Category: By Voyage Blog

Dear F&F,
January 9, 2009

We were up early in hopes of heading to The Boiler dive site. But we saw Nautilus Explorer leaving the anchorage & when Scott radioed them they were heading there with their 22 divers. No fun for us to be in a crowd if we have a choice. Plus the swell & wind kicked up early & the dinghy ride would have been rough for us. So we had a leisurely morning instead. Fried eggs & toast – new jar of blackberry jam opened was the highlight.

We are still having a generator glitch so Scott spent a couple of hours researching it this morning, trying to find out if there is 2nd coolant leak or why the heck the failure alarm/auto shut off keeps happening. Big concern… But it was a beautiful & rare sunny day so I dragged him out to dive finally at 11 am. Usually we are back from our morning dive by then & I\’m starting to think about lunch. Anyway, I had a pre-dive granola bar & mocha since the early breakfast had worn off.

No sign of mantas on the surface, but not knowing where else to go, we returned to our 25 foot mound. The current was up pretty good, but the visibility the worst ever, barely 40 feet. We hung around hoping a manta would come to the playground. After 10 minutes or so, we swim down the ridge of mounds to the deeper area called \”The Canyon\” where we have seen hammerheads. Sure enough there are tons of \’em. Well, what we can see through the murky water. It is kind of eerie to be down at 100 feet & straining to see, as if through fog, and in the distance see a bunch of sharks, but very cool. We watched them for about 5 minutes, but our air goes fast at that depth, so we know to get shallower soon. While we are still focused on the sharks, too distant & too poor visibility for video, a dolphin buzzed by & scared the bejeezus out of us. We are thinking sharks & a large grey thing comes at us at high speed. We laughed at the prankster & enjoyed seeing its gang of 3 zoom off. We swam back to the mound area & hung out visiting the lobsters, zebra fish, eel, jacks & usual suspects. After a while we popped the anchor, went to our safety stop & as we were drifting along 15 feet below holding onto the dinghy we saw another fairly shallow mound & decided to plop the anchor back down & go check it out. We still had plenty of air, so did a little exploring in that area. Saw a couple of pretty trumpet fish. The visibility started to improve near the end of the dive.

By the time we got back it was close to 1 pm. Without the incentive of seeing mantas, we decided one dive was enough for today, plus Scott had the generator concern weighing on him. We rinsed the gear, showered, ate turkey sandwiches & listened to 60s music on Sirius radio. Later Scott napped & I read. Then I made dessert to take since Chuck & Linda on the other sailboat invited us for dinner. I found a lemon pudding cake recipe in the pressure cooker cookbook. It had pretty much the same ingredients as a lemon dessert I\’d made in the oven before. Very cool that it only needed 5 minutes at pressure instead of 1 hour in the oven! Except for the fact that I had pre-mixed my white & whole wheat flours together it turned out fine. The whole wheat gave it a rather organic taste, not as nice as if all white flour had been used.

Tonight we told Chuck & Linda a lot of stories from the time our boat was being built in France. Seems like a long time ago� \”Beach House\” will be 5 years old on April 15th, 2009.

Linda cut her own hair quite short today. Hers is thick curly & grey. Now she looks like she kind of has a short Afro. Practicality over styled for us boaters. I have nearly been driven to chop mine off too. I get horrible snarls at the back of my neck. You would think I sit underwater twisting & twirling it into knots! I love being able to put it up in a pony tale so am holding off extreme measures for now.

\”Nautilus Explorer\” pulled back in the anchorage. When Scott talked to Buzz, the divemaster on the radio he said it was a bit lumpy at the Boiler, but they did 4 dives there & saw mantas. The bums! We asked if we could bring them our trash tomorrow since they will head back to Cabo tomorrow night. They said sure. Nice!

We are running one engine to charge our batteries since the generator won\’t start. Scott just tore apart the salon cushions to get to his storage area behind the long seat & dig out generator spare parts. He emailed the Mastervolt dealer in Florida to get any ideas or suggestions. It may be a bad coolant temperature sender if that means anything to you, (doesn\’t mean much to me, but when Scott tells me I try to look appropriately interested & concerned). In my mind I am already thinking that the worst case is we had a great 3 weeks & we will head back to somewhere that we can get this thing fixed. But when I mentioned that returning to Marina Mazatlan may be necessary, Scott was insulted. \”I will not be defeated by an alarm sender!\” So he is out there now at 11:30 pm with his headlamp, box of spare parts, having actually read the service manual & going at it with great determination. Keep your fingers crossed.

