Where did I go with my force fins?

[Soakedlontra]

It was a fun dive! And I have never lost my joy in doing shallow dives (in fact, I often prefer them) so long as there are critters to see!

I can't recall ever hearing a story of anyone actually being bitten by a ling. I have heard plenty of those stories about cabezons, and have personally seen two incidents, one of them involving me. The ling who was chasing you was by far and away the most aggressive individual I've ever seen, though. I think his "territory" was at least 50 feet in diameter, which is actually rather foolish, since while he was chasing us, somebody else was probably nibbling on the egg mass

Well, sadly, fishes are not famous for their high IQs! I saw another one last Sunday at the Fingers. He was as still as the Great Sphinx of Giza! (Funny...in Arabic Sphinx means The Terrifying One)






(courtesy of dahabescape.com)

 

[Soakedlontra]

Langley Marina at a very low tide

At high tide the piling in front of Sam is underwater.
In order to reach a depth of 25 ft we had to swim out beyond the concrete floating dock.


The top of this derelict, but charming, wharf, now a perfect resting place for all sort of birds, is destined to be turned down when construction works will begin at the marina. The idea is to allow light to reach the bottom so eelgrass can grow again.


The Pink Tritonia (Tritonia diomedea) is one of the largest nudibranch of the Pacific Northwest.
It reminds me of a crawling extra-thick slice of bacon. I bet that it doesn't taste like bacon, though.

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[Soakedlontra]

Diving off the coast of Jalisco, Mexico, in March: Stingrays

My buddy Sam is getting ready to roll back and plunge into the coolish Pacific Mexican water at Los Arcos, Jalisco.



Los Arcos is a cluster of granite islands located south of Puerto Vallarta in the Bahia de Banderas. It's a national marine park that thrives with marine life and a bird sanctuary. It's one of the few places in Mexico where the blue-footed booby nests. This view if from a trail at Mismaloya, the location where John Huston filmed The Night of the Iguana. Unfortunately the film set was replaced with a monstrous all inclusive resort.

It was great to see different species of rays considering that indiscriminate harvesting is reducing their numbers worldwide at an alarming pace.







Underwater Batman​

 

[Soakedlontra]

Diving off the coast of Jalisco, Mexico, in March: Moray Eels

Majahuita Reef is located not too far from Boca. Although the site is still within the Bahia de Banderas and it is more protected from the open ocean there is still plenty of surge movement underwater even if you are at 40 ft and below. I am used to the calm waters of Puget Sound where the surge is mostly noticeable at shallow depths. It was a learning experience letting my body swing back and forth with the waves. That watery power made me feel like a feather.

​

In these Mexican waters I saw far more species of moray eels than in the Caribbean:

1) Argus Moray Eel (Murenaena argus)

2) Snake Moray Eel ?

3) Zebra Moray Eel (Gymnomuraena zebra)

4) Yewel Moray Eel (Muraena lentiginosa)


I also encountered the Green Moray Eel but I was not able to get a good pictures of it its head and tail were hiding in holes and the

only thing I could see was the middle of its body.​

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Time to pack up and go back to shore:depressed:​

 

[Bob Evans]

Betty, another friend and "Sister", Connie Morgan, just posted our trip to Fuji video. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10201008681970062 How are you and Sam doing? Diving I hope .. ..and look forward to diving with you both when Dr. Alex Gagnon and Dr. Amy Eastwood move to Seattle.

 

[Soakedlontra]

3,000 miles away from Puget Sound

After driving 3,000 miles across the US in 6 days on June 10th I began my Video Production internship with the non-profit organization Northern Forest Canoe Trail based in Waitsfield, Vermont.

Yesterday I joined a group of volunteers from the European Frogbit Harvesting Program and documented their work at Town Farm Bay, Lake Champlain, VT. Unfortunately the visibility was terrible due to heavy rain so I could not get any underwater shots and the aquatic vegetation was so thick in places that I was better off walking with the fins on than kicking.




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[Soakedlontra]

Betty, another friend and "Sister", Connie Morgan, just posted our trip to Fuji video. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10201008681970062 How are you and Sam doing? Diving I hope .. ..and look forward to diving with you both when Dr. Alex Gagnon and Dr. Amy Eastwood move to Seattle.

Your trip sounds wonderful! Thank you very much for the link.

My latest post explains what's going on.

 

[Soakedlontra]

Snorkeling with divers at Upper Saranac Lake, NY

I spent a week in New York State interviewing members of different organizations that are dealing with aquatic invasive species in the Adirondacks.
On July 8th I joined the Upper Saranac Lake Manager Guy Middleton who organized a paddling aquatic invasive species tour on Fish Creek. My guide was journalist Mike Lynch who paddled the entire 740 miles of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail.



I was also able to snorkel with a team of divers who work for a contractor called Aquatic Invasive Management. They were harvesting non-native milfoil. The visibility was not that good but I was glad to see that the lake was full of fish and other native aquatic plants. My guide was Guy Middleton and this time we relied on the power of an engine rather then our arms to travel across the lake.





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[Soakedlontra]

Meeting my first freshwater mussels at Lake Memphremagog, Vermont

I have just come back from Northern Vermont where I spent a couple of days with the Northern Forest Canoe Trail Stewardship Crew. I filmed the crew conducting aquatic invasive species surveys in the southern part of Lake Memphremagog.



It was an opportunity to snorkel in a body of water that's rich in wildlife and native aquatic plants. However, I noticed that some invasive species have established themselves too. For the first time I saw freshwater native mussels. I didn't think that they could grow as big as their marine cousins. I was surprised by the friendliness of the local fish population and marveled at the different species that swam by.



I paddled with the crew members to the camp that they had established to build a campsite for paddlers traveling along the Northern Forest Canoe Trail.



I managed to snorkel a little bit more before hell broke loose with thunderbolts cracking up the sky in all directions and unbelievable downpours.
(I will never complain about Washington weather again!)





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[Soakedlontra]

Maine Waterworld

In Maine I had the opportunity to film kids while they were having a lot of water fun at Camp Kawanhee on the eastern shore of Webb Lake. It's rather remarkable that the camp has been a source of outdoor recreational fun for boys since 1920.



I have been blown away by the breathtaking views of Moosehead Lake, River and Mount Kineo from a seaplane. It was the smallest aircraft that I had ever been in.
There was room for two passengers only.




Along the Northern Forest Canoe Trail the possibilities for snorkeling and scuba diving are endless.
Can you imagine bumping into a moose underwater? :nervous:






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