Scuba Dream Time

Dive the Vandenberg!

2009-10-11T12:53:00.005-10:00

Brownie and I had a day off together and decided to head down to Key West. We left Key Largo around 6:00 am for the long ride south. We watched the sunrise to our east, ocean side, as we counted down the mile markers. Along the way we were always a few miles behind the rain which produced some great rainbows through the drive. We even saw a highly endangered Key Deer cross the road. I've drive to Key West many time over the years but had never been lucky enough to spot one.

As expected we arrived at Captain's Choice in Key West about an hour early. It was nice not to be rushed. Checked in, chilled, until the boat was ready for passengers. It felt very odd not to be lugging tanks on the boat. You almost want to jump in and help, but I must admit it feels pretty good not doing all that work. After all, we were there to enjoy a great morning of diving.

Soon enough we headed out and about 35 minutes later arrived at the mooring site for the Vandenberg. It looked like a parking lot, quite a testament to its popularity. We maneuvered around for a few minutes as we waited for a mooring ball to become available. The promise of excitement was tangible.

Finally, the briefing was over and the "pool" was open. Giant stride off the side, no current camera in hand, descent to the mooring line. Viz was not great, around 20 feet but was still excited.

More to come soon!!

Adv Nitrox and Deco Dive Training

2009-05-20T15:44:00.006-10:00

Last week, Brownie, Keith, and I started our TDI tech dive training with Chris. We are now done with all the classroom portions, including exams, and we have done 4 of our required 6 training dives. So far so good. But I must admit I was not to sold on the idea after our first two training dives and 2 additional training dives Brownie and I did on our own on a shallow reef. The equipment is heavy, bulky, and did I mention heavy. But yesterday things came around. We headed out to the Spiegel around 2:00 pm. Conditions could not have been more perfect. The water was flat, the visibility was 90+, and there was no current. In other words it was a perfect day to dive the Spiegel.

We headed down to the well deck around 120ft and spent 20 minutes just leisurely exploring the area and then headed to 80 feet. We then performed some valve drills and continued exploring for another 20 minutes. We did the long swim through, stopped to see Snoopy and the over to the starboard side, then out and back along the deck, past the guns, and back to the port side. We then headed to 70 feet and switched to our 50% mix. We stayed long enough to meet our deco obligation and proceeded on a slow ascent, holding and sliding as determined in our dive plan.

After being able to take our time swimming around the Spiegel, with no major concern about available gas, I came to appreciate the beauty of diving twin tanks, and deco bottles.

Today we had another training dive. this time we opted for the deep reef wall out at the Elbow. We did a drift dive, with bags deployed, and all required deco stops in blue water with no natural reference such as the reef or a wreck. We had to adjust our dive plan due to developments but everyone managed beautifully. And that is the trick to diving, being able to adjust based on circumstances for the safety of all involved.

I can't wait for our two remaining training dives and the additional ones to follow for the sheer fun of it. I want to do many more dive on the some of the standard local wrecks such as the Spiegel, Duane, Bibb, and Eagle before trying some of the other more challenging wrecks we have in the area.

Island of Broken Toys

2009-05-04T17:56:00.005-10:00

It feels so good to be back home. It feels like home. We are surrounded by friends. Our social calendar has been more full since arriving than the entire time we spent in Kauai. I feel like I belong on the island of misfit toys. All the misfit toys return, Jeff, Molly, Jessica, Damien, Ashley, Tad, as well as those that never left. And it has yet to rain.

Included is a picture of sunset view from our home. On our first afternoon at home we saw dolphins in the bay as the sun was setting. Kauai had amazing scenery, but sunsets in Key Largo are stunning.

The best part is the food. A gallon of milk costs $2.50 as opposed to $9.50 at Big Save on Kauai. Happy Hour draft beers are $1.00. All grocery stores have a delicatessen with fresh slices deli ham starting at $3.00/lb. A gallon of regular gas is $2.10 a gallon. At restaurants you can get a huge homemade burger for about $8.00 including "lettuce", tomatoes, and french fries. Two huge fish tacos made with fresh mahi for under $8.00, not Costco frozen fish sticks (like Tom Kats Grill, Keoki's and other).

We still have a few papaya trees in our yard, bearing fruit. Locally we have a few fruit stands selling local produce every day at reasonable prices.

I feel grateful for my experience on Kauai. I hold it dear, but it is nice to be home. I do not feel like a haole and no waitstaff will ever ask, "what time does your flight leave".

Leaving Paradise

2009-04-15T11:09:00.004-10:00

We are less than 1 week away from leaving Kauai and heading back to the Keys. I have to admit that I am a bit sad. I know the move is in our best interest financially and overall, but there are still things that I will miss. I find myself trying to really look and take in as much of the island's beauty. As if I could really retain a small portion of it. I know I can't but I still try. The island's majesty can not even be adequately captured by camera or video. No medium can do it's majesty true justice.

I will miss the perfect temperature. I will not miss the rainy season or the daily rain. I will miss the lush green countryside and all the flora and fauna. I will not miss the screeching kids that live above us nor the banging of their little feet as the run continuously to and fro. I will miss the laid back atmosphere and casual pace. I will not miss being treated as a haole and outsider. I will miss the fruit trees in our yard, (mango, avocados banana, and lemon). I will not miss the bland, unimaginative, and terribly expensive local cuisine. I will miss the lovely trails and vistas. I will not miss the local ignorance of sustainable ocean policy. I will miss the people I got to know and respect. I will miss the spirit of individuality. I will miss the stunning underwater geological formations. I will miss hearing the whales when I dive. I will miss the indigenous marine life. I will miss the monk seals.

As I said I am sad, but I am also looking forward to our new adventure. We are returning to the Keys and plan on purchasing a home. The economic downturn has now made it possible for us to once again purchase a home. But this time we get to purchase a home and still dive for a living. That would never be possible on Kauai.

I hope to return sometime soon and enjoy all the things that I will miss about Kauai. It's been a wonderful experience overall. The island is a true garden paradise. No location is perfect but nature is nearly perfect on Kauai.

Mantas in Kauai

2009-02-28T07:47:00.007-10:00

We have had some incredible diving lately off Kauai's South Shore. The winds have been high but visibility and marine encounters have been outstanding. On the 19th of February we had two incredible encounters. Our first dive was a drop at Turtle Bluffs for a drift dive. Just as everyone reached bottom we had a rather large stingray just swim by. Stingrays were very common off the Florida Keys, sometimes we would see upwards of 10 at one site. But off Kauai you rarely ever encounter stingrays. Luckily we had the chance encounter. Our second dive site was at the Caverns. There we were audience to a manta ray swimming over the caverns. Mantas are unusual off of Kauai, but this winter we have been treated to them on a fairly regular basis. We have seen them at Nukomoi, Stonehouse, and the Caverns.

Yesterday we were diving at Stonehouse and saw three mantas. Initially we dropped down and a huge manta ta least 10 feet across swept down past us. About 30 minutes into the dive I was taking one of our divers back to the boat when two mantas, equally large, came by us once again.
In addition to the mantas we saw the usual cast of critters such as Commerson's frog fish, variety of moray, and other tropicals. At our second site, Caverns, we were greeted on the surface by a monk seal showing off it's latest catch. It seems that the seal had just procured a snack in the way of a puffer fish. It was showing off its catch to all of us on the boat.

We have had some amazing days of diving. A little rough on the surface but incredible marine encounters and overall good visibility. I have a definite smile on my face. Check out the videos, they may make you smile too.

The videos are also posted on You Tube, search scubadreamtime01, at a much higher resolution.

Most Incredible Dive Experience to Date

2009-01-29T21:24:00.005-10:00

WOW, today was one of those days that i will forever remember. The morning started off checking in 10 certified divers at the shop. We slowly meandered to the dock to head out on a two tank dive. The day held the promise of great diving; ocean conditions were flat calm and there was no real wind to speak of. Water's surface was just like glass.

