mdchachi's Dive Log - 2000-2009

	Dive Log - Previous Page
2000	Izu, Japan	I was in Tokyo again for the summer so I made sure to take a couple of days to dive. This was the first time I used rental equipment in a long time and really f*cked up.  I jumped in the water before realizing the regulator they gave me was missing the hose for my BC!  So I dove without being able to add air to my BC.  Luckily my weights were set pretty well and it turned out not to be a problem.  Still it was stupid not to have noticed it when I was gearing up. Dumb, amateur mistake!  Anyway as I mentioned before, if you want to dive near Tokyo contact Mar Scuba.
2002	Jamaica	Jamaica is not a dive destination you hear much about and indeed my two dives there (in Runaway Bay) were not spectacular. Still it's a nice place to go if diving is not your primary reason for being there. There was not much in the way of tropical fish, however, there was a large variety of coral.  And the water was 85 degrees so no wetsuit was needed (gotta like that!) Besides the few  tropical fish, I did see one ray and a stone fish. Also tried out my new Ikelite Auto35 camera with some success. I managed to get a glimpse of how colorful the stonefish -- under all of its camouflage -- really is. For a great diving experience anywhere along the north coast contact Kellie or Christian at Jamaica Scuba Divers.
2002	St. Clair River Port Huron, Michigan	After almost 10 years I came full circle and dove in Michigan once again. The spot this time was the St. Clair River in sight of the Blue Water Bridge and Lake Huron. Conditions at the river are highly variable but, finally, I had my chance and joined my cousin, an old hand at diving the river. We clambered over the waist-high rail of a pedestrian boardwalk and jumped in to the blue water seven feet below. You don't fill your BC with air, giant-stride in and float around at the top here. No, the entry method of choice is jump straight down feet together and sink like a rock before the waves and current have a chance to take you (before jumping, you better make damn sure your air's on and your regulator's in your mouth!) For Michigan the water was very clear with visibility on the order of 30 feet. It wasn't the Caribbean but it wasn't nearly as cold as I feared with water temps of 70-75F. We dove an area where there's an eddy current. Close to the wall, you're pushed upstream, farther out you're pushed downstream. And depending where you were the current could get strong. We pulled ourselves up a boom from some 1970's wreck and held on there, 3 or so meters from the bottom. The current there was very strong, far too strong to swim against even for a moment. We saw first hand the plague of zebra mussels ailing the Great Lakes. There were a bunch of cute little bottom dwelling fish (Goby?). Plus there were several large fish (Walleye?) that any of the fisherman in the area would have been proud to catch. I didn't take my u/w camera because I knew I would be too busy dealing with the new environment but maybe next time.
2004	Maldives	As ridiculous as it sounds, we were just passing through and only spent 2 1/2 days in the Maldives so only had time for two dives. The water was about as beautiful and clear as it gets and tropically warm. Didn't see anything overly spectacular but that's to be expected when you only dive a couple of times and are with resort divers diving the easier sites. A live-aboard in this region would be tempting. As you can see here in this shot of my friend Sean, I still haven't figured out how to point my Auto35 camera very well. I kept aiming high and ended up with many mis-aimed shots. We stayed at Paradise Island.
2005	Mexico	Our trip to Cancun was a great vacation which included lots of diving -- two dives at Cozumel, two in a cenote (cavern) and two at Cancun. We used Manta Divers for all dives.
	Cozumel	We were staying in Cancun but arranged for a day of diving at Cozumel.  It was excellent diving.  Lots of corals and plentiful fish.  And warm waters.  On the first dive we dove through a tunnel full of fish which was cool. Also saw a spotted moray eel which was different than the giant morays I'm used to from my Pacific diving.
	Cenote	During the next day of diving, we dove in a cenote.  Cenote are underwater caverns.  It's like cave diving but a little safer (but still dangerous) because there are caverns along the way where you can surface if you get into trouble.  It was (chilly) fresh water diving however at one part we dove through a halocline which is where the fresh water and ocean water meets.  The water all of a sudden got hazy and shimmery until you got through to the other side.  It was like diving through some sort of space warp. There were also beams of light shining from above into the cave along the way, adding to the space-like experience.  Very cool.
	Cancun	On our third dive day, we stayed in Cancun.  Although Cancun is a built-up strip of resorts, the diving just offshore was surprisingly good.  It was just about as good as our Cozumel experience.  Lots of corals and lots of fish.  Also saw a green moray eel.
2006	Bahamas	We took a quick vacation to Grand Bahama Island in the Bahamas and I had time to get in 3 dives including one night dive.  On the first dive I saw the La Rose - an old tugboat that had been sunk just a few months before. It's a good dive because you can do the wreck and corals on the same dive.  We also went to Ben's Blue Hole which is a hole in the middle of the reef where water flows in and out of the island's natural fresh water system. The night dive was my first since Australia. It was very cool with luminescent plankton that light up in the wake of our fins or just by waving our arms.  There was a sleepy reef with night creatures such as a basket star to see. Diving here was not great but quite good. I probably wouldn't make a trip here just to dive but for a nice relaxing tropical vacation near to home, it was very good. I dove with UNEXSO because they were near to the resort and were easy to book. I'd use with them again.