Montgomery Reef: Australia's 'Ghost' Reef Emerges Daily from the Ocean

Montgomery Reef, known as Yowjab to Indigenous Australians, is a 100,000-acre inshore reef in the Kimberley region of Western Australia that rises up to 26 feet above the ocean surface during low tide for two to three hours each day. Located 1,200 miles north of Perth and about 12 miles from the mainland, it is the world's largest inshore reef, built primarily by coralline algae. Extreme tides, a key feature of the Kimberley, cause the reef to emerge, creating waterfalls as trapped water pours over its edges. The reef is home to crocodiles, dugongs, humpback dolphins, blacktip sharks, and green sea turtles. The Dambeemangaddee people are the traditional owners of Yowjab, which lies within Lalang-gaddam Marine Park, co-managed by the Western Australia government and Indigenous owners. Tourism to the reef occurs via multiday cruises from March to November, with peak season from June to August. The Yawijibaya people, purportedly giants up to seven feet tall, are said to have inhabited the area, but archaeologist Sue O'Connor disputes the giant myth, noting they integrated with mainland Worrora people in the early 1900s. Neil Maru, a Dambeemangaddee sibling, runs Wijingarra Tours, providing cultural insight.