on the reef.

you can’t visit north queensland without seeing the great barrier reef, just as you can’t go to the north west and not see ningaloo. the two reefs are actually quite different: ningaloo is a fringing reef, meaning it hugs the shore, while the great barrier reef is a few kilometers out to sea. the water here on the barrier reef is also a bit warmer, due to the fact that it’s a bit further up north (most of it anyway). and the great barrier reef is of course much bigger; some describe it as the largest living organism on earth.

enough of the comparisons: both are fantastic places and worth visiting, especially when travelling with a child who is keen on hugging pretty much any animal in her way. it’s not a bad time to be here either: the water temperature is down in the low 30ies which reduces the risk of bumping into one of those rather unpleasant marine stingers (box jellyfish) that can really mess up one’s holiday.

this time around we opted for a short trip out to an island close to shore. the frankland island group is located in a marine park and there is only one tour operator licensed to go there. we have spoken about the impact of earlier climate change events on the australian shoreline and this is another example; the frankland islands became separated from the mainland about 6000 years ago. the short trip through the mulgrave river is less nausea-inducing than the longer rides out to the outer reef.

as an additional benefit the islands have their own fringing reef, with a shallow and sheltered bay on one side and a nice drift dive / snorkel on the other.

the water was warm enough to spend almost an hour on the reef – twice!

and then there were those lucky ones who were allowed to go for a dive as well! it was nat’s first dive and she really loved being under water rather than just floating on the top. shame she can’t yet get a license but you can bet after this experience she’ll get one as soon as she’s legally allowed to.

she was particularly excited about seeing those little clown fish hiding in the anemone really really close up. it’s much harder to get that close to them when snorkelling.

kris loved the huge clam shells. it’s not only their size that is truly impressive; their flesh is bright and has all these colourful dots that look like they are internally illuminated.

we also saw this little guy; when I say little the carapace was maybe half a meter in length which makes it a juvenile green turtle.

on the way back up the mulgrave river we spotted this saltie sunbaking between the roots; you can just see him there right in the middle of the photo. at about three meters it was a fairly small one but you still would not want to share the water with him.

crocs can travel at 15 kmh and the frankland group is 10 km off shore: do the maths. it’s probably just as well we didn’t see them when we travelled out or stopped to think about the probability of them turning up to join the snorkel tour for a quick snack …

ps: as we have said before we generally take & use our own photos. however, as a matter of disclosure the nice underwater photos above were taken by a person with a camera the size of a minivan; we did of course acquire them rightfully.