Monkey La La La

Time keeps on ticking, ticking, into the future. Steve Miller is not the world's most talented artist but he had some things right. It has hit the point in my trip when I can feel each day slipping away, each day bringing me closer to leaving. It is a terrible way to look at it, but there comes a point in any trip where it is inevitable that you start thinking about leaving. I am not ready to leave yet. I certainly miss home at times and there are so many things I am looking forward to once I get home but when it comes down to it, there is little substitute to waking up in the morning and jumping in the water. Diving has become second nature. I truly feel so comfortable that I sometimes forget how strange it is to be breathing underwater. I've spent over two days of my life underwater, the majority of that in the last several weeks. The people of the dive shop have become close friends and mentors. It is funny, I am closer with most of the people here than anyone on my trip to Argentina, although I think that Argentina prepared me immensely for this trip. All in all, life has become very, very comfortable and I feel as if I have found a bit of my place in the world, a bit of my identity. The good news is that I am not leaving yet. There is still plenty of time to have fun and have adventures, and I plan on making the absolute most of it! So let's get to it!!

As per usual I have been doing plenty of diving. I am finally done helping on courses for a bit and can do as much diving as I want. So I do. While I did plenty of fun diving while helping on courses, it is still refreshing to know that each time I go out I don't have to be worried about students or anyone else. I just get to jump into the water and have a blast. Today was a perfect example of that! A staff boat went out this morning bound for the North side and it was filled with fun people. I got to dive with my friend, neighbor, and other DMT Tom, which is always fun. He enjoys taking pictures as well so we have become underwater buddies because we move at about half speed as we are always finding something new to snap a photo of. Today he tried out lionfish hunting for the first time and I was supposed to keep close in order to lend him my "shark" knife for the kill shot. Unfortunately the first one he shot got away and I missed the whole thing. Apparently it was fairly epic as the lionfish wriggled off of the spear only to swim straight into the mouth of a waiting Moray Eel. Tough day at the office for the lionfish. I also got to dive with my friend Alex for the first time. She has been doing IDC (which she passed, as I am sure you saw by her rainbow guest post the other day. After twelve intensive days its hard to deny someone when they steal the computer for a moment) and hasn't had time to dive so today was our first chance to jump into the water together. Also on the boat was a Kiwi named Jessie who is a goofball and always fun to joke around with.

Alex and Jessie

Our dive turned out to be a wild ride of fun. Alex and Jessie like to goof around in the water and it is hard not to get caught up in their fun and frivolity.  I don't know how many times my mask flooded because I was laughing or smiling (the one defect of masks, they instantly flood upon any expressions of joy) but it was surely a lot. At 80 feet we were taking off our masks, flipping our regulators over our shoulders, and attempting to blow bubble rings (really hard if not impossible to do at that depth). We rode on each others backs, popped bubbles, and took off our fins. A great white shark probably could have passed by and I wouldn't have noticed it. Amongst all of it were lots of fun pictures.

Alex and Jessie catching a ride on my tank.

Just at the end of the dive, as we were all coasting slowly along the top reef, Alex and I had one of the more special underwater encounters I have ever had. As Alex took her mask off on a spit of sand (as she is wont to do, I have never seen someone enjoy removing their mask as much as she does!) I noticed something small and black flowing through the water. I say flowing because it is the only way to describe how it was swimming. So simple and elegant in its movements. It was a Leopard Flatworm and is a truly beautiful creature and amazing to watch as it whirls its way through the water. Words won't do it's movements justice so check out this video. Alex stuck her arm out and it landed on her, sticking to her like glue. We both marveled at it for awhile, I think both taken aback by how it had appeared and seemingly "chosen" us to share its beauty and grace with. Two other newly minted instructors, Marco and Jo, came over and we pointed it out as it swam onto a rock.

Finally turning from the Leopard Flatworm, I looked up just in time to see a large green Moray snaking its way through the water. I am not used to seeing them actually swimming and it was pretty cool, even if it looked a bit snake like and made my skin crawl a tad. I tried to show the others but it was gone by the time I got their attention. We finished up the dive by hanging motionless at 15 feet for our safety stop (see, I do practice safe diving habits, I promise!). As we did so, a large (four foot) barracuda swam right behind Alex. Even from ten feet away I could see its teeth glinting in the light! Barracudas look really nasty but have stopped scaring me because they are really just cool fish. It was a great way to end the dive, making up for the forty minutes when we weren't paying enough attention to the wonderful wildlife around us.

On the way back we stopped by one of the cays (pronounced keys) and did a bit of a garbage pick up. This weekend is garbage pick up week on Utila and a lot of the dive shops are going around and trying to do their part. I didn't realize how much disgusting trash is in the water until I strapped on a tank and took a dip at the end of the dock at the cay. Good lord it was gross. We filled bags and bags of trash and didn't even make a dent. I was amazed at the diversity of the stuff we found. Plastic plates, beer bottles, a rubber boot, a doll's head, electric beaters, a sofa, several shirts, fishing line, and countless glass bottles. I was also amazed to see the resiliency of nature. Beer bottles blended in really well because animals had started to cover them and make them their home and cans were quickly filled with crabs and other creatures. Amongst a lot of disheartening things, it was nice to see nature taking a bit back.

A crap ton of garbage (approximate measurement only)

This stuff stank to high heaven!

We returned to UDC under leaden skies; rainy season has fully arrived on the island. The boat motored into the harbor just as rain started pounding the decks with a fury I have rarely witnessed. It was awesome. I stood at the back of the boat and just let it hit me, wave after wave of it. The boat actually had to slow down as it became impossible to see much further than fifty feet ahead of us. Rainy season seems to be a mix of crazy storms and hot, muggy days. Some days it is cool and the rain comes down in fits, pouring for twenty minutes before letting up for several hours, pouring for another half an hour and then stopping again. Sometimes at night I wake up because the wind and rain are lashing the building with such a force. To tell you the truth, I love it. A good Oregon drizzle will always make me happy but nothing beats bearing witness to nature's fury. I love when it rains so hard you think the world is going to flood (until things do start flooding, then it stops being fun). I especially love that it is still decently warm when it rains so I can stand with my arms outstretched and ask "Are you not entertained?!". (As always, the reference is here)

I made a night dive last night and it was an absolute blast. For all of my other night dives we have a) gone to really lame sites and b) been with a class so I couldn't do my own thing. Last night Millie and I jumped on the boat and got to go completely on our own. It was really cool but also a bit much to handle because I brought my camera with me. There is a lot to deal with when you are diving at night and adding a camera just makes it even harder. That being said, taking pictures at night is absolutely awesome! Colors come out so much better and all the fish sit still for portraits because they are sleeping! It was a great dive and only once we were back on the boat did I find out that Millie had minor panic attacks at times. Luckily she is as enthralled by bio-luminescence as I am so she was just fine!

These sponges are absolutely stunning at night

I guess that is life in a nut shell! Hopefully everyone isn't getting too bored of "more dive stories". The truth is, I have yet to get sick of diving. Each day provides some new adventure to experience. There is always something new to the dive, something that you can take away, even if it is just blowing bubble rings during safety stops.

This is the size of a pea! So incredible!

And this is an adult trunkfish, not the size of a pea!

I am heading off in a few to do a night dive of the wreck that sits just outside the harbor. It is one of my favorite dive sites and I can't wait to experience it at night. Since it is a staff boat I know it will be a fun crew.

I hope everyone is well and feeling good. I will continue to send warm vibes to those in need, even if it is a bit rainy here sometimes! Be well and take care!

Until next time,
Wreck diving adventure Gringo signing off