GREAT BARRIER REEF 2012 - PART 1

GREAT BARRIER REEF 2012 - PART 1

It's happening.  Almost two years in the pipeline and now it's here...  I'm en route, in the air, on the way.  The Great Barrier Reef, here I come!

23 months ago (to the day), I turned 40.  My beautiful wife gave me a piece of paper with a coded message.  Crack the code, discover your present.  I admit, I needed some (big) hints, but eventually worked it out...

Dive the Great Barrier Reef on Spoilsport, Mike Ball Dive Expeditions premiere liveaboard!

Now here I am, bound for Cairns...

HOBART’S DERWENT RIVER - WHAT LIES BENEATH

I did a night dive in Hobart's Derwent River, a few night's ago.  This is something I've wanted to do for a long time, but the logistics seemed too hard.  When I heard the Tas Uni Dive Club had an event planned, I joined them for this unique opportunity.

For those of you not familiar with the Derwent, it's a victim of industrial pollution.  For many years considered a nasty, toxic place, there's been a great improvement in the health of the estuary in recent years; thanks to an increased community awareness of the environment.

HOBART’S DERWENT RIVER - WHAT LIES BENEATH...

It’s a Tuesday night in Hobart.  The rush hour is over and diners are enjoying their restaurants.  It might be early spring, but it’s still too chilly for many people to be out and about.  Those who are, huddle against the cold, hurrying to their destinations.  Lined up on the end of a wharf are seven divers.  One at a time, they step off, splashing into the river.  The dark waters close over and they disappear from sight.  Underwater lightning surrounds the photographers and bubbles give a clue, but from the surface, their whereabouts is uncertain.

TO INFINITY AND BEYOND – NOW WHAT?

TO INFINITY AND BEYOND – NOW WHAT?

No posts for a while, but plenty going on… in my head, at least:

A couple of months ago, I finished a Trimix course (TRIMIX COURSE - PART 1).  I learned more over that couple of days than I had for years.  It was bloody hard work and by the end, I felt like I really earned my certificate.  But I gained more than just another qualification because somewhere along the way, I rediscovered my passion for diving.

For the last few years, the majority of my diving was in shallow water.  I mostly shore dived to take photos of the pretty fish and reefs.  I did deeper dives, but for a few reasons, I didn’t really push myself.  The result: I was getting stale.

The good news: my diving enthusiasm is more than rekindled – it’s blazing.  The conundrum: what to do next?

DECO DIVING THE WRECK OF THE SS NORD

As the SS Nord sailed down Tasmania’s east coast, Capt Maurice Mackay set a course close to the Tasman Peninsula. With the ship pushing into rough weather, he consulted his navigation chart; it was only a year old and showed deep water between the Hippolyte Rocks. He altered the heading to pass between the islets, expecting some shelter from the seas. But the Nord hit an uncharted rock (now known as the Needle), tearing a hole in the ship.

CONVICT RUINS AND EXPENSIVE BUBBLES - TRIMIX COURSE - PART 3

It’s taken me a few weeks to finish this, but here it is: the final instalment of my Trimix course report. 

Last weekend I did two days of solid diving, including putting much of what I learned into action.  But, I’ll tell you about that weekend, later... for now, enjoy!

In case you missed them:

Trimix Course Part 1

Trimix Course Part 2

TRIMIX COURSE - PART 3

DAY 1 (CONT.) 

Our Day 1 dives were done, but the day was far from over.  We were in for a fine session of gas mixing and dive planning, not to mention Rubens’s critique of our