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My boyfriend and I bought a car and a tent in Sydney for 2000 dollars in November, 2006, and we headed up the east coast of Australia searching for adventure and the perfect place to get scuba certified. We spent the night at the most marvelous places along the Gold Coast and beyond, Apollo Bay, Surfers Paradise, Rainbow Beach, and Hervey Bay.

When we got to Airlie Beach, I knew we had found the place to stop and try on that scuba gear and test the resilience of our ears to the pressures of deep diving. Airlie Beach was the gateway to the Whitsunday Islands, a group of 70+ islands, the majority of which were uninhabited. It was so hard to choose which package or company, but we finally settled in a course that included a 3 day and 2 night sailboat trip with Tallarook Sail and Dive around the islands, stopping at the famous Whitehaven beach. The entire course along with the boat trip was around 250 dollars, one of the cheaper options. We had two days of classroom instruction and pool practice before the boat sailed, and I couldn't wait.

Our sailboat was about sixty feet long, and there were over thirty people staying on board, including the captain and his crew. The crew was very friendly, but they had several rules that they strictly enforced. Punishment was metered out swiftly, and I will never forget the spoonful of vegemite I had to eat for going down the ladder face forward. Vegemite, for those of you English speakers that aren't from Australia or England, is a vegetable paste often served on toast and known for it's sharp, salty, and in my opinion, horrible, flavor. Only seven of us were being scuba certified, and unfortunately, we were not allowed to stay up late and drink with the rest of the crazies. There were rules about drinking and diving, and we were cut off by midnight and sternly advised to get some sleep.

Our dive instructor warned us that he was not our babysitter. Our first dive was at seven a.m., and if we weren't suited up and ready to go, we would be left behind. We were diving along the southern fringe of the Great Barrier Reef, and I was unprepared for the myriad of colors and sea life that surrounded us as we slowly submerged to the depths of thirty feet. The training in the pool had been extensive, and we had practiced taking off and putting back on our masks and tanks under water, as well as sharing oxygen with each other to simulate what to do if our partner's tank emptied before we resurfaced.

To pass the course, we had to show our instructor that we could these skills thirty feet under the surface of the ocean, as well as enter and exit boat correctly, suit up with proper gear, and respond accurately to the sign language we had been taught. If we got separated from our partners or the instructor, we were instantly failed. Two days and three dives later, we had all passed. Not only were we certified divers, we had also relaxed on one of the most photographed beaches in Australia, Whitehaven Beach and received some rudimentary sailing instruction.

Tallarook Sail and Dive fed us well, supplied room and board, taught us to scuba dive, and sailed us around the beautiful Whitsunday Islands. We received our SSI certification, Scuba Schools International, which is recognized everywhere around the world. The sailboat was small, and all thirty people on board slept in two cabins in small bunks, but for only two nights this added to the adventure of the trip and brought the group closer together. If you are looking for leisure, comfort, and romance this was not the excursion for you. If you are seeking adventure, new friends, and a challenge for an affordable price, scuba diving the Whitsunday Islands with Tallarook Sail and Dive is a good choice.

Learn more about this author, Jaime Welch.
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