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Happy Almost-New Year . . .
THE WEATHER OUTSIDE MIGHT BE FRIGHTFUL -
If the forecast is correct, it's going to be a
wet New Year's Day in Pasadena (and around L.A.)
on Thursday. Hopefully it doesn't pan out but
right now, the forecast is not looking too
promising. The rain's supposed to come back in
on Wednesday - not as strong as the last storm
but persistent - and may linger all the way
through next Monday. Yikes!!!
WEATHER MIGHT AFFECT NAV CLASS ON SATURDAY,
JANUARY 3 -
We've got some people signed up already but we
may have to postpone due to weather. The rain's
not really an issue in and of itself, but the
runoff and other factors dirty up the water
around Vets Park which reduces the visibility
significantly, sometimes to zero, and ramps up
the bacteria count. Neither in conducive to
diving. Backup date would likely be the
following Saturday, January 10. We'll try to
make a go/no-go decision but Noon on Friday.
ANOTHER DIVE BOAT FIRE -
Not the Manthiri (thankfully) but a large
liveaboard in the Maldives, the Yasawa
Princess,
caught fire a few days ago and has been
rendered non-operational. Thankfully, all 25
guests and crew are reported safely evacuated
from the boat and unharmed. The fire broke out
around 6PM on Christmas Eve and from the one
picture I've seen, there are flames shooting out
of windows in the front of the next-to-the-top
deck, which looks like it may be the
galley/kitchen area. Given the time that the
fire started, it would make sense that it might
be the result of a kitchen fire that got out of
control. Regardless, at least everyone is safe.
The boat bills itself as a cruise ship as it's
larger (180 feet) than most Maldives liveaboards
and it can take up to 56 passengers in 28
staterooms spread over three decks. They don't
always do diving and it's unclear if this was a
dive trip or some other sort of excursion. But
it underscores that you can never be too careful
and any time you're going to spend time in a
liveaboard boat, make sure you know what the
evacuation options and procedures are.
HUNTING BUDDIES? -
A study conducted around British Columbia,
Canada, found evidence that orcas and dolphins
may be teaming up to hunt prey. The dolphins may
be acting as scouts to lead the orcas to salmon,
a favorite of the Killer Whales. It's unclear
what advantage the dolphins are getting out of
this. You can read more about it here: DOLPHINS
& WHALES TAG-TEAM PREY.
PALAU TO ACCEPT DEPORTEES FROM THE U.S. -
Well, I guess it's better than being sent to El
Salvador. (Although I've been to the jail in
Palau - just visiting and looking for
storyboards - and it's no picnic.) But it seems
like Palau has agreed to accept up to 75
ICE-arrested deportees in exchange for $7.5
million in U.S. aid. That works out to $100,000
per deportee. (No word on whether those being
deported have to be certified divers as well.)
Another $8 million in additional aid was pledge.
A statement from the office of the President of
Palau reads,
"Palau
and the United States signed a memorandum of
understanding allowing up to 75 third-country
nationals, who have never been charged with a
crime, to live and work in Palau, helping
address local labor shortages in needed
occupations." So it sounds like they'll not be
jailed but its also unclear as to whether this
is simply "Come to Palau to work" or it's forced
labor under the thumb of the Palauan government.
Palau already gets about $45 million each year
in U.S. aid under a deal brokered during the
Biden administration. You can read more about
this here: DEPORTED
TO PALAU.
SOME SQUID EGGS IN REDONDO -
We've been getting reports of scattered squid
eggs at Vets Park in Redondo so it seems like
either this will be a light squid year or the
main run simply hasn't yet started. Generally,
Redondo's Vets Park has been a reliable area to
see squid eggs and, during the night hours,
live-but-soon-to-be-dead squid laying those eggs
in a mating frenzy. (In case you didn't know,
mating marks the end of the squid life cycle as
they die soon after and are then consumed by Bat
Rays, Sea Lions, or other foragers in the area.)
The squid egg clusters are easily visible during
a daytime dive at vets. But if you get lucky and
hit it on the right night, being in the middle
of the frenzy is a really memorable experience.
Here are two videos if you'd like to see what
it's like:
FINDING SQUID EGGS ON A DAY DIVE and/or SQUID
MATING AT VETS.
THE NEW YEAR APPROACHES -
I hope you have a nice wrap-up to 2025 and will
start 2026 on firm footing. It'd be nice if it
was dry footing but that may not be in the
cards. At any rate, have a safe and sane New
Years and we'll see you on the other side of the
calendar change.
And thatll do it for now. Have a great week,
Happy New Year (almost), and let's go diving
soon!!!
- Ken |
