Australia

Fast-moving weather patterns and the looming threat of Omicron made for an interesting itinerary on a recent liveaboard trip on Spirit of Freedom, writes Diveplanit Travel’s Deborah Dickson-Smith

Photographs by Deborah Dickson-Smith and Adrian Stacey

With almost 3,000 individual reefs, 900 islands, and stretching for 2,600km, there is no denying the Great Barrier Reef is massive. If you want to get an idea of size, then imagine the country of Italy lying just off the coast of Australia!

The weather was looking ominous when I arrived in

Tony has worked on the Great Barrier Reef for decades and appears to know all its secrets. He chooses a route north, hugging the coast, that delivers smooth seas and glass-out days. He calls it an ‘Almost Far North Exploratory’ itinerary. We forgo the usual day one checkout dives on the Agincourt Reefs, and head straight for Ribbon Reef 3, enjoying a glorious sunset along the way.

Our first dive is a cruisy swim through the very pretty coral gardens of Flare Point, through fields of blue, green and purple staghorn corals, huge boulder corals and bushy acropora. We pass butterflyfish, parrotfish, sweetlips, trumpetfish, a large grouper, Maori wrasse, giant clams and a sleepy whitetip reef shark. Under the overhangs, there are gorgonian fans and clouds of glassfish. Dive number two is a cracker. Seriously. Cracka Jack is a tall pinnacle in the middle of the channel between Ribbon 4 and Ribbon 5, descending to the sea floor at around 30m. At around 25m-30m, you’ll find huge gorgonian fans and bright red whip corals, while out in the blue, schools of fusiliers, jacks and barracuda.

In shallower water, from around 15m, you find yourself surrounded by colourful anthias, bannerfish and damsels, while clouds of glassfish hug the reef, every now and then clearing to reveal lurking coral trout looking for lunch. In the nooks and crannies, we find mantis shrimp, pipefish and banded cleaner shrimp so I treat myself to a manicure.

Our third dive is the oddly named Google Gardens, shallow coral gardens with massive coral formations, large forests of staghorn coral, enormous boulder corals and fields of bushy corals, some with clouds of purple anthias and bright blue juvenile reef fish.

Challenger Bay is our base for the next two dives, a section of the Great Barrier Reef that suffered significant damage by Cyclone Nathan in 2016 but has now recovered remarkably, with lots of healthy coral outcrops scattered throughout the bay, each one teeming with colourful reef fish, including Maori wrasse, sweetlips, titan triggerfish and the odd reef shark. I manage to find a few tiny critters as well - nudibranchs, hermit crabs, file fish - and Spirit of Freedom’s Master Reef Guide Michelle Barry finds us a true macro prize: a pair of ornate ghost pipefish – a rare find. Challenger Bay at night is one of the Great Barrier Reef’s more-exciting night dives, with plenty of shark action watching the resident whitetip reef sharks hunting for dinner.

Pixie Pinnacle is possibly the highlight of this dive trip for me. I would happily dive this site many times over. It encapsulates everything I love about diving coral reefs; the vibrant colours and teeming marine life – my happy place. This tall pinnacle on Ribbon Reef 10 descends to around 30m. In deeper waters, there are enormous gorgonian fans, soft corals and dozens and dozens of crinoids. Michelle manages to find a leafy scorpion fish for us before we spiral the pinnacle to shallower depths. The shallower parts of this pinnacle are even prettier. We’re surrounded by clouds of orange and purple anthias, bright yellow damsels, glassfish, coral trout and anemones.

Our next two dives are at Cod Hole. The first, a little meander through this site where giant grouper aggregate, where we find plenty of friendly (enormous) potato cod, a few whitetip reef sharks and a rather shy grey reef shark as well as countless other reef fish and the odd moray eel hiding under a rock. For the second dive, our Master Reef Guide Michelle has prepared a few Scooby snacks for the dominant resident potato cod, Spot. Dive boats have been visiting this site for many years, so the potato cod are completely unfazed by human interaction, and in fact Spot responds to simple hand gestures in the same way a dog would for a few snacks. It makes for a few great photo opportunities with these gentle giants.

