Dive sites of the Southern Great Barrier visited by David Attenborough

ocated 85km north-east of Bundaberg, Lady Elliot Island is the only Southern Great Barrier Reef island with an airstrip, so arriving on the island by air is not just scenic, it’s essential.

As soon as your feet hit the sand on Lady Elliot Island, you know you’ve arrived somewhere very special. With only a certain number of guests allowed on the island at any one time, it feels as though you’ve stumbled on your own private treasure chest of natural wonders.

Lady Elliot Island is a diver’s nirvana, with 20 dive sites around the island. Most dive sites are just 5-10 minutes offshore by boat and visibility regularly exceeds 20 metres. The thrill of entering the world below the surface in these crystal clear waters never gets old.

Dives are generally scheduled early in the morning (so you’re back in time for breakfast) and mid-afternoon, with night dives sometimes available. The experienced dive staff choose the best sites for the day.

Visit the Lighthouse Bommies – at 14 metres, this is one of the best places to see giant manta rays swimming, feeding and turning graceful acrobatics overhead. The Lighthouse Bommies are also known as ‘cleaning stations’ – a spa for mantas, where cleaner wrasse swarm over the mantas, giving them a full body exfoliation.

Another popular dive site is the Blowhole, an L-shaped cave with an opening at 14 metres that then drops down and out over a ledge for a wall dive. This dive site is one of Lady Elliot Island’s most colourful, with giant coral, clownfish looking out from the safety of their sea anemone homes, angelfish, jacks, and if you’re lucky, a turtle or reef shark.

Other popular dive sites around the island include Maori Wrasse Bommie, Spiders Ledge, Coral Gardens and Anchor Bommie.

Stay at the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, a resort that prides itself on its eco credentials and is designed to have minimal impact on the island. Only catering to a small number of guests, you’re guaranteed to make some new mates as you swap tales of the day's adventures in the evenings in the communal dining room. In keeping with their harmony with nature, there are no phones, television, radios or wifi available in the rooms – offering the perfect space to really disconnect and recharge in nature.

Note: Lady Elliot Island abides by PADI regulations so divers must leave a 12-hour window between diving and returning home on any of the daily flights to Brisbane, Bundaberg, Hervey Bay and the Gold Coast.

Heron Island

Famous as a turtle laying and hatching location, Heron Island’s turquoise waters and white ribbons of beach are home to some of the best dive sites in the world. It’s no wonder this is one of the islands Sir David Attenborough chose to return to while shooting his final documentary in 2014. Getting to Heron is easy via a comfortable two-hour boat trip, or a seaplane or helicopter transfer from Gladstone.

You don’t have to go far to reach Heron’s top dive spots – it’s a matter of donning your gear at the dive shop, walking a few minutes to the Heron Island Jetty followed by a 5-10-minute boat trip. Keen divers can easily fit two back-to-back dives a day with trips running regularly at 9am and 11am.

The signature dive site is the Heron Bommie, six large coral heads that start at just five metres and follow the reef slope down to a depth of 18 metres.

Dive time moves quickly here, with a parade of incredible creatures to see: colourful fish, a forest of coral, reef sharks, wobbegongs, eels peeking out from coral holes, and the occasional manta rays.

Heron is perfect for divers of all levels – the water is balmy, visibility is up to 20 metres, and the best sites are just off shore. Popular dive sites include Pams Point, Gorgonia Hole, Coral Cascades, Tenements, 3 Rocks, Coral Canyons and Coral Gardens.

Non-divers will also be entertained – the snorkelling is excellent and there are naturalist-guided reef walks, a visit to the Heron Island Research Centre, bird watching and turtle spotting (when in season).

Visitors can stay at Heron Island Resort, an eco friendly resort that’s dedicated to safeguarding sea turtle populations and habitats through its partnership with Sea Turtle Foundation. The resort was awarded an Advanced Eco-Certification by Ecotourism Australia.

Note: Heron Island has a 24-hour dive/fly rule.

Lady Musgrave Island

Offering seclusion and adventure, tiny Lady Musgrave Island has more than 14 world class dive sites. The island is part of Capricornia Cays Nationall Park and accommodation on the island, which is small enough to walk around in just 40 minutes, is camping-only and must be booked through Queensland’s Department of National Parks, Sport and Racing.

Day trips (which take around 90 minutes) leave from Bundaberg with Lady Musgrave Experience, which offers scuba experiences.

Once you dock on shore, this little slice of paradise is yours to explore. If you can resist the pull of the water, play castaway and take an island walk or find your own stretch of beach to spread out on (you’ll find the beaches largely deserted, except, of course, for the occasional turtle laying, or baby turtle heading to the sea for their first swim).

But it's diving the pristine reef habitat that’s the real draw. Lady Musgrave has an enormous reef lagoon just waiting to be explored. Dives are chosen on the day according to conditions, but the signature dive is undoubtedly The Wall – an outer wall drift dive to 18 metres which allow divers to cruise along the reef wall in the company of a range of fish, turtles, reef sharks, wrasse, and of course, the giant manta rays which call this part of the world home.

It’s no wonder the Southern Great Barrier Reef and its many beautiful dive sites remained with Sir David Attenborough for more than 60 years as one of the most awe-inspiring places he’d been in his long career.

Whether it’s your first Great Barrier Reef scuba diving experience or your 100th, David Attenborough’s dive sites are sure to delight and enchant you.