Whidbey Island Critters

[Jan K]

Few more from the January Deception Pass dive ...

[Vjw]

I love the pink proliferating anemone on the yellow and orange background! Such beautiful colors!! Thank you so much for sharing all your pictures and experiences.

[Jan K]

Taking short break from Whidbey Island Critters
Once a year, Maya and I try to trade the cold waters of Pacific Northwest for waters warm and clear. Since her vacation time was limited, we choose Fiji. Our winter is their summer and although the forecast was showing rain and thunder for every day of our planned stay, we traveled there anyway. Flight from Seattle to Los Angeles on the night of the moon eclipse, then boarded Fiji Airways for a long 10 hour flight to Nadi on the island of Viti Levu. Somewhere during the night we lost Monday and landed in Fiji Tuesday morning. Van ride along the northern coast to Wananavu Resort. Our worries about weather were unfounded, the few rain showers passed quickly in the afternoon and mostly sunny weather prevailed during our entire stay. The diving begun the next morning ...

[Jan K]

First dive in truly tropical waters in 17 years. The Cabo Pulmo two years ago was not a truly tropics, since the coral was very scarce and a wetsuit was part of the diving attire. Fiji on the other hand, was a riot of colors served in 82 degree water.
Dream Maker reef was our introduction to the Bligh Water currents and because of the rainy season, I guess, not so stellar visibility which ranged from only 30 feet in the upper first thirty or so feet and varied from then up to 50 in places. But the variety and number of coral, soft and hard, was a feast for the eyes. Identification of many of the inverts and marine life is difficult for my lack of knowledge of the local fauna and flora, I will try my best. I hope you enjoy the sights as much as I did. Let the show begin. Dive one: The Dream Maker.

[Tom Nic]

So beautiful.... Makes my travel trigger finger itch!

Thanks for sharing this and so many other journeys with us Jan! Blessings on you and your daughter!

[Jan K]

Thank you Tom, travel is what nurtures my soul ...

Fiji Dive 2 - After one hour long surface interval, we move to another location - Bula Maker.
Less current and better visibility. I could linger on just one of the coral heads the entire hour allocated for the dive and find enough to keep me mesmerized...

[Jan K]

While many of my fellow Washingtonians will now post pictures of this morning snow, I will throw in some more tropical colors from our dives in Fijian waters ... Amazing Maze is the name of section of Sailrock Reef, large area off the northeast end of island of Viti Levu, location of our third dive.

[Tangfish]

Gorgeous colors and as always, such wonderful illustrations!

[Jan K]

Whidbey Island. 21 degrees F outside my window while I process more of the photos I took underwater, which was 82 F.
Our fourth dive site called "Always Cool".
Flat worms pretend to be nudibranchs and more coral and colorful scenery for your (and mine) enjoyment...

[Jan K]

Whidbey Island winter snow, Round 2. With the world around me turning white, I dig for some color into the Fiji files from dive # 5. Swim through Heaven. My new friend Mike, whom I met there and who spends winters in Fiji, probably wonders why I returned the US so soon. I am wondering myself ...

[Jan K]

Interrupting the white world of snow surrounding us with some color of Fijian corals

[Jan K]

Rain and snow = Slushy Mess...
Time for another Fiji memory dive. Number 6 - Disneyland.

[Sharkb8]

Your Fiji content is absolutely incredible. Hopefully you got to dive the Great White Wall!!!

[Jan K]

Thank you Sharkb8, I am glad you enjoy the pics. And no, the Great White Wall was not visited this time. Maybe next trip ?

From the cold island back to the tropics. More pics from dive #6 in the underwater Disneyland...

[oldsalt]

My access to internet has been limited while I was in the Galapagos. I just saw your trip photos. My goodness. My Fiji photos are so lame in comparison. Thank you,
Curt

[Jan K]

Welcome back, Curt. Nothing lame about what you saw in your travels. The real thing pixels can not replace .

Fiji fish, corals, sponge and feather star parade continues ...

[Jan K]

Enough of snow shoveling and longing for the warm, tropical waters. Time to return to the cold water reality of Whidbey Island diving. Valentine's Day good as any to dust off the drysuit, recharge the camera and strobe batteries and slosh through wet snow into the waters of Langley Harbor...

[Jan K]

I don't know what earned this little slug its name, but I would certainly NOT name it Pacific Stomach Wing. I got the Pacific part, for it is found here, I could understand the wing part, but stomach ? Anyway, here are some pics of what it looks like when they make more of themselves. Even the hermit crab among them seems to be trying to figure the flying stomach thing...

[oldsalt]

Jan: You show us again and again the marvels one can see in what many consider sites not worth the effort: Langley, Coupeville, and Holmes Harbor. But you are an exceptionally gifted observer.
-Curt

[Jan K]

Thanks Curt, there is so much to see around us, and so much we miss to see...

And back to warm waters of Fiji. Golden Dream, dive #7.

[Jan K]

Golden Dream reef provided many more memorable encounters, and the camera kept on clicking ...

[Jan K]

Fiji - dive # 8, Main Street. So many questions about the new sights presented in this new to me underwater tropical world. For example, when I saw some of the soft coral releasing what to me looked like string of eggs, similar to the spawn of Plumose anemones here in our cold water, I assumed that I am witnessing coral spawning. Not so. After long search on the internet, I found out that the coral was shedding skin, something which the Toadstool Leather coral does regularly. So now you know too

[oldsalt]

When I look at the wonders you depict, I think of an exchange I had with a cousin years ago. He asked why I didn't return to my birth state of Missouri. "It doesn't have an ocean for one thing" I replied. He answered, "What's the big deal about the ocean? It is nothing but water." Nothing but water indeed.
-Curt

[Jan K]

It is nothing but water ...
The leisure stroll on Main Street continued ...

[Jan K]

Flatworm and slug to brighten up your Sunday