Deep dive

This is what it looks like from above ...

... and the view down there !

2 p.m.
We just had aweful pizza from nextdoors when Charlotte announces the dolphins - they are far, she adds. And they are ! So far are they it takes 15 min before I see them, and my eyes are not that bad. How does she do it ?

We have ample time to paddle out there. No stress no out of breath. We arrive out there relaxed.

We are now next to the pod of about twenty. The pod has all but stopped. They wait for us to go in. Chacha is first.

She dips in and with her childish fervor she wiggled inside this group. They have now created a complete circle around her. A young dolphin advances particularly close and engages with her. I'm always surprised to see how dolphins behave towards children. There is less of a barrier. Now Charlotte and the young one race each other in a circle, than he zigzags in front of her...

Now it is my turn. I'm relaxed and have all my breath. I join the pod and they take me in again. I don't recognize this group at first. Later I recognize in the tail injury a dolphin from one of the sessions with Ralf.
This group is cool right from the start. Although there are two younger dolphins in the group the rest seems to be made up of equal numbers of males and females. They are used to us and take us in with this intense curiosity that is so special in dolphins.

Again and again dolphins turn around and swim straight at us so that we see them in the face- which looks like a clowns face with a round nose and a big smile.

A big male shows special interest in me which I return to him. We swim together, follow each other for awhile. I swim in slow dolphin movements, using as little effort to save oxygene.
As I'm relaxed I have so much more breath that it allows me to stay with them for a minute or two at a time. I see the dolphins are not used to humans down there, they are visibly surprised.

The it's Charlotte's turn again.
We are now slowly moving down the coast with the pod. She swims like a dolphin herself and I'm full of joy watching this. Then the dolphins dive down and her session is over. They have started hunting again.

They move along the ground slowly in a long line looking I don't know for what.

When it is my turn we are further away from the beach. You can't see the ground, only a deep blue. This time I follow the dolphins in their dive down. With my weight belt I have already neutral buoyancy in one meter depth. The deeper I go the faster I drop. The water pressure hurts my ears, I need to depressurize. I guess I´m at minus 8m.
The dolphins are surprised, two of them turn around and escort me back to the surface and disappear again in the deep. Wow. Was that an accident?
I do it again and the same happens... They look after me! They must know my limitations.
I'm swimming back up to the surface which is way way up above me. It seems an eternity and I feel the pain in my lungs. Finally the surface and air !

It is nice down there..

We follow the pod to the limit of where we usually go and then let them move on. This was a beautiful session that lasted over an hour ! We are full of thrilled.

PS: My camera didn´t work, batteries already empty ! Charlotte took these pictures.

Saturday

Hot, sea like a mirror, seems like there's no tide today. There is a couple of blue spotted rays here in the bay but not one dolphin.

The fishermen enjoy post revolutionary anarchy and put their 400 m net right infront of the corals of the hotel. Ai!

Friday

He seems to be flying, I´m down there holding my breath

11:45
The dolphin pod passes. They are further out there, where the crest is and the shallow water drops into the dark blue.

This is a serious gathering, here are at least 20 individuals travelling south. We meet, move together, then they dive and disappear for a long while. I continue slowly. After awhile they reappear, right beside me. We move another 100m together when they dive again.

Here goes the gang

As they are hunting I decide to stay on the kayak. It is unwise to distract them while eating. They will be more playful with their belly full.
-
2 p.m.
I'm just moving the first fork of pasta salad to my mouth when they arrive. Its windstill and the water surface is flat. Quickly I approach and stop some distance away, putting on my weight belt and the fins.
The dolphins have all stopped, they have seen the kayak, and now they swim towards me.

I glide softly into the water. This is the kiddy group. They are curious and relaxed now. I guess they have eaten. My presence is welcome. We swim for a long time, when I decide that it is time to return to the kayak which has turned into a little orange dot on the sea.

A smile on their face

They came again and again to check me out

Hey, don´t look !

