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Some 20 years in the past, I used to be headed to trip within the Florida Keys once I was launched to the world of scuba diving by two SSI-certified buddies. They suspected what turned out to be true — that I, too, would benefit from the journey of unleashing my inside Cousteau.
And so I started the certification coursework in Manhattan and handed the Open Water certification take a look at on the Keys journey. A couple of years later, I received my Superior Open Water certification within the Pink Sea at a PADI dive store in Dahab, Egypt. (The superior certification permits me to dive in deeper waters and partake in additional specialised dives.)
Quick ahead to in the present day, and I’ve logged 107 dives thus far … and counting. For these within the divemaster neighborhood, dive counts might be within the hundreds. However for me, a comparatively informal diver who solely sometimes straps on an air tank, reaching 100+ dives is a notable milestone.
Whereas I’ve many scuba locations but to discover and plenty of marine creatures but to behold, I’ve skilled loads in my excursions below the ocean. And these 12 dives have left a long-lasting impression on me.
Komodo Islands, Indonesia
Treethot Polrajlum/Getty Photographs
Indonesia’s Komodo Islands are well-known for being residence to the Komodo dragon, the world’s largest lizard. However whereas diving from the posh constitution yacht Celestia across the archipelago, I encountered two swish monsters underwater: large manta rays the scale of automobiles. (Enjoyable reality: Komodo Nationwide Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Web site, is one of many largest sanctuaries for manta rays on the planet.) I additionally got here throughout a stealthy cuttlefish that pretended to be darkish staghorn coral and shape-shifted again to regular to swim away.
St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands
Courtesy of Erik Trinidad
On a glamping journey at Cinnamon Bay in Virgin Islands Nationwide Park on the Caribbean island of St. John, I went on a few dives the place I had an intimate encounter with a sea turtle. (In accordance with the Nationwide Park Service, such sightings are frequent right here.) The ocean turtle made its rounds to see every diver, earlier than swimming proper by my GoPro for its close-up.
Hvar Island, Croatia
Rocky89/Getty Photographs
Hvar, Croatia, sits on the Dalmatian Coast and is called the “Queen of the Dalmatian Islands.” It is also a Journey + Leisure favourite island. On a port-of-call touchdown throughout a Through Croatia yacht cruise, I dove off the coast right here. The shortage of coral was compensated by the closest octopus encounter I’ve ever had. The mollusc climbed a rock and I watched it camouflage itself with the feel whereas trying to find prey.
Bora Bora, French Polynesia
Bernard Radvaner/Getty Photographs
It might need been pouring rain throughout my time on the Conrad Bora Bora Nui, however I’ve discovered to see the intense facet as a scuba diver because of a preferred ethos in the neighborhood: it doesn’t matter if it’s raining as a result of underwater, all the things is moist. The very best sight throughout a dive on a wet day on this idyllic South Pacific vacation spot was a college of a dozen noticed eagle rays hovering above me like a flock of birds.
Isla Rabida, Galápagos
Getty Photographs
The Galápagos Islands, situated roughly 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador, are identified for his or her biodiversity. On a dive off Isla Rabida, a curious sea lion swam round me as I descended to a considerably precarious undercurrent which may have swept us away if we hadn’t held onto some rocks on the ocean ground. If that wasn’t thrilling sufficient, I received a glimpse of some hammerheads swimming close by on the way in which again to the floor.
Saba, Caribbean Netherlands
Courtesy of Erik Trinidad
Subsequent to St. Barts is the lesser-known five-square-mile Caribbean island of Saba, a municipality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. I dove on the “Man O’ Struggle Shoals,” which is close to Saba’s iconic Diamond Rock. It was notable due to the impressively clear visibility, which made the underwater rock pinnacles really feel like volcanically-formed skyscrapers in an aquatic metropolis. In only a single dive, I encountered a moray eel, a sting ray, a lobster, barracudas, a reef shark, and numerous turtles.
Channel Islands, California
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The Channel Islands, an eight-island archipelago that sits off the coast of California, is commonly dubbed “North America’s Galapagos.” It’s residence to over 2,000 species of vegetation and animals, together with 145 endemic species. Throughout my dive right here, the abundance of large kelp appeared like submerged woods from fairy tales. Not surprisingly, these large kelp are collectively known as a “forest.” This was an particularly magical expertise since playful sea lions had been hiding across the large stalks as in the event that they had been taking part in hide-and-seek with me.
Mnemba Atoll, Tanzania
Thomas Pommerin/Getty Photographs
Of all of the colourful coral reefs I’ve seen in my dives, those off the coast of Zanzibar within the Indian Ocean stand out to me essentially the most. The intense hues, coupled with the superior visibility and the abundance of tropical fish, made this dive memorable. (Mnemba Atoll is a tiny island just a few miles from Unguja, the biggest island in Tanzania’s Zanzibar archipelago.)
Loreto, Baja California Sur, Mexico
Andrew Peacock/Getty Photographs
My preliminary draw to scuba diving was to see colourful coral and massive, recognizable marine life. But it surely was on a dive off the coast of this small gulf-side Baja city the place a seasoned divemaster taught me the significance of appreciating the little issues. Positive, the Gulf of California has wrecks to discover and massive creatures at some instances of the 12 months, however throughout my June dives, the spotlight was recognizing the small, colorfully patterned sea slugs known as nudibranchs.
St. Eustatius, Caribbean Netherlands
Courtesy of Erik Trinidad
St. Eustatius (identified domestically as Statia) was a hub for the trans-Atlantic slave commerce again within the seventeenth and 18th centuries. Blue glass beads had been a type of native foreign money again then and it is stated that when the enslaved folks had been freed in 1863, they dumped the beads into the ocean. Now, divers might even see a bead on the ocean ground — and it is a image of that emancipation. That stated, locals say you should not seek for a blue bead, because it finds you. And one did, the truth is, discover me on my first dive.
Grenada
Courtesy of Erik Trinidad
I’ve finished a number of dives on this Caribbean island nation however essentially the most noteworthy one was my a centesimal dive. Within the scuba neighborhood, the centennial dive is finished nude — and I adopted via. Different scuba milestones in Grenada embrace seeing the underwater sculpture park by British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor, which spearheaded the motion of comparable submerged artwork installations all over the world. Additionally notable is my first nighttime wreck dive on the Veronica L, which I can solely describe as what I feel is the closest sensation to being in outer area.
Ummahat Islands, Saudi Arabia
Courtesy of Erik Trinidad
I got here full circle this 12 months and returned to the Pink Sea for the primary time since my superior certification — however this time on the Saudi coast. For years, Saudi Arabia was not on any diver’s radar as a result of it hadn’t opened its doorways to tourism till late 2019 after which misplaced years to the pandemic. As such, a lot of the diving territory of the Ummahat Islands continues to be being found by divemasters from all over the world, which is a part of the attraction. In reality, I went on a dive with The St. Regis Pink Sea Resort that had solely been vetted simply weeks earlier than. I discovered trevallies, Arabian angelfish, and an astounding show of staghorn coral … however something may have occurred, as there have been reviews of lurking tiger sharks and hammerheads.