Location: Cane Garden Bay, Tortola
Today, we started off Day 12 aboard Vela Vita with a delicious breakfast of banana pancakes made by Ari and Juju. Most of us then settled in for a study session turned nap time while we sailed to a new dive site. Once we arrived, Kyler led a marine biology lesson on his specialty, tropical coral reefs. We learned about the composition of reefs, different types of coral, and lots more. We then kitted up for our second research diver certification dive, where we got to learn how to use scientific tools such as a transect and a quadrant to measure abundance and biodiversity. After we were finished with skills, Sonja, Mahe, and I still had lots of air, so we added on a short, fun dive to the end. Once we all got back to the boat, we again set sail and arrived at our final destination for the night, only to be greeted by a bay full of jellyfish! Luckily, the place we moored was jelly-free, and we hopped in for a snorkel to scope out the area before our night dive. Antonio, Emi, and Juju spotted a baby smooth trunkfish, while Maren, Juno, and Kylie saw some squid, and Ellie and Tyler saw a southern stingray! We are now back on the boat and just finished a delicious dinner of vegetable tikka masala, courtesy of Emma, and are setting up for our final night dive, where we will navigate on our own back to the boat as the final part of our training! Wish us luck!!
Signing off,
Josie 🐡