Great Barrier Reef

Why did we come to northern Queensland? Not to be eaten by crocodiles or stung by box jellyfish, but to soak up the beauty of the outer Great Barrier reef, and here it's just 90 minutes off the coast, moreover in sleepy Port Douglas the boats are smaller than in Cairns, and at least the one we took was a really stunning catereman, with the ability to sail if there is wind. Today, there is nearly no wind, but the sail is up, and it looks great, even if we move solely due to the inboard motor.
Of course, I don't have photos of the reef itself, but Nora does with her GoPro. Let's see later what she captured. (Takes time to look through a lot of videos). The photos I do have, however, show just how lovely the day above the water was. We were also on a lovely tiny island, and on the way back, we were surrounded by bottle nose dolphins, including a young one.
The reef itself is, of course, wonderful, though Flo and I are not sure it's quite as magnificent as we both saw it 1st time. There seemed to be less colour, and I M pretty sure less fish. There's nothing like the total bleeching I saw in Bora Bora, but I suspect this is on a knife edge. The marine biologists who double as guides say the decay us a mixture of heat and starfish. They claim the reef rebuilds itself, but I am not sure its not wishful thinking.
Whatever the case, it's maybe sadly one of those wonders that you shouldn't wait to see.
Special mention to all the kids, who on their 1st snorkelling swim in the ocean were really super top. So much better than the last person who I went with, who panicked, and I had to rescue.Read more