Silverswift - Great Barrier Reef

Frequently Asked Questions:-

1. Do you really go to the Outer Edge?
Silverswift: travels to Milln and Flynn reefs, which are considered outer barrier reefs. They sit approximately 5 km in from the edge of the continental shelf.

2a. What is the Outer Edge, and how long does it take to get there?
The Outer Edge is the where the continental shelf ends and deep ocean begins. At the Outer Edge the ocean floor drops from 30 – 40 metres to 100s of metres. Ribbon reefs are situated on the edge hence the name the “Outer Edge”.
Silverswift (max speed 28 knots) cruises at 25 knots and takes 1 hour 15 mins to Flynn and Milln reefs.

2b. How many hours are we on the reef?
Over 5 hours on the sites combined

3. Do you go to a platform?
No. The vessels within the Silver Series have roaming permits. The days operation is conducted straight of the back of the vessels under the watch of safety supervisors.

4. Can we take the children?
Yes. Any age is welcome accompanied by an adult. We strongly recommend however, that children be confident in the water. We don’t have crèche facilities. Also remembering minimum diving age is 12 yrs.

5. How many dives can we do?
3 introductory or certified dives at different sites are available.

6. Are you just a dive vessel?
No our reef sites and vessel ensure we are as much a snorkel vessel as we are a dive vessel with large sundeck areas and sufficient room to conduct both activities with out either affecting the other.

7. Is lunch provided?
A fully catered 5 star reef lunch is provided with the cruise price.

8. Is it safe?
Our vessels operations are conducted in accordance with all marine regulations and work place health and safety guidelines to ensure passenger safety is our main priority.

9. How long does it take to get to the outer edge?
Silversonic cruises at 30 knots and takes 11/2 hours to Agincourt reef. Silverswift cruises at 25 knots and takes 1 h 15 mins to Flynn and Milln reefs.

10. How far out is the outer edge?
The Outer Edge is 35-40 Nautical Miles from the coast (1.8 km’s to 1 Nautical Mile)

11. How deep can you dive?
The Great barrier reefs best diving is in the top 20m. All of our sites offer this. Our first dives are approx 18 meters with the second and third dives being 14m and 12m respectively in accordance with recommended diving guidelines.

12. Will we see marine life?
Yes. All of the sites the Silver Series vessels visit have abundant marine life. Some of the commonly seen marine life include: Turtles, Anemone fish (Nemo), Lion Fish, Cuttlefish, Moray Eels and Reef Sharks.

13. Are there any sharks on the reef?
Yes. The Great Barrier Reefs most frequently seen sharks are white and black tip reef sharks. If a passenger is lucky they will see one of these. Any other sharks on the reef are nocturnal and would be present only at night.

14. Can my son/daughter dive?
Yes if accompanied by yourself the minimum age is 12 yrs and above for a child to do an introductory dive, subject to the successful completion of a medical questionnaire and the PADI Discover Scuba Diving briefing.

15. Do I need my dive certification card?
Yes. We accept most certification cards including PADI, Maui and SSI. In certain circumstances where the days ‘Dive Supervisor’ is provided with sufficient information a Statutory Declaration, declaring the existence of the certification, may be executed by the customer in lieu of the certification being provided. Customers are reminded that it is a serious and punishable offence under Australian Law to misrepresent this declaration.

16. Is Agincourt reef system or Milln / Flynn and Thetford reef systems better?
The two reef systems are approx 100 km apart giving rise to very different styles of reef formations. Agincourt’s formations offer large wall dives and snorkel sites as well as great bommie and pinnacle sites while Milln, Flynn and Thetford have superb bay like dive/snorkel sites providing spectacular under water sand dunes and remote stepping stone like bommie systems. Milln, Flynn and Thetford are also renowned for the congregation of large schooling pelagic fish such as Mackerel and Tuna.

17. What type of dives do you offer?
Both Northern and Southern sites offer a range of dive types including Drift, Wall , Pinnacle, Ledge, swim throughs depending on the conditions of the day.

18. What will we see?
The Great Barrier Reef consists of hundreds of different coral types and marine species of which many of these will be seen by a customer on a day out on a Silver Series vessel.

19. Can anyone do an intro dive?
No. Some medical conditions prevent diving eg types of asthma and heart conditions. This information will be requested on the vessel upon boarding.

20. Do we have foreign speaking dive/snorkel staff?
The Silver Series vessels offer a range of different languages, including Japanese, however staff rosters and sick days may not guarantee a certain language on a certain day.

21. Are our instructors PADI certified?
Yes.

22. Do we provide optical masks for snorkelling/diving?
Yes. These are free and we have a range of different strengths available from -2 to -7.

23. Do we have life jackets and other swimming aids.
Yes life jackets and swimming noodles are available upon request.

24. Do you have DIN fittings for our dive gear?
Yes both vessels carry DIN fittings.

25. Can I do a refresher because I am certified but haven't done any diving for quite some time?
If you do not have a chance to do a refresher before traveling you can participate in the first introductory dive of the day and if comfortable then participate in the 2nd and 3rd certified dive.

26. Do you need to know how to swim to dive?
Not technically. It is heavily recommended by the Silver Series that if a customer can’t swim but wishes to do an introductory dive that they book with a island or reef activity platform product such as Quicksilver or Great Adventures to ensure the best experience.

27. My child is certified to dive, but I will not be traveling with him / her? Do I need to sign a waiver?
If your child is under the age of 15 years they are unable to travel without a parent / legal guardian accompanying. If your child is between the ages of 15 -18 years he / she can travel unattended but a dive waiver (either certified or introductory) and letter signed by you the parent / legal guardian giving permission for your child to dive, must be presented to the crew on the day before travel for your child to be allowed to dive. Please contact our office and we send via email the paperwork for you to sign and send with your child.

28. I am keen to do an introductory dive but at what stage can I pull out if I am not comfortable?
You can withdraw from the dive at any time under the care of the instructor. Please note if you have commenced the dive (i.e. let go of the skills decent line and started the dive) you will be charged.

29. Is there any guidelines regarding ‘FLYING’ after diving?
Yes.

If only one dive is undertaken then a minimum of 12 hours is recommended before flying.
If more than one dive is conducted in the day it is recommended that a minimum of 18 hours passes before flying.
The Silver Series ‘recommends’ a passenger preferably wait 24 hours before flying after diving.