The whole group moves

One of the curious young ones

Bye, everyone ! I have swam about 50 m when suddenly I hear sonar ! And a second later I'm surrounded by at least 10 immense adult dolphins. They are huge ! These guys are usually hunting out in the open. Some show their age. These are tough fighters. Their movements are slow and essential. They make the best use of their breath. They take me in and one of them "adopts" me. We stay so close together, he is just centimeters away. So instead of returning to the kayak I'm off for another phantastic voyage.

With the big guys

I let them eventually go...  This likes more like a painting

But finally i really have to turn around. While I slowly swim back, which takes half of eternity, I contemplate yesterdays sharks that must be somewhere out in the blue...

I get back safely...

From Wikipedia: Grey Reef Shark

From Wikipedia

The grey reef shark^[2] is a species of requiem shark. One of the most common reef sharks in the Indo-Pacific, it is found as far west as South Africa. This species is most often seen in shallow water near the drop-offs of coral reefs. The grey reef shark has the typical "reef shark" shape, with a broad, round snout and large eyes. This species can be distinguished from similar species by the plain or white-tipped first dorsal fin, the dark tips on the other fins, the broad black rear margin on the tail fin, and the lack of a ridge between the dorsal fins. Most individuals are less than 1.9 m (6.2 ft) long.

Grey reef sharks are fast-swimming, agile predators that feed primarily on free-swimming bony fishes and cephalopods. Their aggressive demeanor enables them to dominate many other shark species on the reef, despite their moderate size. Many grey reef sharks have a home range on a specific area of the reef, to which they continually return. However, they are social rather than territorial. During the day, these sharks often form groups of 5–20 individuals near coral reef drop-offs, splitting up in the evening as the sharks begin to hunt. Adult females also form groups in very shallow water, where the higher water temperature may accelerate their growth or that of their unborn young. Like other members of its family, the grey reef shark is viviparous, meaning that the mother nourishes her embryosthrough a placental connection. Litters of 1–6 pups are born every other year.

Grey reef sharks were the first shark species known to perform a threat display, a stereotyped behavior warning that it is prepared to attack.^[3] The display involves a "hunched" posture with characteristically dropped pectoral fins, and an exaggerated, side-to-side swimming motion. Grey reef sharks often do so if they are followed or cornered by divers to indicate that they perceive a threat. This species has been responsible for a number of attacks on humans and should be treated with caution, especially if they begin to display. Grey reef sharks are caught in many fisheries and are susceptible to local population depletion due to their low reproduction rate and limited dispersal. As a result, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed this species as Near Threatened.

Thursday´s Dip: White Chinese & Bottlenose Dolphins

The best of todays video material: First encounter with a pod of Chinese White dolphins accompanied by two bottlenose dolphins, then lots of footage of bottlenose dolphins. There is an amazing scene where two dolphins cuddle (towards the end) and when they check us out and swim straight into our face...

PS: We are still trying to figure out if thursday´s sharks pose any threat to us. They looked like grey reef sharks to me. To follow...

Thursday

Amazing shot ! Curious bottlenose individual

It's 10 a.m.
The blue spotted ray

Mohammed, the guard, calls and points to the water: "Abu Salame, Mister Daniel !"
I jump up and see something right above the corals just in front of me just meters from the us. Leo and I get on the kayak. "It's not a dolphin" shouts Aldo "it's a sea turtle!"
But it isnt that either. In the meantime Leo and I are right next to him. It's a beautiful spotted eagle ray. With about 120cm wingspan, it looks like a bat and flies like a bird. Its not scared by us, circles the bay a few times then flies away...
-
12:45
The Chinese Whites again

Here they come.
To my surprise yesterdays chinese whites are here again, the very same group, accompanied (or should I say escorted ?) by two bottlenose dolphins. I cannot say they swam together, but more in a safe distance, eyeing each other. I wonder what their relationship is like. Do bottlenose dolphins tolerate other dolphin types in their territory? Do they engage with each other or do they treat the other like humanoids dealt with homo neanderthalis?

They are more flexible...

