Rain and diving at night (the hard way)……

Rolled out to another morning of some gnarly looking clouds and intermittent rain showers. If I am to believe the local forecast we are to have that for the rest of the week. Gots to have the rain, to have all the beautiful foliage we have on this island…… it also is the primary water source for many people on the island.

I cut out rather abruptly last night because I had hit my limit….. so a few more thoughts and lots more pictures for tonight. I found out (the hard way) taking pictures by using a dive light is a lot more complicated than I ever imagined….. pointing the camera with one hand and aiming the light with the other hand while floating through pitch blackness is a challenge all in of it’s own. I found out (the hard way) when you sink to the bottom to get ‘that shot’ and you lay your bare arm on some fire coral that you did not see, that it burns like hell….. and lasts through out the dive and about 6 hours afterwards. I found out (the hard way) that just because you hold your light out in front of you like the dive master instructed while swimming, it does not necessarily stop you from swimming head first into giant steel pilon’s that hold up the pier. Luckily, there was not a lot of coral growth on it, so the only thing that got hurt was my head. Banging your head on said pilon (when you hit hard enough) also dislodges your mask and shoves it down over your nose and regulator. Nothing I couldn’t correct, but doing it in pitch black with cameras and flash lights dangling off of your arms – adds a whole new dimension to it. I also found out (the hard way), walking out of the water, avoiding large rocks that will trip you is a bit more of a challenge when doing it by flashlight. I found out (the hard way) – that just taking your gear apart back at the truck and putting everything up in your gear bag by flash light is no walk in the park either~! So – lots of things to learn on your first night dive, some the hard way, and I can only imagine the myriad of things that ‘could have’ happened to complicate things, but didn’t, thankfully. So – a whole new dimension to my new pastime….. did it scare me ? A little bit…… was it much more difficult ? A little bit….. was it weird and creepy ? A little bit….. will I ever make another night dive ? You bet~~! Mom, Dad, Shift Leaders, managers and a multitude of other people have all said there was something wrong with me…… maybe they were on to something…….

Good night Ya’ll —– Thankx for stopping in~!