Ron, Bradley, and I set off for a ten day trip to some of the outer reefs where we enjoyed some great diving, snorkeling, and spearfishing. Our first stop was back at Lady Musgrave Island.

For an explanation of photos, position mouse over photo. 

Mon Mar 18

Set off at 5:30am headed back to Lady Musgrave. There was no wind and flat seas so we motored all the way. Arrived at 1:30pm and were greeted by a huge bunch of dolphins near the entrance. They escorted us for awhile – there were probably two dozen of them with 10-12 swimming at the bow. I was disappointed to only get one good shot with my digital camera.

We anchored and went for a quick dive in order to test the tanks filled with the new compressor. Bradley just snorkeled because his nose was stuffed up but Ron and I dove at Manta Ray Bommie – aptly named for the tons of manta rays that hang out there. What an experience to dive with them! After the dive, Ron and Bradley went spear fishing. Ron nabbed a beautiful coral trout but Bradley had an encounter with a shark that made him think twice about shooting a fish!

Tue Mar 19 – Thu Mar 21

Great diving! Did two dives at the outer wall. The second time we found the drop off point we’d been looking for. A beautiful wall with lots of fish and great coral. The dives went well and we were able to refill the tanks with the new compressor – it takes about 20 minutes per tank. We did a second dive with the manta rays – they are huge and very graceful as they glide by overhead.

Tuesday and Wednesday the boys went hunting again. Ron got one small snapper but not really much luck. The weather is just incredible. We have beautiful sunsets every night – what a life!

Thursday morning we went on another hunt. First, a prawn (shrimp) boat was anchored just outside the lagoon. We set off with some bait – a six pack of beer, and were able to obtain a large bucket of prawns in exchange – probably 5 pounds. Turns out the prawn boat was waiting for the ferry from Bundaberg – they were dropping off a young crew member who was seasick and picking up the captains sister to replace him. A good start to the day for us.

Next, off for some spearfishing. Great success this time. Ron nailed a snapper and a yellowfin right off the bat. Then, as I was following him with the camera, he hit another snapper but it escaped, badly wounded. It fell to the bottom where it was spotted by a small shark (just a reef shark). The shark circled it for a while and finally decided it wasn’t interested. After it left, Ron went down and re-speared the fish and we got it safely to the dinghy.

Bradley got his first fish too. Spear fishing is not as easy as you might think. You can only do it with snorkel gear (not dive gear for safety reasons). You have to find a fish that’s good to eat, then stalk it and get very close before firing. Some of the fish are very skittish, and they’re not easy to hit. Success requires being patient and able to hold your breath long enough to get close enough for a good shot. My job was to identify fish for Bradley – we’re both just learning what’s good and what’s not. I saw a nice snapper and pointed it out to him. Voila – he got it for me. Ron added yet another snapper so we’ll have a nice dinner. We had the yellow fin for lunch – delicious!

 Went for a late afternoon snorkel off the boat and saw a beautiful turtle. It came to investigate us for awhile and we followed it around for ten minutes or so. Headed back to the boat after spotting Bradley’s friend, the big shark.

The final phase of our “hunt” was also successful. We had used about 20 litres of dinghy fule and wanted to replenish it before heading further offshore. There are dive boats that come to Lady Msugrave daily but there’s not likely to be any boats where we’re headed next. Bradley went over to the dive boat and they sold us about 12 liters of gas – so we’re in good shape for the next couple weeks.