Biological sciences student Scott Perdue is one of three student-bloggers reporting from the Bahamian island of San Salvador. Here's his latest dispatch, from a Friday (May 18) snorkeling excursion.
There’s a whole new world under the sea. Of the nearly 20 biology students who went on the trip, every single one was certified back in the States and dove here in San Salvador. The SCUBA portion of the trip has come to a close, and what a rough ride it has been.
Most of use divers were recently trained, by our beloved Scuba Bob, in the UMR pool and Quail Run Divers’ Quarry in Rolla. We soon found that our training in Rolla had prepared us for everything but rough seas.
Prior to the trip, we made reservations for half the group to dive on Wednesday and half on Thursday. When we woke up Wednesday morning to a rainy day, we expected to drive up and be rescheduled. To our surprise, we went out amidst the pouring rain. Bad idea.
Half of a dive and a boatful of sick college students later, we were taken back to shore. With good luck, this first group (including me) would finish their dives Friday. The next day, group two woke up to a beautiful day and had wonderful, puke-less dives. Lucky them.
Then came Friday. I woke up to a perfect Christmas morning. The weather looked great and I couldn’t wait for the rest of the day to come. Then we got to the place and the outspoken Captain Bruce told us in his Bahamian accent exactly what we didn’t want to hear, “Yeah, the waves are as bad as they were the other day.” Before freaking out, I found some Dramamine (that apparently everybody else had already taken), so all was well.
On the long boat ride out, Scuba Patrick informed us (Sparrow, Eric, Tera, Melissa, Sarah, and me) about the dive we’d be doing. In the middle of a big thriving reef is a big black hole that opens up to a gorgeous view -- “the presents.” Aside from Sparrow accidentally grabbing a brain coral, it all went down without a hitch. Immediately after the first dive, Sarah threw up (again) and had to sit out the second dive. It was a shallow, 35-foot dive, but it was amazing nonetheless. While the weather didn’t permit an ideal diving experience, it opened our eyes to the vastness and mystery of the deep ocean.
Wow, it was worth it.
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