A day on the water

We were up early today to get to the dive shop on time. Kim and I had originally intended on going diving on our own, but Martha discovered that the dive shop runs a snorkel tour simultaneously with the dives. That meant we got to spend one more day with our friends before leaving the island.

The dive shop sits near the end of a lazy river that eventually makes its way into the ocean. It’s a great location for loading and unloading the boat, since you don’t have to deal with any undulation from the waves. It also provides a scenic view, as you motor down the river to the sea. The 30 minute ride took us to Yanutha, a small island off the south coast of Viti Levu. The beach stretches across the bay, wrapping its arms around the turquoise blue water. The waves gently lapped at the sand; it was picturesque. The boat moored close to the beach, so Martha, Mary, and their tour guide could hop off. They were immediately greeted on shore by a tiny kitten. Despite being 20 feet from shore, we could hear the meows from the boat. Too bad it couldn’t swim.

We left the snorkelers and dropped down on the Golden Hat. the site is a large coral head with soft corals growing all around, near, and on it. Although there were fish, the main attraction was the soft coral. Fiji is known as the soft coral capital of the world. I haven’t been everywhere, but I’m guessing they may be right. Even at 60 feet, the colors were stunning. We kicked into a swim-through that was fairly large. On the ceiling, the corals hung, swaying with the current. They were think underneath; a variety of colors mixed together: yellow, blue, purple, lavender. We also passed some anemones with their resident clown fish circling around, as well as a variety of other coral types.

Between our dives, we returned to the island to check on the snorkelers and drop off some fresh pineapple. Mary was excited to have seen several fish. She also seemed to have taken a liking to the kitten. As she stood in the water to talk to us, the poor creature meowed a sad cry, calling her back to the shore. Although you couldn’t tell from the beach, apparently the island is sparsely populated on the east side. It did make me feel better to know the cat wasn’t completely abandoned on the island.

Our second dive was named Nepture’s Nest. The site was certainly fit for a god. Again, the soft coral was amazing. It was abundant and in good condition. Large sea fans, some yellow and some purple, protruded from the coral head, adding a little extra extravagance. Some of them were quite large and completely intact. I was also excited to see a nudibranch. These little creatures are the Easter eggs of the sea. They’re hidden all over but hard to find, so when you happen upon one, it’s a special treat.

Following our dives, we stopped back by the island to pick up the snorkel crew. The surface was a bit rough, so it was a bumpy ride back to the mouth of the river. Despite having started out at 8am, it was almost 1:30 by the time we left the dive shop, and we were hungry. We rounded out the afternoon over pizza and sparkling kumquat juice.Read more