Down Under, "Down Under"

By George Breithaupt

I became a member of the Metro Central YMCA just after they built their new facility in downtown Toronto. I needed to get into an exercise routine. I was getting old, fat and lazy, and somebody with a disability like mine must work hard to remain independent. I am a level T-2 paraplegic as the result of an automobile accident almost 20 years ago. I have no motor control over my leg or stomach muscles. I joined the Y and began to swim.

After swimming for a few years, I was introduced to Henry So and the fabulous scuba diving program that he runs at Metro Central. I joined up in January of 1991 and at the end of the pool training for my PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) scuba licence, flew to Bonaire in the Netherland Antilles and completed the open-water diving I needed for my diving certificate. I went down again the following year.

These trips to Bonaire were simply sensational -- the euphoric feeling I had moving freely amongst all the colourful coral, inquisitive fish and graceful eels was like walking in space!

I decided to take two years to save up for a trip "down under," to the land of "Oz." William Dampier of England discovered this beautiful continent in 1688. In 1770, Captain Cook sailed through the Barrier Reef and into Botony Bay on his mapping adventure along Australia’s east coast.

When Imperial England first arrived, there were three different aboriginal peoples, totalling about 300,000 in number. They now make up only one per cent of the total population, and half of them live in the cities.

I have a keen interest in indigenous peoples of the world and the harmonious relationships they have often established with nature. I also feel that people with disabilities, likewise a part of a social minority, face some of the same types of discrimination.

"Songlines" by Bruce Chatwin gives good insight into aboriginal lifestyles and the Australian outback. These people have a beautiful belief in the beginning of life and the world. As Chatwin says, "Aboriginal creation myths tell the legendary totemic beings who had wandered over the continent in the Dreamtime, singing out the name of everything that crossed their path -- birds, animals, plants, rocks, water holes -- and so singing the world into existence." Indigenous people have called Australia home for about 60,000 years.

For the aboriginal people of Queensland, the Australian state that borders the barrier reef, there are seven seasons: the season of lightning, which awakens the earth; the season of thunder, which empowers the earth; the season of rain, which nourishes the earth; the season of greening, which is the celebration of life and earth; the season of windstorms, which enlivens the earth; the season of fire raging, which purifies the earth; and, finally, the season of clear, blue skies, which is the season of waiting. The boring immigrant population have claimed just two seasons -- wet and dry!

I found out just one month before my departure that February to March is the nourishing, or wet season -- "kunmul," to the aborigine people. I was expecting something like this, though, because tourists claim it is also the cheap season. I also thought that perhaps the dive team would not be as busy at this time, and be able to lend a little assistance if needed, because the best time for scuba is from May to December. The coral is changing or in full blossom, and there are great schools of migratory fish like the great black marlin passing through during this season.

I got information from Queensland Tourist and Travel through their North American office, and my wonderful travel agent found a flight down that was like magic: I could have pinned my passport to my chest, slept for 27 hours and woken up in Australia. I left Toronto at 17:45, February 22 on a direct flight to Honolulu, where I got on another direct flight to Coolengata, just south of Brisbane. Neither Qantas nor Canadian had a full flight, so I had an empty seat beside me, enabling me to lie on my side a while and get off my bottom.

For the first few days after arriving, I stayed at The Wheel, one of the few resorts in the Brisbane area that cater specifically to people with disabilities. This is a fantastic resort about five minutes outside Byron Bay, the eastern-most point of mainland Australia. The Wheel has six wheelchair-accessible cabins that include a kitchenette, verandah, and very accessible washroom. There is also a swimming pool with a ramp into it, and an adapted chair for going in, but I just took the cushion and bag off the back of my own wheelchair and wheeled it in.

I discovered while in Byron Bay that taxi companies are all required to make a certain percentage of their fleet wheelchair accessible. You should book these cabs at least a day in advance, but I was pretty lucky, finding one whenever I needed it. I did not find an accessible public transit system, as I was in the smaller towns.

One of the courteous owners of The Wheel arranged to get me to Brisbane, the third-largest city in Australia and the capital of Queensland. Brisbane was first founded as a criminal camp during the late 17th century. Post-revolution time in England demanded a place for her war criminals, and desolate, isolated Australia fit the bill. In 1778, the first shipment of war criminals landed in Queensland.