Snake Pit is our destination for an afternoon and night dive. Called ‘Snake Pit’ because at some point someone found a few olive sea snakes here, but when briefed, we’re told to expect ‘anything really’. Normally sleepy turtles resting in the coral gardens on the plateau, eagle rays, mantas and reef sharks gliding by and in the nooks and crannies, morays, mantis shrimps, flatworms, and nudibranchs. We do, in fact, spot most of these creatures, with the highlights for me being buzzed by a beautiful spotted eagle ray and almost headbutting a green turtle.

This slightly adapted three-day itinerary was a great demonstration of how flexible an experienced crew can be in the face of challenging weather, finding us the best dive sites (as promised) according to the prevailing conditions. n

Thailand has trialled a few entry programmes in the past few months, with Phuket opening first in July 2021 to fully vaccinated international visitors under the ‘Sandbox’ hotel quarantine programme. In subsequent months, borders were open gradually in several regions and then on 1 November 2021, ‘Exemption from Quarantine’ was announced for eligible countries. Now, from 1 February 2022, fully vaccinated travellers from any country around the world can apply for a Test & GO Thailand Pass up to 60 days in advance.

From 1 February 2022 fully vaccinated travellers who are travelling by air will not be required to quarantine. With the Test and Go programme, you need to be tested upon arrival at your SHA+ hotel, and once you receive a negative result, you can go wherever you like. However, you must return to the SHA+ Hotel for the second COVID test on Day Five.

You are still required to show required documents to Thai authorities to be granted entry in Thailand. Here are the requirements:

You will need to obtain a QR Code that can be downloaded after successful application for a Thailand Pass. Provide all the necessary details and upload documents that are asked and wait for confirmation or approval for you to receive a QR Code which will be scanned upon arrival in Thailand. tp.consular.go.th

You will need to obtain an internationally recognised Certificate of Vaccination. Know that the certificate of vaccination will only be accepted if the vaccines you have received are approved by the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) or by the World Health Organization (WHO). And it must be dated at least 14 days before your scheduled travel date. Children that are under the age of 18 are not required to be vaccinated as long as their parent or guardian is vaccinated and has a certificate of vaccination.

To enter Thailand, you are required to have a negative RTPCR test result. The result must be issued within 72 hours of the travel date. If you have recovered from COVID-19, you will need a Certificate of Recovery. It will serve as proof that you have recovered from COVID-19 for at least three months.

You will have to purchase travel insurance that covers the costs of COVID-19 related incidents in case one gets infected during the stay in Thailand. The COVID-19 insurance must have a minimum coverage of $50,000.

You are required to book a hotel for at least one night for Day One and another one night for Day Five and provide proof of your booking at check-in on your departure, and at Immigration on arrival to Thailand. Your Diveplanit Travel Voucher will cover this requirement.

You must download and install the MorChana application and always keep it on for updates on any required COVID-19 precautionary measures and to record your Day Five result.

Practice D M H T T A Precautions • D – Distancing • M – Mask wearing (in public spaces) • H – Handwashing • T – Temperature check • T – Testing for Covid-19 • A – Alert Application

Since the introduction of the Test & GO programme, approved Alternative Quarantine (AQ) and SHA+ Hotels have added Test & GO Packages to cater for guests. The Test & GO Package covers: • RT-PCR COVID-19 Test • Accommodation for at least one night for Day One and Day

Five. • Transport to transfer from the airport to your designated hotel.

thaiembassy.com/travel-to-thailand/test-and-gothailand-quarantine-free-hotels Ask us about including a Test & GO Package with your next Thailand resort or liveaboard trip. Diveplanit.com Email: enquire@diveplanit.com Phone: 1800 607 913