Another Reef Check course has finished and 3 students can go out and survey reefs and contribute to citizen science.    It took a little long than usually but we got there in the end 😀     I managed to get all three students to last over an hour underwater, halving their air consumption.  So I’m pretty pleased with that.   They were good little divers and now I only have 1 remaining student who’s going to do a 2 week Eco Internship with me, so it should be a productive couple of weeks 😀

Simon has yet again been teaching Self Reliant course, which has been nice as we’ve both been on the same boat 😀   The visibility is improving slowly and it’s very hot!   A

A lot of very special family members with Birthday in March, including my handsome Simone 😀    We wish we could celebrate with you all.  We will be thinking of you and raising our glasses 😀

I have been very lapse with the blog ..time goes far too quickly   SO SORRY!!!

At the end of November, beginning of December I was out of the water due to an infection in my thigh.  I think I may have picked something or it could have been an ingrown hair, I’m not sure.

During that time, I was supposed to be teaching ECO courses but as I was unable to dive. I could do all the academics but Simon had to come to my rescue and do all the water work for me.   It was a real headache for Simon but it worked out well in the end.   I don’t know what I’d do without him.

Picture update of our adventures in December!

It’s been an action packed November teaching, taking DMC’s out on ECO dives and then doing lots of land work as I’ve been out of the water with an deep infection in my leg.  I don’t know how I got it, maybe I might picked something but I don’t remember but now I’m paying and Simon is paying for it as I’m out of the water for another week, poor ole Si has to do ALL my water work for my courses Small but deep but now it’s itchy, so it’s on the mend. 

This is what we’ve been up to in pictures.

I’ve had a lovely girl called Michaella doing some ECO courses with me and now it’s at the stage where she’s organising the DMC’s (Dive Master Candidates) to do eco activities and dives which as I am out of the water has been brilliant.  We’ve/she’s been making cement bottle nurseries which will be deployed at our artificial reef Junkyard and then at a later date filled with coral fragments.  A fun job but hard work mixing cement by hand in the heat.

I taught a couple of students the ‘Dive Against Debris Specialty’ in which they organize, brief a dive, collected marine debris and come back and record /report it helping to improve waste management by helping convince individuals, governments and businesses to act on marine debris.

So with Simon running about, filming, sorting everything for our new eco boat, doing the waterworks of my courses, fixing other peoples laptops, Self Reliant teaching, he’s been dealing with major issues with his laptop as it’s stopped charging ..for the 2nd time ..not having the greatest of times …we are both looking forward to coming home for a break 😀 

When this old speedboat was first deployed, it was so buoyant that Simon had to pull it down.    Now that it’s been in the water for a week or so, it’s a little heavier and Simon and a team were able to move it with the use of lift bags to it’s final resting place.  All that’s needed now is for it to be populated with coral 😀

This is my maiden voyage in the ECO speedboat.  We had a little cruise around Maehaad before dropping a  couple divers off at Junkyard and then we powered back to shore.  I was the deckhand, responsible for hooking up and tying off 😀     The boats coming out of the water today as it needs to be equipped with lights, tank rack, new name, anti-fouling paint  etc  ..but once done and we’re back in January, it’s going to be amazing to be able to go out when we want, do what we want and not have to rely on anyone.  The boat will be named ‘Cuthbert’ ..after our ECO mascot 😀

Another land activity which students can go for a ‘water testing’ fun dive and then I can do testing with them on their return 😀 

We are missing you all and send lots of love

XOXOX