Lady Elliot Island and Great Barrier Reef Pics

All I can say about my latest adventure is WOW! The Great Barrier Reef really is great. Lets see, where to start… Well, on Tuesday we met at campus for 6:30am to drive to Hervey Bay, about 5 hours north of here. The airport at Hervey Bay is one of the smaller airports I have flown out of. We didn’t have to show ID when we checked in, didn’t go through security, and we were greeted by the pilots in the waiting area. There were 7 other people and the pilot on my plane for the 35 minute flight to Lady Elliot Island, where the eco resort is that we stayed at. Our plane was the first to take off, and it took 4 planes two trips to get everyone out to the island. We landed on the grass/dirt airstrip and joked we were glad that it was low tide and thus would have a longer runway. I got to open the door on my side of the plane which was a first(especially since 9/11), but my long legs were glad to have space again, and I’m sure the guy in front of me was glad too. We were greeted by resort staff and once the rest of the planes landed we crossed the airstrip. We got a tour of the resort, including the dive shop, gift shop, education centre, dining area, bar, and where we would sleep. Some stayed in permanent tents, I stayed in a room with 5 other girls. We did a snorkeling “lesson” in the salt water pool which I could have taught(in case you were worried, I passed). We then had time to relax and hang out until dinner. I walked along the coral beach and waded in the Lagoon at low tide. All the meals were a buffet and no one went hungry! We had a meeting to go over what the next day would be like, things we might see, and then went on a night walk on the west side of the island in search of turtle hatchlings. None were found, but the stars were amazing.

Wednesday morning after breakfast I went diving on the east side of the island, and the instructor and divemaster were glad to have me along as another set of eyes. The pictures really speak for themselves. The diversity of coral and creatures was amazing and it was hard to take it all in, especially since it was a drift dive and slowing down was really up to mother nature. For each dive we set up our gear at the dive shop and loaded it onto a trailer which was pulled by a tractor, we rode in a golf cart(with the steering wheel on the left side, not the right) to the lighthouse beach, put our gear on and walked to the boat, which depending on the tide meant the edge of the beach, or tip toeing through the coral which with the added weight of SCUBA gear was rather interesting. The waters were calm which made for a smooth boat ride, not that we ever were on the boat for more than 10 minutes. Between dives we had plenty of time to rinse off, recharge camera batteries, read, relax, eat a nice lunch, and meet back again for the second dive of the day. To get an idea of where the dive sites were click here for the map.
Wednesday dive 1- Drift dive from Tubes to Blow Hole. 2- Severence Wreck to Three Pyramids.
Thursday 1- Blow Hole to Hiro’s Cave. 2- Spiders Ledge towards Maori Wrasse Bommie.

Wednesday night we got to hold some turtle hatchlings and then release 6 of them which are the mostly dark pictures. Definitely a cool experience! Thursday was more diving and then we saw a slideshow of pictures from our group and the other group from our class that came 4 days prior to our trip. After that when we were walking back to our rooms we nearly stepped on 20-30 turtle hatchlings that were confused by the resort lights. So we collected them in the bucket pictured and were on our way to release them when we found 20-30 more again around a light on the walkway. This time we only had one flashlight and the light from the screen on my digital camera to guide the turtles into the water. Helping with that release was the most rewarding experience of the trip. Seeing the merely days old hatchlings going for their first big swim into the ocean was amazing. Through out the rest of the night about 10-15 more turtles were found, confused by the light and the resort staff took them to be released. It was sad that for an “eco resort” that has been there since 1985 and had hatchings happen every year that they hadn’t done anything to prevent the poor turtles from being mislead. A simple shade like structure on the oceanside of lights or a red plastic film around walkway lights would still allow us humans to see and walk safely, and would ensure the turtles a safe journey to the ocean. I will be writing to the resort to suggest this.
On Friday morning we went for one last snorkel before we had to be out of our rooms and fly back. This is when I saw my first ever manta ray. We also saw 2 eagle rays, one missing a good part of its tail. Well, and then there was all the coral and the thousands of other fish too! Showers and packing until lunch, then a group picture and the first group took off, and I sat at the bar relaxing until my flight at 2. We took a larger plane back. By larger I mean this time about 12 other people were on the plane! Then the bus ride back and the adventure was over. Overall I’d have to say that was one of the coolest trips, let alone field trips for a class, that I’ve ever taken. I certainly won’t forget it any time soon!
Check out the pictures. They are divided up into air and land shots, and then 2 albums of underwater. It was hard to select which ones to post out of the approx 400 that I took! Also below is the link for the resort’s website. Enjoy!

http://uqedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026079&l=d1b5e&id=44801562
http://uqedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026082&l=44325&id=44801562
http://uqedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026084&l=1f43f&id=44801562
http://www.ladyelliot.com.au