Diving and not much else

I'll be doing two dives today off the cod hole, one 7:00 the other at 11:30. The location if Julian rocks, which can easily be seen off main beach, Bryon bay. Julian rocks are (apparently) in the top ten of world dive sites and top 5 of Australian sites. Less severe than Wolf rocks and with more raised out of the sea, you get different currents (warm and cold) which gives it's varied environment.
The two dives where excellent but if cold, especially the second.
The there was plenty to see, hundreds Spine sea urchins, bull groupers, bulls eye and wobegone's (a small but harmless shark, that can grow upto 3 meters).
However the best was an Octopus the first I've seen; it was hiding under a coral with a rock door, which even the dive master couldn't open. That along with the dolphins squeaking and whales sinning made with an excellent dive.

Dive 21, Julian Rocks (Cod Hole) Bryon Bay, NSW.
In 220 Bar 7:33
Out 60 Bar 8:11
19 meters
38 Bottom Time
Visibility 5-9
Temp 19c
Weights 6*1.5

The high light of the dive was going thought the cod hole; there is a Code Hole in north Queensland. Plenty of wobbegongs, including one upto 1.5 meters. Travelling through the code was a first, a totally enclosed cavern which has thousands of Bullseye fish. Towards the end I heard squeaking, which would have been dolphins as several passed by. Also I travelled down one of the caverns as hit a mass of bubbles; generated by the currents hitting a rock.

Dive 22, Julian Rocks (Nursery) Bryon Bay, NSW.
In 220 Bar 10:33
Out 80 Bar 11:06
16.5 meters
42 Bottom Time
Visibility 5-10
Temp 18c
Weights 6*1.5

Being my second I had hope it would be warmer, wrong; it may have been I was still cold from the first dive or cooler current where approaching may be both. Round the end of my dive I was getting shivering, but worth it. This time we stayed in the Nursery, with a novice or a gravel pusher. Like the previous dive I found myself dropping like a stone; which is good for descents. Some of the soft coral down, their was fantastic; less hard coral but a variety of animals. Inc an octopus, more wobbegongs and I heard whale-song off in the distance.

Posted by paul at October 13, 2003 06:38 AM | Comments (0)