Finally after months of planning, thinking and NOT talking about it…I can let the cat out of the bag about my next BIG adventure!!

In May 2011 I will set off on a 1600km expedition along the Great Barrier Reef  from the Town of 1770 all the way north to Cooktown winding my way through the islands and along the reef. My ‘Voyage of Discovery’ will retrace the route taken by the original English adventurer and seafarer Captain James Cook who navigated and charted the waters of the Coral Sea back in 1770.

He took just over three weeks to travel the length of the Queensland coastline. I will be taking just over three months.

I’m not trying to set any records for endurance, distance or speed but instead embarking on the journey to investigate the care-taking of this incredibly beautiful underwater environment that I’ve been lucky enough to witness first hand during the six months of the Best Job in the World.

This is about bringing the encounters and experiences that I witness to you through my new website, as well as the usual Facebook and Twitter channels. You’ll be able to track my progress in real-time and see where we are on Google Maps, watch movies and video-blogs of the adventure as it happens both above and below the water.

Originally I was going to paddle the entire way in a sea kayak but have now settled on a much better way of going about things. I’ll be using a Hobie Adventure Island that can be paddled, peddled or sailed meaning I can travel between locations much quicker and if heaven forbid I became injured, I’d still be able to continue on the journey using a different means of propulsion. SunState Hobie have been kind enough to supply me with the vessel and my training can now start in earnest as I learn to handle it in all waters. Mal Gray from SunState Hobie has come on-board by supplying the vessel and I can’t thank him enough for the support.

To run a website that’s as up-to-date and informative as I’m planning, will require a pretty impressive office setup in order to create, edit and update all of the information we’ll be collating. The support vessel will be exactly that, a base where I will work every day to provide an online story of the adventure with blogs, photos and videos.

In order to understand the Great Barrier Reef a little better and to help see how human-kind is changing such a sensitive eco-system, I will be working closely with GBRMPA (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority) and Reef Check, a research charity who study and help look after coral reefs around the world. We will dive in lots of different locations as we go, researching and recording everything that we find. This data is then used by the clever people, scientists and boffins who can make sense of it and educate people and ultimately protect one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.

The project was launched on Wednesday and we’re already getting some good media coverage with clips on Channel 9, 10 and the Today Show (see below) along with the print media really getting behind the project. My friend Alice Tsou from Taiwan was straight onto it with a blog post too!

But this is now where the really hard work starts. We need to organise logistics, itineraries and expedition partners to help fund the expedition, so if you are a company or individual who’d like to get involved please contact me at Tourism Queensland  via the link on this page – I look forward to hearing from you!

Stay tuned as things develop, I’ll be updating the website as often as I can.

Ben