Freediving - the new mother-daughter activity?

What do you think of when someone says ‘mother daughter trip’? Is it a spa weekend, long lunches, maybe some shopping? The ‘active holiday’ is something our male counterparts have been doing well for years: golf trips, surf trips, ski trips, fishing trips. But we ladies have been a little slower to catch on. In my opinion, the benefits to an active holiday are endless. Sharing or better yet learning an activity with someone creates a bond like no other, fostering trust, building confidence but most of it enables fun! The food tastes better because you’ve worked up an appetite. The drinks at the end of the day taste better because you’ve earned them. The laughter comes easily because inevitably, in the process of learning something new, there’s plenty to laugh about. For Julie and Grace, this seemed (almost) like a no brainer. Both confident and adventurous women, they remain close by putting in the effort to share interests and experiences.

Julie is the first to admit that when they booked the trip, she was apprehensive. At 58 years young, she was convinced to come on our Ningaloo Expedition by her daughter Grace. Never one to turn down a challenge or opportunity for fun, she dove right in. While Julie certainly meets the brief of fit and adventurous, she does not fall into the age bracket commonly associated with freedivers. From the minute we met Julie it was clear that it would be her setting the pace not us. After just three days on the line she was looking as comfortable at 17m as she was sipping champagne on the bow at sunset. Julie’s tenacious spirit and desire for fun should serve as a reminder to us all that the only real barrier to being a freediver is the willingness to try. She chatted to us about her experience learning to freedive and sharing it with her daughter.

G - Julie, tell us a little about yourself. 

J - Hi I’m Julie - 58 years old and love the outdoors.  I love remote camping all around Australia and I love the water.  I’m lucky enough to live in the Southern Highlands of NSW but spend time at Kiama where I love Rockpool dips and the beach.

G - What made you decide to come on our Ningaloo liveaboard expedition? 

J - My daughter Grace is a lover of the outdoors too - swims at Coogee every day and loves adventure.  Grace was looking for a liveaboard in 2023 and settled on LFTS.  I was lucky to be asked and immediately said YES!  I have had my PADI since 1984 and Grace completed hers at Lord Howe Island on a family trip years ago so we are happy divers.

G - Have you ever done something like that before? 

J - I learned to snorkel at Gerroa tagging along with my brother's skin diving from about 8 years old with a ping pong ball in my snorkel! Also have scuba dived in many locations but more regularly snorkel on our annual trips to Lord Howe Island. I have been on day trips on catamarans but never overnight.  This trip looked fantastic to me as I had been to Ningaloo before and to anchor in the lagoon at night would be awesome. It was my fourth time in Cape Range National Park and Ningaloo. I just love this part of Australia.

G - Did you enjoy freediving? What did you like about it? 

J - The experience descending down the line to the turn around point was one of the most tranquil and memorable experiences I have ever had.  Being engulfed by blue, silence, then whale song made my heart sing.  I still get happy tears remembering this feeling. Seeing mantas, sharks and turtles on the way down the line just amplified this incredible experience.  On one resurface there was even a mother teaching a calf to breach 100m away. Words cannot describe this feeling of awe and happiness.

The location obviously super elevated the experience! Lord Howe Island would be equally amazing as it's another of my favourite Australian places.In comparison to the scuba diving experience, freediving allows you to feel more as part of the underwater environment. Scuba apparatus results in awkwardness, weight and constant noisy breathing. Scuba does give longer underwater, but freediving gives you an intense quality of experience. 

G - You came on the trip with your daughter, Grace. What was it like sharing that experience with her? 

J - Grace has lived away from home for 8 years so it was just so lovely to spend time with her. 

It was so so special . To be in Cape Range National Park, on a catamaran and freediving just made this happiness exponential. We have so many memories not only of the diving - but of sunsets and the green flash, yoga on the trampoline, and paddle boarding with sharks and turtles. And OMG the whales! Humpbacks everywhere. We both have created these beautiful memories together and can relive them together.  We hope to be together again to free dive in Jervis Bay hopefully with seals and whales in 2024.

G - What was it like doing a trip with such a broad age group? 

J - All the girls (and Captain Flo) were just all so lovely.  I think that although I was somewhat older, love for the sea and adventure bound us together. We had so much fun together as a group. I felt much love from everyone on board. We all had lots of laughs, great music and dancing together.

G - What would you tell other people thinking about coming on an expedition? 

J - I do tell my friends just to do it now! To me this location and this trip is THE best experience of my life. Book now - you only are on this earth once and life can change so quickly. Now is the time. No excuses.

J - Other thoughts on LFFS - the buildup and more (I got off track):

I didn’t really know what I was getting in for but am usually pretty gutsy. A few weeks before our trip I watched Liv’s demos of equalisation techniques and I was pretty sure I could do the method. I was getting a little apprehensive as I purchased a second hand wetsuit and new fins - the date was fast approaching. My thoughts were if by chance I couldn’t do - or didn’t like freediving - what is not to like about a week at Ningaloo on a catamaran with my daughter. I even said that out loud to friends who doubted my trip... or gave me the hairy eyebrow.

Although nervous at the pool session I worked through the instructions and gained confidence that I was no worse than anyone else at learning techniques. When we performed our first dive in the ocean I knew I could definitely be a freediver. It felt good to gradually increase the depth and hone the skills we had been taught. There was no pressure at all from our beautiful instructors to operate outside my comfort zone. The diving got even better when I stopped equalising in spurts like a scuba diver and equalised constantly. I know I learned this in the education sessions but sometimes those neuropathic pathways take some encouragement to change old habits! I loved freediving and learning new skills.  I think I even worked up to a whole 17m underwater. I'm a Wave 1 Freediver now!

- Georgie