Liveaboard - Cairns Scubapro VS Townsville Adrenalin

[Aquapro Dive Services]

Once or twice a year Mike Ball does Special Expeditions that would go to the Yongala but its unlikely to be in March.

The 2 trips (MB and Yongala day trips) are totally different and very different areas. You can't really do the GBR and Yongala as an overnight apart from the Adrenalin options (and the charters mentioned above).

If you don't want to risk missing the Yongala, then I suggest you book a Mike Ball trip early (at least a month in advance as they book out very quickly) and look at doing a day trip out of Ayr for the Yongala. Its a daily departure so even if it does get cancelled due to wether etc you will have a few other dates to choose.

I still would not be in such a hurry to write of Adrenalin though.

 

[WetPup]

No. There is no regularly scheduled liveaboard that goes to the Yongala wreck. It is something that happens on a very ad hoc basis unless you have a large enough group organised in advance to charter an entire boat.

If the Yongala really is on your hit list, you will have to get yourself to Alva Beach, about 2 hours drive south of Townsville. The dive op there is Yongala Dive, and they run 2-tank trips out every morning (it's about 40 minutes each way if the weather is good). They are almost never cancelled. Bear in mind that it will take the best part of a day to get from Cairns (where Mike Ball is), to Alva Beach - regardless of whether you drive the whole way down or get the plane to Townsville and then drive from there. It is not viable to do the Yongala as a day trip from Cairns. If you only have 4-5 days total, you will need to pick either the Coral Sea trip or the Yongala. Both can't really be done in that timeframe. You'd need a week at least.

 

[PhatD1ver]

No. There is no regularly scheduled liveaboard that goes to the Yongala wreck. It is something that happens on a very ad hoc basis unless you have a large enough group organised in advance to charter an entire boat.

If the Yongala really is on your hit list, you will have to get yourself to Alva Beach, about 2 hours drive south of Townsville. The dive op there is Yongala Dive, and they run 2-tank trips out every morning (it's about 40 minutes each way if the weather is good). They are almost never cancelled. Bear in mind that it will take the best part of a day to get from Cairns (where Mike Ball is), to Alva Beach - regardless of whether you drive the whole way down or get the plane to Townsville and then drive from there. It is not viable to do the Yongala as a day trip from Cairns. If you only have 4-5 days total, you will need to pick either the Coral Sea trip or the Yongala. Both can't really be done in that timeframe. You'd need a week at least.

So, if a guy (and his wife) were looking to spend a couple weeks in Ausland, and started in Melbourne, and kind of just drove up the coast to Sydney, and Brisbane, hitting Ayr for a day trip, and then on to Cairns for a week on a liveaboard, and head home from there? Would that be a good way to plan it? Would there be places along the way interesting to dive each day? Can you make that drive in 3-4 days (assuming a full day in Melbourne and Sydney)?

Never know, if I like it, I might never leave (especially if they elect Hillary, then you are stuck with me)

 

[WetPup]

lol

Some days would be no diving on the road trip, but sure, there's diving all the way up the coast. And if you're driving, at least you don't need to worry about no-fly time. It'd give you a really good variety too, from the sub-tropical dives like Southwest Rocks, to the lower tropics and some nice islands to visit, wreck diving, to the Yongala, to the reefs up off Cairns.

 

[Tbar]

So, if a guy (and his wife) were looking to spend a couple weeks in Ausland, and started in Melbourne, and kind of just drove up the coast to Sydney, and Brisbane, hitting Ayr for a day trip, and then on to Cairns for a week on a liveaboard, and head home from there? Would that be a good way to plan it? Would there be places along the way interesting to dive each day? Can you make that drive in 3-4 days (assuming a full day in Melbourne and Sydney)?

Never know, if I like it, I might never leave (especially if they elect Hillary, then you are stuck with me)

If you are driving then be aware distances can be long and most dives are on boats and can take the best part of a day by the time you get kitted-up and back and cleaned up. Sydney to Brisbane is about 900km 12to14 hours driving depending on traffic, much of the mid coast road is not duel carriageway. Brisbane to Cairns is around 1,700 km and will take about 20 hours to drive.

Being in open water most dives are somewhat weather dependent. We spent 4 days waiting for a chance to dive Fish Rock Cave last year, and over the Christmas period had two planned trips to Julian Rocks cancelled due to wind and waves!

Some key sites are listed below in order Sydney going north, only as far as Heron Island.

South West Rocks is a spectacular dive Fish Rock Cave Fish Rock Cave - Dive Fish Rock with the South West Rocks Dive Centre Australia.
Probably see Gray Nurse possible hammer head sharks.

South West Rocks Dive Centre is a good operator and they have a hostel

Solitary Islands Marine Park runs for 90 km north of Coffs Harbour Dive the Magnificent South Solitary Islands Marine Park its many years since I dived this area (mid 80s) so no recommendations for an operator

Go Dive http://godive.com.au/ runs trips from Brisbane, with reduced costs on weekdays

Flinders Reef https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flinders_Reef of Brisbane is also a top rated site with lots of coral and turtles

Wreck of the HMAS Brisbane is just north of Brisbane https://scubaworld.com.au/dive-sites/dive-hmas-brisbane/

Julian Rocks - Byron Bay is a great dive I would go with Blue Bay they run a bigger boat than Sundive/Byron Bay Dive centre, and you stay out for a double dive. Welcome to Blue Bay Divers - Byron Bay's Most Comfortable Dive and Snorkel Boat Very relaxed professional operation (and I do no and have used Sundive and Byron Bay dive centre)
Given the time of year you may see may there may be Gray Nurse sharks.

