Snorkeling at the great barrier reef

on the boat to marine world
Underwater viewing room
Aboard the glass bottomed boat
Reef through the glass on the glass bottomed boat
Reef through the glass on the glass bottomed boat
Reef through the glass on the glass bottomed boat

Reef
Reef
Helicopter rides were offered from marine world

giant fish called a mauri wrasse
Wrasse
Wrasse
Snorkelers

You could also go on a trip on a small yellow submarine
Barramundi
Scuba diver

Parrot fish
Marine world
Marine world

I arrived in Cairns on Friday evening. The weather here is hot and humid. It must be 30 degrees minimum here. The humidity is making it quite "airless" outside. My plan for my first day here was to get away from the city as soon as possible and go to the great barrier reef. I originally didn't want to snorkel but I wanted to be able to see the reef. I was advised to go to Marine world (which is a fixed pontoon at the reefs edge). I would get a ferry there and once there I would be able to go below to the viewing rooms and also go on the glass bottom boat to see the reef. I booked the trip (which was quite expensive) and got up early raring to go.

The ferry across to the outer reef took about 1 and a half hours. Before we launched the crew introduced themselves and made quite a lot about people getting sea sickness. O my god. Was the sea rough or what??? It felt like it took days to get there, especially when you felt every wave with a somersault of your belly!!! At the end I was starting to feel it, and I don’t normally get sea sickness!!!! We arrived at the platform and everyone rushed to the lockers to get into their bright red stinger suits and snorkeling/diving gear. I had a look around and found the underwater glass wall. I got down there and was really disappointed as I couldn’t see a thing!!!! I was shocked as I had paid all that money to see nothing. I thought that I better get on the glass bottom boat and try and see some stuff that way. Again when I got on the boat it was the same really, you couldn’t see any fish really and I was really disappointed.

After a long think I decided that I was going to go for it and have a go at snorkeling. I was a bit apprehensive as I’m not that good a swimmer, I don’t really like going under water and I’ve never swam in the open sea!!! All this plus the possibility of sharks was a bit daunting!!! I hired a stinger suit, which was a bright red head to toe Lycra suit that left nothing to the imagination. I got some snorkeling stuff and made it down to the submerged platform.

I got in and tried out putting my head under water. I found it really difficult only breathing through your mouth and also swimming with those flipper things on your feet (tends to pull you down). It took a while to get used to, but I got a bit more adventurous and swam over the edge of the reef. It was amazing the fish would swim really close to you and there were so many different types of fish down there. I saw loads and loads!!!! It was a really amazing experience as it felt like I was watching a natural history programme in 3D. The water was so clear and it was nice and flat thanks to the shelter from the platform. I stayed out for a couple of hours and really enjoyed it. I’m really pleased that I did it, its going to be one of those things that I remember forever!!!!!