...very curious and playful...

...and not afraid of the reef.

Chinese Whites are nice to be around with

Chinese whites are different from bottlenose dolphins in several ways. When they breathe they swim in a stronger arc than the latter. They seem to be more mobile, swimming in tighter circles, but are maybe not as fast. They are less prudent with coral reefs, swimming in and over them. They are more curious and playful. They move up the coast slowly, in no hurry to go anywhere.

When close I knock against the kayak hull... And here they come. I'm with the chinese whites, then with the two bottlenose, and then again with the firrst group. There are at least 6 of them. Coming and going...
The sessions lasts a good 20 min.
-
2:45
Of dolphins and sharks

Valentina joins me this time. We are quickly out there and see... these are bottlenose dolphins.
They move up from the south. There are quite a few. It looks like there are about 20 individuals.
We move along with them and they are right with us, all the time.
Valentina goes in first. The dolphins circle around her and are in no haste to move on. It is always amazing how dolphins behave towards children.

Vali inside the action

Then I go in. It´s a group I know, and they know me. We connect immediately and swim together. There is one dolphin that picks me out. We swim together for 10 minutes or so, really close, my fingers are just centimeters away and I feel a strong urge to touch him. But I don´t.

Then its Valentina´s turn again. She is in heaven, and I´m so happy she has a chance to experience this and savor it.

The dolphins were very interactive, relaxed and curious today

Visibility was good too

View from below

He asked for a cuddle

This one gave us a spectacular 2 m jump later that day

Hello there....

Then it´s my turn again. When one goes in the other follows close by, so one does not have to swim back to any drifting far-away kayak and loose precious time. This way one stays right behind the pod and can follow him all day.
It´s great in the water, I´m right inside the group when a zordiac motor boat enters the scene. The engine and clicking of the transmission frightens the pod and they dash away. I´m left alone in a world of bubbles from the  motor boat engine.

 Jetski´s and motor boats are enemy number one of dolphins. One has to be aware of this !!

Valentina goes back in, then me, then her... this goes on for an hour and a half.
Until we are way off from where we started.

I´m stunned to see inside the group, which seems to have gotten bigger, the chinese whites ! They seem to be integrated in the bottlenose group ! They really seem to be a part of them...
I wonder if they interbreed ?!

So we are far away by now. My arms feel like lead and I´m cooked. The dolphins seem to be far away...
This has been as good as a dolphin swim can ever get !

We have a dip at a beautiful coral reef spot when I see the dolphins turn back.
We climb back onto the kayak when I see the dolphins swim straight at us. Something whirls up the water 15m away. I´m just about to go in, have a final peek and realize, this thing in the water are not dolphins. They are further away. What we have here are sharks !

They must have been moved out of their usual habitat by the dolphins...

One of the six sharks

A group of 6 sharks, close together like a dolphin pod is right below our kayak, and they circle around us a few times. I´m amazed, take some pictures, while Valentina gets very scared. "Don´t be" I say to her, but that is not the right thing to say in these circumstances and she is now also angry with me.

I feel helpless, row her back to the beach and she walks back home alone.

Too bad this amazing session, which lasted more than an hour and a half, has to end in tears.
-
6:00 p.m.
Spectacular 2m jumps

While I row back there are many more dolphins around.
Back on the beach Leo greets me. The sea is now full of dolphins. "Shall we have a go?" I asked him and he nods. With his broken arm he may not fall off the kayak. Good that he is careful.

Here we go. Soon we follow the pod.
One of the dolphins, the one I swam with before, shows off big time and makes a neat 2m jump right next to our kayak. He turns his head and looks at us while he does it. He splashes down and the water nearly reaches Leo. Wow, that was cool !

There is one pod after another that arrives. The mixed one, the pod with the dolphin with the pointed belly, then the pod with the finless dolphin and so on. I count 6 pods but I have the suspicion there were even more.  We paddle with them for another hour. It seems the dolphins wait for me to go in as they stay very close with us. But I can´t with Leo with a broken arm on board.