On our way to our first dive site we encountered some bottle nose dolphins and humpback whales swimming very close to the boat. The dolphins were very playful. They were slapping their tails and really enjoying the wake created by the boat. They were so close I could even make out a cookie cutter shark injury on the belly of one of the dolphins. When you see dolphins and whales all in one shot, you can't help but smile. And if you can't smile at that you are certainly not wired correctly. Eventually we had to get back on course an head to one our local dive sites. So, we moored at icebox along Kauai's South Shore.

By luck of the draw my group of divers were the first to get in the water. As we head down the I start looking north towards the deep blue water. To my amazement I see a something big and white moving in the distance. My initial thought was that it was a manta ray swimming by so I get my divers' attention and point towards what I believe to be a manta ray. I soon realize this is not a manta but a huge humpback whale. I take off towards its while trying to film and watch all at the same time. It was absolutely stunning, breath taking, once in a life time moment. It was so large that it was difficult to grasp the real size of such a majestic mammal.

Note that whales are around Kauai at this time of the year, but it is not very common to experience them underwater. underwater encounters with the humpback whales while scuba diving are not common; they are in fact extremely rare. I feel privileged to have witnessed such a site. And I am thrilled that my divers were also part of the experience. They are majestic to see from the surface but underwater you get an even greater appreciation for their graceful movements.

For all the divers, keep diving. Each dive holds the potential to be the most unique and memorable experience you could have imagined.

Help Indentify Fledgling Bird

2009-01-20T15:38:00.004-10:00

We have had a another unexpected addition to the household. This past summer our dog, Niles, found a stray kitten, which we kept and named Haole. Now Haloe has brought home a fledgling baby bird. His initial intention was to torture and kill no doubt, but he raised such a ruckus, that Brownie went to the rescue.

Now we have a bay bird we need to try and identify so we can provide the most appropriate diet for its overall well being. Please check out the pictures and let us know if you can identify the species. We want to make sure he grows up healthy enough to be released in to the wild. I'm personally waiting for Brownie to start giving the bird flying lessons. And hopefully this newest addition will not bring home a stray of its own.

Poor Viz

2008-12-23T07:38:00.002-10:00

We have had a bout with unusually bad weather on Kauai which has resulted in some poor ocean conditions. After two whole weeks out of the water we decided to take the boat out and survey water conditions ourselves. I was hoping for the best but was devestated by what I witnessed.

We headed our from Kukui'ula Small Boat Harbor, which is absolutely brown. There is negative visibility in the harbor. Some attribute the poor conditions to the huge housing development near by that has come to a stand still. I don't know whose to blame but I can;t imagine most marine life can live with so much silt in the water. It's a tragedy.

We decided to head east toward the Caverns. Stopped and the Caverns and jumped in. Viz was about 20 feet which is poor and that was the best we were to find. So we head further east towards Kipu. We were astonished to find green water and abundant debris in the water. Huge logs and grasses starting to form there own little islands abounded. We did clear some fishing net from one of the debris fields and spotted a juvenile monk seal. Not all was a total loss. It was my first time at Kipu and I was duly impressed. It was like a mini Napali Coast. I wish conditions would have allowed us to jump in but due to extremely poor viz and abundant debris we decided against it.

I'm not looking forward to diving in such horrible conditions. I think I will be most devistated by seeing how the runoff may have adversely affected marine life.

First Whale Sighting of the Season

2008-11-15T06:17:00.002-10:00

On yesterday afternoon's boat dive we spotted our first humpback of the season off Kauai's south shore. It was such a welcomed sight. I can't wait to hear their songs while I dive. If you have never witnessed humpback whales, now is the time to come to Kauai. It's an awe inspiring sight. Underwater their songs are eerie and yet enthralling. Last year I was able to snorkel with a few humpback, this year I hope to see at least one while diving.

My sincerest thanks go out to Bob for initially spotting the whale.

First Ocean Dives

2008-10-19T05:59:00.005-10:00

This past Friday, Shannon Brichele, aka Shanichel, came to dive the South Shore of Kauai all the way from UT. Despite being the youngest diver on the boat Shanichel was well prepared. She was the only diver with all her own gear. As we got to our dive site she did her giant stride without a moment of hesitation. She had a safe slow descent using the down line and then proceeded to explore the dive site known as Stonehouse with her dive buddy and dad, Mike.

We saw some really colorful fish along the way including a really big Commerson's Frogfish, various butterfly and angelfish. She did equally well on her second dive of the day to a dive site known as the Caverns. Caverns is kauai signature South Shore dive. Even Jacques Cousteau visited and wrote about this site in the 1970s. There we saw a large numbers of the Green Hawaiian Sea Turtles that call the spot home.

Shanichel, congratulations on your first ocean dives and remember to keep diving!!

Big Island Diving

2008-09-29T11:27:00.010-10:00

We took a much needed reprieve from work and headed to the Big Island of Hawaii for some relaxation and fun diving. We love the fact that we can take very short flights and explore the other islands. This trip was a little longer that the one to neighbouring Oahu but sill about 1 hour of total flight time with a short stop in Honolulu airport.

We scheduled two dive trips with Jack's Diving Locker on the Kona Coast. They came highly recommended and lived up to every expectation. Highly professional crew, comfortable and clean boats, and vast collective experience of the Kona coast and it's resident creatures.

Our first trip was the much talked about night manta dive. We arrived to the dive site late in the afternoon and immediately spotted mantas and dolphins in the area. Everyone diver on board was very excited. And we were not going to be disappointed. For the first dive in the late afternoon we followed our guide, Bruce, around for the first half of the dive. We instantly dropped down to around 30 feet to see the garden eel area. Apparently this is an unusual depth for the garden eel. They usually occur and deeper depths but apparently the current and amount of plankton in the area have drawn then to shallower depths. They are such a neat site. You just see garden eels sticking out of their holes for as far as they eye can see. They are very whimsical. From there we strolled along searching among the coral growth for various eels, angels, etc. After a bit Brownie and I decided to head north towards the deep part of the reef as the captain had suggested. We let our guide know we were heading off on our own, a perk of being a dive professional. The average depth dropped quickly. We could have easily found ourselves in water 100 + feet but we stayed around the 60 foot range and soon enough up ahead we started spotting mantas. They were so majestic to watch as they glide past. After hanging for a bit we giddily headed back to the boat. We were totally amazed with the visibility, the healthy coral growth, and the abundant and varied amount of sea creatures.

We hung around for a nice long surface interval as we tried to watch the sunset. Due to vog, caused by the erupting volcano, there was not much chance of seeing the sun set. You could almost say the visibility was better under water. Jack's staff provided a nice sandwich during the interval along with several other munchies. After everyone's appetite was satiated they proceeded with a very thorough dive briefing on the procedures and expectations for the much anticipated night manta dive. They staff was very thorough and covered everything dealing with the dive and mantas and manta behaviors. You could sense the divers' excitement. I personally could not wait to get in the water.

And in went all the divers. It was not long before the giant gentle behemoths arrived. And what a site it was. They kept swimming in to the light column to feed on the plankton attracted by the lights. They would turn around and come right at you with their mouths wide open. They seemed to be enjoying themselves as much as the divers were enjoying their show. We had about 20 mantas just circling, feeding and playing. One big one even followed us right back to the boat. For Brownie and myself it was as close to a religious experience as we can get. Nature's designs and wonders leave me in awe each and every time.

This was a totally amazing experience. I highly encourage divers visiting the Big Island of Hawai'i to go and experience the night manta dive.

Go to http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=adriana+antelo&emb=0&aq=f# to see a longer video of our dives. Otherwise the video here contains the same, just shorter, and it contains common and scientific names for most of the species filmed.

