calm seas of the tropics. These Humpback Whales are often seen enjoying their annual winter break from the cold water of the southern states. Whales playfully basking and breaching make a common and spectacular sight sailing to and from the reef.
All the while many of the seabirds that form an important part of the ecosystems are seen continually scann the water surface and then diving from great heights to secure their meals.
Our regular cast of characters such as Wally the Maori Wrasse, “nemo” (clownfish), turtles and many other beautiful fish and reef formations continue to keep us entertained and in awe of the wonder that is Great Barrier Reef. What a privilege to work and live around one the true natural wonders of the world.