Little Lolly's Small Adventures: coral reef

Showing posts with label coral reef. Show all posts

Diving and island life.

Moorea Fun Dive dive sites

We did 2 dives on Saturday, back to back, with Moorea Fun Dive (http://www.moorea-fundive.com/en/). The first being at 'Les Roses De Corail', second dive at 'Couloir des Raies' was in search of spotted rays but we didn't find them - they hang out in a particular channel because of the current but there was very little current on Saturday late morning.

Afterwards we drove along the coast and visited a market with arts and crafts but not much was happening. It was lunch time so it wasn't busy and there were only a few stalls - v. We also drove part way to Belvedere Lookout but from the other direction so we had a different view of the scenery.

After that we continued around the island and stopped at an ice cream shop. Yummy... Then onward to the house, stopping to get groceries on the way.

On Sunday we went to the beach and did a bit of snorkelling out near the edge of the reef; and then relaxed. Paul read and I slept with the fan on full blast.

We have been disturbed by a rooster crowing during the wee hours of the morning - usually around 4am. It is not a time for us humans to wake up even if he thinks the world needs to arise at the hour that he 'dictates'. This morning I got up and went to the bedroom sliding door - and there he was, standing with his beak open and chest puffed up, ready to let rip full throttle again. I told him, not very politely, to f@#! off. Well, he did but started crowing either from next door or around the other side of the house 😠

Monday and today we did 4 more scuba, 2 dives back to back on both days, and they were very nice. For those interested in diving, the sites were 'Eden Park', 'Rotui', 'Canyon' and ''La Virgule'.

The dives today had an unexpected 'twist' to the story. There was a couple who were newly qualified divers (February this year) who had bought brand new diving gear but were clueless about it and they had also seemed to forgotten all they had learnt on their diving course. They seemed to have egos with no sense. The woman also had a fear of water/having her head under water. (eh??!!) Guests on either side of the boat were assigned a dive master who would join up with us in the water. We were assigned to go with the newly qualified couple and a dive master.

There were many teething problems with the couple and in the end another dive master (Christian) got us to join his experienced group. Just as well - the other couple didn't last long in the water and their dive was short. Our dive at with Christian was about 46 minutes long and to a maximum depth of 25m. My diving licence doesn't allow me to dive so deep but I was comfortable about it and as there were other very experienced divers, as well as the dive master and Paul.

After a good surface interval during which time we had tea/coffee/water/biscuits we went to the next dive spot, 'La Virgule'. The second dive went to about 20 metres for 57 minutes. Again we were 'invited' to join the other more experienced group - again the other couple weren't in the water for very long so we were glad we went with the other group.

Overall it was a nice day. We saw 2 turtles, plenty of black tipped sharks and much more. We weren't afraid of the sharks - they were curious, circling around us now and then but that was it. Christian, our dive master, had a following of fish friends which was really sweet. He didn't feed them at all, he was just surrounded by them, as if he was one of the shoal. One fish even swam under Christian's belly and stayed there for ages.

During the dives today there were two very curious black tipped sharks which followed us and funnily enough they swam to where we were on the second dive site - their markings were very striking and one had a chunk taken out of its fin so we knew the sharks from the earlier dive.

Pre-booked dive packages (6, 10, etc., dives) work out much cheaper but we took each day as it came, not wanting to commit. The owners of Moorea Fun Dive (Christian and Marie) took into consideration how many dives we had done with them, even though not a pre-booked package, and gave us a discount for our last dive. It was kind of them and very unexpected. Also each dive we did - they made sure it wasn't the same sites that we dived at.

