Stephen Frink Photo Tour aboard Aqua Cat, July 2002
Saturday, July 27th
Travel to Nassau is easy (usually) and is available from many North American gateways via a variety of carriers. This day, we chose Bahamasair because they had the best (on paper) schedule, assuring we could get up at a reasonable hour and still make an afternoon shark dive with my friends Stuart and Michelle Cove. After getting to Miami International in plenty of time to allow for security delays, we sat at the departure gate for another 2 hours due to airplane availability (or lack thereof). Of course, being so late out of Miami meant we missed our afternoon dive, but we did stop by Stuart Cove's Dive Bahamas to say hello.
Stuart and Michelle have been friends of mine for many years, and I have seen their operation grow from a tiny dive service serving the upscale residential complex at Lyford Cay to one of the most eclectic and successful dive operations anywhere. They are hard-working hands-on managers who actually enjoy meeting and even diving with their guests. Whatever the formula is, it works. I could tell from the expanded retail, the new boats, and the number of guests milling about on the docks that recreational diving is alive and well at Stuart Cove's Dive Bahamas.
Since it was so late in the afternoon, all we could do was make a plan for the next day and go check into our hotel. The new plan: a morning shark dive with Stuart Cove. Definitely something to look forward to.
The Aqua Cat boards guests from their slip at the Hurricane Hole Marina on Paradise Island ay 6:00 p.m. on Saturday. Most people fly into Nassau on this day, but our plan was to have all day Saturday for me to dive with the shark dive while my wife and daughter could spend the day at the gorgeous Atlantis Resort complex on Paradise Island. Actually, we had planned to spend the night at Atlantis as well but they were sold out (book well in advance), but another option exists at the Comfort Suites just across the street and the same access to the Atlantis amenities is available.
Stuart Cove's offers complimentary pick-ups from the hotels on New Providence Island, so at 7:30 a.m. my friends Dennis and Daniel Liberson joined me aboard the bus for the ride to the southwest end of the island. Stuart had our Nitrox and his shark chum already loaded aboard one of his 42-foot custom dive boats, and by 9:00 we were en route to our planned rendezvous with the Caribbean reef sharks along the Tongue of the Ocean at Shark Wall.
Rather than do the customary sharkfeed along the sand amphitheater, Stuart suggested we place the bait box on the forward deck of a sunken Bahamian Defense Force cutter intentionally sunk at this site. That would give us some different backgrounds, so I eagerly concurred.
Immediately after hitting the water, I realized this shark dive had changed since I last visited 2 years ago. There were more sharks, and if possible, they were more eager for the bait. Stuart placed the bait box on the deck and we had a constant swirl of sharks without even putting bait in the water. In fact, it remained a more controlled and predictable encounter without feeding. Less detritus in the water too. After a great shoot on both film and digital, we went back to the boat to plan a second shark encounter.
By the end of the first dive, I had plenty of shots of the sharks, as well as sharks with Stuart in the background. What I did not have was a classic "bite" shot. In the past, we had done this shot with a bit of bait on a spear, which Stuart used to lead a shark to my dome. At the moment the eyes rolled back in their nicatating membrane and the jaw fully extended, I'd click the shutter. At least that was always the plan even if the sharks had other ideas. This day there were so many sharks, and they were swarming the box so closely that it was impossible to really do a controlled feed. (Stuart later explained that when they have a film shoot with a script calling for only one or two sharks they often set two bait bins, and divide the resident shark population.) Regardless, the sheer mass of sharks made for a very electric and productive shark feed. Thanks again to Stuart Cove's Dive Bahamas for yet another wonderful photo opportunity.
While we were out shark diving, our families were enjoying the water slides, restaurants, but gratefully not the casino, at Atlantis. My daughter knew the property vicariously after having seen Mary Kate and Ashley's movie shot on location there, so I think it was especially fun for her to see the real thing. By our 6:00 p.m. check-in to the Aqua Cat, we had all had a great day on New Providence.