Scott & Cindy

Dear F&F,
January 5-8, 2009

We certainly are getting plenty of exercise & I think it\’s caught up with us a bit. We are really moving slow on this grey & rainy day & since there are no mantas visible we did not go diving. We picked up Linda & Chuck on the other sailboat, \”Jacaranda\” & went to see \”Nautilus Explorer\”. We had not been onboard that dive boat. We got good information from Buzz the Divemaster & Brad the Captain & enjoyed a tour of the boat.

I asked for & received a cube of butter from the galley girls. The chef that gave us bread, fruit & cookies on our first week here is not working this trip. That\’s fine. We are not starving by any stretch. For baking I find I am using more butter than anticipated.

So what did we do instead of diving? Breakfast: Hot tea, oatmeal with dates & pecans & brown sugar. Unload & defrost main refrigerator. Reload & take secondary fridge offline. This will save 40 amps a day. We have had such overcast skies we are not getting much solar power so having to run the generator more. In hindsight, I would have bought more apples & fewer onions… I must also be braver about not refrigerating the eggs. Boat neighbor Linda said she\’s kept them up to 1 month as long as they have NEVER been refrigerated.

Scott tore apart the shower pump. Really really really stinky! Diagnosis: motor shot. He scavenged & cleaned some parts. New one is already ordered & friend Mike is holding it for us in LA. We have been using our back up sump pump which is adequate, but does cause some leakage into the bilge. Cleaned sumps on both port & starboard. Cleaned starboard bilge. Port is dry.

I read my book, autobiography of Ellen MacArthur, \”Taking On the World\”. Scott is learning about the video editing from tutorial DVDs. I would never have the patience for it, but I love his results.

Another \”retail\” boat came in for a few dives m/v \”Sea Escape\” apparently from La Paz. We didn\’t talk to them. They left we presume to dive a the site called the Boiler & then returned to anchor here for the night. We expect \”Solmar V\” again any time. The neighborhood is crowded. We chatted with Terry at the designated 6:00 pm radio date hour. He got his new hard drive so had many computer questions for Scott. Talked on VHF to Linda & Chuck. We are all eager for this weather front to pass so we can get back to diving with the mantas.

We would like to have 4-5 more good manta diving days then will head over to Isla Socorro.
January 7
Generator keeps giving \”Coolant Failure\” warning. This problem was a blessing in disguise. On repairing the coolant hose that had melted, Scott discovered a very badly cracked, worn out ready to break at any minute fan belt. That would have been potentially more serious & created additional difficult repairs. We have spares of just about everything. The space is insanely small & awkward to work in, especially for Scott\’s tall self. In sympathy for his wounded ribs, I offered to try to do it & just have him talk me through it, but he bravely carried on with me running back & forth for tools. We had a good post-repair run. Then this evening it \”hiccupped\” again with a coolant warning/auto shut down. Scott re-siphoned the coolant to make sure there was smooth flow & it has now been happily running one hour. We are watching it closely & checking everything. The generator has only been used 350 hours which is very low use for diesel, but who knows how old the unit was sitting on the shelf in Europe before we purchased it. Plus we know rubber parts, like belts, don\’t like heat & because it is such a small space, not well ventilated despite our adding fans, removing sound insulation cover etc. We must have the generator to run the scuba compressor. I am always impressed at how much Scott has taught himself & is able to do. It gives me a lot of confidence to be out here in the back of beyond since he knows how to fix things.

He had less yelping & more just wincing during the night as he changed positions & when we awoke to mantas swimming near the boats there was no stopping him from going for a dive. We asked Chuck to drive our dinghy & follow us as we snorkel & tried to determine if the mantas were still feeding or ready to play. Scott was pretty sure he saw \”Buttercup\”, so he descended. I stayed on the surface & observed to see if it looked like the manta was interested. Seemed that she was still feeding & not interested in interacting yet, so Scott surfaced. We were all \”dressed up\” & eager to play with mantas so dropped Chuck off at his boat & went back out to our 25 foot mound where we\’ve had the most encounters.

