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We departed Saturday evening in time to watch the sunset.
Waking up at Refujio, off of Angel Island was majestic. I am reminded of
what compelled me to build this dream of bringing divers and sharing this
incredibly beautiful place where the desert meets the sea.
After a wonderful day of diving we pile up on the inflatables with
a couple bottles of wine to set out see the sea lions. We've played with
them plenty underwater but riding around Granito Island watching the sunset
seeing the baby sea lions with their mamas as the bulls swim around us barking
at us was so much fun.
The water seasonably warmer. Biologist say it's due to
"el nino".
Our guests were mostly from the U.S. We did however
have one couple from Romania and another from France. The girls outnumbered
the boys on this trip so we made sure we took advantage of this and gave them a
hard time. In spite of the fact that this was a group of singles and
couples from all over I had the privilege of knowing lots of our guests from
previous trips we got along as though we were life time friends.
The week sped by in a flurry. A few of the highlights were
jumping mobulas everywhere. We also would see the mobulas swim by on our
dives. It looked like small airplanes flying by. Lots of crazy playful
sea lions. Sperm whales alongside the boat. We brought down
the inflatables, attempting to swim with them, but every time we go close they
would only give us tail. Pat and Jim found the sail fin blennies they had
been looking for all week. We had the coolest night dive ever at el
Lavadero. We wrapped up the week
swimming with the whale sharks.
I will remember this week forever. I have made new lifelong
friends and was able to spend time with my beloved old friends. I had the
privilege of spending the week with Dick Long who is a legend in the dive
community. I would like to close this report with some of his
words. Dick has put words to how I have always felt. Thank you
Dick, Bonita, Susan, Kelly, Pat, Jim, Sorin, Melonia, Francoise, Jonathan,
Rich, Charlie, Andrew, Dave, Elaine, Linda, Mary and Carol for the best week
ever.
Susan, I LOVE THE SEA OF CORTEZ!!!!
Words of Dick Long:
Our diving industry is very good at attracting people into scuba
classes. We graduate these students to become “people who dive”. They really
never learn what diving is all about. It is our opportunity to convert these
“people who dive” into “divers”.
Why is that so important? Let me explain to you my personal
priorities. It is all about the ocean. The ocean controls everything on the
earth and we all know the ocean is dying. “Diving” is an art form. It is the
most intimate activity between mankind and the ocean. Divers are the humans
that do all of the diving. We are in it, and it is in us and we become part of
the ocean. The diving industry is merely the support system for all of the
divers, nothing more.
Why is all of this so important? It is because divers love the
ocean and they will protect what they love. Therefore our opportunity is to
convert divers into “Evangelists for the Ocean”. It is well proven that true
evangelists can overcome incredible odds and have changed the world. Let us
create more “Ocean Evangelists!”
