Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef
Port Douglas
Getting There - Most of the reef tours that run out of Port Douglas depart from the main marina, located on Wharf Street. There are a variety of operators, ranging from small boats to large ferries, depending on your budget and personal preference.
The Snorkel - With a family trip to Port Douglas scheduled for July 2023, this was an area I had wanted to visit for a long time. With two World Heritage Sites on the lifelong list of places to experience as an adult, the Daintree and the Great Barrier Reef, first on the agenda for the trip was the Great Barrier Reef. Having visited Ningaloo Reef for the second time, a month prior to this trip, I was keen to see how they both compared, and also get in plenty of snorkeling while it's the off-season back in Perth.
There are no shortage of tour operators running out of Port Douglas, and we ended up selecting Wavelength due to the relative small numbers on each tour compared to others. There is one tour boat parked in the marina that looks like a converted ferry, which did not look like it would be the most enjoyable experience. Unlike Ningaloo where you can walk off the beach and immerse yourself in the coral reef, the Great Barrier Reef is located about 90 minutes by boat before you reach the good snorkeling sites. With the jellyfish that plague the beaches here, you are left with the tours being the best way to get out into the water. Joining Caris and myself on the tour was Candy and Hal, who we toured Tasmania with back in 2021. After selecting our wetsuits and getting a briefing from the crew about what to expect over the course of the day, we were soon powering away from the marina. Getting out to the various reef sites they can visit depending on the conditions requires crossing open water, so if you get seasick, pack some tablets.
Today we would be visiting Opal Reef to start with, getting in the first of three extended snorkels for the day. I had heard some not so nice stories about tours on the Great Barrier Reef taking you to floating platforms with large crowds, where you see some degraded reef. As you can see in the photos, this wasn't the case and when we arrived at the first snorkeling site, there was no platform to be found. Keen to get in the water, we jumped straight off the back of the boat and swam towards the reef. Given we were about 50km offshore, I wasn't expecting the water to be as shallow as it was. The boat was parked in about 5-7m of water and the shallowest part of the first reef we explored was just over a metre deep. This was a welcome relief as Caris is still learning how to duck-dive, so would be able to see a lot more in the shallower waters. The crew had let us know where the best spots were, so we ventured out and it didn't take long before we spotted an array of marine life ranging from Giant Clams, to Butterflyfish, to a Bluespotted Fantail Ray.
Armed with my faithful Olympus TG6 that has served me well over the years, Caris and I surveyed the reef and started exploring the various canyons and crevices that were bursting with life. There were different coloured corals everywhere, sea grasses, giant clams and a great number of fish species to be photographed. Trying to keep a steady hand, underwater photography is a tricky practice when you don't have a weighted belt and the fish keep ducking into dark corners of the reef. Not knowing how long we'd have before the boat horn would sound, if I could get a good photo then fantastic but I was keen to keep moving and see what else was here. There was plenty to see and it felt amazing to be back in the water so soon after Ningaloo. Most of the fish didn't seem too worried about hiding and I was spotting plenty of new species on every section of the reef we visited.
Eventually Caris and I separated as I was following different fish, letting them lead me to new and exciting spots along the reef. Along with the fish, the coral formations were really interesting to photograph with lots of plate coral, staghorn coral and softer forms that looked like oyster mushrooms. There has been a lot of news over the past couple of decades about the Great Barrier Reef and the coral bleaching events that have taken place thanks to rising sea temperatures and extremes of weather. While coral bleaching is not a unregular event on the reef, the frequency of such events is cause for concern, but listening to the crew (most were marine biologists or studying to become one), the reef is still fairly healthy. I think people come to the Great Barrier Reef and expect the vibrant colours they see in professional photos, something often achieved with filters, post processing and high end equipment. Coral is naturally fairly washed out in colour, apart from a few brighter species.
