North Bay is described by Scuba IQ as always a crowd-pleaser, thanks to its shallow coral garden for beginners and a stunning drift along the outer reef wall for more experienced divers. It is one of the Agincourt sites that caters to a mixed group – snorkellers, discover-scuba participants and certified divers can all find something to enjoy. The shallow garden is a sheltered bay of hard corals, anemones and small bommies in water just a few metres deep, flooded with light.

This is where introductory divers take their first breaths underwater and snorkellers float over clownfish, parrotfish and giant clams. The outer wall offers a different experience. When the tide is running along the reef, guides take certified divers on a drift along the wall, which drops away into deeper water.

The current brings plankton and fish: fusiliers stream along the face, trevally hunt, and reef sharks and turtles are common sightings. Drift diving allows you to cover a long stretch of reef with little effort, but requires good buoyancy control and staying close to the guide. Scuba IQ does not publish depths.

The garden is shallow (around 3–8 m), while the wall drift is normally run in the 10–18 m band. Visibility is typically 15–30 m. North Bay's flexibility makes it a popular choice for Scuba IQ's small-group trips, which often include a mix of experience levels.

It suits everyone from beginners to experienced divers looking for an easy drift on the outer reef. On a typical Scuba IQ day it is used as the first or last of three dives, when the group splits between the garden and the wall.

Agincourt day boats leave Crystalbrook Superyacht Marina (formerly the Reef Marina) on Wharf Street, Port Douglas, between about 8:00 and 8:30 am. Park in the marina car park or the free all-day street parking around Wharf and Dixie streets; Quicksilver, Poseidon and Calypso also run coach pick-ups from Port Douglas, Palm Cove and northern Cairns beaches. The run to the Agincourt ribbon reefs on the edge of the continental shelf is about 65–70 km north-east and takes roughly 75–90 minutes on the large catamarans (Silversonic is the fastest), longer on small-group boats such as Scuba IQ/Blue Dive.

You gear up on board and giant-stride from the dive deck at a permanent mooring; the skipper picks the sites on the day to suit wind and tide, so a named site is never guaranteed. Boats are back at the marina around 4:30 pm.

Agincourt is an outer ribbon reef on the shelf edge, so it is fully exposed to the south-east trade winds that blow from about April to September. Moorings on the protected western (back-reef) side remain diveable in 15–20 knots, but anything over 25 knots or a 2.5 m+ sea makes the crossing rough and operators may cancel or switch to more sheltered moorings. Calm spells in October–December give the glassiest days and 30 m+ visibility.

The wet season (December–April) brings northerlies, afternoon storms, cyclone risk and occasional reduced visibility after big rain events, although the outer reef is far less affected by run-off than inshore reefs. Marine stingers are present November–May. Tidal currents run along the reef edges and through the gaps between the Agincourt reefs; spring tides strengthen them, so exposed corners are usually dived on the neaps or near slack water.

Beginners and snorkellers explore the shallow coral garden at 3–8 m near the mooring; certified divers can instead drift along the outer wall with the guide at 12–18 m, ascending together for a tender pick-up.

Scuba IQ / Blue Dive – small-group Agincourt day trips (max ~20 guests) several days a week; the site names are Scuba IQ's own and may not be used by the larger Quicksilver/Poseidon boats.