A Groper, he was HUGE, they grow to 1.5 metres long and I reckon he was about that.

DAY 12: March 1st, Reefworld

It was a nice sunny morning when we tore ourselves out of bed for our 7.25am high speed catamaran ride to the reef. We sat outside on the upper deck of the boat enjoying the rays, even though the sea was a little choppy. As we neared Hamilton Island (one of the major islands in the Whitsundays complete with high rise hotels and airport) the sea got a bit rougher and as we powered along all of a sudden a huge spray of water shot over the edge and drenched a lady sat near the edge of the boat. Obviously, this wasn’t at all amusing…!! We decided that we would be sensible and grab some good seats inside the cabin before the people at the next stop got on. Oh, how we chuckled to ourselves as the rich people from Hamilton Island all sat in the sun on the upper deck, the stillness of the sea in the harbour there very deceptive. We positioned ourselves ready for some cheap entertainment and looked on eagerly as the boat got faster and the waves got choppier. We weren’t disappointed; sure enough a huge drencher hurled itself over the upper barriers and caused chaos as people scuttled about trying to move seats. Soon, the waves got so bad that the staff actually made everyone go inside as it was too wild sat outside. Although, we realised later that the real reason they made everyone go in was because they were being sick over the side as the 2.5 metre swell took its toll on even the most experienced seafarers.