The forecast early on Saturday morning (24th October), not only anticipated a cloudy day but started to predict that some southerly winds would develop in a few days' time. While we could certainly stop at Magnetic Island or Townsville to wait for such conditions to pass, we started to discuss the option of hurrying on to the Whitsunday Islands where there were plenty of anchorages to suit any wind direction.

Having left Taylor Reef at 5:30 am, we were going to stop at Britomart Reef (where do some of these names come from?). Once we had reached that area, about 30 nm south of Taylor Reef, we decided to keep going because it was forecast to be cloudy again in two days' time. We knew nothing about anchoring or snorkeling at Britomart Reef, but our new target, John Brewer Reef, had two public moorings and was in a Conservation Park where only limited fishing is allowed. Thus, I would rather have a sunny day at John Brewer and skip Britomart. [We later heard that a spearfisherman on Britomart Reef was attacked by a shark with "catastrophic injuries" probably around the time we might have been there. We were glad that the quick action of his mates saved his life but we were also glad that we did not stop there and this confirmed our dislike of snorkeling when others are spearfishing.]



Small spinner dolphins riding in our bow wave between Taylor and John Brewer Reefs

It was late in the afternoon when we arrived at John Brewer Reef and we were very lucky that only one of the moorings was occupied. We realized the next day that there was a shallow area of sand suitable for anchoring northeast of the moorings, but if we had arrived to find both moorings occupied, we might had just kept going rather than trying to find a suitable anchorage in the twilight.

We were also fortunate that the sun did not disappear behind the cloudbank on the horizon until after we had reached the mooring. As it was, with me on the bow, we could just see the shallow bommies around which we had to dodge to reach the mooring. This was certainly not a place to visit in the dark.



View from the mooring towards the bommie-lined route that we had to take to get into the reef

One other complication was that a brisk wind from the north had developed so it was difficult to slow down enough for Randall to snag the mooring line on our first, downwind pass. With little room to maneuver around the shallow bommies just past the mooring, I had to power Tregoning hard in reverse with her stern into the wind and waves. It was a bit nerve-wracking but luckily I could still see the coral heads and Randall could easily get the mooring on the second attempt. If we had been just 30 mins later, when the sun was behind the clouds, it could have been quite tricky. The mooring was rather exposed to the northerly wind and waves but with little current, we pointed into the wind. Up and down pitching in the boat is much more tolerable than rolling.

There is no cay at John Brewer Reef but this had not deterred many terns from wanting to roost in the area. So as soon as it started to get dark, a few birds began landing on Tregoning's life-lines and the dinghy. This seemed to be quite charming until it was pitch black and the bird started to pile aboard Tregoning's forward deck. I estimated that there were at least 50 birds, mostly the larger brown noddies and bridled terns, but also a few smaller black-naped terns. They did not seem in the least concerned when I shone a light on them or used the camera's flash. Considering the number of birds, they were really not too noisy but there was plenty of mess for me to wash-down with seawater after they had all departed early the next morning.



Some of the mess left by the birds on Tregoning's bow...I was thankful they had not been boobies, pelicans, or cormorants which leave huge, fishy-smelling droppings

Since it was obvious that we could snorkel directly off Tregoning, we lifted the outboard off the dinghy while it was calm in the morning. Either during that process, or exacerbated by it, Randall felt a spasm in his back. Despite immediately taking some anti-inflammatory pain-relief, his back was too sore to go snorkeling or rowing. Instead, he watched me from Tregoning's cockpit and we gave each other frequent OK signals (hand lifted slowly and clear to touch the top of the head).



The shallow coral beyond Tregoning around which I could easily snorkel

It was such a shame that this was the snorkel that Randall had to miss. The water was clear, there was no current, and the condition of the coral on the sandy bottom, on the sides of the bommie, and in the shallow coral garden on top was excellent. It was a beautiful area that restored my faith that we could find parts of the GBR that still seemed pristine, healthy, and splendidly diverse.



A wonderful sight, flourishing staghorn coral with clouds of small reef fish

There were many giant clams including some of the huge ones that were wider than the length of my forearm. Like the coral, the mantles of these clams came in a pleasing variety of bright colors.



A giant clam with a blue mantle that was positively mesmerizing

It was so warm, I could have kept exploring the coral heads around the mooring for hours but I finally took pity on poor Randall in the cockpit and headed back to the boat. In 73 minutes, I recorded 108 species including one that was new to me, an epaulette shark.



An epaulette shark (to 107 cm or 42 inches)

Under other circumstances, I felt that we had found a place where we could have spent several days and never have exhausted the good snorkeling. There were also several other small reefs just south of us that had public moorings and either good reports from Anui or protection from fishing: Lodestone 5 nm, Keeper 14 nm, and Wheeler 30 nm. It was mighty tempting to move between them and snorkel a new site each day but this would have to wait for another visit largely because we needed to give Randall time for his back to heal. There were also predicted to be thunderstorms followed by southeasterly winds in a few days' time, so we decided to scurry on with an overnight sail to the northern Whitsunday Islands. At some point, we needed to get ashore to fill Randall's one prescription and to get fuel, so it seemed reasonable to do this at a time when being exposed on the reefs would not be very comfortable.