This was my final trip outside of Canberra before leaving Australia. I had driven down to the South coast multiple times but never went diving there. I also knew that the South Coast was one of the best diving spots in Australia. In case I never get back down to the area, I wanted to dive down there once before I left.
I left for Narooma at 7:30 in the morning. Murray’s bus line leaves daily from Canberra. We made a 15-minute spot in Bateman’s Bay and then continued on our way. The trip to Narooma took 4.5 hours by bus but is only 3 hours by car. On the way to Narooma, we drove through many coastal towns. I have never seen so many people as we drove. everyone was either getting breakfast or out and about on the paths and on the beaches. everywhere you looked there were people running, biking, walking, rollerblading, or surfing. all of the towns were so lively for a Sunday morning and I started to wish that I was a part of a town like that. It also helped that it was 65 degrees and not a cloud in the sky.
After I was dropped off in Narooma, I walked about 250 meters to my hostel. Once I checked in I made my way to the central area of Narooma. It was about a 20-m
In Narooma itself, there isn’t much to do. I went and grabbed lunch and ate by the wharf. Afterward, I went to the dive shop and got my BCD fitted. I then walked around for a bit before going back to the hostel. I relaxed there for a few hours until I grabbed dinner. for dinner, I walked back into town, grabbed a pizza, and then made my way to the beach. The moon was full and bright, the sound of waves crashing on the beach was pleasant, and the pizza was good. It was a pleasant dinner. I then stayed for a while and wrote in this. On my way back, I passed by a creepy house surrounded by barbed wire. kind of sketchy. Luckily, from the beach, it was only a 10-15 minute walk.
I woke up the next morning at 6 am and walked with all of my dive stuff to the wharf. I got there, and after some difficulties with tanks, we left at 7:30/ There was a scuba group from Sydney diving that day so this one other woman and I were essentially just tagging along. On the way out to the island, my Go Pro mask snapped, but my mood was soon brightened as we saw a pair of humpback whales chilling. After a 30 minute ride, we got to the island and began diving. The water was fucking cold- 14 degrees Celcius. The seals, however, were out and ready to play. The seals were a bit standoffish at first but soon approached us. They were the main attraction and swam all around us. They played with our flashlights, bubbles, and other seals. It was an awesome experience. All the other divers were super experienced but I was still new. FOr the first dice, I only lasted 20 minutes, but I had never dived in the cold, with seals, or at that death, so it was okay. During the second dive, I lasted about 40 minutes, which was more my average time. Down there I also saw a crested-horn shark missing half a fin as well. It was definitely an awesome dive. We were back in Narooma at 12:30 when I grabbed lunch and then waited for the bus- ending my last trip in Australia.