The visibility was pretty low, maybe 45 feet but a good current was flowing which often brings more sea life activity in general. We just hung around the mound waiting and watching. I swam to visit my lobsters and my zebra fish. I turn around & see Scott videotaping \”Buttercup\”. Yeah!!! She is her usual playful self, swimming circles around Scott. I swam near her & got in 1 belly rub but the truth is she is Scott\’s manta. I took the camera away from him to let him go play with his girl. (We have confirmed that she is a girl by the way. Dr Bob Rubin, of SRJC and his research assistant Karey has been in close email touch with us & given us more info. She has never been here but very familiar with the animals here & eager to see Scott\’s photos & video.) \”Buttercup\” clearly prefers Scott & we have heard that they will often choose 1 diver over another & connect & repeat encounters with 1 person. I don\’t know why MY first Magic Manta never returned, but our most frequent repeat manta is \”Buttercup\”. I have resigned myself to watching Scott with his new best friend & doing my best to capture it on film. She swayed with us for 45 minutes, limited by our running low on air. She swam right beneath us throughout our safety stop. We were so jazzed. Scott of course instantly bursts into his new theme song \”Buttercup\” which happens to be hilariously perfect.

We couldn\’t refill tanks & chow lunch fast enough. We were so enthused we decided to invite Linda for the 2nd dive. Chuck gets cold easily & she is more of the fish in their family. We saw some mantas between our 2 boats on the surface during our break. We just imagined \”Buttercup\” eagerly awaiting Scott\’s return. Linda snorkeled a bit with one near her boat, but it was chowing lunch, not in play mode. We head out to the playground (25 foot mound). It is such a big ocean & only being about to see 40 or so feet in any direction we need to have somewhere to base out of. We know the mantas cruise around there, so that is why we keep going. We don\’t know if they hear our dinghy or our bubbles once we descend, but they do seem to know we are there. The current was still strong & the visibility low. A different manta came to play fairly soon. An all-black-back one and wouldn\’t you know it…it was another Video Vixen! Completely ignored Linda & I, just swimming circles around Scott. Linda stayed near Scott in hopes of being near & being about to touch it, which she did. I hung back, keeping an eye on the mound where our anchor is & seeing how quickly we are being blown away from it by the current. It vanishes from my sight as we drift more than 50 feet. I know it is upstream of the current so am slowly kicking back toward it, but also wanting to stay with Scott & Linda. I give up the mound to stay with Scott. Linda is not kicking against the current as a 2nd manta enters the scene & chasing the first in play. Soon the 2 zoom off, but we are now quite far from our mound. Scott gestured to me: where is Linda? We had lost sight of her as she did us. Our rule is to surface in 1 minute after losing visual contact of each other. We had told her this & reviewed all rules with Linda on her first dive with us (over a week ago…) but neglected to review the rules. The reason for this rule is you have no way to know which direction your buddy is. And you can waste precious air searching below. On the surface, it is easy to spot each other & reconnect. Plus on the surface everyone has air to breath & you can know quickly that all are ok. By the way, only when Scott & I have take a 3rd party have we had to use this 1 minute surface rule. I NEVER LET HIM OUT OF MY SIGHT, EVER. Since he is doing photography or video most of the time, I know he is NOT watching me. So I watch him like a hawk & we have never gotten separated underwater, due to my vigilence. Scott & I swam back against the current to our mound & surfaced slowly holding the anchor line so as not to get blown away by the current again.

Chuck was just resting in their dinghy (tied up to ours). We asked if he saw Linda. He said no. He had not really been on lookout, not that we had asked him to or needed him to. Chuck cast off & starts motoring around the area down current of our dinghy searching for her bubbles & quickly finds them. She has stopped on a different mound. Later she said she was afraid to surface that quickly. It was our mistake for not reviewing again the \”keep in visual contact\” rule, the \”surface after 1 minute\” rule, etc. She had only done that 1 dive with us, prior to that it had been 10 years. And when you are first taught they do emphasize that you must do a safety stop to avoid \”the bends\”. As we were never deep that wasn\’t a concern. We blamed ourselves & realize the tremendous responsibility when we take someone else diving. Chuck is now trying to bang on his anchor to get her attention to surface. She eventually gets the message, does a champion job of swimming up current toward our dinghy. She makes visual with Scott on the surface & since he sees she is fine, he motions her to hang on our anchor line & do her 3 minute safety stop at 15 feet.