Ni'ihau Trip September 2008

2008-09-13T14:40:00.005-10:00

Yesterday we had an amazing day for our trip to Ni'ihau. Ocean conditions were perfect for the channel crossing. It was a smooth trip out to Ni'ihau and a unusually smooth ride back from Ni'ihau.

Our first dive of the day was at Keyhole. The site gets its name from the shape of the rocks where divers get dropped off. The boat backs into the Keyhole area and drops off divers for a drift dive. Normally the currents are strong and the conditions surging causing the boat to have to make several drops. Yesterday's conditions were so calm that the boat was able to maintain is position long enough to allow all 14 divers to jump off in one pass. We hung on the surface for a minute enjoying the view and allowing divers to regroup. We then descended as one large group to about 40 - 50 feet and head out of the Keyhole cavern. Once we rounded the corner we were present with a very swift current. The current was causing our air bubbles to travel horizontally through the water. As we drifted along in the current, the sharks came out to greet us. In order to maintain our position, we all had to grab a hold something so we did not continue drifting away from the sharks. The sharks also appeared to struggle just a bit as the were swimming against the current but moved very swiftly with the current. Everyone was so excited watching the sharks when a spotted eagle ray made graceful entry with the current. After reaching our nitrogen limit for the depth we moved along the dive site with the current. Soon we were in an area called the Octo Coral Garden. This area has colorful coral growth all along the bottom and millions of small tropical fish darting in and out. the colors remind me of cotton candy. Due to water temperatures being colder than tropical waters we don't see a lot of colorful corals making this spot a real treat. There were teardrop angelfish, bandit angel fish, and yellow margin moray eels to be spotted.

For our second dive we dropped at Vertical Awareness and the crossed the vast blue expanse to Lehua Ledge. I was really hoping to see a nice big Galapagos shark as we crossed the blue expanse but no such luck. We did however get a brief visit from one the resident monk seals. he made a very brief appearance. I was really hoping to get more seal footage, but there were many other wonderful species to see. We saw some long fin bi colored anthias and a pair of harlequin shrimp. Both are very rare species and a real treat to see.

I opted out of the third dive of the day so that Michael, our bubble watcher, could get in a dive for the day. Besides I was a bit chilled. It may be time to break out the 7mm wetsuit for longer lasting comfort. 3/2mm season is over for me at least.

I have the video below. I have compressed the video for posting. Enjoy!

Late Season South Swell

2008-09-06T07:05:00.003-10:00

There another south swell again. It's another big one about 10-12 ft surge. As of yesterday all of our trips were canceled for safety reasons. The swell should subside by Sunday. Maybe by Monday we can get back to the business of diving. I worked a double before the swell hit and was able to do some incredible dives. Before the swell the visibility was pretty good. The best part of the day were the spinner dolphins. During our surface interval, they approached the boat like they do most times. You never tire of looking at the dolphins. They played in our wake and then moved on. By the time we arrived at our second dive site of the morning they came back to greet us. I was the first in the water when I heard one of the divers from the boat call out that we had dolphins off the stern. Luckily I had my video camera so I dropped down a few feet and headed to the. I was lucky to get a few seconds of footage.

Day off Work, Lets Go Diving

2008-08-27T17:46:00.005-10:00

People always ask me if as an instructor I go diving when I am not working, and the answes is YES. Any day is good for diving. Just because my job involves diving, an activity most only persue on their holidays or days off, doesn't mean I don't enjoy diving on my days off. It's great to go out there and just enjoy the day.

My friend Clint joined me on my day of just diving for fun. We had two amazing drift dives. For our first dive we jumped off near Palomas Buoy and head towards Turtle Bluffs. We sighted four white tip reef sharks at the large sand bottom cave and two others under the ledge as we headed away from the cave. We left the cave and headed towards the Bluff's turtle cleaning station. There were a few turtles surrounded by colorful tropicals performing their cleaning duties with their usual zeal. The most impressive sight for me today was the feeding frenzy. A school of black trigger fish were the largest group of diners at a feast of sergeant major eggs. The small yet abundant delicacy of purple eggs were being gobbled up by black trigger fish, milletseed butterfly fish, raccoon butterfly fish, and other small tropicals. It was frenzy of activity exploding with color. From there we motored up to the Sheraton Caverns area. We hung around the caverns for a while and then headed over to Plate Lunch. plate lunch consist of a series of pinnacles to explore. One of the pinnacles has a great small opening, almost cavelike, where you can find lots of lobsters. Too bad it's not lobster season yet.

It was great to have a day off just to dive for fun.

Zebra Moray

2008-07-20T16:57:00.010-10:00

Another great day of diving on the South Shore of Kauai. Out on Turtle Bluffs we saw 4 white tip reef sharks and a turtle cleaning station. You can always count on the site from some great encounters. I tried to find the resident frog fish but had no luck today. Maybe another day.

At our next site, the frequently referenced "Sheraton Caverns", we had another awesome dive. plenty of turtles as is expected on the site. Today we even got to see an octopus. But for me the highlight was the free swimming zebra moray. Also known as Gymnomuraena zebra. I have included a short video of the free swimming moray.

I hope that Kara, Tom, and Jack all had as much fun as I did.

Waikiki Vacation

2008-06-27T18:31:00.007-10:00

We've just recently returned from a much needed and earned short holiday to Waikiki Beach on Oahu. We went to Oahu just to get out of Kauai and experiencing another of the Hawaiian islands. Oahu was a very pleasant surprise. It was so nice to drive on an real multi-lane highway again. What a pleasure to be able to pass the slow driver and to have more than a single way to get to any destination. The crowds of people on Waikiki were also nice. There were many more Japanese tourist on Oahu than we ever see on Kauai. It made for a unique cultural experience. Of course the highlight of the trip was the nightlife. It was so comforting to see all types of bars (Irish, strip, hotel, beach, chain, etc). And get this, at one local Irish bar they actually allow people to smoke. Oh, it's still illegal but they figure that if you wish to risk the fine, you can go ahead and smoke. Personally I don't smoke, never have, but it is so refreshing to see a bar that bucks the current system. Being on Waikiki further brought to light the fact that I really miss the diversity you have in a larger metropolitan area. Diversity is the spice of life.

Now on to the diving. One of our reasons for visiting Oahu was the opportunity to do some wreck diving. We really had our sites set on doing some world class wreck diving. Having come from the Florida Keys we were expecting the same class of wrecks. We were somewhat disappointed with the wreck diving. We were actually only able to dive the wreck of the Mahi so I don't want to speculate on other Oahu wrecks. The Mahi was believed to have been built as a minesweeper, however it was refitted by the Navy and used in the Bahamas for laying cable. Later on it was used as a research vessel by the University of Hawaii. It was sunk in 1986 and now lies in 95 fsw.

The site was very crowded with divers from various boats. It reminded me of being on the Benwood Wreck in Largo with 4 boats moored up and crowds of divers below. The Mahi did have a resident group of spotted eagle rays that seemed to keep circling the wreck. They would come in close and the head back into the sandy areas surrounding the wreck. The other noteworthy residents were the school of porcupine fish surrounding the flagged mast of the ship. Conditions were calm and visibility was 100 ft+ making the dive and overall pleasant experience but none of the WOW factor we were craving.

Our next site was Makaha Caverns. They are a series of interlaced lava tubes with some great swim throughs. Since it is in shallow water (25 fsw) there is plenty of light. There were some turtles around looking for napping spots. We did spot two very nice sized white tips in one swim through cave. They did not seem very pleased at being disturbed by divers, but I did get some good footage. The other great find, seen only by Brownie and myself, was the big moray being harassed by a very eager bunch of cleaner shrimp. We also encountered a school of milletseed butterfly fish as were ascending. Otherwise the site was somewhat devoid of life.

I will not judge all of Oahu's diving based on the tow sites we did visit. I do hope to return and dive some of Oahu's other wrecks.

