Where to experience The Reef

On Sun, 05 Dec 2004 19:14:08 +0100, Ralph Holz wrote:

Cairns probably, though maybe Airlie Beach if you're a beginner. The boats
there are more setup for beginners than experienced divers. You also might

I don't know about Cairns - never been there - but I do know that oh so
many new PADI divers are trained there. Seems somehow unlikely they
would not cater for beginners as well as they do in Airlie - so what
makes you say that? That said...

I meant I would only consider Airlie if you were a beginner. Experienced
divers are likely to get a bit fed up of the 40 mins bottom times that are
par for the course on the Airlie Beach boats. Getting out with 120+ bar on
each dive is a bit depressing.

Jason

--
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On Sun, 05 Dec 2004 19:14:08 +0100, Ralph Holz wrote:

Missed this bit.

... I would agree with the choice of Townsville. Though for the Yongala
the OP will have to do a deep dive as he only has a OW license (18m, the
Yongala lies between 22 and 30). And I don't think the Yongala is
suitable for beginners - they took us out there when I did my AOW and I
found the high swell and strong current pretty frightening. It was my
8th dive.

Certainly when I dived the Yongala, they let OW divers with 15 dive do it.
Or you could be accompanied.

When I did it, the conditions were pretty flat and the current minimal. It
is an exposed site, so strong winds are going to whip up the swell there.
The currents are of course tide dependant, but I got the impression the
operators didn't bother working out the tides and just went out at the
same time every day.

Jason

--
http://www.scuba-addict.co.uk/ for Australian trip reports including
New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia

Hi,

... I would agree with the choice of Townsville. Though for the Yongala
the OP will have to do a deep dive as he only has a OW license (18m, the
Yongala lies between 22 and 30). And I don't think the Yongala is
suitable for beginners - they took us out there when I did my AOW and I
found the high swell and strong current pretty frightening. It was my
8th dive.

Certainly when I dived the Yongala, they let OW divers with 15 dive do it.

That would be against PADI regulations (*) unless they did a Deep Dive
at the same time.

(*) I know, I know... talk about PADI regulations...

When I did it, the conditions were pretty flat and the current minimal. It
is an exposed site, so strong winds are going to whip up the swell there.
The currents are of course tide dependant, but I got the impression the
operators didn't bother working out the tides and just went out at the
same time every day.

I think that is true. I was unlucky then. Vis was pretty bad, did not
see much and since I was an absolute beginner I did not enjoy that dive
at all. Getting back into the boat when the swell was 1m is not an
experience I'm particularly fond of.

In short, I think only someone who's reasonable prepared - bit of
experience in deep diving and wreck diving - should go for the Yongala.
Certainly not OWDs who've just finished their licenses. I'm a
conservative diver.

Cheers,
Ralph

My suggestion would be to head about 1 hour north of Cairns to Port
Douglas and go out with one of the operators (Calypso, Poseidon,
Aristocat, but NOT Quicksilver) from there. Much better diving and a
better atmosphere than Cairns.

On Sun, 5 Dec 2004 15:56:48 +0100, "Alexander Jorgensen"
wrote:

I'm gonna travel from Sydney to Cairns in feb/march 2005 and would like to
experience the great barrier reef on the way. I'm no experienced diver, but
I do have the PADI open water diver certificate. So where would the best
place to experience the reef this time of the year be?

Best regards,
Alex

My suggestion would be to head about 1 hour north of Cairns to Port
Douglas and go out with one of the operators (Calypso, Poseidon,
Aristocat, but NOT Quicksilver) from there. Much better diving and a
better atmosphere than Cairns.

On Sun, 5 Dec 2004 15:56:48 +0100, "Alexander Jorgensen"
wrote:

I'm gonna travel from Sydney to Cairns in feb/march 2005 and would like to
experience the great barrier reef on the way. I'm no experienced diver, but
I do have the PADI open water diver certificate. So where would the best
place to experience the reef this time of the year be?

Best regards,
Alex

On Sun, 05 Dec 2004 23:30:03 +0100, Ralph Holz wrote:

Certainly when I dived the Yongala, they let OW divers with 15 dive do it.

That would be against PADI regulations (*) unless they did a Deep Dive
at the same time.

No it wouldn't. PADI regulations only apply during PADI courses. It is the
diver's own responsibility how deep they go during a recreational dive,
and it is pretty common around the world for operators to take OW divers
on dives deeper than 18m. Queensland does tend to be stricter though.

A diver with 15 dives is likely to be more experienced than someone who's
done OW followed by AOW and only has 9 dives. AOW isn't the most rigorous
course in the world.

Jason

--
See http://www.scuba-addict.co.uk/ for Caribbean trip reports
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