While returning we see yet another dolphin pod. But we have had enough for today.

Chinese White Dolphins in Egypt !

The video quality is mediocre but the images are extremely rare !

Wednesday

Valentina joined me today for the third encounter

With our departure from Egypt this summer in mind any occasion is good to drop everything and run to the beach. How could I leave my father in law, who is visiting us, in dusty Cairo ? Isn't it my duty to take him to the sea where he can have extended walks and breathe clean air ?
-
So here we are, it's the middle of the week and we are alone in the compound. The beach is all ours. No other souls around.
It' s hot, around 40*C, no wind, flat sea.

10:45, our friends arrive

We meet up, the pod is relaxed, no warning signals are given, I'm swimming right beside a female with her calf.
The big male with his dorsal fin missing is there.
And a big male arrives from behind, in full errection. His dick looks like a hook and is pointed. The size is similar to our human instruments. With a swift movement the thing is pulled back under his skin and disappears. The dolphin penis is under the skin and only extrudes when needed. Not a bad idea by nature as in this way there is no friction that could slow down dolphins when they swim.

At first I'm among them, then I'm slightly behind them, then I'm so far behind that they start to fade in the water, then they are gone.

I wished I could swim faster.

Unfortunately the batteries of my camera mask are empty. I think there is a problem with this video mask as it sometimes refuses to swith off. That propably drained my batteries...
-
1 p.m. The Loner

Batteries are replaced.
There ! A lonely dolphin !
It's difficult to spot him as he comes up to beathe rarely. So while in the water I try to make out where he is. There ! He avoided me.
I go back on the kayak and follow him. He goes fast, I go fast, suddenly he arrives and zigzags in front of the kayak. We move together, he slows down, looks at me from below the water, we speed up again.
Then he stops. I stop. He seems to expect me to go in. I do and he swims right towards me. We swim together for approx. 100m. He moves forward, then waits. The kayak is far away by now, I have to return.

The loner

Hey, that was really nice!
-
15:45 - Chinese White Dolphins !

After lunch and a Sakkara my eyes are half open, the metabolism is working at 50%, I'm on the phone when Valentina calls. I can't really hear what she says but she keeps making gestures towards the water. Dolphins !

Hop, the kayak, out we row. A dolphin sticks his head straight out of the water, looking out for us. They jump and play, staying in the same spot, seemingly waiting for us. Soon we are there and then I see it: these are NOT bottlenose dolphins ! This is a whole pod of chinese white dolphins ! I saw one only once about a year ago. They have become very rare. I wrote last year about my awe and this nearly religious feeling when encountering such a threathened living being...

If you look closely you will see three dolphins here

Chinese White dolphins look distinctly different from bottlenose dolphins

These dolphins have a very pointed nose 

They very extremely playful, quick and curious

The head form is very pointed

Coming to check us out

The dorsal fin is clearly visible here

And the group, we engaged with about six dolphins, although I suspect there were more, was very playful and interactive. Their character seems to be more open and curious. They sped pas Valentina and me, turning around, stopping, looking with enormous curiosity at us - wondering what we are ... As if they never saw humans.

Then they disappeared, to reappear again, whistling, moving fast.
This session lasted approximately 20 min.

Eventually it was time to get back to the abandoned kayak that was floating some good distance in the middle of the sea.

State of the ocean - How bad is it ? (It´s real bad!)

DIAGNOSING THE STATE OF THE OCEAN'S HEALTH

IPSO is currently compiling the Global State of the Ocean Report, which will collate world-wide marine science to give a comprehensive overview of the health of the Ocean. The Report is due to be published in 2012 but we already know that the Ocean's health is in a critical state.

This affects everyone, because — just like the climate — the Ocean forms one of the key operating systems of our planet. It creates more than half our oxygen, drives weather systems and modulates the atmosphere, as well as providing us with vital resources. So the Ocean functions at a fundamental 'Earth System' level, transcending national borders to help maintain life everywhere on Earth.

