back to the reef

After catching up on some chores, jobs and shopping in the Townsville Marina, we spotted another reef window coming our way. So it was off to Lodestone Reef this time.

We enjoyed four nights out at Lodestone Reef with Skedaddle. Five days of calm weather with midday low tides. Perfect!

Lodestone is located between Keeper and John Brewer Reefs (see my last two posts).  We’ve visited Lodestone several times over the years. As well as two public moorings, there’s plenty of anchor room for several boats but we were lucky enough to pick up Lodestone’s ‘new’ second mooring which is located amongst some rather close bommies, but in an area I hadn’t explored before. 

These bommies don’t look that close at all from the air really, but they certainly felt close.

Notice the two close ‘small’ bommies, the one right behind us and the one on the right.  At low tide there was little water covering them. Negotiating our way in to these tight spots within bommies can sometimes require a bit of nerve, but along with our satellite charts (Open CPN), video camera (mounted on the mast) and our eyeballs of course, we now have our new Sena wireless headsets. Walkie-talkies we used to call them. These headsets make it so much easier. We’ve managed for 10 years using (polite) hand signals and vocal instructions (often unheard) … and we’re still sailing together. But now we can talk to each other, quietly. There’s a reason why these are called ‘Marriage Savers’! No joke, that actually was a brand name some time back … “trusted by countless boaters to enhance marital and crew harmony on the water”. 

… and the view from below. Solid, tall bommies and all were quite pretty with healthy colourful coral.

Once again, the water clarity and the colours of the reef featured.  With a clear sky each day, floating in 8 metres of clear water over a white sandy bottom was bliss. On two of the days humpback whales, mother and calf, passed by in the distance.  Too far away for my zoom lens, but nevertheless, they were appreciated from afar.

This visit to Lodestone was all about the little things down under. While I appreciated seeing the bigger fish, even the Black and White Tip Reef Sharks cruising by (think I saw three each day I snorkeled) and the biggest Humphead Parrotfish I’ve ever seen and a large Maori Wrasse, it was the little things I was more interested in. I had shallow water opportunities with so many bommies to choose from, which means good natural light … and me not having to hold my breath for as long! I also experimented with carrying an additional weight on my weight belt.  Worked brilliantly.

First up, the Christmas Tree Worms …

I think was my favourite worm. The colours of these crowns are striking and such a lovely setting.

A few fun facts about these beautiful tiny creatures … Christmas Tree Worms can live up to 40 years old, two crowns but only one worm, two-thirds of the worm’s body is actually hidden in a tube in the coral and there are male and female Christmas Tree Worms. I also need to add, these worms were less than a centimetre in size!

Here’s a few more in a slideshow …

This clam captures the colours of the reef perfectly …

My first Nudi (Nudibranch) for the season … all of maybe 3-4 centimetres in length.

Check out these little cuties …

Our reef protectors …

I mentioned the bigger fish I saw at Lodestone. I’m not sure exactly what these fish are in the photo below, but there was a big school of them.  They were gathered near a bommie, stationary and they had no idea I was behind them.  Time for me to take a photo. Then I had a play with my editing program.

Some sadder news … our beloved red and white umbrella has finally said ‘enough’.  Not fixable by Mr. Fix-it I’m afraid.  And do you think it was easy to find a replacement? No. (And it wasn’t about colour choice!)  We tried all the usual haunts.  “Not yet summer”, we were told repeatedly. We eventually found the one and only in Townsville I think. Not quite as good as our last, but for $12 we’ll give it go and … we have reef colours too!

We have friends aboard soon, so it’s time to sort the starboard hull to make room for two more crew and their gear. Have to find room for Greg’s fishing gear … and the teabags!