In Brisbane, I stayed in the downtown Travelodge that is ideally connected to one of the city’s train stations. Unfortunately, the train station is not accessible to take state trains, but only local or city transportation. To get to the interstate tracks, one must first ascend a staircase that is at least one and a half stories high. The Aussies are an extremely friendly, helpful lot, though, and after I bought a ticket to Cairns I was rolled up this huge stairway by three pairs of strong hands.

The trains themselves are fairly low to the ground and a short ramp is brought out for embarking and debarking. I caught the Sunlander train, with a berth, to Cairns for AUS $234 without meals. I could not use my wheelchair in the train, so I remained in my berth where I gorged on mangos, cheese, bananas, granola bars and water for two days.

We passed miles of sugar cane, the biggest dollar crop of Queensland. One acre of land will produce 3,500 tons. This translates into 500 tons of the white stuff. I do very much like to travel by train, as there are none of the signs, other cars, telephone posts and street lamps one sees with a car. A train cuts right through the country, as if taking a slice of scenic Australia, as one goes.

Whenever I had seen photos previously of the land down under, it was always flat, arid-looking and desolate. This is not so with northern Queensland. Cairns is the gateway to the beautiful north. From here, there are day trips up to Kuranda, a historic township that had its beginnings in the great gold rush of the mid-18th century. There is an unforgettable train ride to Kuranda that must not be missed. The railway construction began in 1886 and took five years to complete. It was an incredible engineering feat to finish the 75-kilometre route that plows through thick rainforest, sails over countless bridges and shoots through more than 20 tunnels -- simply breathtaking sights not usually thought of as Australian.

While in Karanda, I saw the Proud to be Aborigine dance troupe at the Tjapukai Theatre. The finale song, "Proud to be Aborigine," says in part:

"I learn from you, you learn from me
We can’t afford another blunder
Together we can live in harmony
Be as brothers in the land down under
Proud to be aborigine
We’ll never die, Tjapukai
Always be our identity
Proud to be aborigine"

"Tjapukai" is the aboriginal word for rainforest. The "tjapukai" just north of Cairns, the Daintree Rainforest, contains some of what seems the most original of all life on earth. The rainforests in Africa and South America have spread into different terrain and cross-pollinated over the millennia, and thus life evolved and changed. The "tjapukai" in Australia is very isolated and has not changed as dramatically.

Gondwanaland was the central jungle on earth millions of years ago, before the continental split. An assortment of tour companies operate day trips from Cairns up through this jungle. Because of my disability, I had a difficult time finding a company that would take me, but a friend that I had met at the Cairns night market found Mike’s Safari. Mike, myself and two European women drove for a day through this fascinating expanse, teeming with oxygen and life.

But the main purpose of my trip had been to dive the Great Barrier Reef, one of the seven natural wonders of the world. This ecosystem is so huge that it is clearly visible from the space shuttle. It is 1,200 miles long, containing 2,900 individual reefs. Within the reefs there are 10,000 species of sponge, 4,000 species of echinoderms, 4,000 types of mollusks, 1,500 kinds of fish and 400 species of coral -- all of which cover 215,000 square miles. A scuba diver’s Garden of Eden!

The dive excursion began on Friday morning with registration bright and early at the Cairns Colonial Club over coffee and biscuits. I had written Mike Ball Dive Expeditions a few times over the last year, and was assured that they had had patrons using wheelchairs before. They came highly recommended as the best dive operators in Queensland.

I figured I would have no problem and booked the best room available for the Aussie Adventure dive trip. When I had made the booking I had included another letter telling them I used a wheelchair, but they failed to match my letters and were a little surprised when I wheeled up, mask and snorkel in hand, to register. But as good divers they quickly assessed the situation and made the decision to go with it, and we took off to Lizard.

Captain Cook had plotted Cook’s Passage through the barrier reef from Lizard Island after grounding "Endeavour" in the coral. He mapped the dark waters where no coral would be. We headed out after the light waters.

There were 11 dives scheduled. I did nine, missing one because of a strong current and another because of fatigue. Because I use a wheelchair for mobility, I find barriers everywhere: stairs, narrow doors, steep hills, thick grass, objects scattered on the floor. This constriction is completely absent when diving. On my first dive, as is my habit, I got down, checked that my air pressure, time and buoyancy were all right, and did a somersault! This may not sound like much, but it sure gives me a tremendous rush of power, a fabulous sense of freedom.