After exploring this reef site for about an hour, the horn sounded on the boat and everyone started to make their way back. Wanting to get in some last second exploring, I was one of the last ones on the boat. Thankfully once everyone was on board, semi-dry and settled, the crew told everyone to stay where they were. This was to do a thorough headcount to avoid this situation. Back on board, I was buzzing from the first of three snorkels and was excited to see what the other sites had to offer. Having worked up an appetite in the water, morning tea was served not long after we got underway to reach the next site. Based on the weather, swell and other factors, the sites are selected by the captain on the day, so with great conditions we would be heading to three separate parts of Opal Reef today. After a couple of danishes and a cup of tea, we retreated back to the top deck as the boat made its way to the next site. Knowing I would be taking a lot of photos, I had my power bank with me, so I could charge my camera between stops.
While I would still enjoy the snorkeling, part of the fun is reliving the experience later through photos, something I was able to do thanks to being able to charge the camera up. Arriving at the next site, I was one of the first in the water to maximise time exploring the reef. Jumping in, it was great to see some floating gardens that have been setup to repopulate the reef. These structures can be found all along the reef, with volunteers working to help the reef recover after storms and bleaching events. This reef was similar to the first one but had some deeper parts surrounded by stunning coral adorned structures. As I tend to do when snorkeling, I have a rough plan on where I want to go but always end up randomly following whatever I see. Hoping to see some reef sharks or turtles, my eyes were peeled for anything and everything. Spotting a lot of different species once again, I found Caris at one point and she she directed me to follow her. Leading me to a patch of coral, she pointed down towards where there were some Percula Anemonefish (aka Nemo) hiding away. I'm not sure I would have found them otherwise, so that was a fun thing to see.
After another long stretch in the water, I had seen plenty but was ready to move on when the horn sounded. Feeling a bit peckish, lunch was a welcome sight. The crew announced that if we took our lunch to the front part of the boat, they would be doing a talk about the reef. Taking a seat in the open air bow, it was nice to sit in the sunshine and listen to the guides explain everything about the reef, ranging from the marine life to the coral bleaching events and how the reef has changed over the years. The captain had decided to stay on Opal Reef, rather than head out to another spot, so we were soon parked up and ready to undertake our final snorkel of the day. There were a few weary faces around after a big day but I was excited to be back in the water to see what else I could find. This last spot was much like the others, with shallow water, some amazing coral structures and some larger open areas where there might be some reef sharks lurking about. Not surprisingly, there was plenty to see here and with three bars of battery still left on the camera, I was quite happy meandering around, photographing everything I could. Spotting lots of new species I hadn't seen today, one of the best chance encounters was when a giant Bumphead Parrotfish just floated by.
The variety and volume of fish on the reef here was quite spectacular but some of the time it was fortune or famine in terms of numbers. One open area could look deserted, then next minute there was a large school of Parrotfish or Paddletails swimming by. I managed to find a Nemo fish all on my own on this reef, along with a similar looking Clark's Anemonefish nearby. Towards the end of the last snorkel, I was heading out over one of the sandy patches and noticed a round object moving about near the reef structures. It turned out to be a Bluespotted Fantail Ray that had lost it's barb. It seemed perfectly okay but looked a little funny as it maneuvered around the sea floor. With a toot of the horn, the snorkeling for the day was over and I made reluctantly swam back to the boat. Everyone was pretty tired at this stage and there were plenty of sleepy heads on the boat trip back to Port Douglas (including Caris of course). I was happy sitting in the top cabin looking through my photos for the day when the captain slowed right down. The first Humpback Whales of the season had been spotted and we tried to follow them at a safe distance, seeing a few breaches but unfortunately I didn't get any on camera (just the splash at the end). That was a pretty cool way to finish the trip and dinner was well earned that night.
Final Thoughts - The Great Barrier Reef is an Australian icon, and one I was excited to visit when this trip got announced. As I said earlier, I wasn't sure how it would compare to Ningaloo, but I'm happy to report that it was everything I had hoped for and more.
The Wavelength group size was small enough that you didn't notice a mass of people while you were out on the reef, and the large double decker boat provided plenty of space to move around while traveling between locations.
All up I managed to photograph and identify 67 different species of marine life, including eight kinds of Butterflyfish, six kinds of Parrotfish, five kinds of Wrasse and plenty more. If hover over the pictures in the gallery (desktop only) or tap on them on mobile, the names are included next to them.
It was a fantastic day out and I feel extremely lucky to have crossed that off the list of places I have wanted to visit.
Get out there and experience it!
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