Damage to the Ocean is not as immediately apparent as terrestrial destruction, but it is just as serious. All of the stressors we have put on the Ocean — from over-fishing to pollution — have contributed to its ill-health. The situation is now so severe that we are altering the chemistry of the Ocean, with significant impacts on marine life and the functioning of marine ecosystems.

The Ocean has already absorbed more than 80% of the heat added to the climate system and around 33% of the carbon dioxide emitted by humans. Ecosystems are collapsing as species are pushed to extinction and natural habitats are destroyed. Scientists believe that there is still time to prevent irreversible, catastrophic changes to our marine ecosystems but that this requires drastic action within a decade.

http://www.stateoftheocean.org/


My god, it is real bad !  

Low tides

No dolphins this weekend. After last weeks moon eclipse we had the lowest possible tide this years with the coral reefs sticking 10 cm out of the water. I guess the water level was to low for our pods and they moved further away. 

Hot as hell - another dolphin day

Taken from below

Weekend - beach. There is no wind and the water surface is absolutely flat. It is incredibly hot. 

Just by sitting there, under the umbrella, one disintegrates into a piece of sweaty meat. There is the urge to throw yourself into the sea for some refreshment, but that water is nearly as hot. Only once one dives down and stirs up some deeper water does it get fresher.

Tiny is there and Lorenzo. It´s a nice afternoon, we talk and drink and eat all day - no dolphins in sight.

Lorenzo talks about taking the car to Port Said and stay there overnight. By 4 p.m. he has nearly convinced himself that it is time to leave when the dolphins appear. Having decided to leave he takes an eternity to convince himself back to stay a little longer and get on the kayak. Yallah ! I scream and he slowly gets going.

The water is so flat we fly towards the dolphins. The kayak just glides on the surface and cuts through like butter.

While we approach I explain to Lorenzo we should swop, one goes in and the other accompanies the swimmer, so when the dolphins continue you get back on the kayak, catch up and then the other one goes in. I suggest he goes in first. No, Daniel, you may go... no, you, please,... no you... after a few rounds he goes in. The pod comes and swims around him. He is right in the middle. Then the pod splits, the group with the small ones moves away and a few adults stay. I see a giant bubble rise from the first group.

A bit later Lorenzo is back on the kayak - delighted. We catch up with the group and I go in.

Here they come. Mouth open, whistling and clicking sound all around (see the picture below).

Mouth wide open - communicating with his friends

The group again moves on but two dolphins, the distractors, stay. And they are incredibly interactive. The invite to follow them, the return again and again, we do circles, I dive down, take pictures from below.
When I stick my head out of the water to get back on the kayak, Lorenzo is far away, head in the water.  The dolphins are relaxed today, the surface flat and we catch up with the group again anyway.
Lorenzo goes in, and then it is me again.

The second time I meet again the two friends from before. And suddenly the rest of the pod comes, with kids and everybody. There is the finless dolphin.We swim together for a while. A dolphin swims upside down. He cuddles against his friends.

Eventually they accelerate and I look for Lorenzo. He is in the water somewhere else.
When we are back on the kayak he prefers to go instead of following the pod. He leaves me on the kayak and swims back to the shore.

Lorenzo is a truly independent person, and that is what is so precious about him.

While I follow the pod, that has advanced considerably I´m surprised to see one jump straight out of the water. And then another one and another....eventually the whole pod, about 15 dolphins, is hoping and racing down the coast. They are hunting ! What a sight !

Impossible to follow them I turn around and row back.

Back on the beach we reflect on the session we just had. Lorenzo is as high as I am.

These two stayed with us

Follow me

Dolphin world - upside down

Cuddling with his mate - head against fin

Moving on

Evening, 7 p.m.
A little breeze is making live more acceptable. It is about to get dark.
The dolphins return from the north. They travel slowly. We move down the coast together for 2 km, me in the kayak, them below. I don´t go in.

