Tag: Coral Conservation
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HOLDING AN ECOSYSTEM IN MY HAND
A LAST SNORKEL The sand is not just sea sand. It’s a magical mix of crushed shells, rock, other organic matter and teeny weeny shells, recognisable as such – a condensed ecosystem. The sun was lower than on my usual snorkelling explorations at Pointe d’Esny. I was lying in the shallows with my mask on,…
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ISLAND STYLE CAVE DIVE
Diving Lobster Cave with Scuba World Diving Mauritius A dive planned outside the reef creates a heightened sense of expectation in me as my dives there are fewer due to weather limitations. They are also more challenging with a possible moving surface, currents or surges, as well as possible deeper dives. It is however the…
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DIVING A SUBMERGED SCULPTURE GARDEN
Trou Moutou is a dive site in the Mahebourg Lagoon, Mauritius. It is popular for its protected shallow 9m depth and open sandy seabed areas ideal for doing Open Water Diver practical tests. It also has a couple of Hawksbill Sea Turtles living there, but mostly it stands out for its Submerged Sculpture Garden that…
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POST CYCLONE DIVING
BELAL AND CANDICE Two cyclones in ten days, but then again, I knew my departure was in the island’s cyclone season. I found myself cyclone watching, first Belal and then Candice. Mauritius was in the path of both. 15 and 16 January 2024 Belal caused flash floods in Port Louis, turning streets into rivers. Widespread…
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KEEPERS OF THE SEA
While I’m still landlocked I have been inspired by two phrases that my reading and time on social media has brought to my attention. There are many committed individuals and organisations who are working passionately and often without financial gain, to fight one battle at a time in the War to save the Sea. It…
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ROMANTIC CORALS MAKING BABIES
When the moon is full and everything is just so right! Last week, with the full moon at the end of October, the coral reefs, in the Grand Port of Mahebourg and Pointe d’Esny, Mauritius, had their annual mass spawning! Everything must have been perfect for them to feel romantic! The light, water temperature and…
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NEUTRAL BUOYANCY
A question of balance. New divers often struggle finding that sweet spot where they can just hover, neutrally buoyant. You either rise uncontrolled, struggling to descend or you sink and risk damage to some sensitive marine organisms. When I thought I was going to do coral transplantation shortly after qualifying as a SSI Open Water…
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CROSSING THE REEF PART1
Crossing the reef to dive Purple Cave again. I have been out of the water for 26 days now. I feel the call of my blue underwater sanctuary every time I look at an underwater photograph or video. My 25th dive was my last dive of my trip to Mahebourg, Mauritius. Luckily I did not…
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An Emperor on the HMS Sirius
An Emperor on the HMS Sirius I wanted to go back to the HMS Sirius. Feeling that my previous wreck training dive with only 5m visibility and the onset of a narcotic induced confusion at 25m, left some of the wreck unexplored. As the winter weather still kept us inside the reef and I had…
Walk my Talk 