Aqua Cat
The first vision of the Aqua Cat is definitely reassuring. She is impressively large, and obviously well cared for. With the crew assisting with the mass of luggage our group brings, we quickly settled into our spacious cabins, got dive gear set up along the dive deck, and quickly got underway for the long evening steam to the Bimini Islands.
Our Week's Adventure Aboard Aqua Cat
The normal Aqua Cat itinerary involves cruising throughout the islands of the Exumas and enjoying the combination of beaches, walls, shallow reef, and shark diving found there. Which of course would be a full week by any standard, but I had the idea it would be fun to add spotted dolphins to the mix as well.
There are a couple of very reliable areas in the Bahamas where snorkelers can interact with Stenella plagiodon. One is the famed White Sand Ridge off West End Grand Bahama, but that is a long run from Nassau and would mean we'd be searching for dolphins at the expense of available dive time. Bruce and Peggy Purdy, owners of Aqua Cat, suggested the spotted dolphin grounds off the Biminis. Our mutual friends Bill and Nowdla Keefe of Bimini Undersea have been running day trips to interact with these dolphins for years and have enjoyed a very high percentage of successful encounters. And, while a long run to the Biminis and back to the Exumas, it seemed a good opportunity to grab a few dives off Bimini and the Gingerbread Grounds with at least a better-than-average chance of swimming with spotted dolphins.
So, with the much-appreciated cooperation of Aqua Cat, we altered the itinerary to include the first couple of days spent around the Bimini islands and the latter part of the week doing the marquee attractions of the Exumas.
Sunday, July 28th
After a long 110-mile, 11-hour steam from Paradise Island, we awoke to a slightly bumpy day cruising the bank for dolphins. It was a hard discipline for our guests to be on location in the Bahamas, but not able to go diving yet. But long hours of cruising or equally long hours at anchor are what dolphin trips are all about--a few moments of frenetic and inspirational activity interspersed with long hours of boredom. At any rate, we gave it a try that first morning and then went off for a dive on the wreck of the Hesperis.
The Hesperis ran aground here many decades ago, but the crew was unsure of the exact history of the vessel and I couldn't find it among the reference books on board. It is largely scattered, but the stern and bow remain more intact than amidships. The stern in particular holds massive schools of grunt, and stingrays are very common as well. Apparently the Hesperis is best known as a night dive for the loggerhead turtles constantly in residence, but we found it very productive during the day as well, despite marginal visibility.
Following lunch, we planned a dive on the Sapona, a Ferro cement shipwreck sitting off South Bimini, notable for its large fish populations and photogenic propeller. Here, we made a tactical error. We knew from talking to Nowdla Keefe on the radio that Dolphin Happy Hour would be around 3:00. I thought we could get a quick dive in on the Sapona and still be back on the bank in the late afternoon, but the very strong current on the wreck this day really slowed our dive progress, and also gave us a bit more drama than we would have hoped for the first day out. In retrospect, we traded a pretty mediocre dive (due to the sloppy conditions this day) for our best shot at dolphins. It was my fault, as the Aqua Cat was happy to do whatever our group desired, but I didn't predict the time commitment that afternoon dive would entail. Sorry gang. It didn't help when we talked to the vessel Bottom Time on the radio that afternoon and they told us they had their one and only dolphin encounter at about 3:00. Our dolphins no doubt, and we missed the appointment. Oh well. Gratefully, our group was pretty relaxed about the whole thing, but the spotted dolphins would have been outstanding.
That night we did get the night dive in on the Hesperis, and as promised she delivered at least a half-dozen loggerheads, eels, stingrays, and a few barracuda who didn't seem particularly happy with my strobe light.
