WAITING
FOR THE SHADOW
SOLAR AND LUNAR
ECLIPSE OBSERVING
FUTURE EXPEDITION & EVENT PLANNING - Total Solar Eclipse Visible from Cairns at sunrise on 14th November, 2012
Natural attractions and things to do.
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WAITING
FOR THE SHADOW FUTURE EXPEDITION & EVENT PLANNING - Total Solar Eclipse Visible from Cairns at sunrise on 14th November, 2012 Natural attractions and things to do. |
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 Photo coutesy of Cairns Convention Centre |
The world heritage Great Barrier Reef is the biggest living thing on Earth. The reef, visible from space, is over 1000km long and supports thousands of species of coral, fish and other marine life. Near Townsville, the reef is 80km out to sea. From Cairns trips to Green Island and from Port Douglas trips to Agincourt Reef are about a 30-40km boat ride. Tour companies will pick you up at your Cairns Hotel early in the morning and transport you by bus to Port Douglas for a trip to Agincourt then take you back to your hotel in the afternoon. This is a full day activity.
Even if you are not a strong swimmer, it's definitely worth taking a snorkeling trip. From above the water, the view isn't that great. But get in the water and the top of the coral heads on Agincourt reef are at arms length, a metre below the surface. Tour companies supply floatation devices (noodles) to minimize fatigue. You can just float around on the surface, snorkling all the time with the coral at arms length. There is no better way to see the reef. Occasionally if you are feeling energetic, you can dive down to get a better look at a deeper feature.
On the trip we took, safety precautions were impressive. Clients in the water were constantly supervised by at least two staff keeping watch on deck. A rescue boat was always in the water on standby. After returning to the boat, three staff independently undertook a head count. If the three tallies didn't match, they recounted to make sure they hadn't left anyone behind. |
Photos below by Bengt Alfredsson : -
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