Were we dreaming? Did it really happen? And can narcosis conjure up wild and fanciful scenes? None of these conjectures was the case today as videos confirmed what everyone saw and experienced. Which did not prevent everyone, as they got out of the water from asking: "Did you see that?" "Was that real?". We'll come to exactly what "that" was shortly. Suffice to say, it was definitely worth diving today.
Dive #1 Magic Point:
Nick forewarned us that, if today was going to be like yesterday, we were going to have some very special diving this morning. But not even he could have imagined what we would encounter today. A group of divers were readied in advance, and, once again were dropped off far from our usual anchorage. We were so far south, we could see the southern coastline. This meant both trepidation and excitement. Trepidation, as everything had to go to plan as we were now on our own in the ocean and far away from the boat which was now receding into the distance. Everything had to go to plan and if it didn't, then we had to fall back on our own resources to fix any issues that might arise. At the same time this dive generated excitement, at us being given the opportunity to explore an area rarely visited.
Bobbing on the water, everything was checked and double checked. We closed in together so that any prevailing current would not cause a separation on our descent. Then with a thumbs down signal, we suddenly found ourselves descending into an unfamiliar landscape. One pleasure in diving in Sydney is the complex differences from one dive site to another and shifting a few hundred metres in one direction or the other can give you a radically altered setting and significantly different experience. Diving here today, proved this point.
The topography of reef was different from that further north. Here, the reef itself was far more moulded. And boulders laid on top were genuinely 'super sized'. I do not mean simply much larger, but where some of those boulders were actually gigantic. The aquatic life here was also doubled up but in unexpected ways. Almost immediately we came across two Moray eels, squeezed into the same hole. These two had that typical Moray eel look, of someone who has just told a joke, and is now waiting for a response.
Seeing so many boulders and nooks and crannies, and swim throughs, meant an enjoyable zig zagging across this terrain. We felt very privileged to be able to explore this area as well as this part of the blue planet. Luscious blue water, 23-24 degrees warm made our journey even more enjoyable. Excellent visibility allowed us to properly appreciate the lines and extensive shapes of this reef.
Treats were to be seen everywhere, from schools of fish above us, to schools of fish in front of us, as was the case with a school of Old Wives, gently see sawing, next to a boulder. The movement produced a silent melody which could be felt by all of us.
A Giant Cuttlefish demonstrated its affection and why we love them so much. Seeing these gentle and beautiful creatures is enough to fill us with pleasure well after a dive has come to an end. Even if this Giant Cuttlefish tried its best to grab Simon's camera. Even a Giant Cuttlefish is entitled to a few material possessions.
A particularly large Banded (also called 'Ornate' as distinct from the more common 'Spotted') Wobbegong swam close by - its size reminding us just how big they can grow. This one was nearly three metres long. Not merely long, but with a big girth as well. An impressive sight - even more so when you see them swimming. Interestingly, the Australian Museum states that the Spotted Wobbegong "is possibly endemic to Australia. Records from Japan and the South China Sea are probably errors". Yet another worthy creature to add to our list of the endemic population of Australia: Eastern Blue Devil Fish, Southern Blue Devilfish, Giant Cuttlefish, Weedy Seadragons, Leafy Seadragons, Ruby Seadragons, etc. It is also interesting that the Queensland government disagrees with the Australian Museum as to what a Banded Wobbegong is. Gazing at this shark, we were not in the slightest mood to disagree with anyone.
Looking at another shark, we were quickly distracted by a large school of Yellow Tail swimming towards us at speed. This was bizarre. Both their speed and looks on their faces loudly said something was chasing them. And this is where the real became surreal. Not hundreds, but thousands of Salmon, large fish, each roughly about half a metre long, swept over a plateau above us, turned and swamped us. Their numbers, their size, their continued presence, as they moved in a densely packed school all around us was incredible.
Although not technically "salmon" (it's not a true salmonoid fish but rather belongs to the perch family), these fish are called Australian Salmon. They can grow to nearly a metre long and can weigh as much as 6 kg.
An interesting thing to note about Australian Salmon is that several decades ago their diet consisted mainly in krill and squids, which are normally associated with cooler waters, but today their diet is dominated by small pelagic baitfish - hence the look of terror on the faces of the Yellowtail Scad seen fleeing the Aussie Salmon. The reason for the change of diet is believed to be due to long term changes in the Eastern Australian Current bringing warmer waters further and further south over the last few decades. Scientists consider this “multi-decadal southward penetration of the EAC” is "one of the clearer signs of the current global warming trend and the shift in diet of Australian Salmon is a biological record of this". Anyway, seeing this number of fish of this size in an Aussie "Salmon Run" at Magic Point was extraordinary.
Dive #2 North Bondi:
Everything was on our side for this dive at this location. Blue sky, blue water, warm water, and once again great visibility. One action-packed dive cannot really be compared with another, yet jumping in the water, it was hard not to think about what we had just experienced at Magic Point. Despite this, we were very quickly distracted by one amazing scene after another at North
Bondi. We headed north, eager to pick up from where we had left off on previous explorations of this site.
We were now anchored in waters deeper than normal. So looking down we had a water column of light aqua blue sitting on pure white sand: a nice combination but also one with the potential for divers to drift inadvertently away. Accordingly, we moved into position so that we could make our descent all together and safely. Reaching that white sea bed, we marvelled at the aquatic life now spread out before our eyes. In a world so full of vivid colour and teeming with life, it is easy to conjure up all sorts of explanations for surreal scenes where aquatic life interacts with us in one way or another. For example, as David swept by and glided between one boulder and another, Mado followed him, trailing off after him as though he were a comet. This sounds bizarre and yet that was the actual scene in front of us. When he stopped, those same Mado then formed a sort of garland around his head. Where else in the world, other than in science fiction, could you imagine such scenes.
Two and then altogether three tropical Moorish Idols distracted us from the relationship David had unwittingly formed with the Mado. Moorish Idols are special and to have three altogether I knew would be an image which would and will haunt Shelley again and again. She had a cold preventing her from diving today and enjoying that scene and having that scene photographically preserved for posterity - as no other photographer can. It's her loss as well as ours - but at least we did see it.
With so many fish around, Lindsay, Ben, Agustin, and Ian were as lost in this world as were the rest of us. The best adjective to use, is "busy": there were so many fish here, so well lit up by the sun which seemed to have no impediment on this day in illuminating everything and making every object sparkle. A scene like this is so hard to leave, and it was with the greatest difficulty and regret that we eventually had to say good bye to it and start making our ascent. But even here, we were once again regaled by Yellowtail, swimming next to us, around us, under us and above us. This meant summoning up some effort to finally leave even when our safety stop came to an end.
Climbing back onto the boat, with our mind full of images of everything we had seen, I knew it was a real understatement to say "it was worth diving today"! "It was a special experience", "it was a wonderful time" - which are all statements which barely describe what it was like to be underwater today. What one can say is that it was truly fantastic!