No harm, no foul. She was apologetic that she forgot the 1 minute rule. She got disoriented. She thought if she just sat on some mound some where we would come & find her. Scott & I plopped back down since we had plenty of air & just blew bubbles for 25 minutes. The exciting manta interaction was over for the afternoon.

We are starting to try to figure when to sail over to Isla Socorro. We have heard there are more potential whales, more sharks & fewer friendly mantas. We will have to check in with the Mexican Navy there.

We got a very nice email back from the manager of \”Solmar V\” telling us not to worry about paying for the diesel, he said he was happy they could help us. That was very nice. That was the boat that also treated us to fantastic dinner. They were here yesterday morning & Scott gave Jeronimo a DVD of some of his manta photos. He was thrilled. We haven\’t had a chance to see him again since he\’s looked at them, but will no doubt catch up to them either here or Isla Socorro. I am about ready for one of these boats to take our trash.

Scott & Cindy

Dear F&F
January 4, 2009

Scott is nursing his sore ribs, so no diving for him today. Chuck & Linda picked me up in their dinghy & Chuck dropped Linda & me off near the lava point, which she also has dubbed \”Turtle Point\”. We saw mantas feeding from the surface & I was looking forward to seeing some of the turtles she\’d described seeing. Chuck went back to their boat since swimming back home to the boats; we would be going with the current, so not difficult.

Right away we had 3 mantas all around us. We are having a grand time watching them feed. They stay mostly on the surface so being on snorkel is actually better than scuba sometimes. Then we saw a turtle. Then we saw 2 turtles on the surface flopping around. We swam closer. It was obvious that they were attempting to mate. We watched both above & below the surface for about 10 minutes. I decided this was too good not to share, so swam back to our boat & hollered for Scott. He gave me the video camera in its underwater housing & I swam back hoping the encounter was still going on. Sure enough, Linda had her eyes on them the whole time & they were still at it. One climbing on the other, swimming around each other in circles, head to tail, they were going through a whole assortment of positions. It is very hard to hold the video camera still while snorkeling because the sea swell is bouncing me around, but I did get some viewable footage (albeit X-rated). But since they were so persistent, I swam back to the boat again & asked Scott to get me a tank. I knew I could get better footage of them from below. I don\’t think they like the sound of the bubbles from scuba though because I didn\’t get that near them before they dove deep when on scuba. The male (I presume) was latched on top of the female and they started sinking together fast. I descended with them down to about 70 feet. It is hard to see anything in the small screen if I am not very close to my subject. I am swimming like crazy to get closer. The two are still \”as one\” and can you believe that a pair of mating turtles could out swim me?! I simply could not keep up. I had to let the lovers go & find somewhere more private. When Linda & I were watching them on snorkel they did not seem to notice us one bit. In fact, they kept drifting towards us & we kept finning back to not intrude on their ritual. Each animal was about 2-3 feet long. Green turtles probably. Turtles have to surface to breath, so we were not surprised to see them again. What was surprising was how long they mated. Hours… We kept seeing them on the surface in various areas. Amazing. Poor Scott, bad day for the resident photographer to be nursing an owie.

Once the turtles swam out of view, I swam a bit shallower & shot some video of a manta. But being down on scuba by myself, handling the video which I am not that familiar diving with & not having surface support, I decided to not push it & just slowly surfaced. Scott was watching me from the big boat & I motioned for him to come get me in the dinghy which he did. Chuck also came out in his dinghy to spot Linda who was still snorkeling. I hoisted my tank/BC into the dinghy to Scott, trying not to make him strain himself lifting it. I hopped in & we started to motor home. But there were several mantas still on the surface between the front of our boat & the lava point. So I asked Scott to drive me over there & let me finish off my tank which still had about half its air capacity. I slipped in, he handed me the video & right away I had a friendly manta. It was not feeding & seemed interested in me. I was doing my best to emulate Scott\’s expertise behind the camera. It swam circles around me, just as the friendly mantas have with him. It was a real sweetheart, one we had not encountered up close before. It stayed with me about 20 minutes & then my videotape ran out. I was sort of relieved to be free of filming duty & could just swim & play with this manta. But wouldn\’t ya know that about 2 minutes later it just swam off! It seems that they do have some sort of attraction to being filmed. Or it could just be a coincidence.

I was pretty stoked when I surfaced. Scott knew I must be having a great time to stay down alone so long. It was very comforting to see the dinghy & know he was following my bubbles. He could not see \”my\” manta, but said there were several all around the area. We got back home, I showered, made lunch & we relaxed a bit.