And of course we had to visit Pearl Harbor. I had not really expected much but I have to admit it was quite a bit emotional. Many people lost there lives on that spot. It was nice to see that the Memorial was in itself patriotic but not the pseudo political patriotism you see surrounding our country and it's current involvement in Mr. Bush's illegal conflict.

I know it's expensive to get to Hawaii from the US Mainland but it's certainly a trip worth taking. I live on the islands and I am still in awe of their beauty every single day.

More pictures from the trip are posted at http://www.flickr.com/photos/scubadreamtime.

Pihea Vista Trail

2008-05-12T17:17:00.006-10:00

We finally had a day off together and my first day off in almost two weeks (13 straight days of work). It was great to go out there and enjoy the beautiful scenery Kauai has to offer. The other bonus was being able to take Niles out on a long walk with me. He wasn't to thrilled by the time we got to the Pihea Vista. It was a straight upward climb in the mud and he was already tired from the relatively easy part of the trail. I forget that the pup is getting old. He's a getting gray. I guess that what happens to a ten year old black dog. He really hated the part were I jogged back to the starting point. I need to take easy on the old dog. I don't feel much like writing so I am just going to post some pictures of the beautiful vistas from the trail.

Another Spectacular Day

2008-05-03T06:15:00.006-10:00

Ni'ihau diving around Lehua Rock was spectacular. Ocean conditions were blessed by the gods. It was flat calm on the surface, visibility was easily 100ft, and the creatures greeted us. Thanks to having another bubble watcher on board, Julie, I was able to do two drift dives. Julie is working on becoming an instructor through KCC.

Julie did the first dive of the day at Keyhole. I did the second dive which was at Ledges. The dive was a wall dive which really added to the sensation that we were flying. Deep blue waters surrounded us and from is vast and deep blueness emerged a very large white tip shark to check us out. He did a few rounds as he checked us out. He got fairly close but not as close as another encounter we were soon to have. As we proceeded along the wall we witnessed a number of magnificent spotted eagle rays just coast by. They came single file and seem to be riding the water's thermocline as they searched for feeding grounds. As one passed and the photographers snapped away there was another waiting in the wings to come and surprise us just as we thought the show was over. It was repeat encores by spotted eagle rays. We proceeded up the wall and leveled off on a ledge at around 30 feet in depth. Being so shallow allowed the sun's rays to better penetrate and make all the colors just POP. We proceeded along enjoying the sites and off gassing before making out 3-minute safety stop at 15 feet. Just as the remaining divers were finishing their safety stop a monk seal just swam up and almost in to Mary Ann, a customer from West Palm Beach, FL. It took us all by surprise. So much for ending the dive. We all went back down again to enjoy the seal. He just swam along slowly for us and them decided to take a nice long rest on the bottom next to a rock out cropping. He allowed us all to get very close. It was AMAZING. I spent at least 4 minutes laying on the bottom right next to him. I could have just reached out and touched him, but I didn't. I never realized that they have long nail like formations on their flippers. Once back on the boat we learned that that particular fellow is named Oscar, so named by our divemasters. We all came very close to breathing a tank dry.

After such an amazing dive we were all ready for much deserved lunch break. We moored up and served lunch. Everyone just relaxed and some took the opportunity to go snorkeling in the shallows near the shore of Lehua Rock. After about a good hour surface interval and lunch break we proceeded to do our third and last dive of the day at the Arches. The Dragon Wrasse were abundant and a challenging subject for the photographers.

Everyone had a great time and I am very lucky to be able to repeat the experience again next week. One of our captains has referred to diving Ni'ihau like diving in Kauai but in HD (high definition). Remember if visiting Kauai between May to September, Ni'ihau is the a must do trip.

First Ni'ihau Trip of the 2008 season

2008-04-30T10:00:00.011-10:00

Ni'ihau, the Forbidden Island

Trips to Ni'ihau I have learned consist of a very early start to a very long day. The reward is a great day of diving and memories to last. As crew our day officially starts at 5:30 am. Our customers are expected to check in by 6:00 am. By 6:45 am we are pulling away from the dock loaded up for a full day of diving (3 tanks each), breakfast and lunch for customers and crew, plus fishing gear.

The trip out took almost 2.5 hours. Its a long way across the channel. Everyone settled in nicely for the long ride. As we finished our channel crossing Capt Andrew got a bite on one of the fishing lines he had set out. We had managed to hook a huge marlin, estimated at around 500 pounds. He was a beauty there is some brief footage of the catch in the video below. Being aware of overfishing in our oceans, Ryan cut the fish loose but managed to save Capt Andrew's prized lure.

After all the excitement we decided on the best spot for the first dive as Keyhole based on wind conditions and ocean currents. The Captain expertly backed in to the cove. Divers started dropping off and gathering at the surface for a group descent. The water was crystal clear, the current was minimal, and everyone was very excited to start the first dive of the Ni'ihau season. Once everyone was in we started the descent. We saw a few sharks and 6 different spotted eagle rays swim around us. Incredible visibility and beautiful geological formations surrounded us.
I touched down to around 122 feet and the bottom was still a very long way off. The remainder of the dive we remained in the 80 foot range. It is very tempting and easy to just keep descending. But we play by the recreational rules.

After a nice long surface interval we dropped it at Vertical Awareness. The site consists of various plateaus. The tops of the plateaus are around 40 feet and the sides dropped down to what seems infinity, likely around the 300ft plus range.

After our second dive of the day we paused for a long surface interval and lunch. Apparently lunch had been lovingly prepared by Marvin's own hands according to Christina. Everyone enjoyed the sandwiches, salad, chips and cookies very much. We also were lucky enough to see a humpback whale swim by and splash a few times. And there was a monk seal just sunning itself on a rocky ledge and showed absolutely no interest in us. Magnificent views of the rock coast as we dined. After a long relaxing break and off gassing everyone was ready for the third dive of the day.

Our third and final dive of the day was at Ni'ihau Arches. Beautiful dives with abundant swim thrus. It was like swimming through geological Swiss cheese. It was a matter of deciding which hole to go through. Some swim thrus were very deceptive. At a distant they looked like just a crack on a huge stone face but once you entered there was light coming in from all the holes that permeated the rocks, hence Swiss cheese. And one of our customers received quite a surprise on the dive. her boyfriend proposed and presented her with quite a rock. She was all smiles on the long ride back across the channel to Kauai.

All in all the trip was incredible. The diving was amazing , and the visibility was what all divers dream of having. I can't wait to do it all over again this coming Friday.

South Swell = Day Off Exploring

2008-04-19T07:53:00.008-10:00

Wednesday the South Shore of Kauai started feeling the effects of the south swell that had arrived from the vastness of the Pacific. As a result and with safety in mind we canceled boat dives and shore dives. Safety should never be an afterthought.

As a result we had time to go exploring the terrain on this side of the island. With our new jobs, we don't have as much free time as we did with our previous island employer. We decided on the Maha'ulepu Trail right off of Poipu Road on the South Shore.

For Hollywood trivia buffs this is where parts of the movie 6 days/7 nights were filmed. The area has incredible sandstone cliffs. Cemented sand dunes were deposited here during the last age and with wind and water erosion have become elaborate sandstone caves.

The area has some incredible vistas but so does much of Kauai. You get to see the land and sea meet in a dramatic fashion; no doubt that the south swell added to the drama. It was fun exploring the cliffs and hiking right down to the water's edge. You have to be careful not to loose your footing on the crumbly sandstone. What may look like a sturdy rock outcrop may not be somewhere you wish to be standing.

New Job, New Shop

2008-03-09T09:16:00.004-10:00

I am thrilled to have started working at Seasport Divers. Back in January 2008 Brownie and I went diving with Seasport and we were hooked. They are one of the most professional dive operators on Kauai. Compared with our previous dive employer on Kauai, they are far superior. Seasport has some of the most comfortable dive boats with the greatest number of on board amenities. The staff is always professional and highly skilled. Everything is simply top of the line. It is no wonder they have been voted #1 on Kauai. I am thrilled to be part of Seasport.

