A Whopper of a Fish!

Fishing this morning, cloudy skies with a threat of rain....but off we went across the water. Dale casted toward the bank and the water swirled...he had a big red on his line.....29 inches! The fish almost managed to take off all his line before he finally gave up the battle and was landed. We took a few photos before putting the big boy back in the water to swim free......a really nice fish. I did manage to land a 20 inch trout that was pretty nice. The afternoon turned hot and very windy and we caught a few more fish before heading in.

Eels on Wheels

Arrived in Bonaire at the Divi Flamingo Beach Resort with the Eels on Wheels group...it was a hectic first day, checking in, grabbing lunch, attending a dive briefing and doing a check out dive before lunch. Tired but full after lunch we did our first boat dive of the trip. The next morning up early it was time to get down to some serious diving. Three disabled divers were put on each boat, and it was an amazing and heart warming sight to pull away from the dock with the wheelchairs left behind. The diving was usually easy, with great visibility and little current.

Although one day we did manage to get in a pretty swift current on the swim back to the boat.....but all went well! The divers with use of their arms were able to propel themselves under water with ease, most having lots of upper body strength. The divers that had little or no use of their arms and legs were towed along under water. I can't even imagine the freedom they must have felt being underwater with neutral buoyancy.
Our dive masters, Enrique and Orlando were both great and spotted out lots of creatures. I told Orlando since I was alone, he was my husband on the boat and needed to watch out for me....so did several other gals!
We did two morning dives, came in for lunch and a break before doing one afternoon dive. I logged 17 dives during the week in my dive logbook. We saw eels, seahorses, turtles, starfish, octopus, barracuda, a frog fish, lots of lionfish and the highlight for me was a massive bait ball of small fish. It looked like a huge tornado underwater.......swirling around in all directions.

We spent our down time at the pool just relaxing with a trip into town the last day for some retail therapy. A cold, smooth Mud Slide sure was a great way to end a day of diving!!!!
Even though I was only a small part of this group, I felt truly blessed to be with them. It sure made me see the world through the eyes of someone with disabilities......so many challenges. Their courage to tackle the underwater world is amazing and heart warming.
I met lots of great folks and made new friends that love diving as much as I do. I gained a greater appreciation for the obstacles faced by the disabled and the courage they have to conquer them every day.
I guess one of our disabled divers, Joe summed it up best.......
The trip was AWESOME!!!!!!

Bon Bini Bonaire

The packing has begun, leaving on Saturday to dive in Bonaire with a group called "Eels on Wheels". The Eels on Wheels Adaptive Scuba Program is a registered not-for-profit organization that provides people the opportunity to dive at their own ability level by certifying divers through the Handicapped Scuba Association (HSA). Eels on Wheels provides life-changing experiences for people with disabilities. I have volunteered to help in whatever capacity I can and am looking forward to an amazing week at the Divi Flamingo Beach Resort.

Limited Out!

We got a late start this morning because of a thunderstorms and rain.....but we managed to limit out on (6)Reds. The weather was great down at the bay, but it did got HOT later in the day. This was only our third trip out in our new boat...sure did run good in the shallows and even out in the open bay.
We stopped on the way home at a Dairy Queen to celebrate our successful trip with a ice cream cone.

Cayman-Kittewake-Hunting Lion Fish

A short flight, bumpy landing and we were back in Cayman...picking up our rental car, stopping for groceries, then a drive out to the East End to find our downstairs condo #103 ready and waiting. The weather was terrific, the water was warm, and the winds were light.....kinda perfect! The diving began on Sunday morning on Eastern Skies with some of my old friends at the dive op making me feel at home. On Tuesday I did the 2 tank morning dives, then grabbed a quick lunch and made the Kittewake dive in the afternoon..thanks to my chauffeur, Dale. Sure will be interesting to see how the marine life develops around the ship in the future....a really nice dive!
Dale spent the mornings taking a long walk and catching up on his reading....in the afternoon we hung out at the new pool and hot tub or grabbed a nap. Wednesday evening we enjoyed "Diver's Night", a delicious dinner of ribs and chicken, with rice and beans, potato salad, sweet cornbread and pineapple upside down cake while watching videos that Ellay made.

Thursday I had 2 morning dives and signed up for the "Lion Fish Hunt" a 2 tank dive in the afternoon. I was a spotter, Dennis was the bag man, and Steve was the hunter...two other guys on our team just swam off with huge cameras to take photos of the reef. The whole boat got 37, while our team had 12 in the bag. Steve cleaned them, and TJ grilled them when we got back to Compass Point, my first Lion Fish meal. After my last two dives Friday morning, Dale and I decided to have lunch at Over the Edge, then drove to Rum Point and found a shady spot on the beach to relax.
Saturday we packed our stuff, finished off most of our food and drove to the airport for the trip home. This trip ran like clockwork, the diving was good, we met new friends and had a wonderful relaxing week on the island.

Sand Fest Sista's II

Packed up...Karen and I headed out to Port Aransas for SandFest Sista's Weekend II stopping in Rockport to grab a bite to eat and some groceries. Pam's flight was delayed so she arrived later than expected. On the way back from picking her up we stopped at Doc's Seafood and Steak for some seafood and drinks....it was sooo good! Unpacked and up early we headed to watch the sculptors begin their work and checkout the vendors. The wind was blowing like crazy the whole weekend. We made a run to buy fresh shrimp right off the boat in the marina and enjoyed them grilled for supper. After dinner, we walked down to the beach to enjoy a full moon over the Gulf and some bubble blowing.

Saturday we rented "Miss Kitty" to tool around town and the Sand Fest....Karen did the driving this year. Our biggest adventure was getting Miss Kitty out after getting blocked in.....we did it!

We also made a stop at the University of Texas Marine Science Center.....a educational highlight! A brief stop at "Shorty's".....was very educational too! Karen fried shrimp for dinner with a big salad that was delish and we enjoyed eating on the porch.
Sunday morning it was time to head back home...we dropped off Pam at the airport and our great weekend "Girl's" trip came to an end.

Our New Baby Cat!

Today we picked up our new boat, a Tran Sport Baby Cat.....WOW! It is 16 ft 2 inches long and has a Suzuki 90 hp motor. We added a platform on the front with a railing...for keeping an eye out for those schools of red fish. It is blue and gray, with two big ice chest.
Love, love, love it!!!!