Set off out to the reef with slight trepidation. The rain had come in overnight, and it had been pissing down ever since. I worried about visibility. The other younger females on board worried about their hair... 90 minutes out to the reef and we were off!
What followed was 7 amazing dives. It was warm enough that only a short wetsuit was necessary (decided not to worry too much that the snorkellers were all in stinger suits and we weren't). Buddied up with a young guy called Simon - for the first time in my life I was the more experienced of the two, so I was responsible for depth, checking air, plotting the course etc. Exciting, but problematic with a digital camera in tow. Photographers are notoriously bad buddies.
Within minutes of descending we had seen our first clown fish. Great start. Foxface rabbitfish followed, and other species in abundance. The second dive of the day delivered triggerfish (aggressive and territorial, one of them took a dislike to me and charged!) and a gorgeous little cowfish, which was responsible for me crashing into the reef and lacerating the back of my left leg. Smoothly done. Always good to be bleeding when 30 metres down in shark territory!
For the third dive, we transferred to the boat on which we were to spend the night. Taka was an old, single hull, probably around 50 ft long. My little bunk was in the gunnels of the ship. With the swell as it was, I aimed to spend as little time there as possible. Three people were already being violently seasick, as the crew (mostly Aussies and Kiwis) merrily discussed the oncoming cyclone. WHAAAT??
Apart from this, the crew were awesome - one guy even treating us to an underwater gangam style display! The other divers were a mixed bunch. A very large American in a 'honey badger dont give a shit' t-shirt (LOVE!) and a backpacker of the 'in India WE do this' variety. Keep dreaming love, we all know you're a Cali girl...
The easiest way to feel more normal and forget the waves was to head back down under the water. The nearest bommie was awash with little glassfish, which promised lionfish in the near vicinity. They didn't disappoint - think we saw about 5 of them! Our ascent, with the obligatory 3 minute safety stop at 5 metres was made all the more interesting by a curious batfish, who swam straight up and started investigating us. Slightly unnerving, but it passed the time!
After dinner we headed down for the night dive. Standing on the dive deck looking out into the inky black water, it did not feel remotely natural to be considering getting in. Especially when the crew switched on the spotlights, bringing in the sharks. The water was teeming with them - various people helped matters by chucking them some bacon. However, despite this daunting spectacle, this did mean that they were all busy at the back of the boat, so we could jump off the side and descent unaccompanied.
Well, not for long - Trevallys soon joined us, using our torch beams as guides for their dinner. About a metre in length, these silver fish are very solid, and you certainly feel it when they bump you out the way! Other highlights included spotting a sleeping parrotfish, which had sealed itself in a mucus bubble for protection. Everywhere the torch shone, millions of the little red eyes of crustaceans reflected back. It was completely different to any dive I've ever done, and a fantastic experience. On the ascent, the silhouettes of circling sharks above (luckily just reef sharks!) was quite a sight.
After a very fitful nights sleep it was all go again. The waves had grown overnight, tossing you from one side of the bunk to the other. Unfortunately, I woke around 1am with an overwhelming desire to pee. But with the sea so rocky, and the toilets all outside, I suddenly had a flashback to the 'Life of Pi'. If I was to get up, naturally I would get washed overboard into a lifeboat with a tiger, while the rest of the crew and clients drowned! Better to cross my legs and wait till morning...
I'll try and speed this up! 3 more dives that day with butterfly fish, angelfish, moorish idols and yet more clownfish. With one dive to go I was ever so slightly disappointed that I hadnt seen a turtle. Everything else had been amazing, but that would be the icing on the cake. The last dive site was by far the most visually stunning. We took on a 30m tunnel - pitch black in parts, and quite tight, but the feeling when you emerge is amazing. And then my buddy Trevor starting gesticulating wildly at me. I looked around confused, I could see nothing. He mimed the awkward turtle at me. I felt slightly affronted. Then I suddenly got it - he could see a turtle. God knows why I hadn't - a beautiful green turtle was right in front of us! It paddled placidly around, gorging on sea lettuce.
