Today we had a very exciting activity planned. We went to the Great Barrier Reef! Woot woot!! I never thought I would be going there. Never have limitations.

All aboard! To get to a the reef we get on the boat from the picture above and take a 3 hour ride. We booked our trip through White Sunday Cruises

Once you get there they don’t drop you off in the middle of the ocean. That would be mean! Instead you go onto another boat where you are able to sun bathe, view the reef from their glass showcase, walk around and of course gear up for snorkeling or diving. The reef we went to is called Hardy Reef.

Notice that the sky is grey? Unfortunately it was pretty cold and windy, so much for sun bathing! The good thing is that no matter what the weather is outside the view of the reef is still magnificent.

Once we got off the boat and onto the other one we geared up for some snorkeling. All the snorkel gear was included as well as wet suits and stinger suits. Since it was not sting ray season we only wore the wet suits which is a good thing that we did because the water was cold! James had an underwater camera so he took a lot of awesome photos.

Basically the reef was wonderful to view. After we snorkeled for about 1 – 2 hours we ate lunch. The tour provided a buffet lunch which had a lot of different foods. James did the tour before and expressed that the food was better and had more options on his last trip. Always cutting back!

After lunch we were contemplating going back into the water because it was seriously cold. Then we thought about it and realized how often do you get the opportunity to snorkel the great barrier reef. Not many so in we went. I was so glad we did! The water did not seem nearly as cold. Maybe it also had to do with the fact that I was wearing 2 full wetsuits. It was the tour guides idea!

After an hour of another round of snorkeling it was time to go back on the boat that takes you home. Michelle did not want to back home so she hid in the bathroom. But she was caught! Don’t mess with the Aussies!

The ride home felt a lot longer. One, we were all wet and freezing and two there were people yacking everywhere from sea sickness. No exaggeration, it looked like a movie. Prior to the trip going out they recommend taking travel calm. Well clearly there were many people who did not take it on the way back.

After we were back at the hotel and showered we all were absolutely exhausted. We headed out to a restaurant that had all you can eat chili. The chili was pretty lacking in flavor so we all only had one bowl. After dinner we walked around a bit and called it a night.