Diving > Articles > Australia’s Other Reef

Dawn. A striking mess of pink and yellow haze, glistening water, the steady rumble of the boat engine, the waft of the captain smoking. But then, out of the marina, the lurch and sway, the stomach summersault, the muesli burps, and the droning reminder, ‘Just look at the horizon.’ Well, I’m looking at the burnt orange haze and I’m not feeling better, while all around me passengers stacked cheek by jowl converse, sleep and read. The Great Barrier Reef beckons but I can’t help wondering, with all this discomfort, is it really worth it?

I hate boats, but I love the water. How can you go diving without enduring boat rides that make you too sick to enjoy the dive? And while we’re questioning, how can you do spectacular diving without having hordes of fellow enthusiasts in your face, and without having to spend several days on a boat? The answer is simple, leave the Barrier Reef to the masses and head for Ningaloo Marine Park, 1,100 km north of Perth, to Australia’s other reef.

Western Australia is a land of open roads, of vehicle dependence and lonely highways. The best way to explore the state, if not the only way given that bus transport is severely limited and flights will break the bank, is to rent a campervan. Shared between two or three people, it is economical and offers the freedom required to explore this vast land, which is roughly the size of Western Europe. It will also save you from the despair of flea ridden hotel rooms that cost a packet.

So you have you’re freedom, or at least my partner and I have with our cosy mobile home pointed north, but the distance is still daunting, and there’s not a lot of radio except for wheat and sheep reports and rather shocking call-in discussions about the ‘refugee problem’. As long distance drives go, you will feel everyone one of those kilometres, and will also be forced to overnight in a ramshackle town, one usually thrown together during some past industrial boom.

But you will be rewarded, for the Ningaloo Reef, home to some of Australia’s best snorkelling and diving, is Australia’s only fringing reef and merely a few strokes from the beach in Coral Bay. This quirky coastal hamlet doubles as the reef’s main access point and is normally the first stop on any tour of the North West Cape. More and more divers are converging here rather than the Barrier Reef in order to get away from the crowds and to have an equally memorable reef experience and, more importantly, to avoid the boat rides.

Thankfully, development in this small town has been checked, most recently with the thwarting of a new Aus$180 million marina and 2000-bed resort, a construction that would have severely impacted on the delicate ecosystem of the park and the North West Cape. The Save Ningaloo Campaign drew support from all over the world to successfully prevent this development, and Coral Bay remains the quaint holiday village it always was: two small resorts, two caravan parks, expensive petrol, bore water, and a handful of shops and services.

With the house on wheels resting snugly with many similar models at one of the caravan parks, it was time to don the silly head and feet gear and explore the reef. From the vacant beach you can see the reef clearly, its shadows of dark green under the light blue water. The odd snorkel bobs in the water, occasionally spurting water, and there’s not a boat to be seen.

Looking sufficiently ridiculous, in we plunge, and immediately the reef is all around: schools of tropical fish in all colours, puffer fish, sea snakes, eagle rays, and coral everywhere, like looking at a kaleidoscope. And so few people, well at least not in any great number; you will seldom be confronted by large groups of divers who scare all the fish away. This is all about peaceful exploration, and there is so much to be explored; it isn’t necessary to take a short boat ride to the outer reef. The coral, still so untouched by the hands of man, is only a dog paddle from the sand.

And then there is the vast array of marine life, creatures unperturbed by a few human visitations. Manta rays cruise past, turtles lumber along, sharks scope the scene, the odd octopus creeps along the ocean floor, and further out, the whale sharks make their way north. Swimming with these majestic animals, the world’s biggest species of fish, draws people from all over the world from late-March to mid-June. Most of the trips start from Exmouth, 150 km north of Coral Bay. And so, after five days of lazy snorkelling we headed there.

Exmouth is no shanty town. Compared with Coral Bay, whose salt water showers had aged me ten years, it was like returning to civilization. (A town’s level of shantiness is normally gauged by the price of petrol: the higher the price, the more shanty). The petrol price here is reasonable, and there’s even an airport nearby that services Perth, but missing is the reef on the doorstep; Exmouth is on the east side of the cape, away from the marine park. Diving highlights include the nearby Navy Pier, famous for its wide variety of marine life, and extended day trips to the outer reef.

Our first trip day took us to the west side of the cape. How diverse the land is here; desert and limestone cliffs are a stone’s throw from the reef. In the Cape Range National Park it is possible to pass from high plateau shrubland to deep ocean within just a few kilometres. This is why the North West Cape and Ningaloo need to be protected, for nowhere in the world could you find such biodiversity in such a small area.

And how diverse are the activities. A morning’s snorkel in Turquoise Bay followed by an afternoon hike through Yardie Creek Gorge in search of the less than elusive Black Footed Rock Wallaby. A swim with a whale shark followed by a climb up Shothole Canyon. This combination of water and land enjoyment is unparalleled, especially given that you are sharing it with so few. Nothing detracts more from the natural experience than large numbers of people.

So I hope the Great Barrier Reef remains Australia’s biggest drawcard. Then, Ningaloo will be left to those who want all the pleasure of a world class reef without the hordes of people, and without the awful five day boat trips. It will also mean that the reef and the surrounding area will be spared from development and will rightfully remain an ecotourism destination with astonishing biodiversity.

But you have to be prepared to earn it, for it is a long drive from Perth, and then, it’s an even longer drive back, for the promise of undiscovered reef is gone. Ahead of you is a big city and an eagle-eyed rental car inspector who will make you pay for every scratch.

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