It wasnt until I got my photos back that I realised we could have seen a turtle on our first dive - we, erm, were just looking the wrong way!
What followed was 7 amazing dives. It was warm enough that only a short wetsuit was necessary (decided not to worry too much that the snorkellers were all in stinger suits and we weren't). Buddied up with a young guy called Simon - for the first time in my life I was the more experienced of the two, so I was responsible for depth, checking air, plotting the course etc. Exciting, but problematic with a digital camera in tow. Photographers are notoriously bad buddies.
Within minutes of descending we had seen our first clown fish. Great start. Foxface rabbitfish followed, and other species in abundance. The second dive of the day delivered triggerfish (aggressive and territorial, one of them took a dislike to me and charged!) and a gorgeous little cowfish, which was responsible for me crashing into the reef and lacerating the back of my left leg. Smoothly done. Always good to be bleeding when 30 metres down in shark territory!
For the third dive, we transferred to the boat on which we were to spend the night. Taka was an old, single hull, probably around 50 ft long. My little bunk was in the gunnels of the ship. With the swell as it was, I aimed to spend as little time there as possible. Three people were already being violently seasick, as the crew (mostly Aussies and Kiwis) merrily discussed the oncoming cyclone. WHAAAT??
Apart from this, the crew were awesome - one guy even treating us to an underwater gangam style display! The other divers were a mixed bunch. A very large American in a 'honey badger dont give a shit' t-shirt (LOVE!) and a backpacker of the 'in India WE do this' variety. Keep dreaming love, we all know you're a Cali girl...
The easiest way to feel more normal and forget the waves was to head back down under the water. The nearest bommie was awash with little glassfish, which promised lionfish in the near vicinity. They didn't disappoint - think we saw about 5 of them! Our ascent, with the obligatory 3 minute safety stop at 5 metres was made all the more interesting by a curious batfish, who swam straight up and started investigating us. Slightly unnerving, but it passed the time!
After dinner we headed down for the night dive. Standing on the dive deck looking out into the inky black water, it did not feel remotely natural to be considering getting in. Especially when the crew switched on the spotlights, bringing in the sharks. The water was teeming with them - various people helped matters by chucking them some bacon. However, despite this daunting spectacle, this did mean that they were all busy at the back of the boat, so we could jump off the side and descent unaccompanied.
Well, not for long - Trevallys soon joined us, using our torch beams as guides for their dinner. About a metre in length, these silver fish are very solid, and you certainly feel it when they bump you out the way! Other highlights included spotting a sleeping parrotfish, which had sealed itself in a mucus bubble for protection. Everywhere the torch shone, millions of the little red eyes of crustaceans reflected back. It was completely different to any dive I've ever done, and a fantastic experience. On the ascent, the silhouettes of circling sharks above (luckily just reef sharks!) was quite a sight.
After a very fitful nights sleep it was all go again. The waves had grown overnight, tossing you from one side of the bunk to the other. Unfortunately, I woke around 1am with an overwhelming desire to pee. But with the sea so rocky, and the toilets all outside, I suddenly had a flashback to the 'Life of Pi'. If I was to get up, naturally I would get washed overboard into a lifeboat with a tiger, while the rest of the crew and clients drowned! Better to cross my legs and wait till morning...
I'll try and speed this up! 3 more dives that day with butterfly fish, angelfish, moorish idols and yet more clownfish. With one dive to go I was ever so slightly disappointed that I hadnt seen a turtle. Everything else had been amazing, but that would be the icing on the cake. The last dive site was by far the most visually stunning. We took on a 30m tunnel - pitch black in parts, and quite tight, but the feeling when you emerge is amazing. And then my buddy Trevor starting gesticulating wildly at me. I looked around confused, I could see nothing. He mimed the awkward turtle at me. I felt slightly affronted. Then I suddenly got it - he could see a turtle. God knows why I hadn't - a beautiful green turtle was right in front of us! It paddled placidly around, gorging on sea lettuce.
It wasnt until I got my photos back that I realised we could have seen a turtle on our first dive - we, erm, were just looking the wrong way!
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