PARADISE… what does that word actually symbolize to a diver?

The birds singing so loudly at sunrise, they wake you up. Rolling over to a view of the sun’s rays mirrored in the glasslike bay. The first thought that races thru your mind…within a couple hours, you’ll be 80-100 feet below sea level and diligently searching for new critters to study and admire.
Fresh fruit off the trees, sliced and served for breakfast. Making new friends from around the world who all speak a common language… ocean experiences. Divers form a tight bond to improve security because their life could depend on a fellow diver in an emergency. Rather than a television blasting political differences, you relax by the pool in between dives with a good book…or simply nap in order to regain your strength for the next dive. At the end of a long dive, relax and enjoy riding the surge during your safety stop at around 20 feet atop a brightly lite coral garden abundant with fish representing every color in the rainbow. After a full day composed of 3-4 dives….although you’re already water logged….the fresh water that washes the salt away in your outdoor shower with only the jungle plants surrounding you for privacy…is more than welcomed and appreciated. A romantic dinner on your balcony or in the resort restaurant sharing your “new” finds of the day with fellow divers concludes the day and establishes the place we divers call “PARADISE”.

I used to drag my camera on every dive and then each evening meticulously and steadfastly record every major type of sea critter I was fortunate enough to observe in my dive log at the end of each day… but after 15+ years and well edging to 400 dives, in over 20 different countries, I now just “enjoy the dive”. Occasionally I take my camera and spot something new that I haven’t seen in the past….But now days, just the thrill of adding a new critter to my memory satisfies me.

So far on this trip, I’ve seen a few new critters … a couple UNIQUE to this region. A brown banded bamboo shark hiding in a pile of rubbish and several large schools of banggai cardinalfish. We’ve also seen several broadclub cuttlefish, a needle cuttlefish and even a flamboyant cuttlefish. Cuttlefish are in the same family as octopus and squid, and they have the ability to use camouflage to sneak up on prey, they flash several colors and waves of light toward their prey, apparently to hypnotize it. We witnessed squid laying their eggs and admired a coconut octopus for several minutes…just to mention a few of our moments underwater today.

I also had a blood pressure test yesterday morning… I rolled off the boat and began my descent to approximately 45 feet. When I was about 2 feet off the bottom, I saw what I believed to be a banded sea snake swimming along the sand right under me. The banded sea snake is 3 times more poisonous than a Cobra. My heart skipped a couple of beats, and I quickly changed courses to avoid him. Later on the boat, my dive master mentioned he saw my “freak out” and explained it was actually a banded snake eel. They are almost identical, but the banded sea snake has a yellow snout. It can move at 12 miles per hour and kill a human in less than 30 minutes. They are usually not aggressive unless provoked. And the good news is their fangs are very short and generally can not pierce a wet suit. Another good reason to always wear a wet suit even in the warmer oceans.

The other extremely poisonous critter I spotted was on yesterday’s dive….the blue ring octopus. The venom in one is enough to kill 10 men.. it shuts down your respiratory system within minutes. I photographed both of these in the past in the Philippines. I always keep my distance and never provoke them.

Last night at dinner, one of the divers came hobbling in on crutches. When walking thru the sandy tide to begin a dive off the house reef, she stepped on a devil spinefish…OUCH!!! Their venom is highly toxic, so the staff had rushed her to mainland hospital and the doctor made sure no spines were left in her foot and treated her for the poison.

Now you understand why divers don’t worry about sharks😜