July 23 – I do not know how to start this, so I am just gonna start with the trip to our first dive site, Bronco Billy. After gearing up, my group, the Mangoes consisting of myself, Tyler Ochs, Trip Hatton, and Nick Slayton, entered the water. Now if anyone reading has ever looked in Texas water, it is dark and murky with extremely limited visibility. The water in BVI definitely lives up to its reputation, remaining crystal clear, an amazing break from the diving waters back home.
Zoltan, our divemaster, quickly lead us through the reviewing skills needed for diving. While waiting for my turn, I noticed a tiny hermit crab scuttling along the sandy bottom with a school of small blue fish racing along the outside edge of our little group. Afterwards, Zoltan lead us around the rest of Bronco Billy. He guided us across the dive site, spotting out different species of fish and coral. The first piece of coral was Fire Coral, an orange branching species with white tips, infamously known for their severe stinging ability on contact. Later on, The Mangoes spotted a few four-eyed butterfly fish swimming within the coral and banded butterfly fish. In addition, Tyler pointed out a lizard fish smartly camouflaged with the tan sand in between the coral.
My second dive was at The Chimney. The Chimney gets its name from the specific rock formation of the cliffs on the island. Also, the dive site was a favorite of Jacques Cousteau because the island protected the water from coastal winds; however, my dive was a little uneventful. Sadly, My ears would not equalize so I could not join the group for this dive. During my time out of the dive, I was tired, so I took a nap. Yea, not much from me about the second dive. It was a good nap though and the conclusion of my dives for the day.