C & L will come over for dinner & video viewing. It is pouring rain right now, looks like that low front has arrived. A nice fresh water rinse for the boat. My laundry was mostly dry so I quickly pulled it off the lines before it got soaked. It is clean sheets & towels day again – yippee! Scott is laying low still, but said he was up for company, probably a good distraction. When the rain first started & I was outside taking in the laundry there were 10 mantas on the surface between our 2 boats! That is the most I have ever seen at once. Unbelievable! If I hadn\’t just rinsed all my gear, I would have been really tempted to jump back in the water. But tomorrow is another day & I don\’t like to be in the water alone unless I have a spotter.

Well we aren\’t getting any solar power, but with the diesel we got from \”Solmar V\” we are feeling a little more flush to run the generator as needed.

Every day seems to bring new adventures & we are just pinching ourselves at how lucky we are to be here.

Scott & Cindy

Dear F&F,
January 3, 2009 – HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME

We woke up at 6:30 am with an alarm, wanting to take an early dive. The sun does not rise until about 7:00 am. The dawn was spectacular & I was thrilled to be here & be alive from the moment my eyes opened. There were mantas all around the boat. When they are at the surface they are feeding & it has been our experience that they are not so interested in playing with us. We had a cup of tea, yogurt & suited up. We went in the dinghy out to our usual 25 foot mound, anchored & dove. We saw dolphins underwater, a white tip reef shark & a hammerhead all briefly. No mantas underwater. We came back to the boat, showered, had a breakfast of turkey chorizo with scrambled eggs & tortilla chips.

Chuck radioed us that there were mantas all around our 2 boats. We jumped in with snorkel gear. Scott took his still camera without the strobes (less to swim with & since we were at the surface there was enough light not to need the flash). He took 100 photos. I touched one on its wing. There were up to 4 all around us at a time. But they were focused on feeding & not into playing. They didn\’t seem to mind us near them; just sort of ignored us.

Scott & Chuck drove the dinghies while Linda & I snorkeled to \”turtle point\” where they have seen turtles many times. Linda made me a sign \”Happy Birthday Cindy\” that she took underwater. It was very sweet. No turtles today, but it was nice swim.

We had the tanks pumped up & all the gear ready to go, so decided to go back to the 25 foot mound for a dive. We had \”Buttercup\” do a \”fly by\” right away but then she was gone. We saw 3 hammerheads cruise by. Two different white tip reef sharks, a free swimming green moray eel, lots of fish. I said hello to my lobsters & my little zebra striped fish that lives in the black urchin. Just when we were considering to surface because of no mantas visiting, one swims near. But it was a tease, not really interested in us. So I finally upped the anchor & of course a manta torments us just below as we are doing our safety stop.

We got back in the dinghy & are heading to the boat. Mantas are everywhere on the surface. Scott gives me a gift & tells me I can go snorkel with them while he drives the dinghy & follows me. I had a \”virtual ride\” on one. I had swam near its eye many times so it saw me & knew I was there. Then I swam just on top of it, like a hovercraft. I was timid to actually grab on since I didn\’t have a tank & was panting so hard from excitement I knew I could not hold my breath long if it submerged. But what a thrill just to swim right on top of this giant & gorgeous animal. I was in heaven. It was every bit as wonderful as my ride. I finally fatigued of kicking to keep up with it, so just floated & watched it swim away.

When we got the gear all rinsed, both showered, had a snack & a celebratory glass of Whitehaven (one of our last 3 bottles!), Chuck comes on the radio that mantas are very near our boat. I run outside & am in awe to see 3 more right near us on the surface. Before today, we had not seen so many for so many hours of the day. It was very special. The water had a lot of jellyfish, not stinging & other clear interesting looking floating critters called \”Venus\’s Purse\” (a type of pelagic jelly fish). So there is lots of nutrients that brought the mantas to the surface to feed today. We don\’t know, but we have certainly enjoyed their company.

Scott & Cindy

Linda has instructed me to \”take a nap & go to the spa\” before dinner which is hilarious. I am so excited from our day, I could not nap if you paid me. I am considering whether to trim my bangs or not which is about all the primping I will do. Scott is looking at the photos he took while we were snorkeling which had more manta opportunities than diving.