Monday, July 29th
In all the years I've been diving the Bahamas, I had never visited the Gingerbread Grounds. It was not for lack of trying or lack of interest, for I had always heard good things about the region. But it is too far for a land-based dive boat, and not on most live-aboard itineraries. So, this was an interesting opportunity for me, but maybe not at the optimal time. The wind had been blowing pretty steadily over the past week, and the shallow waters on the Bahama Bank were very stirred up and had an unusual greenish cast. Even the turbid water did not diminish my enthusiasm for the quality of the coral reef at the sites we visited. I found Leilani to offer excellent hard corals and very unusual concentrations of deep water gorgonians in only 35 feet of water. The second site, Dark Star, was extraordinary for small reef critters and offered a great series of photos on a very cooperative barracuda who had taken residence in the shade of the boat. With my Seacam D1X and 60mm lens, I was able to capture tight head shots, and when for a moment he yawned (or whatever fish do when they open their mouth so wide), the quick recycle of my Ikelite 200 nailed the hot-shot of the most impressive teeth.
Tuesday, July 30th
We had another long boat ride last night in order to get back to the Exumas. To really appreciate the distances covered, you'd have to look at a map of the Bahamas. The Biminis and Gingerbread Grounds are quite a ways to the northwest of New Providence, while the Exumas are to the east. Clearly, the Aqua Cat was doing us a favor in terms of wear-and-tear on the crew and increased fuel consumption to accommodate our custom itinerary, and I think we all sincerely appreciated their effort. If we had hit the dolphins it would have been so much better, but we tried, and captains Ron and Mark were with us at every step trying to make it happen. Now we were back on their normal turf, the Exumas, and we asked them to show us their marquee sites over the next three days and nights.
Our first dive was at Blacktip Wall. The sponge and vertical orientation of this drop-off was impressive, but the huge--absolutely massive--school of Atlantic spadefish that awaited us upon our return to the boat was outrageous. I hadn't seen a school of spadefish like that in 15 years, and the convenience of underwater photography from a live-aboard became evident as I was able to return to change film and lenses several times while we remained on the mooring.
As compelling as the wall had been, the Aqua Cat was offering the choice of a dive or a beach excursion simultaneously. Since I knew the beaches in the Exumas to be world-class, and since my 9-year old daughter Alexa needed a shore break, I took a chance and went on for the beach excursion. And a lucky thing it was too, as we visited a sandbar I knew well from having shot a Victoria's Secret bathing suit campaign there a couple of years ago. It was still the same beautiful blue water and the exquisite powdery white sand, but without the models, art directors, stylists, caterers, and wardrobe coordinators that accompany a big production. Of course my photographer's day rate was absent this day as well, but it was especially nice to share such a gorgeous locale with my wife and daughter.
The hot dive this afternoon was to Amberjack Reef for a shark dive. In just 40 feet of water, the Aqua Cat crew tethers a frozen 5-gallon chumsickle in midwater while dozens of Caribbean reef sharks dash in to frantically devour the bait. As good as the photo opportunities are during the feed, it actually is a little better once the bait is gone--the sharks still hang around, and the water becomes more clear and the activity less frenzied. Nor are sharks the only critters to photograph. Large black and Nassau groupers are easily approached, as is the big school of horse-eye jacks that school in the shade of the boat.
Wednesday, July 31th
We started this morning with a visit to the Exuma Land and Sea Park Headquarters to shop for T-shirts and souvenirs in their gift shop and play along their beach. As a special side attraction, there are a couple of small lemon sharks that are used to finding food along the end of the dock and weren't too awfully disturbed by our presence. While I never got the in-my-face shot I hoped for here, the combination of the shark encounter and the excellent over/under opportunities on the beach made for a lovely morning.
As relaxed as a stroll along the beach might be, at the other end of the adrenaline scale is the drift dive at Wax Cay Cut. I have done this drift when the tidal current is really racing, and it is hard to stop for any reason, including taking a picture. You just ride along and enjoy the scenery. This day the drift was reasonably swift, and definitely hard to swim against, but by anchoring in the right bit of sand or rubble it was possible to grab a couple of rolls of wide angle. Given the beauty of the hard corals and filter feeders, as well as the crystalline electric blue water, this was a terrific dive.