Come visit us and dive with Seasport Divers. Soon we will start trips to Ni'ihau of which I have heard only great things.

I have attached a short video from our first dive in January 2008 with Seasport Divers.

Humpback Whales

2008-03-02T14:09:00.005-10:00

Today was an outstanding day. I was able to swim with two humpback whales. What a magnificent site. No words I write or speak can express the magnitude of the experience.

They are so massive in size and yet so graceful. I was about 20 feet away from the whales in about 175 feet of deep blue water. I thought one was about to breach right next to me. There was a certain amount of trepidation just being aware of their massive size but I was so drawn to them that I couldn't stop myself from getting as close as I could. I have a guaranteed smile on my face for the day. This is one of those experiences I will never forget. It should be a once in a lifetime moment but I certainly hope I have others.

And as if whales were not enough, right after them there were spinner dolphins all around. A lifetime at Disney could not top today. I don't think that even winning the lottery can compare.

As I have said repeatedly, I love what I do for a living, I love where I live, and I am in awe of the experiences it affords me.

Full Moon Rising

2008-02-23T07:52:00.007-10:00

Last night we witnessed a magnificent moon rising. Before the moon started its ascent, the sky was filled with countless stars. It was impressive to see the moon start showing on the horizon. It illuminated the clouds and made the night sky glow. The moon was so incredibly bright that the abundance of stars was lost in the moons powerful glow. Besides mother nature's wonderful light show, it was nice to be around friends.

Most of the country is in the grips of winter's frigid grasp, but here on Kauai, we live in paradise. It's February and we are laying on the beach at night by a nice bonfire just watching the moon.

Silhouette of Brownie and Nick by the waters edge

Captain Randy, myself, Nathan, and Nick.

Brownie contemplating the moon

Hawaiian Monk Seals

2008-02-17T14:59:00.011-10:00

Today was one of those diving days that just plants a permanent smile on your face. It started just like any other. There was the perk of seeing a Hawaiian monk seal beached on Poipu Beach on the way to Kukuiula Harbor to meet the dive boat. Keep in mind that these are some of the world's most endangered species. There are believed to only be about 1200 to 1300 in the entire world, and only about 25-30 on Kauai. Volunteers go to great lengths to protect the seals when the come on to the beaches to rest.

On we proceeded to Seasport Divers' very roomy and comfortable Newton dive boat. On our way to the first dive sight we saw a baby humpback whale just breaching and having a blast. It was remarkably smaller that the gentle giant it will soon grow to become. I am still hoping to see a whale while diving, but until then I am thrilled with seeing them from the surface.

Our first dive was a drift dive on Brennecke's Ledge. Shortly after we descended we saw a lionfish (nohu pinao) tucked under some coral. As we dropped down to the sand to follow the ledge we came across a good sized whitetip reef shark. He didn't stick around so, I didn't get any pics. Under the ledge you can find generous amounts of rare black coral. It looks very delicate. Many times you can see the equally rare Longnose Hawkfish.

For our second dive we headed to Sheraton Caverns, one of Kauai's signature dives. As we moored up we were greeted by an eager and very curious juvenile Hawaiian monk seal. I was very excited. After catching a glimpse of him on the surface I raced to get geared up and in the water. I would not be disappointed. As I descended I caught a glimpse of him peeking out at me from the puka (hole). I settled to the bottom and got a few worthwhile shots of the seal.

This was one of my top two best underwater marine life encounters. I hear from the crew that on trips to Ni'ihau seals are abundant and they even go as far as to pose for the camera. Needless to say that I am looking forward to working and diving the Ni'ihau trips with Seasport Divers. I love what I do for a living, the opportunities it affords me to interact with marine life, and the majestic island I call home. Nature's creations have no rivals in man's world.

A Great Day of Diving

2008-01-27T21:30:00.000-10:00

This morning started out quite dreary and windy. On the drive to Port Allen I was wondering if we would even be able to go out. The day before was very windy, occasional heavy rains, high surf, and strong ocean currents. We checked around and decided to take out the scheduled two divers from Ontario, Aileen and Brenda. And what a day it was. We all had huge smiles attesting to the wonders of the day.

As we headed out to Hale O' Honu East, we did encounter a pod of four whales. They put on a magnificent show breaching their way past us. That alone would have made the day quite exceptional but unbeknown to us, we had more wonders in store for us.

As I moored the boat up I could see two huge green sea turtles just hanging out at the cleaning station 40 feet down. Visibility was on our side. Luckily they were still there as my divers descended down the line. We swam around and saw numerous Lionfish, Yellowmargin eels, and white mouth eels. Those were the standout creatures in addition to countless tropicals crowding the reef.

After a short surface interval we motored a very short distance to the next site, Hale O'Honu West. East has more dramatic geological underwater features, but West has it's own impressive number of ledges and marine life. I took Aileen and Brenda on a tour of the reef making sure to check under the ledges. As I was busy poking under the ledges I saw my divers' attention focused on something a short distance away. They had spotted a rather large stingray. It was an impressive size and was accommodating enough to swim slowly and let us take a good long look at it's graceful movements. As we were moving away from the stingray and back toward the ledges a large white streak caught my eye. With Aileen and Brenda following me we came up on a seal. WOW!!!!!!! It was busy checking under the ledge for something, then slowly backed out, stared at us straight on, and then continued to swim along the ledge and eventually out of sight. That was my first seal sighting, as well as theirs. We swam merrily along just happy about what we had just witnessed only to be awestuck again. This time we encountered a beautiful whitetip reef shark. It swam around for a lengthy period time allowing us a close look. The divers were smiling so much I was surprised that their masks were not flooding.

We all had an incredible day. I'm glad I got to share my fist seal sighting with two enthusiastic divers. Today's dives remind me why I love what I do and the wonderful gift of amazement nature gives to us all if we slow down and take a closer look.

Christmas Day at Hale O'Honu

2007-12-25T14:18:00.000-10:00

Beautiful day of diving at Hale O'honu. If you have to work on a holiday, diving is the job to have. There is always something beautiful to see.

We had two new divers on board today, it was their first official dive as certified divers. They both did very well. All others on the boat had a great time and we saw LOTS of turtles. As we were heading to the site to moor up on the surface were three turtles just waiting to greet us. As the divers descended down the mooring line they were greeted by an even larger welcoming committee. Turtles congregate in this area to be cleaned. They never appear bothered by divers so it affords divers an excellent opportunity to view them. Besides the numerous turtles, we also saw a large school of Black Durgons (Black triggerfish; Humuhumu 'ele'ele; Melichthys niger) swimming by. This was a treat for me as I have only seen them swimming by themselves and the sightings have been very rare for me.
Hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday and enjoying their time away from work. Go out there and do what you enjoy; life is too short. Go diving next year and witness something very beautiful.

Yellow Tangs
Lau-Ipala
Zebrasoma Flavescens

Moorish Idol
Kihikihi
Zanclus cornutus

Yellowmargin Moray Eel
Puhi paka
Gymnothorax flavimarginatus

Rare Longnose Butterflyfish
Lau-wiliwili-nukunuku-oi'oi
Forcipiger longirostris

Christmas Eve 2007 in Kauai

2007-12-24T18:28:00.000-10:00

Brownie and I celebrated Christmas a day early this year since we have to work on Christmas Day. That is one of the few drawbacks of this industry; you work when others are on holidays. The high point is that when you are off the amateurs are all at home and working.

We had an incredible day. We woke up early and opened our presents. We both did very well on presents. Niles would have liked some Greenies so he he was a bit disappointed. I'll have to make it up to him. He has me so trained. After all the gift opening was done and we left all the new electronics charging we headed out to explore Opeakaa Falls and the National Forest off the same road.