Chuck & Linda of \”Jacaranda\” hosted a fabulous birthday dinner. Linda is cooked Chicken Cordon Blue & garlic mashed potatoes. She didn\’t want me to bring a thing, but when I insisted that my romaine will not last any longer, she agreed I could bring a salad. After dinner she brought out a \”Manta Cake\” with 2 candles, one each on its cephalopods (you could google manta cephalopod to see what I am talking about – hard to describe). It was chocolate cake with frosting & biscotti for the remoras & piece of chocolate stick for the tail, adorable! I was very touched. We devoured the cake, cutting it down to a juvenile size. She sent us home with the extra. A gracious host & hostess, I felt bad leaving them with a sink full of dishes when at our last dinner, she washed all of mine. But they insisted I was to be the birthday queen & not lift a finger.

So you can rest assured I have had a very Happy Birthday. I am already scheming of how & when we can return to this magical place. It is more than we imagined or could have ever dreamed up. All of Terry\’s glowing stories are true. We are so jazzed that our permits last until the end of January, because we probably will stay that long.

Scott & Cindy

Dear F&F,
January 1 & 2, 2009

Jeronimo (panga driver for Solmar V) showed us another mound. Not too much action, so we cut that site short & went to our tried & true 25 foot mound. As I was handing Scott his camera he noticed a few drops of water inside the housing. His heart sank. Dive over. We zoom back to \”Beach House\” in the dinghy, Scott gingerly holding his camera to hopefully prevent any drips from splashing & doing potential damage. Fortunately, it was just the slightest leak and came in through the front port ring with only 1/8 teaspoon of water. No harm, no foul!…..

Jeronimo invited us aboard \”Solmar V\” to meet the Captain, Gerardo Pazos. We were to come over at 7:30 pm. We had eaten our dinner early, about 5:00 pm, but luckily it was small portions of steak & steamed carrots.

Then at 7:00 pm he hailed us on the radio to come right away because the chef had invited us for dinner. He explained that they only had room for 2 people, so Chuck & Linda were not included. We swung by their boat to pick up their trash since \”Solmar V\” was willing to take it.

We were welcomed by Jeronimo & Captain Pazos. We tied our dinghy up to their big boat & went aboard. As we entered the large & lovely saloon I had the feeling that we had just entered a restaurant. We were warmly welcomed by the group of 20 divers sitting down to dinner. Jeronimo quickly settled us at a table for two and took our drink order. What an unexpected experience to have out here in the middle of nowhere! When he offered champagne I had to say yes, being New Years Day & all… And it wasn\’t just some unknown Mexican brand, it was Moet & Chandon White Star! We felt like we were at a fancy restaurant, which actually we were. Salad came next, followed by a generous portion of delicious beef with portobello mushroom sauce & a baked potato. We ate dinner (all over again) with such relish, you would have thought we\’d been starving on this deserted island!

Half of their divers were from Massachusetts, 6 from Japan, we met a couple from Florida & another from Austin, Texas. Chip & Susan Scarlet, from Austin, are kindred spirits in their passion for the mantas here. Scott & Chip talked photography & Scott had since been suffering from a bit of camera gear envy ever since. New strobes may be on the next shopping list. One of the gals from Massachusetts has been diving out here on this boat 6 times. That is quite a tribute to the good service of the \”Solmar V\” crew and the consistent abundance of sea life seen here.

Scott & I in the past, did 4 trips on this type of live aboard dive boat (Palau, Solomon Islands, Red Sea, and Belize). You fly a long distance, you are with a group of usually quite experienced divers, many that are underwater photographers, and you don\’t miss any of the 4 dives per day because this is your 1 or 2 week vacation for that year. We had a good time & Scott got great photos, but there was a hectic feel to the pace, no privacy or chance to relax. We prefer being alone on our own floating home, knowing we can go where we want and stay as long as we want. Scott can pursue his art at his own pace. We are daily grateful for of the luxury of time that we now have as we travel.

Contrary to our surmising that the mantas were steering clear of the large diving groups, we heard that they had great manta encounters on most of their dives. We now conclude that the mantas love the paparazzi and only after the large boats leave are they content to model for just the one remaining photographer. Those hussies!