Out in the open

A quick glimpse during the afternoon session

It´s ten in the morning. Yesterday´s big pod passes. We move out, but the wind has stirred up these curly short waves that are as long as the kayak. It is impossible to pick up speed. But the dolphins are fast today. I give up....

---

2 p.m.

It took some effort to convince Patrice to go out on a little tour, but I succeeded.

Patrice and I have been through some adventure last year when he decided to save my life.
It was one of these windy days and I had gone out to swim with the group, it was getting dark. Seeing an abandoned kayak he got intrigued and instantly convinced my friend Lorenzo to join him to safe me.
They grabbed our transparent kayak, the one that is sinkable if it takes water. It has two floaters but one of them was deflated.  So they took this kayak with all the fins and goggles etc inside and paddled out. Some waves flushed the boat and when I stuck my head out of the water they were already sinking. I came just in time to save them - and the kayak.

We were just rowing, without any set objective, no destination, aimlessly, when a group of dolphins appear. They must have be 50m from us. I turn the kayak so we are moving with the dolphins.
In the meantime the dolphins have disappeared. I know with the paddle against the kayak: tonk tonk tonk
And we start rowing.
A little later the group appears right below us. This is a group of big males, and they are hunting We move along together. Here are five big adults.
A little later I'm in the water and inside the group. Beautiful ! After a while they dive down into the deep blue, where I can't follow. There is a dimension down there that remains beyond my reach. I wished I could follow them...



Back in the kayak we wait, wonder where the dolphins will reappear, so Patrice can have a go. After a looong while they reappear a hundred meters away. Too far to catch up with them. Well, more next time, time for food...

---

4 p.m.
This mornings pod returns up north. This time we meet up. They are going so fast, I can hardly follow them. They are all aligned, all twenty, raking up the fish. It is an amazing hunting technic. Imagine a moving fishing net, well, like a trawler.
When I go in I encounter them shortly, take two shots, and off they go (see the picture on top).

---

Cool day !

Today´s video

Wrong direction

So close, we nearly bump into each other

Yipee, another weekend ! For some reason this week was much longer then usual. Everything is packed for the beach and the moment we arrive I spot the dolphins. Full of anticipation I run between the parasol and the kayak and prepare the equipment. Then with strong strokes I row out into the open. But where are the dolphins ?
I wait 10 minutes and it occurs to me that they moved away from me when I saw them. Wrong direction.

A couple of hours passes. I'm out there with the kayak paddling here, then going there, looking at this coral than the other when I spot them. "The dolphins!" I yell, the boys are puzzled, they see nothing.
I take the weight belt and the fins and get ready. We travel parallel to the group. They have nearly stopped right below us, then continue at slow speed, all on the surface, watching us, staring at us from below through the surface, which is flat like a window.

The dolphin with the string still hanging out of his mouth is there and quite a few huge adults. A young one zig zags the tip of our kayak, playing.

Then hop... I'm in the water. Swimming with the group. We stay together for about 50m when I loose them, visibility is a bit poor, I see them 20 m further. Little Leo has followed me padling really well ! So we catch up with the group and follow them in our kayak. We are one, the 20 dolphins and us.
The small dolphin jumps and shows off.

Here they come

I follow him

Rowing like a champion

The group

Faces

Faces

Three swimmers move quickly into our trajectory. I move on, and the dolphins do too.
When past this obstacle I go in again. A wonderful session starts, whistling and beeping when suddenly a sound becomes audible and the dolphins all dive down and rush forward. A jetski...

Back to the safety of the kayak.
Leo has followed me...
As the dolphins are still close I give it another go.

Back in the water the best part of the session starts. Suddenly the whole group comes to pick me up, I'm right in the middle of ten magnificient huge adults. I recognize last weeks individual with the spotted belly. There is another one with a slightly damaged dorsal fin. We swim together, follow each other, stay in eye contact, just centimeters seperating each other. Amazing !

I loose them, they are too fast, the group returns to reintegrate me. We continue.... Slowly I get tired. This was cool, enough for today...

I row the kids home.
Leo, who just turned 6, has proven to be a good addition to these expeditions.