Brownie decided to take a dip in the freshwater creek. The water tends to be a bit chilly but no too bad. Unfortunately I had to stay dry due to a bad case of swimmers ear. Imagine a diver experiencing an ear infection. But it was worth being on land just to capture the video of him trying to get out of the water while keeping his t-shirt dry. I should start calling him Grace.

Overall, it was just a magnificent day being surrounded by nature's majesty. Being so close to nature brings me an inner peace I can't find elsewhere. Nature is real in and of itself, no politics, no ulterior motives, no hidden agenda - we can all learn something from nature.

Opeakaa Falls

Wailua River

Funny Video

Mele Kalikimaka

2007-12-21T19:12:00.000-10:00

SEASON'S ALOHA

May you all have health, wealth, and happiness.

Hale O'Honu

2007-12-20T16:33:00.000-10:00

Great diving at House of Turtles (Hale O'Honu). There are always numerous turtles. In the Keys you are lucky to see more than one turtle on any given day. Here on Kauai it's almost a constant parade of turtles. Most of the turtles do look very healthy and are very large. Some are over 6 feet long, absolutely massive. A few have cracked shells as if they have had a run in with a boat prop or a very large Tiger Shark.

What is disturbing is that some of the turtles have what appear to be hard white growths on the soft parts of their bodies. The growths are very visible and obvious (below are some pictures). The afflicted turtles generally appear unaffected except for those with a great amount of growth around their eyes. They sometimes bump into you. And you must be careful because it is a federal offense to touch turtles in Hawaii. The feds will slap you with a $10,000.00 fine, if caught of course.

Overall, they are amazing and gracious creatures. If you ever wondered how to determine a turtles gender, I have the answer for you. Turtle with a long tail are male. Those with a shorter more stubby tail are female. Now you can impress your friends with some aquatic knowledge.

Healthy looking turtles - see no visible growths

Turtle with growths

Turtle being cleaned by a butterfly fish. The growths do not seem to deter the cleaning fish from helping out their air breathing neighbors.

Unexpected Encounter

2007-12-11T19:46:00.000-10:00

This morning I drove up to Koloa Landing to meet two DSDs students and their certified diver friend for a local shore dive. I was pleasantly surprised to run in to Cole Abbott. Cole was in my IDC class. As a matter of fact we graduate 366 days earlier. I must admit that at first I failed to recognize him and when I did I could only recall the unappreciated nickname bestowed upon him by our course director, Tom Witmer. The nickname was "the colinator". Not very flattering but definitely memorable. I never thought I would just run into someone I knew on such a small and isolated island. He has been here for the past 9 months so maybe he will show us some hidden gems for diving.

The diving on Koloa was very nice. The visibility is finally improving after all the rain we have been having. We saw two turtles, two eels, and countless other tropicals. My two DSD students enjoyed the dives but were doubtful that they would ever dive again. They were on Kauai from Korea for a conference and were playing hookey from the conference and their families. Their certified diver friend talked them in to the experience. The important part was that they enjoyed themselves and had a totally new experience. Nature transcends most language barriers; let's appreciate the beauty.

First Dives in KAUAI!!

2007-11-26T16:38:00.000-10:00

We arrived in Kauai on Saturday, November 24th. Niles made the trip. He will never get in his crate again but he's alive and chasing chickens. He has finally found a sport he can throw himself at. In case you are not aware, Kauai is full of chickens. I guess all kinds want to live in paradise.

We did our first Kauai diving the very next day. We went to two sites known as Turtles House East and West. The known site name is in Hawaiian but I am still working on mastering some of the basics. Soon enough I will name all the sites in the local language. The sites were loaded with TURTLES, hence the name of the site. I don't mean a few turtles here and there but a great gathering of turtles. Some were just catching some zzzz's others were there to be cleaned by schools of cleaning fish. One even mistook Pat's hair for algae and tried to catch a quick meal.

Turtle Cleaning Station

Brownie & Turtle

Besides the turtles we also saw eels, lion fish, white tip sharks, a galapagos shark, and an endless showcase of reef fish. The reef fish were colorful and abundant. Most looked familiar but slightly different from the types we were accustomed to seeing in the Florida Keys.

Lion Fish

So far, which hasn't been very long, I am very glad we decided to move to Kauai. It was difficult and expensive but it feels so right. The landscape is lush and beautiful. If you look to one side you see the Pacific Ocean, if you look the other way you see lush towering mountains. The surroundings have a calming effect. Everywhere you look there is beauty. Unlike Key Largo there are wide open green spaces; not every inch of land has been claimed for development. There are no tall buildings so the skyline is as nature intended. And more importantly I feel as if I have finally arrived at home. I know I am and will always be a haole, but it feels good.

8 States, 4 Time Zones, & 2800 Miles

2007-11-21T14:30:00.000-10:00

We finally Made it to Los Angeles, CA earlier today. It was a long a grueling trip. There was some beautiful scenery along the way, a dust storm, and some unique characters.

On Day One we drove from Key Largo, FL all the way through to Baton Rouge, LA. That was the most grueling part of the journey. We did all of Florida, through Alabama, Mississippi, and finally Louisiana. We had planned to stay closer to Slidell, LA but we couldn't find a pet friendly hotel in the area. The Choice hotel chain claims to have pet friendly locations but I don't think they really practice what they advertise. Luckily we did find a Motel 6 in Baton Rouge that was true to their advertising on being a pet friendly location. The hotel was a located in a somewhat "rough" neighborhood but it was still a welcome reprieve from the road.

On Day Two we got another early start and headed towards the grand expanse of Texas. We made it through much of Texas and wound up staying at the Motel 6 in Ft. Stockton, TX. Note, when taking I-10 West through Texas do not take the short cut through Austin to avoid San Antonio, TX. The short cut does take you through some picturesque little towns but it's full of street lights, stop signs, and reduced speed limits. It's great if you don't have a time table, but otherwise I-10 West would likely be quicker. The Motel 6 in Fort Stockton was much nicer than the one in Baton Rouge.

Day Three we finally made it through the remainder of Texas. SW Texas is very beautiful. The desert was awe inspiring. The scenery was such a sharp contrast to the scenery of origin. It consists of a desolate desert landscape with abundant beauty. Sunrises and sunsets were very dramatic, even without the backdrop of the Florida Keys waters. On that leg of the journey we managed to drive through Texas, New Mexico, and finally into Arizona. We settled in for the evening at the Motel 6 in Chandler, AZ. That was the snobby Motel 6. The person at the front desk tried to tell us that pets were not accepted at that location. They were quick to change their position when questioned about the company policy and the lack of local or city ordinances to the contrary. Compared to the Baton Rouge location it was comparable to a four star hotel.

Day Four got us through Arizona and into California to the Travel Lodge at LAX, great little hotel. It is a garden oasis in what I can only describe as a pit. The Los Angeles area is the most environmentally vile area I can imagine. How the residents actually breathe surprises me. Having lived in Atlanta, GA I am use to living in highly polluted air. But what awaited us here is absolutely disgusting. The air quality resemble footage of the most polluted industrial cities in China. Beyond the post nuclear apocalypse looking sky, there is the litter, the graffiti, and the worst road surfaces of our entire 2,800 mile journey. California has more beautiful locations than the Los Angeles area. If you can, avoid Los Angeles at all costs.

We will spend Thanksgiving and the following day in LA while we get our vehicle picked up for shipment to Kauai. Soon enough we will arrive in paradise.

Aloha!

Moving to Kauai!!!

2007-11-04T04:49:00.000-10:00

Today marks the two-week countdown of our move to Kauai. On November 24, we board a flight to Kauai that will embark us on a new adventure. We are looking forward to learning about and experiencing the Hawaiian culture first hand. In addition to that we also get to explore new and fascinating dive sites. Florida Keys diving is spectacular but it is not wholly representative of what the world's oceans have to offer. We have anticipated the colder waters and have ordered new Pinnacle merino wool wetsuits in 7mm. That will be a big difference from Key Largo's no wetsuit needed diving.

