Sunday, June 5, 2011

Milkyway Day

I got very attached to the "milky way" portion of the tour, and it never seemed like we stayed there long enough. The Paluan milky way is a sheltered cove, where the limestone and the decaying vegetation form a mucky bottom that is white. It gives the water the appearance of a milky turquoise color. Visibility is about 6 inches and E is always joking about what may lurk there, but it is just the perfect spot to me. There is a bit of silliness that the tour companies have the customers engage in, as they apply this "beauty mud" to themselves and pose for pictures. The mud smells sulfur-y and after a short time on the skin, needs to be washed off as it causes a mild burning sensation (chemical exfoliant??) Beyond this bit of playful nonsense, I found the milky way to be deeply serene and I just loved to float there and breathe in the oxygen rich air, made fresh by all the foliage of the surrounding rock islands. While floating in the dappled light of over-hanging trees, noise ceases and you see the deep blue sky, the fluffy clouds drifting by and the deep green foliage of the cove. More than likely, you will see the graceful long tailed white birds that fly in pairs over this area.

Snorkel sites I visited through the IMPAC tour: Fantasy (while the kayakers did their thing.) Wonder channel or Rose garden (while the others went to jellyfish lake) and Paradise. I would also snorkel at the beach while on lunch break. Ngermeus Island beach is one such spot, and was the place where I had seen the shark the first time I snorkeled there. Mr. black tip was elusive the other times. ...actually it's amazing how fast you go from being afraid to see a shark to being disappointed when you don't see one.

Fish designs seem to be mainly spotted or striped, and vary in every imaginable color combination. Some sport designs that looks like circuit boards. Fins coordinate or contrast nicely. Tails come in a variety of shapes. One boat captain (on the dive boat, not the snorkel tour) went the extra mile and kept a ready reference in his dry bag. He was genuinely interested in verifying the name and description of any fish you wondered about. (Tall Ken at Fish & Fins, a "salty boy" from Melekeok.)

I favor the caramel colored, spotted young groupers who seem to sit on the corals trying to mind their own business, and the many varieties of parrotfish who always seem to be on a mission to get somewhere as they swim. I love to watch as the bright blue fish that are less than an inch long congregate above a coral and all seem to drift apart, only to reach an invisible tipping point and contract again. Schooling fish are interesting to watch, as they hypnotically change directions in uniformity.














1 comment:

  1. So glad to see more from you. Love the pictures--especially the one with the two of you and the heart. Waiting for Joyce's wonderful text, but I guess you'll be home soon and we'll get updates then. Enjoy the rest of your trip!!!!

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