Our Underwater World By MichaelBAHIA SAN LUIS GONZAGA, MEXICO

The first day we used the camera case,
we jumped in the water at Los Islotes,
small islands that comprise a sea lion rookery
near La Paz. This bull swam right up to me,
but he didn't bark or anything, I think he was
simply curious.

We used to have an underwater point and shoot camera, an Olympus Stylus that flooded in a Costa Rican water park a few years before we went cruising. It never took good pictures before the flooding. It left me underwater camera leery.

But now that we’re in the Sea, snorkeling all the time, it killed me that I wasn’t documenting any of it. So when Windy was in D.C. a few weeks back, I got on eBay and found a used $100 Ikelite underwater housing that fits her $100 Canon point and shoot. I didn’t spend too much and I wondered what I would get, picture wise. They say disappointment is a product of expectations. I don’t think I’d be disappointed even if I’d expected much more than I did. I leave you with some of our recent photos.

 

And if you want to see really nice photos of underwater life, check out those taken by Andy, a cruiser and professional underwater photographer aboard s/v Savannah. They're in Borneo now.

--MR

 

 

 

 

 

Windy at Los Islotes.

Frances beneath me at Islotes.

Snorkeling around Roca Solataria, near Agua Verde, this
moray eel emerged just as I was passing over. We surprised
each other and my heart raced as I snapped pics and tried to
slowly back away from him, all the while hoping he
wouldn't strike me.

Frances, Windy, and Eleanor--my snorkeling companions.

We got buzzed a lot at Los Islotes, especially from younger sea lions.

This harem was just hanging out, I steered around them.

Isn't this fanciful? All those tiny air bubbles sparkled in the sunlight.

Haven't identified this guy yet.

Embarrassed to say I haven't identified many of them yet.
She is about a foot long.

I coaxed this urchin into remaining still long enough
for me to snap this picture.

Eleanor with a big sea star.

Sargent majors are probably the second-most common
fish we see in the Sea. They range in size from less
than an inch to about eight inches and always
swim in groups.

Hard to photograph, but the outline on these big fish
is an iridescent blue.

I snuck up on this orange urchin.

I call this the ghost fish.

We see all kinds and sizes of brilliant sea stars.

Each of these angel fish is over a foot long.

 

I like urchins.

Eleanor holding a long-expired urchin. These delicate
remnants are all over the beaches.

Eleanor diving down to look at something.

This is an un-puffed puffer fish, by far the fish we see the
most of here in the Sea. The girls love them.

Eleanor took this picture of this crazy beautiful thing.

The girls snorkeling ahead of me in Pyramid Cove
on Isla Danzante.

Eleanor's self-portrait.