ElmDiver
Registered
Hi guys,
I have just got onto dry land after doing the 5 day/4 night Northern GBR and Coral Sea trip wth Taka out of Cairns. I have to say overall it was very good although seas between Osprey and Ribbon Reefs were quite rough and it definitely went to quickly.
Highlights for me were definitely the dive sites at Osprey Reef - all had unbelievable visibilty (apparently 40m or so) and the drop offs to 1000m were awesome. I am not one who likes the whole 'feed the fish' thing but have to say the shark feed was a great spectacle and the Potato Cod are wondrous fish. Other sites that I enjoyed were Steve's Bommie (although far too many divers for site size) and Temple of Doom but have to say there was a lot of coral rubble evident at almost all of the GBR sites.
Also I have to say that the two night dives were very disappointing - I have done one other in Cozumel and it was far clearer and enjoyable than at Challenger Bay or Beer Gardens. At Beer Gardens we caught site of a huge Hawksbill turtle during the night dive but as soon as my torchlight hit its shell there were divers all over it...very sad.
Would seriously recommend Taka...less expensive than competitors, awesome crew and great new boat. They let you dive to 50 mins (enough for most) or 50bar (again okay for most) and give very good site briefings/orientation.
Let me know what others have thought about this trip/dive sites. I have to say that overall I probably would prefer to go back to the Poor Knights Islands off NZ if I had the choice...I like rays and sadly saw none on this trip (although Mantas were spotted...luck of the draw eh!).
All the best,
ElmDiver
I have just got onto dry land after doing the 5 day/4 night Northern GBR and Coral Sea trip wth Taka out of Cairns. I have to say overall it was very good although seas between Osprey and Ribbon Reefs were quite rough and it definitely went to quickly.
Highlights for me were definitely the dive sites at Osprey Reef - all had unbelievable visibilty (apparently 40m or so) and the drop offs to 1000m were awesome. I am not one who likes the whole 'feed the fish' thing but have to say the shark feed was a great spectacle and the Potato Cod are wondrous fish. Other sites that I enjoyed were Steve's Bommie (although far too many divers for site size) and Temple of Doom but have to say there was a lot of coral rubble evident at almost all of the GBR sites.
Also I have to say that the two night dives were very disappointing - I have done one other in Cozumel and it was far clearer and enjoyable than at Challenger Bay or Beer Gardens. At Beer Gardens we caught site of a huge Hawksbill turtle during the night dive but as soon as my torchlight hit its shell there were divers all over it...very sad.
Would seriously recommend Taka...less expensive than competitors, awesome crew and great new boat. They let you dive to 50 mins (enough for most) or 50bar (again okay for most) and give very good site briefings/orientation.
Let me know what others have thought about this trip/dive sites. I have to say that overall I probably would prefer to go back to the Poor Knights Islands off NZ if I had the choice...I like rays and sadly saw none on this trip (although Mantas were spotted...luck of the draw eh!).
All the best,
ElmDiver