My respect for the Australian people and for the Mike Ball Dive Expeditions organization surely grew from the beginning of this cruise. My wheelchair was too wide to fit through the narrow door to my room. Chris, the ship engineer, partially collapsed my chair and secured it with wire so that it was narrow enough. A ramp to the dining area was also quickly assembled.

To get into the water, I was pushed off a dive platform about 10 feet above the water’s surface. Chris tied a plastic chair to the life boat winch and used this to pull me out -- this fabulous contraption also allowed me to visit the upper levels of the boat.

There was a generous abundance of life while I was down, so I imagine it would be dazzling during prime scuba season. I saw hundreds of fish and countless types of coral. I came close to some coral that looked like a bed of baby tulips swaying in the current. I lightly brushed my finger along the top of these polyps and they closed up and regressed like shy little chicks.

Jellyfish, in season from December to March, have long, venomous tentacles. I saw many of these creatures. It is unbelievable to watch them swim -- such form and unique motion.

On the second day of the cruise, we dove a site called Clam Beds. This dive took us to see giant four-foot clams up to 150 years old. It is important not to touch or agitate these magnificent creatures, as they might try to shut their huge shells and this strenuous effort could be very hazardous to the aging beasts.

That afternoon I almost missed seeing a wobbegong shark. It is relatively flat and lies on the ocean floor, its back looking from above like sand. I saw the beast swoosh down like a flying saucer into its lair. They say that most of the dangerous sharks are on the ocean side of the reef.

The next dive site, Cod Hole, had big four-to-five-foot potato cod. In the afternoon, the dive master allowed us to take down a bucket of minnows, which brought a huge audience of the cod, along with many other fish and eels. The big potato cod are friendly and gentle. They swim close enough to be patted -- but you must only pat them with bare hands, as gloves tend to wipe protective oil off their scales. While I was maintaining my buoyancy and watching this commotion, a moray eel sneaked up beside me. These creatures are very timid and although venomous, only become dangerous when agitated, so I just kept my cool and kept my eyes open.

For the second leg of this excursion, we were to dive the "Yongala" wreck, a ship that went down in 1911 off the coast of Townsville. This was the dive where the current was very strong and because the boat used for this leg was very wheelchair-unfriendly, I did not get a chance to go. They told me that if they had known of my disability beforehand, they would have been prepared. So, if you are planning to go and you have a disability, let them know; they really do want to accommodate you. I was able to dive some fairly shallow but very beautiful 30- to 40-foot sites from Townsville with the "2001 Expeditions" boat.

On one dive, I witnessed clownfish swimming through the stinging tentacles of anenome that they use as protection. I have a fairly difficult time seeing something like this that is on the ocean floor. My legs naturally sink and because it is important not to touch anything, not only to avoid damaging sea life but also for personal protection, I have developed a stroke that keeps my legs up and my arms exhausted. But this particular sight was one of the most colourful displays of animation that I have seen in my life and was well worth the effort.
Each dive in the Great Barrier Reef was brilliant. There always seemed to be something unique to see or experience. If it wasn’t hordes of richly coloured fish playing in the coral, it was majestic eels slithering between the rocks, or clear jellies pumping through the water or soft starfish creeping along the sand.

After I became paraplegic, I had many difficult times and often felt like just giving up. I figured that I would never really be able to enjoy life, always feeling out of place and never feeling I could get out of the place I was in. Thanks to many people and organizations, I have had just a little taste of the magic on this earth -- enough to make me feel that it was all worth it -- and enough to make me want to do it all again!

For more information about travelling or scuba diving in Australia, contact:
- North American Queensland Tourist and Travel, Northrop Plaza, Ste. 330, 1800 Century Park E., Los Angeles, CA 90067, USA
- The Wheel Resort, 39-51 Broken Head Rd., Byron Bay, NSW 2481, Australia, or contact Philippa Nichol by phone, (066) 856139, or fax, (066) 858754
- Mike Ball Dive Expeditions, 252-256 Walker St., Townsville, QLD 4810, Australia
- Travelodge, PO Box 5, Roma St., Brisbane, QLD 4003, Australia

(George Breithaupt is a freelance writer living in Toronto.)