While dessert was served they showed a video on the big screen of whales. Jeronimo had taken the topside footage and a past dive guest contributed with underwater film taken in the spring of 2006. It showed a mother & baby humpback whale that allowed close interaction with snorkelers. It was so touching & beautiful. The music playing along was sweet: \”Lady In Red\”, \”You are So Beautiful to Me\”, \”Sorry is the Hardest Word\” & and ya gotta love this one – \”You Take My Breath Away\”. Jeronimo told us that this particular mother & baby stayed in the Roca Partida area for nearly a month. So 3 trips of their divers got to experience these amazing creatures. Chuck has talked to cruisers down in Puerto Vallarta that have sighted whales with babies already. So we are keeping our eyes peeled for any sightings. And their song, when you can hear it, is unmistakable.

Jeronimo showed us many of his photos from different trips. Including some shots of Scott & I both on \”Beach House\” & suited up for diving in our dinghy. He burned a CD of jpgs for us. (SEE PHOTO GALLERY, WILL BE POSTED WHEN WE GET TO SHORE SIDE INTERNET) In return as thanks, we will gave him a CD of manta photos and some hammerhead sharks.

I personally thanked the humble chef for sharing his delicious cooking. He was pleased with our enthusiasm. I inquired if he had any extra vanilla to spare, presenting my own empty bottle. He pulled out his large bottle, half full & gave me the whole amount. Yippee! More flavorful coffee & cocoa can still be had. We didn\’t return to our boat until 10:30 pm. We had such a lovely & unexpected evening out.

Jan 2, 2009
Today would have been Suzanne (Scott\’s Moms), 72nd birthday. A very mixed emotion day. It\’s hard to believe she\’s been gone two years.

We awoke to find \”Nautilus Explorer\” also anchored here this morning, so both big boats here again. Apparently they don\’t coordinate their schedules, which seems weird to us. The one item we had not yet scored from \”Solmar V\” was diesel. By the time we left last night, the captain was already in his quarters so Jeronimo advised Scott return in the morning to ask. As soon as Scott saw activity onboard this morning he zoomed over in our dinghy. The captain said the engineer, who would decide, was still asleep, but that he should return in 1 hour. He returned with 4 empty five gallon jugs. It took some doing for the engineer to drain diesel out of their big tanks into our jugs, but he did it gladly. He would not take our pesos, but wrote down information on how to email the manager of the company to ask if & how we should make payment. Some days later we got a reply that he was happy that the crew could help us & that it was his gift. We are greatly impressed with their friendship & generosity.

Chuck & Linda were thrilled that we shared half the diesel with them, as they do not have much carrying capacity.

Scott was tired from staying up late, getting up early & zooming back & forth to \”Solmar V\” schlepping diesel. He is also melancholy as today is Suzanne\’s birthday. When I suggested we just \”stay in\” today, he agreed. I am catching up on writing and he is beginning to edit his video footage. Linda saw 4 mantas, turtles, an eel & lots of fish while snorkeling this morning. I may join her in the afternoon if she goes again.

Scott & Cindy

Dear F&F,
December 29, 30, 31 2008

We awoke to see the 2nd dive boat anchored. It must have come in during the night, so both commercial boats are here diving this morning. We went by each in our dinghy to be friendly. Jeronimo on \”Solmar V\” does above water photography & is really interested in seeing some of Scott\’s manta photos. He has a dream of publishing a photography book some day. We invited Jeronimo onboard our boat, but he was busy working. Perhaps another time.

The manta Scott has named \”Buttercup\” was there to greet us right away on the morning dive. Scott is in heaven at how this manta poses for the camera. A wildlife photographers dream come true! \”Freckles\” came in for a cameo. The other highlight was a huge school of shiny silver foot long jacks. The school was 25 feet high & about 20 feet wide. I swam into their midst which is always fun.

Scott was bummed to see all his photos from yesterday afternoon were a bit \”soft\”, he forgot to use an \”extension ring\” on the wide angle dome. Fortunately, it\’s still pretty good. He is reviewing the morning results & pleased that he corrected the problem. Out of 65 shots, he is happy with at least half. That is pretty good odds. He is getting fast at the editing. Many are \”web ready\” when we next get to high enough speed internet location.