On the topic of diving... I'm quite a short woman - about 4ft 8in high. Apart from the fact that diving

Dive finished, equipment rinsed off and people heading home

tanks are heavy, most of them are quite long for my short body length (shoulders to bum). Once the air tank is attached to the BCD (buoyancy control device) I invariably get helped to put the gear on because it is so heavy that I want to fall over backwards. If I'm not helped, I am careful about how I sit the tank on the seat while putting on the BCD. When it comes to trying to get onto the edge of the boat once again the weight on my back just about topples me over before I'm even ready. I have to take into consideration that the tank is longer than my bum line so I have to heave myself up higher so that the tank clears the edge of the boat then I can lower myself onto the edge with the base of the tank hanging over the outside; and cling on to the ledge with my legs for dear life until I had my mask on my face and regulator in my mouth. Generally Paul or one of the dive masters have had to help me onto the boat ledge properly so that I've not gone overboard before being ready. (I've had shorter, dumpy, tanks and they are easier for me to work with but on these dives I've not been given a dumpy tank). After our very first dive we did with Moorea Fun Dive, when we got to the shore, we jumped to waist-high water and our was gear lowered over the side of the boat for us to carry it back to the office/gear point and rinse it off with salt water. Unfortunately there were about 4 high-ish steps leading up from the beach to the office and I nearly fell over backwards going up the stairs. Marie saw my predicament and rushed to help. Since then one of the men in the diving group (either Paul or someone else) has been given my tank to carry (once detached from the BCD) and I've carried the BCD and octopus regulator. I consider myself to be quite tough but sometimes I have to admit defeat.

Our time on Moorea is sadly coming to an end. Tomorrow we fly back to Tahiti and will meet up with the Maasdam on Thursday.

VIDEOS

Paul goes overboard

Underwater

PHOTOGRAPHS

A bit of driving

Scuba diving

Can you see the fish? It is so well camouflaged!

Dive master, Christian

Heading up to the surface

Scenic drive and scuba diving.

This morning we were woken up early by a cockerel crowing. We weren't impressed and found it hard to drop off back to sleep.

Our new feathered friends popped by and soon discovered it was our breakfast time. We couldn't let our 'guests' leave empty handed so we threw them some bread crumbs again with mum showing them 'how it is done'.

We had some time on our hands before going scuba diving so we decided to head almost half way around the island to Belvedere Lookout in the mountains.

The road off into the mountains was a good paved road to the viewpoint, narrow and winding and the views were spectacular. The viewpoint in the mountains looked out towards the coastline with the jagged outline of Mt Rotui rising up and separating Cook's Bay and 'Ōpūnohu Bay. The vegetation was lush and almost hiding the pineapple plantations on the sides of valleys. We decided to divert off the main paved road and continue towards Piha'ena, keeping Mt Rotui to our left. The road was unpaved, wet and very muddy because of morning rainfall. We found our innards getting a massage as we bumped along the road. I found it quite funny really. We re-joined the main road at the end of 'Ōpūnohu Bay and continued around Mt Rotui along the coastline to Cook's Bay and then on to Moorea Fun Dive.

We were given a warm welcome when we arrived at Moorea Fun Dive which is a family run business. We were soon dressed in wet suits and given air tanks and headed out to the boat anchored just off the beach. Along with a few other people, we were taken to a point along the edge of the reef for the dive. Water temperature was a lovely 29℃ at the surface and we went down to about 18 to 20m. We ended up enjoying the dive so much that we have booked another 2 dives for tomorrow, back to back.

PHOTOGRAPHS

Breakfast time. Mum is very alert - is the human going to put out crumbs or
am is the human going to try and hurt her and her chicks

Panoramic view. 'Ōpūnohu Bay is on the left of Mt. Rotui, Cook's
Bay is to the left.

View looking towards 'Ōpūnohu Bay

View looking towards Cook's Bay. Somewhere below are the
pineapple plantations.

Anchored, Vaitape, Bora Bora, French Polynesia. Excursion: Off the Beaten Track by 4x4

The Maasdam anchored not too far from Vaitape on a wonderfully sunny day. The tenders were soon in full swing in this beautiful part of the world.

I joined my assigned tour group at some Land Rovers near the pier. Being a biggish group we were split up between three open air Land Rovers with a shade canopy on the roof. Being the last one to be allocated to a vehicle, I thought I would be left behind. Fortunately one of the drivers asked everyone to move up and make a bit of space for me - just to make things a bit cosier! As it was, there were three chaps sitting on the bench facing my side of the Land Rover but the one chap was quite portly and literally took up two seats. Us four ladies facing the lads were cosy but not squashed.

