GREAT GRAPHIC (above) -
Coincidentally, I saw this graphic today on
FaceBook. When I was growing up, and I'm sure
many of you too, we were told that almost all of
our oxygen was generated by trees. But we now
know that that's not accurate. In fact, over 50%
of the oxygen we breathe is generated by ocean
creatures like phytoplankton at or near the
surface, generating O2 through photosynthesis.
So trees still play a role, but the ocean is
much more important in all of this than we
thought even as recently as 50 years ago. All
the more reason to pay attention to seemingly
innocuous things like heat advisories in
Fairbanks, Alaska.
INDONESIA 2026 TRIP IS ALMOST FULL -
Amazingly, we are almost full on our Indonesia
2026 trip planned for July 1-14 (includes travel
dates) diving with our friends at Murex Dive
Resorts. I've still got one of the new Premium
Deluxe cottages available and that's it. We're
capping the group at 20 overall which means when
we're at the resort, we'll split into Group 1
and Group A so we don't have more than 10 on a
boat. (This is also what we've done the previous
two trips and it works out well.) So if this is
something on your radar, make sure I know so I
can have you on the "interested" list before we
get full. It's also possible to do trip
extensions, either before or after those dates,
but let's get you set as part of the main group
first and then we'll deal with the add-ons.
YAP 2026 TRIP IS ALSO FILLING NICELY -
We have nine folks confirmed for that one so far
with room for more. (Trip dates are March 9-22.)
As with Indonesia, if the group grows beyond a
certain number, we'll split into two groups to
keep the boats less crowded. While we always
like to accommodate as many folks as we can, we
don't want it to get uncomfortable and crowded.
And the good folks at Manta Ray Bay are very
good about accommodating our needs to insure
that's the case. Yap & Indo are two of my
favorite spots in the world to dive, and Manta
Ray Bay and Murex Dive resorts are two of my
favorite operations, so hopefully you can join
us for one or both trips!!!
PHILIPPINES TRIP IN 2026 -
I'm still working on the pricing but I've got
the adjusted dates set: September 12-26 next
year. (These are dive dates, not including
necessary travel time.) This is a combo
land-based & liveaboard trip. We'll be at
Atlantis Dumaguete September 12-19 doing 3-5
dives/day including a trip over to Apo Island.
On the 19th (I think we'll be able to resort
dive in the morning), their boat Infiniti will
pick us up at the resort late in the afternoon.
This boat is not only the newer of their two
liveaboards, but it will also have recently come
out of drydock so everything should be new and
shiny (or as new and shiny as you can get on a
boat). We're then doing their northern itinerary
which includes a chance to dive with large
Thresher Sharks. We changed dates with them
versus what they originally suggested and I've
gotten different invoices with different pricing
so that's the part I'm trying to work out. But
I'm GUESSING that this will come in somewhere
around $3,650/week (so $7,300-ish for the two
weeks together) but this also includes over $700
in incidentals that we're going to have to pay
anyhow, such as park fees, nitrox, and a fuel
surcharge for the boat. If you're interested,
let me know (some of you have done so already).
I hope to have this nailed down by next week.
SILVER AIRWAYS CLOSES ABRUPTLY -
You may have never flown them or heard of them
(I don't think I had). They served Florida, the
Bahamas, and other Caribbean spots. They ceased
operations on July 11 due to their Chapter 11
filing and no angel investors. But the point of
all of this is to remind you that many times
when we travel to dive destinations, we're
forced to use smaller airlines. So make sure
you're well-protected with travel insurance,
dealing with reputable travel organizers, and
just generally staying on top of things. Not all
travel calamities can be avoided but you can at
least be prepared to deal with problems should
they arise and arrange to protect yourself as
best you can.
AI MIGHT SAVE OUR OCEANS -
There was a U.N.-sponsored Oceans Conference in
the south of France last week. Among the topics
discussed was the estimate of some 400 "dead
zones" in the oceans of the world, where no life
can exist. But there may be hope yet. And that
hope may be in form of using artificial
intelligence to do scenario projections quickly
and see what the various options are. You can
read more about this is in this article from
TIME Magazine (which amazingly isn't behind a
paywall): USING
AI TO SAVE OUR SEAS.
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week and
let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken |