TWARS (This Week at Reef Seekers) - August 20-27

[Ken Kurtis]

LIVE FROM ISLA MUJERES, and more (please scroll down for details)​

Looks like we got out of town just in time . . . SOUNDS LIKE HILARY WASN'T AS BAD AS IT COULD HAVE BEEN - We got out ahead of the storm, although we were delayed a bit due to re-routing around it, but it sounds like L.A. was spared the worst of things as the storm tracked to the east. Seems like lots of rain but without the feared winds. Of course, the EARTHQUAKE wasn't on the agenda and literally and figuratively shook things up. But we're not complaining about having missed any of this. WE'RE IN ISLA MUJERES - In case you've never heard of it, it's a small island just north of Cancun. And the reason we come here is because just north of Isla, from May-September, is an annual gathering of whale sharks that's thought to be the largest in the world, with as many as 400-800 individual animals estimated. We're alternating diving days with whale shark days - you're limited to snorkeling with them - and today was a dive day. And it was lovely. 85 degree water, 40-80' viz, and lots of cool stuff to see, as you can see from some of the pix below. (There are more on our FaceBook page.)​

THE WEEK AHEAD - We're here for the rest of this week and will try to post pix daily on FaceBook, both the Ken Kurtis page and the Reef Seekers page. As I mentioned above, we're alternating dive and Whale Shark days so hopefully tomorrow we'll have some leviathan shots for you. FIRST TIME HERE SINCE 2016 - A lot has changed since we were last here. The dive shop we use - Aqua Eco Adventures - in under new ownership. The Whale Shark interaction rules have been tightened down a bit to protect the Whale Sharks better. But the biggest change - and maybe this is because we've only been here Saturday and Sunday so far - is how much more crowded and touristy the place has gotten. Yikes!!! The streets were really crowded today. It's easy to get here from Cancun - only a 20-minute ferry ride and the ferries run every 30 minutes - and a lot of Cancun locals come over here on the weekend to get away. So we'll see if things calm down tomorrow (Monday). But there's been a lot of new construction and updating of old buildings so business is good, apparently, but Isla is no longer a sleepy little island. ZOOM SEEKERS CHANGE - Our September 12 speaker was going to be Dr. Charlotte Sadler updating us about diving and COVID but she's got a sked conflict (she's going on her honeymoon so we can't really protest that one too much) so instead, we're moving Karl Huggins up to September and Charlotte will do October 10. Karl will be talking about "Dive Computer Dangers" because using a computer properly is not always just a question of looking at the display. Make a note to join us because Karl's talks are always informative and worth listening to. SOUTH CAROLINA DRIFTING DIVERS FOUND SAFE - Nothing like a 12-hour drift to appreciate a problem-free dive. Seems that four divers in South Carolina drifted away from their dive boat and it took 12 hours to locate them. (This is where something like a Nautilus Lifeline would have been quite handy.) They were spotted because one of the divers had a strobe light that the USCG helicopter saw. Whew!!! You can read more about it here: MISSING DIVERS FOUND. And that'll do it for now. Join us vicariously as we experience all that Isla has to offer. And once all the rain from Hilary passes . . . Have a great week and let's go diving soon!!! - Ken​