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The Great Barrier Reef & Coral Sea Expedition - January 25 to
February 1, 2007
CORAL SEA SAFARI
with MIKE BALL DIVE EXPEDITIONS
7 Nights/ 6 dive days - Unlimited Dives (including night dives)
approx 26 dives
This Great Barrier Reef
Coral Sea Safari is ideal for all levels of divers seeking to participate
in Australia's best liveaboard expedition; Spoilsport is Australia's most
prestigious and comfortable liveaboard and recognized as the "most
environmentally sensitive liveaboard in the pacific."
TENTATIVE
ITINERARY
Thursday
- Check-in and Departure
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Prior to
4pm, check-in luggage/dive bag at our office, 143 Lake Street, Cairns
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If unable
to check-in prior to 4pm, phone us on 4031-5484 for departure details
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Board
Spoilsport 8pm at the Marlin Jetty - berth 16 (no boarding before 8pm)
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Cruise
overnight to the magnificent Ribbon Reefs, the first stop on your 700km dive
odyssey
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Friday - Ribbon Reef #3
- Flare Point, Joni's Joy, Fish Market
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Spiral
majestic coral pinnacles teeming with life, huge schools of fusiliers entice
predatory barracuda, mackerel & trevally
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Anticipate
spectacular coral gardens, spotted rays, reef sharks and green turtle
sightings
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Night dive
where decorator crabs, egg cowry shells, moray eels and crayfish are just a
few of the creatures you can find
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Saturday - Coral Sea - Osprey Reef
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Cruise 100 miles
overnight to Osprey Reef in the Coral Sea
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Enjoy 130 ft visibility
with spectacular steep walls disappearing to over 3000 ft
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Swim with giant potato
cod, napoleon wrasse, moray eels, tuna and barracuda
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Witness the resident
shark population including grey whalers, white-tip reef sharks, silver-tips
and hammerheads
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Search for the commonly
seen green and loggerhead turtles
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Find the caves, overhangs
and spectacular walls adorned with huge soft coral trees and gorgonian fans
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Sunday
- Ribbon Reef #10 - Cod Hole, Snake Pit, Stepping Stones and Lizard Island
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Buddy up
with diver size fish that dive with you at the Cod Hole
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Enjoy
close encounters with huge Maori wrasse
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Drift with
large schools of fish at the northern Ribbon Reef passes
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Climb
"Cook's Look" at Lizard Island where Captain Cook searched for safe passage
through the reef
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Monday -
Ribbon Reef #9 & #10 - Cod Wall, Cod Hole, Challenger Bay
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Explore the rarely dived Cod Wall at the
outer reef edge that disappears into 200 ft
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Glide back towards the
Cod Hole while enjoying the clear water and spectacular coral formations
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Choose to dive the Cod
Hole again if you agree with us that one day is not enough to enjoy its
diverse marine life
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Shallow
but fantastic, Challenger Bay is extremely rich in biodiversity from
spectacular coral gardens and unusual crittersthrough large schooling fish -
great night dive location.....watch out for Baza the Barra
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Tuesday - Ribbon Reef #9 - Lighthouse Reef, Pixie Pinnacle, Pixie wall &
Vertical Gardens
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Circumnavigate Pixie Pinnacle and Lighthouse Bommie shrouded in fusilier
baitfish, fluorescent purple and orange anthias attract predatory fish to
these photogenic sites
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Sheer
walls covered in whip corals and sea fans brim the natural amphitheatre of
Vertical Gardens, marine life varies from the many colorful nudibranchs to
large schooling bump head parrotfish
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Wednesday
- Ribbon Reef #3, #4, & #5 - Rouge Reef, Clam Beds, Andy's Postcard &
Steve's Bommie
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Rising
from 80 meters, Rouge Reef displays spectacular plate corals and is home to
an array of tropical fish including sweetlip, butterfly, angel and
beautifully colored trumpet fish
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See
spectaculat giant clams at Clam Beds as wells as caves, canyons and coral
encrusted bommies awaiting exploration
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Observe
slowly moving scorpion fish, brightly colored yellow snapper and the huge
schools of baitfish that nervously avoid the predatory trevally and
barracuda that patrol the deep walls of Andy's Postcard and Steve's Bommie
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Thursday - Dock at Marlin Jetty - Berth #16, Cairns
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Early morning docking, breakfast, 9am transfers to Cairns
City hotels
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(Weather & natural events
may cause sites to improve or deteriorate over time and as such we reserve
the right to vary this itinerary in order to provide the best quality
diving)
Don't
delay, join the crew now!! For
questions or to arrange a deposit, please
Email
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