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We made it yesterday too, one day late. There’ve been some heavy rains and no evidence of ash, which we were told was present in Manado for a couple of days. Water seems fine, 81-82F today

I was on a boat with a couple of folks using prerelease HF-1s in January. Their ability to repetitively fire was very impressive, and not needing separate video lights, plus red light, plus 21700s—I think they’re likely to be as much a step forward as the MF1/2, and for a good price.

We’re now on a planned two-day layover in Singapore, booked on Scoot to Manado/MDC tomorrow morning. MDC has been closed since Thursday, but is expected to reopen today (Sunday) at noon. Our Scoot itinerary is holding so far, and I haven’t seen mention of recent eruptions.

https://static01.nyt.com/images/2024/04/17/multimedia/17xp-indonesiavolcano-hmlz/17xp-indonesiavolcano-hmlz-superJumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp

Could get interesting—we’re headed out tomorrow and scheduled into Manado Monday. Someone hustled an interesting video about it onto YouTube already, although I gather from the spirited comments some of the footage might be old/stock.

"All the coral scientists BBC News spoke to said that we must accept that reefs as we know them will permanently change and small-scale restoration work cannot save coral globally." Between May and September last year, the beautiful reefs of the Jardines de la Reina south of Cuba were...

Sounds like you gave it a good workout. The Solas 15k is a brilliant light in both senses, but is REALLY heavy, especially for a small, otherwise-positive rig, especially with no flotation. Do you find advantages in the BlackMagic camera app? I know a serious iPhone photographer who has...

BBC published this. Coral bleaching: Fourth global mass stress episode underway - US scientists

Henderson Hot Skins has been our go-to for a long time. They last about five years and cost $30-$80. Good alone in warm water and good under a westsuit or Lavacore.

I find Go Sport excellent in muck. They are a bit negative, and a little shorter than many, so it’s easy to keep off the bottom. Acceleration is good, they pack wel, and are surprisingly light. I spent a week in Tulamben in the fall and had a good many dives with moderate-to-honking current...

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/canada-turfed-out-more-spies-to-the-u-s-than-elsewhere/article_47f12eac-6252-5f9e-a119-c358fa19ca4c.html

My partner was certified in 2012, after I'd been for many years, although without much diving. I had a business trip to Australia and we wanted to dive the GBR, which we did--that was her first salt water dive. We went to Bonaire next, and she had a lot of concerns (she's always been a good...

JDelage, be sure you have the macro capability toggled on

I suspect that the least-blasted Caribbean reefs now are off of Saba. Many of the sites are fairly deep, and so less affected by the crazy temperatures, and my sense is that the SCTLD impact there is not extreme. Also, it’s a unique island, with great hiking and wild topography. There are...

Maybe the tigers were studying technique with the orcas?

Papua New Guinea (fantastically remote diving, and you can hike the Kokoda Trail, 100 miles, one the the 10 hardest trails in the world)

Agreed. When I read the piece in Alert Diver, I asked our travel agent whether the company kept track of operators who barred divers based on age. She hadn't heard of any, but said that the company will begin tracking it. The article was vague enough that it may not actually be happening much...

Have a great trip! The bleaching damage should be significantly mitigated. Do you know which boat you'll be on?

Thanks, tursiops. One minor note--Undaria agricites is the old name for Agaricia agaricites, which NOAA lists as "presumed susceptible." The 2024 Frontiers article includes an image of presumed SCTLD on A. agaricites, so the jury may be out on that species (however, the authors categorize its...

There are reliable direct flights between Sorong and Manado, which serves Bunaken and Lembeh, which check your 10-minute boat ride box. Both airports have service to Singapore through Jakarta, so it’s reasonable to do some days on Kri and a week or more in north Sulawesi in two weeks before or...