Garth and I couldn't wait to start exploring this underwater mystery. We hurriedly grabbed our snorkel and flippers then jumped off the boat into the clear water below. You could see the sandy bottom through the six metres we were anchored in, which was a nice preview into the tropical paradise we're heading towards as we sail up the coast.
The wrecks were massive - many ships had been sunk to create a breakwater for the resort here. An artificial reef has grown on top of the sunken steel and we had to swim through walls of fish to get to it.
We explored a few of the massive ships, some of which were completely underwater. There were so many different fish swimming all around us. The other places we've been snorkeling you had to dive down or swim just over the coral to play with the fishes. But here you almost had to brush them aside to see the sunken ships behind them. We swam over the bow of one boat, where the entire frame was outlined in coral.
The wrecks were massive - many ships had been sunk to create a breakwater for the resort here. An artificial reef has grown on top of the sunken steel and we had to swim through walls of fish to get to it.
We explored a few of the massive ships, some of which were completely underwater. There were so many different fish swimming all around us. The other places we've been snorkeling you had to dive down or swim just over the coral to play with the fishes. But here you almost had to brush them aside to see the sunken ships behind them. We swam over the bow of one boat, where the entire frame was outlined in coral.
Then the water started getting deeper as we progressed further. The soft white sand underneath us was replaced with the dark nothingness of the unknown. We went to cross over onto the seaward side as the ground dropped away, and under a ledge we could see dark shapes lurking. Huge fish lay in wait underneath us, looking for their next meal.
We followed the outer wall of another ship as the murky darkness below became darker. Sparkly rays of light shone through the crystal clear water then disappeared into the depths of the wreck, lost in its shadow. I looked over at the deck, which was a metre or so below the surface. The metal had started to disintegrate and parts of it had broken away, leaving small windows into the belly of the ship. Dark shapes were moving around underneath.
Garth let go of my hand and swam ahead of me into the darkness. We could no longer see very far ahead. I felt a disturbance in the water below me, although there was nothing in view that could have caused it. Swirling currents from the change of tide, perhaps. Although the water had been perfectly calm before. Wisps of colder water curled around my feet, like tentacles reaching up from the depths below. There was silence, then a dark shape darted up towards the shadow that was Garth. I saw a glimpse of teeth, the flicker of a tail and the outline of a fin. It was not a dolphin. There was a splash ahead of me, and Garth's blue flipper came into view. I tried to scream, but my snorkel just filled with water. Another splash and Garth's flipper was gone, sucked down below into the unknown. I was alone, and there was nowhere to run. I could still see into the ship beside me, and another dark shadow was swimming back and forth under the holes.
Okay that last part obviously didn't happen. But I couldn't help but hear the jaws music repeating over and over in my head as we explored the wrecks. There was no way of knowing what was around each corner, even though the answer was almost definitely coral, metal and fish. When we saw the giant fish under the ledges I got the hell out of there as the jaws music got louder and invisible teeth started snapping at my feet.
It was really interesting exploring the wrecks though, aside from the imminent death awaiting us. There were so many fish - I think I actually kicked one with my flipper. But they refused to let me catch them. Rude.
When we were back on the boat motoring to an anchorage for the night, I came rushing upstairs to the sounds of Garth swearing and looking seriously concerned at something in the water as he fussed with the gear lever. I thought we had fishing line wrapped around the prop or something. It turned out to be a turtle that he was trying to follow which had escaped him. I went to get my polarizing sunglasses to try and see in the water better, and Sam managed to spot another one as it swam under us.
Garth swears the first one was bigger than the dinghy, which is over 2m long. He knows this because it swam under the dinghy and stuck out either end, which I guess is pretty solid evidence. The second one was smaller but still huge. After lunch Garth and I went for a row above the seagrass areas to try and find another one.
We spent about an hour rowing around, with me calling them and waving seagrass above the water. They didn't fall for it. As we were heading back, there was a noise just behind the dinghy. It sounded like air being expelled, and when I swung around to look there was a giant turtle head sticking out of the water. He just looked around for a while then disappeared with a big splash. Both of us were staring at the water trying to see him, which is how we saw another one swim right under us and zip past. The water was crystal clear but he was almost a blur - they're seriously fast!
So that was our adventure for the day. We're getting up bright and early tomorrow so we can head to the Sunshine Coast, where we'll stay for about a week before moving on.
Xxx Monique
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