Well, they were hoping to snorkel with the divers. When we got the five-minutes away, they were told the seas were too choppy for snorkeling.
And were they right. After a good check-in (though nothing could be as efficient as with Scuba Bula), we were on the first boat, which really only took us the fifty feet to where the dive boat was moored.
There were five of us, plus three staff, including Joseph, our guide. He gave us a boat briefing, then we started out to the reef.
It was a bucking forty-five minute ride to the island we'd be diving near, just inside the barrier reef. It was the first chance of many to be seasick, but all of us seemed to handle it well (though quietly). There was a bit of excitement as the captain yelled swordfish, but all I saw was what looked like a dolphin jump! I forgot to ask them if that was what they were actually saying, or if there were just both.
Once we got to the island, we spent probably fifteen minutes circling the island to find the best conditions for diving. We would stop, Joseph and the captain would yell back and forth, sometimes he would jump into the waves to look down at the sea floor. Joseph was in and out of the boat three times before we were even in once!
They must have either found the right place or given up on anything being calm, and we were told to jump in, congregate at the front of the boat, then descend.
Once we were down a few meters, it was a swaying surge, with a slight bit of current, but nothing unmanageable. And boy, was it worth it. It was supposedly a wall dive, but we stayed near the top, pretty much, and then finished along the sloping ridge of it.
The diversity of coral was stunning. Many fish, lots of soft corals swaying about, and hard coral of so many colors. Maria and Valerie both asked me about the muted colors they experienced while snorkeling. It's like that diving as well - the water filters out the short wavelengths, such as red, quickly, and eventually the others as well. If you have a dive light or a flash camera, you can add those colors back in.
It was among my shorter dives - one of the guys was really pedaling instead of hovering, though I'm not sure if he was the one that used his air fastest. The guide was only planning on doing 45 minutes anyway.
Joseph had us at a pretty brisk pace, and we had to loop back around to let a guy catch up. About halfway through the dive, we came upon a sea turtle, who coasted past us and to some more serene pastures, I'm sure. There were giant sea slugs, fish of the rainbow, including some big parrotfish, clownfish, surgeonfish, and more. (Clearly the sea turtle was the highlight.)
I had some difficulties with my buoyancy during the safety stop, and Joseph ended up holding me down. We got to the surface together, then were on the end of the life ring that was thrown out to us. The boat buckled, and we were thrown off.
I put my regulator back in, and we swam gripping each other for over five minutes in the choppy sea as the boat circled us, trying to get close.
I wasn't panicked - why not spend a bit of surface interval playing in the waves? We were plenty buoyant, and I had my snorkel if the tank ran out.
We got on the boat pretty tired from swimming though. It was off again, bumping over the waves to get to our next dive site. I chatted with a gal from Australia who was asking about how the NFL worked. Apparently rugby doesn't have a lot of female fans, so she's looking elsewhere for her fandom. (Don't tell Mark, but I might have "accidentally" made her a Steelers fan.)
We again jumped in and descended quickly to reduce the time being swept back and forth at the surface. Joseph again set us on a brisk pace, on a bit of a hill with some monochromatic corals and a sandy bottom we could see.
A few minutes into the dive, Joseph started tapping his tank, then pointed out in the blue (well, more brown in this water - the visibility was decent at 15 meters) at the reef shark that was swimming by! We saw another three chilling on the bottom a few minutes further on - I didn't do the Fiji shark dive where they feed them and always get sharks. Because it was less guaranteed, it was more special.
We rose up the ridge to find a moray hiding - not very well - in a crevice. With a sandy bottom between coral nubs, we got a chance to see (and disturb) two blue-spotted stingrays!
I made it on to the boat this time without nearly as much pomp and circumstance. We bumped our way back to shore (I felt every minute of that 45 minute ride), and spent ten minutes trying to wrangle the smaller boat near enough to ours to get us on it. I should've just jumped in. Well, except for my phone and towel and all that.
I got Joseph to sign my book, then it was back to the Wyndham and the empty room that awaited.
I showered, then spent some time anxious about what I was going to do on my final day. Diving was out, since I had a plane to get on. Should I rent a car and drive to the national park? Well, reviews said you need 4WD, so that was out. I looked at a few of the brochures, but my apathy and loneliness had me avoiding the issue by reading on the porch.
The serenaders came by, and their singing (and maybe a bit of reading and relaxing) spurred me into action. I booked some zip lining, though only the morning tour was running. There's a cyclone coming, didn't you know?
No. No I did not know. Rosie, the tour agent, didn't give me a lot of optimism when I asked if my flight the next day should be ok. She just shrugged. Sunday is the day it is supposed to come closest to the island, she said.
I thought about rushing to the airport to see if I could make my flight a day earlier, but diving then flying is risky. I spent the rest of the evening wishing a Happy New Year (finally, 18 hours later) to the East Coast, and watching the culturally important "Step It Up 2: All In". I finished the majority of the contents of the fridge - fried rice, quinoa, and turned the peanut butter, bananas, and chocolate kisses into a great frozen shake dessert. Oh, and I watched just enough of the live action 101 Dalmations to realize Doctor House's actor was one of the goons.
I didn't do any packing though, so an alarm is set for 6:50am - hopefully an hour is enough time!
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