Day 174, Year 5: Walking the Reef, Swimming with Dolphins
Date: Sunday, April 18, 2010
Weather: Another Beautiful, Sunny Day
Location: Ile Fouquet, Peros Banhos Atoll, Chagos
If yesterday was a bit of a low point, today was an extreme high. We knew low tide was at 10 am, so at 9:30 am we got ready to head out to snorkel the aquarium. But when we looked at the reef in front of us, it was exposed from one end to the other. We knew that meant that the very shallow lagoon on the south side of Ile Fouquet would be dry as well, so we headed that way with Ed and Lynne of Constance. We anchored the dinghy in about six inches of water and then walked across the sand spit at the end of Ile Fouquet and wandered out into the lagoon. As we got closer to the reef, we started to see tiny little colorful coral. There were plenty of sandy patches in between, so we could easily pick our way being very careful not to touch the coral. Lynne was the spotter of the day. She first found a small Hawksbill Turtle stranded in a shallow pool of water waiting for the tide to come in. It was a perfect photo opportunity. There were lots of sea urchins, blue sea stars, and Reef Triggerfish darting here and there. We have often seen the Lagoon Triggerfish, commonly called the Picasafish, but this is the first time we have seen the darker colored Wedge or Reef Triggerfish. We came upon two different schools of fish flailing about in the water also waiting for the tide to come in, and then Lynne spotted another, larger Hawksbill Turtle. We got some great video of this guy swimming through the water as by this time the tide was starting to come in. But the find of the day was a bright yellow Guineafowl Puffer. He was about ten inches long, but much of that was his tail. His body was about the size of an elongated orange and he was hiding under some coral. We could actually touch him and he wouldn’t move, but when he did decide to move he shot out like a streak of lightening. Little Snowy Terns flew overhead and the pounding surf provided the sound effects. It was a great walk on the reef and in the lagoon. As the water level started rising, we headed back to the dinghy. We met Bob and Peppy of Far Niente, a US boat, when we reached the island. They sailed in here yesterday, but we had not met them. We then got in the dinghy and took Ed and Lynne back to Constance. Lynne wanted to get a drink of water before going out to snorkel the aquarium, but just as she climbed aboard Constance she pointed to Windbird and the dolphins that were playing just behind her. Mark and I took off immediately, and I actually got to jump in and swim with them. They were heading away from us, but I jumped in and followed them. One dolphin came back to check me out, and then a second one came, but when they returned to the other seven they must have reported that they had seen a human as they then took off. I got back in the dinghy and tried to follow them so Mark could get in as well, but it was too late. They were gone. By this time it was almost noon, but we went to the aquarium and had a great snorkel. The water was clear and we really enjoyed revisited some of the friends we had seen here last week. Mark was shooting video and was really disappointed when we got back and viewed the results. It is almost impossible to see the view finder when snorkeling, so he turned on the video setting, shot what he wanted, and then turned it off . . . he thought. But in reality he was shooting video with the camera off, and had the camera on while he was just swimming around. He really wants another go at this, so we will probably stay here at least two more days so he can try again.
Tomorrow morning, Mark and Ed are going to take our dinghy to Ile du Coin to get water and to fish on the way there and back. It is just over three miles and with the two of them, our dinghy will plane and they will be there in fifteen minutes. Lynne and I are going to take her dinghy to Ile Fouquet, leave it there, and then have Mark and Ed take us to the next little island, Mapou De L’Ile Fouquet. We will then walk the sandbar that is exposed at low tide back to Ile Fouquet. This means that we will have to wait until Tuesday to snorkel the aquarium at low tide, so hopefully this wonderful weather will hold out until then.
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| 100418 Day 174 Peros Banhos, Chagos–Walk on Ile du Coin Reef & Underwater |