You could then head to Stradbroke Island of Brisbane and dive with Mata Rays! Flat Rock and Manta Bommie - Point Lookout Stradbroke Island (off Brisbane) Manta Lodge and Scuba Centre : Stradbroke Island :: Learn to Dive - Online Open Water Course
Given the time of year you should see Gray Nurse sharks off Flat Rock.

Go Dive http://godive.com.au/ runs trips from Brisbane, with reduced costs on weekdays.

Flinders Reef - off Brisbane there are a number of local operators that dive here (I haven't used than as I have my own boat for this dive) typically on weekends. Go Dive run Fridays Scuba Dive Brisbane | Go Dive Brisbane | Learn To Scuba Dive | PADI Dive Shop and are a good shop. Go Dive may also run to some more remote sites that are not dived a lot. https://www.google.com.au/search?q=f...ef+moreton+bay
Should see good coral, lots of fish and turtles.

Cherubs/Henderson/China Wall off the east side of Moreton Island. These are great dives 20-30m rocky reefs possibly Gray Nurse and interesting topography. Limited commercial diving as most operators do not go here. Go Dive may run a trip if conditions are right.

At Sunshine Coast (Mooloolaba) just north of Brisbane, if you feel like a wreck dive (sunk navy ship), on the ex-HMAS Brisbane. I have dived with Sun Reef a few times they were good http://www.sunreef.com.au/dive-the-e...ne-wreck-dive/ there is also http://scubaworld.com.au/dive-sites/dive-hmas-brisbane/ also a good operator.

Wolf Rock from Rainbow Beach http://www.wolfrockdive.com.au/?What_you'll_see

This GBR and islands are a long way off the cost at the south end of the reef, around 100km (60 miles).

Lady Elliott Island. Mantas, Turtles. They have resident Marine Biologists and speakers at the Education Centre. Usually some Study or other going on. This is a long boat trip and I am not sure it is do-able in a day.

Great coral can be found at Heron Island. There is accommodation on the island. This is a long boat trip and I am not sure it is do-able in a day. http://diveadventures.com.au/pages/d...alia/heron.htm. I have dived this reef system but only from a 70foot yacht that no longer operates in the area.

 

[Wobbegong wannabe]

Phat diver, basically I'd go with what TBar said.

However, in addition to that be aware that due to lack of demand, many Queensland and NSW operators only run regular boats on the weekends, particularly once you get north of the Sunshine Coast and on the NSW north coast. If you're driving up the coast you may find yourself ready and willing to dive, but with no-one able or willing to take you to the site . I've driven that route a few times complete with dive gear and been caught the hard way in between weekends. I'm not trying to put you off, but if your trip plan includes mid-week diving just be sure to contact the relevant operator first and see if they're actually going diving on the day you plan to be there. DO NOT assume that just because an operator advertises daily trips on their website that they actually do daily trips, though you'll be reasonably safe at SWR, Byron and the Sunshine Coast. In my sad experience the other guys only dive mid-week if they have the numbers.

Also, Melbourne to Cairns in 3-4 days is seriously pushing it if you want to see/dive anything on the way. The truckies do it, but they get paid (and they don't see much apart from a few dives, not the watery sort either ). Brisbane to Cairns in 3-4 days would be a more realistic trip with dives and seeing stuff, and even that's a stretch if you want to enjoy the journey.

Without actually crunching the numbers and kms, I'd guess that your plan would make for a really awesome trip if you can take about a month, including the week liveaboard. Otherwise I'd look at flying from Brisbane to Townsville, and possibly also Townsville to Cairns.

 

[WetPup]

Poor advice. If you want to dive at Heron Island or Lady Elliot Island, if you want to dive the Whitsundays, if you want to dive the Yongala...You really need your own car. If you fly from Brisbane to Townsville, you would miss all of that along the way. I don't disagree with flying Townsville to Cairns though, I literally do that every other week, and it's boring, because there is no longer any diving to be done along the way (the dive shops in Mission Beach and on Dunk Island remain out of operation after being decimated in a cyclone, nobody knows if they will ever reopen). The drive up the coast from Brisbane to Townsville has its boring bits, but there are some lovely places to stop along the way.

Also, Brisbane to Cairns in 3-4 days is also pushing it - if you want to dive. I can do that drive straight through in just under 14 hours, but that's only stopping for fuel. In effect, it's a full day just to drive it (and you do NOT want to drive on that highway at night unless you are in a Landcruiser with a giant f***-off bullbar for the wild animals). If you want to stop anywhere to dive, you need to add sufficient time for that. Especially if you want to go to any of the islands along the way, because that will usually mean 2 days minimum at each due to ferry schedules etc.

 

[Wobbegong wannabe]

Sure, but if he also really wants to dive Byron Bay and South West Rocks, then eventually he will need to choose one area or the other. That was the only point I was making; pick a state and dive it, because in the time frame given it's not possible to do both areas. If the preference is for Heron and Elliot then yes it is poor advice, but if it's for South West Rocks and Julian Rocks (Byron) then it isn't. Ayr and the Yongala is about a 100km drive from Townsville in a hire car, which is doable when combined with a NSW trip if he can juggle the no-fly time.

I have tried to dive the Whitsundays three times while driving through for other reasons and was cancelled each time due to a lack of numbers. Likewise Agnes Waters. I'm not an island resort person (at least not in Australia) so I have no experience wrt Lady Elliot or Heron; they may be great options, but he'd need to factor in ferry transfer times. In my on-shore experience the NSW operators are more likely to have the numbers to dive, so Sydney to Brisbane is a more reliable dive n drive trip than Brisbane to Townsville.

In an ideal world doing both would be great, but it would take considerably longer than 3-4 days. Even 3-4 weeks would be pushing it, and taking the operators' schedules and weather into account, 3-4 months would probably be more realistic. I was commenting on the presented plan and suggesting a possible compromise.

Anyway, good luck with your trip.