I squeeze in emails whenever I get a minute & try to send them during daylight since that is the only time we can connect for free via ham radio. Scott has been letting me connect again in the evening via the satellite phone since he likes to upload weather information to see how the forecast is. The lumpy seas should be decreasing in the next couple of days. Last night I was awake from 2:45 to 4:00 am. I stayed in bed even though I was pretty hungry. I think we are burning a lot of calories. It is impossible to get an accurate weight on the scale with the boat bouncing around. Scott is somewhere between 224 & 214 lbs (we are hoping on the lighter end). Usually when we are off the dock he loses a pound a week. Breakfast is usually at 7:30 am, lunch 11:30-noon, I am often hungry for dinner by 4:30 pm, so will at least snack if not just eat dinner that early.

December 30, 2008 – Day 14

This morning we saw \”Buttercup\”, but she really kept her distance. We can\’t help but imagine that the reef being overrun yesterday with 40 divers (between the 2 commercial boats) sort of bothers them. We didn\’t swim after her. We just floated in our usual area & she circled us but did not come close as she did before. \”Freckles\” made another cameo appearance. We saw 1 white tip reef shark. Scott got some good photos of my lobsters. They are so cute!

I was chilly from the moment I entered the water today. The water is the same 80 degrees it has been all along, but I think over time with this much submersion, our core temperature drops just a bit. I indulged in a longer hot shower, made hot tea, hot soup for lunch & used my geeky looking beanies for the 2nd dive. I\’d been trying to be more fashionable for Scott\’s photos with my neoprene headband, but looking nerdy is better than being cold.

In the afternoon we took Chuck for his turn on scuba. We had seen lots of mantas swimming on the surface so we were excited. The visibility was very murky & there was practically no current. There is more action when the current is flowing. It was one of the most uneventful dives we\’ve had here yet. We swam out to the place we\’d seen hammerheads before, but if they were there, we certainly couldn\’t see them in the murky blue. So we swam back to our 25 foot mound & just hung around waiting for one of our friendly mantas to appear. Chuck did just fine on scuba & we all had plenty of air to be patient. Sure enough one manta swam over our reef, but didn\’t stick around long at all. It was not \”Buttercup\”. After 50 minutes total dive time we went up. Chuck was very gracious, thanking us for the opportunity. We felt bad he didn\’t get to touch one like Linda did.

The afternoon chore was changing the scuba compressor oil. We use a block & tackle to hoist the 120 lb unit out of its locker in the cockpit (under the bench closest to our sliding door). We support it on the table with the drain plug perched out in space. Scott removes the nut with a 17 mm ratcheting wrench, replace the plug, put new oil, checked the level. Also cleaned air intake filter & did a general check up. When diving, this is one of our most critical pieces of equipment so we make sure to take good care of it. So far it has performed like a champ.

I make sure to put drying drops in my ears every day or so. I have a tendency to get more clogged (not wax, just water) than Scott & that makes my hearing worse & is annoying. Sometimes I use the hydrogen peroxide, but mostly the \”swimmers ear\” drops work fine. The main ingredient is alcohol.

We had chicken tacos for dinner. I had defrosted the corn tortillas & pre-cooked chicken at lunch so it was just shred cheese, chop lettuce, opened a can of salsa, put out the sour cream & voila. Creates a lot of dishes to wash but is an overall easy & satisfying dinner.

The Sirius reception out here has been sketchy so we don\’t get to listen to it much. We love music so I am working on making playlists. Skye used our credit card & bought 5 CDs worth of mp3 songs that we requested from the Sirius Spa & Coffee House stations. By just going through our ITunes master music library & going down my request list I am able to sort out the playlists that I want. The Spa music can really put us in a relaxed & calm mood.

December 31, 2008 – Day 15

More fun dives with \”Buttercup\”. She was back to \”her old self\” & very friendly, especially swimming circles around Scott.

Chuck & Linda came to our boat for New Years Eve. Linda brought a delicious tortilla soup, I made a green salad & tapioca. I was happily surprised that the romaine lettuce, jicama, cucumber, bell peppers & avocado have held up so well. I\’ve lost some tomatoes. I buy the roma type as green as I can, but need to perfect my technique of trying to ripen them in stages. I made a playlist including \”A Linda Song\” (Barry Manilow), \”Chuck E\’s in Love\” (Rickie Lee Jones), and \”Buttercup\” in honor of our most friendly manta who we have nicknamed. Linda made tinfoil manta awards. Scott\’s badge was \”Manta Man\”, mine \”Manta Mermaid\” & Chuck \”Manta Snorkeler\”. It was very sweet & a good time was had by all.

Scott & Cindy