Pearl Beach Cannon

Our tour consisted of a drive around the island with a view hill viewpoint stops. The upward inclines of the tracks were very steep and we just had to hold on. Either you could be squashed against the tailgate and just about head overboard, or get squashed against the ledge separating us from the front driver's/passenger's seat. We all held on tightly to the sides of the vehicles or roof railings to avoid squashing each other. It did cause a bit of a giggle at times.

Views over the lagoon from the hill stops were spectacular: different colours of water depending on how deep the water was, the surrounding atoll, and more. At one of the hill stops we visited Pearl Beach Cannon on the west side of the island. This overlooked the valley of Faanui and the bay below. The cannon was originally used during WWI and later dismantled and brought over to Bora Bora, piece by piece, and re-assembled for use during WWII after the attack on Pearl Harbour. After all the hard work in bringing it to Bora Bora, the cannon was never used except during training practice. Pearl Beach cannon was one of eight cannons that were brought to the island. Seven have remained on the island after the war.

Part of the tour included a stop at 'The Farm' where black pearls are farmed. A partial demonstration was given of how pearls are cultivated, and we were given a peek into a workshop. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take photographs inside the workshop but it was still very interesting. There was a shop where we could buy pearls if we wanted to. One guest came away with a nice earring and pendant set.

Intercontinental Hotel Moana

We were taken to Point Matira where we were able to look out over the lagoon but also taken in the beautiful sights of Intercontinental Hotel Moana. Most of the guests rooms are built on stilts and connected by a wooden walkway over the lagoon. Each room has an outside verandah overlooking the lagoon from which there are steps directly down into the water. Unfortunately a very nice price tag comes with staying there.

The cloth has just been dyed and needs to dry out on a table

Our final stop was in Faanui at a small family business that makes paeros. The women demonstrated how white cloth is twisted and wound into a coil then dipped into different colour dyes. The cloth is unwound and opened up to reveal a pretty pattern and put on a table to dry out in the sun. Pieces of cut out linoleum in the shape of fish, shells, mermaids, etc. were placed strategically on the wet cloth which leaves a pattern on the material when it is finally dry. We were also given a demonstration of how to tie a paero and 5 volunteer guests helped out, much to their delight. Guests could purchase paeros and other items from the small stall.

By the time we had finished watching paeros being dyed we were very hot. As we headed back to the pier in Vaitape our driver/guide thoughtfully handed out cold damp facecloths to help cool us down. It was bliss. The cool breeze, as we drove along, helped a great deal.

I had a brief wander around the indoor market before heading back to the ship. It was just too hot to walk around outside.

Soon after I'd had a nice cool, refreshing shower Paul rang me from somewhere on the ship; advising that an animal lover was needed on deck 6, port-side aft, and to bring a towel. I wasn't too sure what to expect but hurried down, grabbing the bathmat on the way. A large grey-coloured bird with a narrow thin hooked beak seemed to be injured, unable to walk or fly. It had been found when a deck seat had been moved away from the wall for wall repairs. I managed to grab the bird with the bathmat and wrapped it up as gently as I could, leaving its head uncovered. The poor bird put up such a fight, giving me a few good nips around my chest and neck for good measure; as well as attacking my fingers. It hurt a bit but I didn't mind - I didn't want to let the bird go! What to do with it??? Paul and the crew had to work so I ended up going in the tender back to the pier to look for a vet. I was told that the nearest vet was about a 5 minute drive away. I had no money with me but another local, near the indoor market, advised me to go to the Information Centre. She kindly came with me to the Information Centre where a woman behind the desk rang the vet. Unfortunately the vet practice opened at 3pm but the woman told me to leave the bird with her and she would take the bird to the vet's practice when opened in another hour or so. She found a cardboard box into which I carefully put the wrapped up bird in and thanked both women for their help.