I see nothing!

John Hermanson is in town from Wisconsin and wanted to go diving. I got some gear for him and took him to the beach. The wind was up and from the East. We went in through a 3-5 ft surf that appeared much bigger when we were in the water. We got out without incident however, and descended over the reef. Visibility was terrible: less than 3 feet. I had John hold on to my tank as we made our way to the East. We somehow managed to find the two precursor rocks to the Fish Camp Rocks, but swam right past the Fish Camp Rocks themselves. We got to the ledge and swam North a bit, then came West to the beach. We went over a portion of the Big Coral Knoll, but saw very little. We quit after only one dive. I took the Intova point and shoot, but I took only one shot and it did not turn out so well. Maybe tomorrow.

Gabriela Gomez Earns Her Open Water Certification

This was Gabby's fourth and final open water dive required for certification. She was a little nervous and the surf was 2-3 ft. We got out beyond the breakers, swam past the swim buoy and descended. She kept close to me, but did not hesitate and did not have any problems equalizing her ears. I swam out at 90 degrees, expecting to find the Fish Camp Rocks, but instead came upon the Big Coral Knoll from the SE. It took a few

moments to recognize it. We made a quick swim through and I photographed a juvenile Puddingwife and a Yellowtail Damselfish, then headed to the South and the Fish Camp Rocks. Again, however, I got pushed by the current and only happened to see the Furry Rock to the West

as we were swimming. We completely passed the Fish Camp Rocks. Finally, though, we swam to the Rocks from the Furry Rock and we actually found them. I also found a Speckled Hermit Crab and got some pictures. Then we headed West to the beach.


Gabby was tired after her dive and just wanted to lie on the beach. Dianne and I made a second dive. We descended at the swim buoy and swam out to the Eastern edge of the reef. I spent a lot of

time shooting macro and got some good pictures, but did not find another jawfish with eggs in its mouth. I did find a second Speckled Hermit Crab, some Arrow Crab and a small Spotted Scorpionfish.

Solo Diving at Tower 17

Dianne just could not get up this morning, so I went solo. The sea was a little bouncy, but I got out just fine. I swam to the swim buoys then descended. Too much chop to swim on the

surface. I saw several Amphipod holes, but no amphipods. I did shoot a Green Razorfish, a Flamingo Tongue and some other critters. I also

found a small red crab among some staghorn coral and shot some Amphipods on my way back to the beach.

Fish Eggs!

The sea was absolutely calm and still when I first got in. There was some current to the North, but not a lot and visibility was pretty good. I headed due East for the Fish Camp Rocks, but ended up at the Furry Rock and swam North to the Fish Camp Rocks. As a habit I am deliberately

cultivating, I shot a test picture at the truck before I got in the water. Notwithstanding this check, the strobe was not hooked up for the dive. Even so, I got some good shots of a couple of


Green Sea Turtles and found a Dusky Jawfish with eggs in its mouth. I also got some pictures of a Sharptail Eel.


The wind was picking up some for the second dive, but the sea was still fairly calm. This time, I made certain that the strobe was hooked up. I swam to the Fish Camp Rocks then to the Eastern edge of the reef and then back to the Fish Camp Rocks, using the marker on a shelf above the ledge. I was feeling pretty good about my

navigation skills. I also found a Hawksbill Turtle, but I filled the CF card on my second visit to the Fish Camp Rocks.

Kayak Diving on Suze's Reef

I met Dick yesterday. He is a member of the Kayuba Dive Club and we have seen one another at the beach several times. He offered to bring his wife's kayak if I wanted to dive with them. I eagerly agreed. We met at the beach a little after 8:00 am. It was 9:30 before we got the gear loaded and got in the water. It was another hour to get to the site and get geared up. Everything has to be tied down in case you roll over, which means it all has to be untied to get in the water.

I started off diving with Dick and Mark, but they were looking for lobsters to eat while I preferred to take photos. John had forgotten his weights or weight belt and did not dive. I lost Dick and Mark on the reef and explored on my own for a while. I came up after about 40 minutes and talked with John as I tried to get my gear and myself back in the kayak. It was a struggle. Dick and Mark never came up, so I paddled over to their bubbles and jumped in again. They were after some lobster deep in the reef. I took photos and suddenly was attacked by a Triggerfish that had been circling me. He nipped me on the ear lob and drew blood. Then we got out and paddled home. It was an enjoyable experience.

Navigating Tower 17

I entered the water in front of Tower 17 and swam out at 100 degrees. From there, I headed 90 degrees. I proceeded slowly, trying to adjust for the current. As I swam, I spotted the Furry Rock with the extended polyps as I swam East. It was North of me. I swam to it, then swam at 330 degrees and spotted the Fish Camp Rocks about eighty feet out. I turned around and swam back at 140 degrees and found the Furry Rock again. Then I went at 350 degrees and spotted the Big Coral Knoll, but I was East, still, it was amazing considering the poor visibility.

Dianne and I Dive off Tower 17

Dianne and I entered the water in front of Tower 17 and swam out at 100 degrees. Just as we got onto the reef, Dianne spotted an eel under a coral head. I got a picture. We continued on to the East, but were South of the Furry Rock and well South of the Fish Camp Rocks when we swam by.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the Furry Rock with the extended polyps to the North of us as we swam by. We changed course and swam to it, then swam 330 degrees and spotted the Fish Camp Rocks about 80 feet out. We then headed due North and were East of the Big coral Knoll, but we were able to spot the wall. Spent some time on the Knoll taking photos. It was a good dive.

Turtles, We've Got Turtles

Luis and I entered calm surf in front of the Tower and swam almost to the reef before descending. We headed out at 100 degrees and ran into a Hawksbill turtle near the Fish Camp Rocks. We followed the turtle through the rocks and South for quite a ways, taking pictures and shooting

video. On the way back in, I ran out of air about the same time that Luis spotted a cushion Sea Star. I dived down in 10 ft to get a couple of pictures.

Getting Back in the Water

I used to make fun of people who wore coats during the winter in Florida, but I'm one of them now. It's cold here. Its cold on the surface. Its cold in the water. On the 7th of December this winter, the water temperature hit 68 degrees. On 7 January, it was 67 degrees. The temperature


bounced up to 73 degrees, but has also dropped back to 68 degrees several times throughout December, January and February. Its March and its still cold here.



I have been nursing a reverse block for over a week, but decided to get in the water today and see what happens. Dianne Co, Luis Monroy, Brian Putman and I entered in front of Tower 17 and swam out slowly at 100 degrees, but the visibility was so bad that even it we swam over the Fish Camp Rocks, we would not have seen

them. We got out to the Eastern edge of the reef and I went down to 35 ft, where my ears popped for the first time in the last week.

Why are we here?

Dianne and I decided to try a dive this morning. We have been trading our respective colds all winter and my ears were badly plugged up. I could not hear the air leaking from the bad O-ring on my tank when I set it up, but I could certainly hear and clearly see the bubbles once we got

underwater. Then my octopus started to free flow, too. I was unable to get it to stop, completely, but turning the tank off and then back on slowly did slow the free flow.


We swam out from Tower 17, but once again missed the Fish Camp Rocks. It was a short dive because I was leaking so much air from the tank. There was not much to photograph, but I did get a shot of a Scamp and and good series of a Smooth Trunkfish. After the dive, I went home and crawled into bed, where I stayed for the first 10 days of March.