Our dog, Niles, is not quite looking forward to the adventure as much as we are. He has been getting use to his crate and is performing beyond all expectations that we had. He has had all his tests and shots and is signed up for direct airport release. He never would have survived the 120-day quarantine previously required. For his benefit through we are driving cross-country to Los Angeles so we can take a direct flight to Honolulu. That in itself will be another adventure for the three of us.

Soon enough I hope to start posting some pictures of our new island paradise home, land and sea.

Corals and Creatures in N. Key Largo

2007-09-02T11:15:00.000-10:00

I had a wonderful day of diving with Silent World key Largo on the 1st of September. The water was wonderfully clear, the temperature nice and warm, and the current was nonexistent. There was also Captain Bob who was as entertaining as ever. If you ever dive with Silent World Key Largo be sure to request show tunes from Captain Bob.

Lately I have taken up an interest in the local coral formations. It is so fragile and we have so precious little thanks to divers with poor buoyancy control, anchors, and mother nature. Below are a few pictures including common and scientific names. Please note that there might be some errors I am new to this and it is a work in learning.

Great Star Coral with Polyps extended
Montastraea cavernosa

Pillar Coral
Dendrogyra cylindrus

Knobby Cactus Coral
Mycetophyllia aliciae

Staghorn Coral
Acropora cervicornis

Elkhorn Coral
Acropora palmata

Amazing Week of Diving with Conch Republic Divers

2007-08-17T15:57:00.000-10:00

I have had an amazing week of diving in Tavernier with Conch Republic Divers. My week started with checkout dives for three students from Colorado. Sam, Georgia, and Katie were some of the best students I have had the pleasure of diving with. And luckily for them they had some amazing dives. On their first check out dive at Snapper Ledge we saw two graceful and large eagle rays just swim past us. On their third check out dive we went to China Reef and they swam with at least 30 different nurse sharks. At one spot in the coral formation there were six large nurse sharks feeding while many others circled around us. It was one of those very unique experiences. Keep in mind that this was not a shark feeding episode but simply good timing on our part.

Later that afternoon I was guiding a couple from St. Pete FL on a private charter for lobster hunting. We did not catch any lobsters (it's been a poor season thus far), but I did see my first Queen Trigger in the Florida Keys. They weren't too excited since they had their hearts set on lobsters. While I was there my newly certified divers from Colorado were on French Reef and had the most wonderful and rare opportunity of a wild dolphin encounter. As I understand the story the dolphin even nudged Georgia.

Yesterday I also saw my first Marlin swimming free and feeding off the Spiegel Grove. It was a great experience to witness. Normally I only see Marlins stuffed and mounted on someone's wall or caught on the end of some fisherman's rod.

It was an amazing week thanks to my amazing students and nature's willingness to provide such diverse sea life for us to enjoy (and hopefully preserve).

Visitors from Atlanta's El Myr

2007-08-06T09:36:00.001-10:00

Brownie and I have finally recovered from Stephen and Bruce's visit to Key Largo. During the visit they both became certified Open Water Divers under Brownie's expert tutelage. CONGRATULATIONS to both of you. Besides the diving we also did quite a bit of drinking , at you guessed it Sharkey's. Molly did a fabulous job of knocking Bruce flat on his back. That was a beer bottle recycling record for us in Key Largo.

First night in Key Largo's Sharkey.

Besides drinking and diving we also managed a trip to the Everglades for an airboat ride. The city boys got a taste of Everglades wildlife close up.

Ripping Day on the USCGC Duane

2007-07-21T11:37:00.000-10:00

It was a gorgeous day today as we headed out on our two dives. After our 40 minute boat ride to the Duane from Tavernier Creek Marina we were all ready to jump in the water. I was probably the most anxious as it was an amazing day. The water was as smooth as glass and the sun was shining brightly, hence the Sunshine State. Everyone jumped in and all was fine. And then.... about 10 feet down the descent line the current decided to just sweep in. It was quite a current. We hit the deck at about 100 feet. I decided to take us towards the superstructure to get some protection from the current. The current was picking up the entire time. After about 12 minutes into the dive my students were needing to get back to the line for an ascent. Though we were not far from our original bow line there was no way they were going to be able to reach the line while fighting the current and have ample air for a slow safe ascent and required safety stop. So I decided to take us up the smoke stack line. They hung in there like pro divers. We did one safety stop at 50 feet for 1 minute and then at around 15 feet for 3 minutes. We reached the surface safely and required assistance to get both students back to the boat as our boat was located up current from our ascent point. With the assistance of our divemaster and captain my students made it back to the boat safely and with a new appreciation of what a strong current means and feels like.

From there we went to Pickles Reef. This was a much more relaxed experience for all. My students finished their underwater navigation exercises and are now officially PADI advanced open water divers. Congratulations to both of them.

View of the water as we were going out to the Duane.

Lea (L) and Teo (R) on the deck of the USCGC Duane at 100ft.

Atlantic Spadefish
Chaetodipterus faber

View from the deck of the crows nest on the Duane.

Symmetrical Brain Coral
Diploria strigosa

NN Dry Rocks and Horseshoe Reef

2007-07-19T13:57:00.000-10:00

2 Spotted Eagle Rays in the distance. As we pulled up to the mooring ball they were swimming so close to the surface you could almost touch them. I jumped in as fast as possible, but it's impossible to match a sea creatures speed.

School of Midnight Parrot fish.

Florida Lobster. Notice: NO CLAWS. He needs to watch out. Mini-season is coming up next week. That's when the FL waters are full of amateur (IDIOTS) lobster hunters and diving related deaths and accidents sky-rocket. I'm cynical but true to fact. Too many novice divers take safety for granted and go out hurt themselves resulting in a misrepresentation of the sport as dangerous. The sport is not dangerous but inexperienced and unknowledgeable divers are very dangerous.

Atlantic Spadefish

School of minnows, bait ball.

2007-07-10T10:53:00.000-10:00

Wet Dog
Brownie and I took Niles on another salt water experience. He did better this time than last week. Keep in mind that it is all relative. Despite being part Labrador, Niles is not a big fan of water. He did manage to walk in to chest belly level all on his own. He's actually a bit too fat to swim properly at the moment. He went to the vet yesterday and he is officially 40+lbs overweight. We are working hard to bring down his weight. Every morning I take him on a nice jog and once a week we take him swimming so he can lose weight through stress.

Niles in shallow water.

Niles securely in Brownie's arms.

Niles in water to deep for him to stand in. He's actually having to swim.

2007-07-07T13:04:00.000-10:00

New Equipment, WOW!!!

We finally closed on our house in Atlanta. Now we are totally free of debt and can soon fall off the radar. The other benefit is that Niles is now in Key Largo with us and I had funds to buy new gear and get a housing for my camera. I have some shots below taken with the new housing. The pictures were taken on a trip with Silent World Dive Center to the the wreck of the City of Washington and South Ledges in Key Largo. One of the many benefits of no longer working with RRDC is that we actually dive places other than Winch Hole, Fire Coral Cave, and the Benwood Wreck.

The pictures have not been touched up in Photoshop. As is obvious a lot of the reds are missing. I hope to get a filter to add more of the red back to the pictures. Keep a look out for more pictures. I suspect I will be posting many more.

Whitespotted Filefish
Cantherhines macrocerus

Scrawled Filefish
Aluterus scriptus

Nassau Grouper, protected species
Epinephelus striatus

City of Washington

Soft Coral with X-mas Tree worms

French Angelfish, adult
Pomacanthus paru

Yellowhead Wrasse - injured, note bite near rear fin
Halichoeres garnoti

Great Barracuda - up close!
Sphyraena barracuda

2007-06-29T15:11:00.000-10:00

TROUBLE ON THE SPIEGEL GROVE

June 28, 2007 was quite day; it was one of those very challenging days. Our afternoon trip was to the Spiegel Grove, a wreck at about 130 ft of water. All local diver operators canceled the morning trips because the current was RIPPING, but we went in the afternoon.

