but there was no giraffe

So having lugged our kit, well Lawrence wheeled his, rubbing in that fact that my bag didn’t look that heavy ‘Oh that’s right you’ve lost your kit!’.

We had been told we need to be on the dock an hour before the boat leaves, in time to assist students or customers depending on what you’re up to, so leaving the apartment at … oh 11:55am we got to the shop at 11:59am. The boat, Martini’s Law, was on the pier we wonder around looking gormless, trying to blend in – one of us can manage this better than the other – you can guess who!.

Ok kit on the boat, tanks checked and also on, we sat around for 1/2 an hour chewing the breeze and trying to look like we might be competent. The boats aren’t big max 15 divers so when there were only 8 of us on as we left the harbour it was looking good with plenty of space to spread out and wait till we arrived at the dive site – we I’d had enough time to unscrew the cap on my water and take a drink and we were there. A little aside this is the way to do it, hours on a boat to get there and hours back, HELL NO we’ve got things to do ………… no really… I needed to wash my hair; salt water makes it so brittle!

We introduced ourselves to the accompanying divers and we settled down into random diver conversations – what goes on a dive boat should stay on a dive boat. I started doing the ‘Where’s the Hell Matt?’ dance claiming this was good luck on the dive and obviously attract a lot to see……. No one else would join in, not sure why?

Nothing to exciting on the first, plenty of soft corals, few fish; moray eels and quiet high levels of turbidity – turbidity for those non divers is a measure of particular matter in the H2O. I thought I would conduct the second half of the dive head down fins up for the hell of it. (Well actually I was perfectly weighted until I used some air and combined with a new wetsuit was then underweight …ARSE!!!) Think I carried it off thou although I now will have to dive that way for the rest of the time here to back up my cover story.

On surfacing and getting back aboard El Capitan set off across the smooth sea at a great rate of knots. Well the dancing had paid off here had been a sighting of WHALE SHARKS.. oh yes the biggest fish on the planet. So for the next 11/2hrs we searched for and swam with 3 different sharks – and what’s even better we had a camera to record this monumental experience.

We then headed back to Ted’s Point for our second dive along a fine wall in between 3-18m metres and again plenty of soft corals along with more moray eels. Finishing the dive and now heading back to the beach we only happened across a huge pod of dolphins which then proceeded to ride the bow wave, jumping in and out of the water as El Capitan again cracked open the throttle and we blasted our way across the bay – YEE ha!!!

Now off to look at the books and instructor outlines for digital photography and DPV (Diver Propulsion Vehicle). A small motorised vehicle to propel the diver around in the water without fining, that’ll be dull, Yawn.
All in all not a bad first couple of dives .. I’m holding out to see a giraffe at 20m’s.

Cheers Big Ears