Diving in Cairns
The Dive Sites of the Outer Barrier Reef
Starting at a distance of 50 km off shore and forming the further reaches of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, scuba diving the Cairns Barrier Reef is to explore wall dives, swim throughs and endless fields of corals in clear blue waters, all accessed only by the Cairns liveaboards that frequent this area.
The reef attracts a multitude of marine life and interesting critters. Turtles, white tip reef sharks, groupers and large wrasse are abundant, and in some areas even dolphins are nothing unusual.
Coral bommies interspersed with sandy gullies and staghorn thickets make up the typical landscape of the barrier reef and the Cairns dive sites feature excellent positions from where to observe the daily life cycle of the reef. Surprises from the blue are also common with schooling fish action an ever-present constant.
Highlights
What is sometimes called the Outer Barrier Reef is a must if you fancy doing some nice and easy, entry level Cairns scuba diving. This area includes the reefs on Milln, Flynn, Thetford, Hastings, Briggs, Norman and Saxon. All of the low budget Great Barrier Reef liveaboards that we recommend visit the Outer Barrier Reef.
Flynn Reef offers an abundance of diverse marine life with several resident turtles, one of which is huge. Excellent coral coverage of the reef features hard coral such as staghorn, table coral, plate coral and boulder coral heads. The reef also showcases a large variety of the soft coral species that can be found in Cairns.
Milln Reef also features resident turtles as well as white tip reef sharks that cruise the large bommies rising up from the sandy sea bed. Coral trout and peacock groupers regularly intersperse the turtle and shark scene. Good coverage of hard and soft corals ensure that Milln Reef attracts an abundance of marine life. Milln Reef is also favoured among dolphins, often seen around arriving or departing boats.
Pellowe Reef is a favourite among the Cairns diving community due to its location. Its proximity to the continental shelf makes it the most likely place to see larger fish species when sea conditions are suitable for a visit. Barracuda, jacks, sharks, dolphins and rays can often be found here. Interesting residents of the reef include Napoleon wrasse, octopus and moray eels.
The Inner Barrier Reef consists of shallow reefs accessible through shore dives from the islands or day trips. We do not offer this area since the quality of the diving is not as high as elsewhere in Cairns or on the Great Barrier Reef.
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How to Dive Cairns
Cairns is the starting point for diving the Great Barrier Reef. The finest dives, which can be truly world-class are found around Osprey Reef and the Ribbon Reefs. These are all found to the north of here and, depending on your choice of itinerary, may involve boarding or disembarking at Cairns or a stunning low level flight over the reef to or from Lizard Island. If you want to dive the best sites of the area then check out Osprey Reef and the Ribbon Reefs and the liveaboards that visit these areas.
If you choose to dive the entry level sites of the Cairns Barrier Reef, which are some distance from shore, this requires a substantial amount of travel time. Although day trips are possible, most of the day is spent on travelling to and from your hotel and dive site. Dive The World therefore recommends a short liveaboard tour to maximise your time at the Barrier Reef.
Various Cairns liveaboard trip options of different durations are available for your Cairns diving adventure, and these run all year round so it's easy to work your schedule around a departure date and time that suits you.
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Diving Season
As with the rest of the Great Barrier Reef, any time is a good time for scuba diving in Cairns. The tropical weather ensures that the water temperature is always between 22 - 29°C.
Special times of the year on the Great Barrier Reef are from June - November when humpback whales are commonly spotted, and in October / November during coral spawning. This is in addition to the usual magical spectacle which characterises the reef all year round.
The Great Barrier Reef is blessed with perpetual great visibility and during September to November it goes from great to excellent.
The summer season of Cairns sees a little more rain than the dry winter seasons, although rainfall is still moderate and showers generally occur in the early mornings and late afternoons.
Sea conditions are calm, except during the Australian winter months when they can become moderate.
Reef Summary
Good for: Underwater photography, wall diving, reef life and health
Not so good for: Non-diving activities
Depth: 5 - 30m
Visibility: 5 - 20m
Currents: Gentle
Surface conditions: Generally calm but can be choppy
Water temperature: 25 - 30°C
Experience level: Beginner - intermediate
Number of dive sites: 16
Distance: 60 km east of Cairns
Access: Cairns liveaboard
Recommended length of stay: 3 - 5 days
Dive Site Descriptions
More detailed information on the Outer Barrier Reef dive sites:
• Cairns tourist information
View a map of:
• Great Barrier Reef - Australia
Scuba diving vacation enquiries
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