I was mating so I stayed on the boat. We had 4 divers come up and I had to swim out with a line to rescue them. Then 2 more divers came up ok. Then our last two didn't come up. Stress increased dramatically; we knew we had a problem at hand. I suited up for a search and recovery, meaning recovery of bodies. We checked down current first and no sight of them. Went back and jumped in with a buddy. Private dive boat moored up next to us sent down two tech divers on double tanks to search. Other boats in the area were notified to search. Coast Guard was notified according to proper protocol. Despite ripping current buddy went down with out using the down line so I had to follow. The current was so strong he could not reach the down line. We never reached the wreck. I called the dive because there was no progress. By this time we had drifted about a 1/2 mile away from our boat. Then my buddy decides to deploy a safety line on a sausage which he inflates as it wraps around him. He starts shooting to the surface like a torpedo. I try to drag him back down with no luck. I let go. And I am left doing my safety stop at 15-20 feet thinking now I have a DCI diver on the surface too. Luckily he was OK.

Good news was the Coast Guard helicopter found our divers alive and well. They had drifted away from the wreck, they actually never made it to the wreck. They didn’t have a safety sausage so we couldn't see them in the 3 foot swells. It was a hellacious 2 hours.

It was the BEST possible outcome!!!!!!

2007-05-30T14:02:00.000-10:00

We finally left the RRDC situation. It appears that the managing owner expects people to work for free for him, or as he so eloquently stated, "if you expect to get paid for what you do you have no business working for this company". WOW, does he live in a fantasy world, but that's not news. Needless to say I just walked away. I have since found work with Jules Undersea Lodge and with Conch Republic Divers. So far both have both proved very rewarding, professional and ethical. It was nice to have confirmation that some dive shops still place an emphasis on professionalism.

But enough about work. Since my last posting we have had some fun social events. Anya and Rob were married (happy occasion) and Shannon has left the Keys to run her boat rental business in Indiana (sad occasion - we miss you). Below are some pictures from both events. At Shannon's farewell night at Sharkey's, Brownie and Matt became best drunk buddies. It was very funny.

2007-03-31T16:59:00.000-10:00

TWO GREAT DAYS OF DIVING

Yesterday was a great day of diving. It was my first experience in bugging (aka "lobster hunting"). I had a blast; I have never laughed so hard while under water. And as a nice bonus we saw an octopus.

This morning we had a great drift dive on Molasses Reef. We had 7 large spotted eagle rays swimming in circles around us for a good 100 or so yards. After that we saw a large school of parrot fish, a rather large grouping of scrawled file fish, a school of cobia, and permits. We did see one nurse shark too. That was all in just the first tank of the morning dive.

On tonight's dive the best was the seeing a spotted eel feed. The little butterfly fish never had a chance. It was impressive to see a predator feeding. Tomorrow I expect another great day of diving.

2007-03-25T00:38:00.000-10:00

Last night we met some friends for drinks at Sharkey's, where else, only to learn that a friend was leaving that night. I can't say that it came as a surprise, but it was still sad to hear. I don't blame him for his decision; had I been in his situation I would likely have done the exact same thing and possibly even sooner. Needless to say that K-Diddy will be missed. Brownie and I started the program with him so he was there throughout all our early experiences with the program. Good luck K-Diddy!!!!!!!!

2007-03-22T16:24:00.000-10:00

Some great pics of fun at Sharkey's; it was an impromptu celebration of my definitive end in the intern program. Anyone considering doing the internship program, ... RUN AWAY FAST!!!!!
You meet great people as you can tell from the pics, but it is best to just pay for the training.

2007-01-05T07:03:00.000-10:00

DISCONTENT AT DIVE SHOP AND EXPERIENCE

I finally have my instructor's credentials, but I am still dissatisfied with matters at internship location. There is no management to speak of, the boats break down weekly if not daily, there is a lack concistency in all copmany policy, and since we are "free" labor the abuse is rampant. I see violations, legal and administrative, constantly. I fear I have been made a party to these breaches in law and ethics by threats from dive shop.

I am confused because I want to meet my obligation of 6 months, but the value of what I am learning from their so-called brilliant management style is much less than what was promised in addition to being made a party to their breachs in the law and ethical responsibilities.

This is only the first time I have really wished I were back in Atlanta. If you know me you grasp the gravity of that statement. I even dare say that I miss RSPH.

2006-12-19T10:49:00.000-10:00

PASSED IE!!!!

Brownie and I both passed the Instructor's Examination. We are now simply waiting for the PADI paperwork to come through so that we will be considered full fledged instructors.
It was a grueling through the IDC and then on to the IE. We were well prepared from our Divemaster course for the Physics, Physiology, and Deco Theory and Tables, but the schedule and time to prepare so many presentations every day was exhausting.

Below are some pictures from the IE open water portion at Jules in Key Largo. The water was a chilly 68 degrees Farenheit!!!

We had a great December 2006 IDC Class - Tom, Cole, Corey, Nick, Josh, Brownie, Britney, and Adriana.

Corey and Tom getting ready for their open water pre-dive briefing.

Cole hanging out after doing his post-dive briefing.

Nick, Britney, and Brownie discussing their pre-dive briefings.

Josh working very hard on his presentations. Congratulations, Josh!!!!!

For more pictures go to http://www.rainbowreef.us/blog/2006/12/13/rainbow-reef-puts-7-people-through-padi-ows-instructor-exam-in-key-largo/

Now here are random pictures of our druken celebration after all was said and done.

2006-11-01T05:02:00.000-10:00

DM Traing Update

Training is moving slowly due to the arrival of new interns. So I have had to train them on office and dock procedures since management is stretched thin to non-existent. But I did ace my Physics, Physiology, and Decompression Theory portions of the Divemaster test. The two remaining portions will be tested after DEMA next week.

Yesterday, I lead my first divers as a guide out of Islamorada. All went very well. I did not have to go up to do a boat check on either dive. Some credit does go to the captain for selecting two wonderful sites that were very easy to navigate.

Starting next week I am suppose to help train the new interns on being first mate and then dive after they hook up to the mooring balls or drop anchor. At least I will get in some dives. I can't wait. I started this internship to dive and it seems I haven't done much diving since I arrived. But I have been getting training. I arrived with OW and I am now on my way to DM only 5 days shy of the 2 month mark.

I hope to post some underwater pictures by next week.

2006-10-15T15:36:00.000-10:00

Rescue Diver....

Last week I completed my rescue diver training. Yesterday was my first day as official first mate on two trips. The first trip of the morning was perfect. Conditions were ideal. Yet, on another boat there was an unresponsive diver at the surface (diver did survive).
The night dive trip was another experience all together. By 6:30 pm conditions had worsened considerably. There were 3-4 foot seas and winds of 15-20 mph. It was more exhilarating than a roller coaster ride (without a safety harness) hanging off the bow of the boat trying to hook onto the mooring ball. The important thing is that I survived. I have a few bruises and scrapes to show for it too. I was also thrilled that I did not have to jump in and rescue anyone, it was very possible considering conditions.
Tomorrow I start my Divemaster training with a lecture on physics, PADI physics that is.
Hope to see some of you out here real soon. By then I may already have my IDC done and will hopefully be able to train you myself.

2006-10-02T05:28:00.000-10:00

It's been a few days shy of a month since we arrived to start our internship at a local dive shop. Of the the 7 interns ony 5 remain. I am in this for the duartion since I love the dive life. I look back now and can't imagine how I survived in an office.

The best part of the whole experince is the proximity and interaction with nature. I have had dolphins greet me in the morning in Islamorada, ospreys showing off their hunting techniques, and manatees coming by for a visit too. And these are experiences on land alone. The experinces underwater have been nothing short of spectacular!!

Above are some pictures of the views from Largo, Islamorada, and the manatees.