Beneath the Waves | the Year Ahead

For the first time, I have put together a calendar with some of my underwater images. With twenty-fifteen around the corner I thought now is as good a time as ever to share this. The images included in the calendar were taken in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean and consist of wide variety of marine life. The calendar is available for purchase at RedBubble.com 

May the year ahead be full of health and happiness!

  

Drysuit Diving in Malta

One of the first steps in preparing for an underwater expedition next summer in the Arctic is getting acquainted with a type of exposure suit that will keep me warm and dry in one of the most extreme places on the planet.  Having only been scuba diving in warm, tropical destinations I've only ever needed a wetsuit.  So I wasn't sure what to expect when it comes to drysuits.  But I do know that if I want to dive in the Arctic, getting drysuit certified is obligatory.

Arriving in Malta for Easter weekend, I made my way over to the dive shop, Divewise, in St. Julian's Bay.  I spent some time diving with them back in September and felt confident that I'd be in the best hands on the island.  Viv and Jacques (the dog) are quite welcoming and quickly get things sorted for the course.  I'm given a new Otter dry suit to try on and while getting my head through the latex seal was much more difficult than I anticipated, I like the look and feel of the red and black suit.   I slightly feel like an astronaut; especially after I learn that the zipper on the suit traces its roots back to the space program's need for a water/airtight seal.  I've certainly never seen a similar zipper anywhere before.

As I took my first steps into the chilly 16C Mediterranean Sea, I quickly realized the importance of the undergarments I had on below the shell of my dry suit.  Ultimately these undergarments are where the warmth comes from as the shell itself simply keeps the water out.   Adding air to the suit will also provide necessary insulation between your body and the cold water.

*Freeze frame from GoPro Hero3+ with Backscatter Flip 3.1 Filter

Wet Feet

The idea of scuba diving has always intrigued me. It’s was one of those bucket list items I thought would be great to try once, just to say I did it. But the truth is, scuba diving is not something you can say you’ve tried if you’ve only been once or twice.  I’ve always loved the ocean. Marine life of all shapes and sizes piqued my interest. But for some reason, I was also slightly terrified of it as a kid and that fear followed me into adulthood.  So when the 

opportunity to finally give it a shot came about, naturally all I could think about were the sea monsters below the surface waiting to get me.  Instead of focusing on how amazing it was that my first ever dive was in the Great Barrier Reef of Australia, I focused all of my energy on how much I did not want to see a shark.  All I could think about after both feet were safely back on the boat was how lucky I was to be in one piece and that while it was an amazing 

experience, I probably couldn’t bring myself to try it again.  Why take the risk? By the way, about that shark I didn't want to see; I saw him and he saw me and I was shocked at how quickly he wanted to get away from us.