We’re teaming up with the legendary expedition vessel Spirit of Freedom for a 5-day, 4-night expedition to the Ribbon Reefs as part of the 2020 Great Reef Census, a ground-breaking citizen science project by Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef.
Don’t miss your chance to be part of the Great Reef Census and help capture important data by exploring these flourishing and rarely visited dive sites with us.
By day, you’ll be diving the reef, snapping pictures for the survey and marvelling at the diverse marine life of the Ribbon Reefs. In between dives, refuel with delicious meals freshly prepared by the talented Spirit of Freedom chefs.
At night, settle into the comfortable air-conditioned saloon for Q&A sessions and presentations by our marine biologists. Night dives will be available on selected nights, conditions permitting.
This is a special opportunity to be part of a world-first project. All you need to be part of the survey is a digital underwater camera and a buddy! We’ll talk you through what photos to capture and how to submit your data to the Census.
There are only 18 spaces available on this on this world first expedition so don’t miss out. Reserve your place now to be part of the history of the Great Barrier Reef!
The largest reef ecosystem on earth, the Great Barrier Reef is 2,300km long, with more than 3,000 reefs. Only between five and 10 per cent of it is regularly surveyed.
The Great Reef Census is a project by Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef, delivered in partnership with the University of Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and the Australian Institute of Marine Science with support from James Cook University, the University of Technology Sydney and the University of Tasmania. The project is funded by the partnership between the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, the Prior Family Foundation and the Reef & Rainforest Research Centre.
Find out more about the Great Reef Census
The Ribbon Reefs are a 120km string of 10 individual coral reefs located in the Coral Sea on the edge of the continental shelf, starting north of Cairns and Port Douglas and extending to the east of Lizard Island.
These reefs are out of reach of day trip vessels, and their remote location and Green ‘No Take’ zoning makes them some of the best dive sites on the entire Great Barrier Reef. Reef formations include enormous beds of plate corals, pinnacles and walls, channels and caves and shallow coral gardens, all home to a huge range of marine life.
During our Census expedition we’ll be exploring a range of reef sites between Ribbon 10 and Ribbon 2. We’re aiming to access as many locations as possible throughout this seven-night trip, but cannot guarantee we’ll be visiting any specific dive site.
Monday 30 November
9.30am: Check in on board Spirit of Freedom
10.30am: Vessel departs for the outer reef
During the first day you’ll have an afternoon dive to perfect your surveying technique, plus a night dive after dinner. In the evening we’ll set a course for the Ribbon Reefs.
Tuesday 31 – Thursday 3 December
Exploring Ribbon 10 to Ribbon 2 on the Ribbon Reefs
Friday 4 December
Overnight return to Cairns
8.30am: Disembark Cairns
Excess luggage can be stored at our office at 319 Draper Street, Cairns.
All scuba participants must meet medical questionnaire requirements. Some conditions or medications may prevent you from diving.
Currently the rules state that for a single no decompression dive, you should not fly/go to altitude for at least 12 hours, or 18 hours after multiple dives. Divers Den recommends waiting a minimum 24 hours whenever possible. These are guidelines only, there is no guarantee that these recommendations will prevent decompression sickness. There are no current guidelines regarding diving after flying.
Altitude is defined as 300m/1000ft above sea level. This includes going to the Atherton Tablelands (a popular local scenic attraction), so be careful if booking tours to follow your dive trip.