After another wonderful lunch (courtesy chef Matt and sous chef Lise), we sampled a couple of nice shallow reefs, Hammerhead Gulch and Basket Star Reef. In only 25 feet of water, these reefs delivered good populations of angelfish, especially cooperative queen and gray angels. There were a few reef sharks cruising the perimeter of the coral heads, but without bait they weren't very interested in getting close to us. There were a couple of resident turtles at Basket Star, and by now the water had gone slick calm and clear so that it was possible to stand on the bow of the boat and actually watch the photographers below approaching the turtles. It was a little surreal to be able to see so well into the water below, but these kinds of water conditions are what summer in the Bahamas is all about.
- Of course you can't do everything on the Aqua Cat, for there are often shore excursions happening at the same time as the dives. So you have to choose. Some trips are gorilla groups, and all they care about is dive, dive, dive. So that's what Aqua Cat does. Other groups are more like ours, appreciative of both the topside and underwater beauty of the Bahamas. I tried to do some of each, but this day I stayed to enjoy the shallow dives while others opted for the trip to Norman's Cay, the island of drug-running infamy in the 1980s. The druggies are gone, but apparently the turquoise water and powdery white sand beaches remain. My wife told me it was the most beautiful beach she had ever seen anywhere. As described it sounded like a world-class photo opportunity, but one I gave up for an angelfish. Was it a good trade? Probably not, and if I had it to do again I'd go to the beach. Everyone will have their own priorities on these trips, but now having experienced both the topside and underwater wonders of the Exumas, to ignore the terrestrial is a mistake, in my opinion.
Thursday, August 1st
At Dog Rock Wall, we found massive black corals, maybe the largest I have seen anywhere. The glass minnows were swarming along the swim-throughs along the edge of the wall, and the combination of blue water and stunning sponge formations made this a very popular dive. The beach excursion to Ship's Channel Cay gave us additional wide-angle opportunities with snorkelers, although it was getting pretty hard to slow my daughter Alexa from her shell quest to pose for pictures. Still, she recognized underwater photography as our "family farm" and so when I told her modeling for my pictures was kind of like milking a cow at dawn, she might have understood--a little bit anyway.
We survived the sharks with Stuart Cove and we survived the sharks at Amberjack Reef, but the most aggressive predators we encountered this trip were the iguanas at Allan's Cay. During some part of the day, every day, someone is feeding these creatures cookies or bread or fruit (actually they seem to like the cookies and bread better, junk-food iguanas that they have become). Given their poor eyesight and ravenous nature, we had to be quite careful not to get nipped. In the warmth of the late afternoon light, the combination of the blue water, white sand, and friendly (maybe over-friendly?) iguanas made for an interesting break from our 5-dive-a-day offering aboard Aqua Cat.
Friday, August 2nd
I have been doing these kinds of expeditions long enough that by the end of the week I'm really ready to get home. But on this trip, it all went too fast. I think our whole group was a little sad to have left the Exumas and find ourselves this morning with Nassau so large on our horizon. Yet a couple of good dives remained, including the Blue Hole and Periwinkle Reef. The Blue Hole is a perfectly circular oceanic blue hole, maybe 30 yards in diameter and dropping to about 170 feet. Inside are a resident school of sharpnose sharks, a loggerhead, and a couple of nurse sharks. The visibility was definitely not as good as we had been having in the Exumas, but the wealth of marine life made this a worthwhile dive. Periwinkle is close enough to the dive shops in Nassau that they include it on their daily snorkel itineraries, and consequently the fish are desensitized to divers. Well, judging by how they swarm a bit of proffered bait, "desensitized" is a bit of understatement. But for up-close-and-personal images of sergeant majors, grouper, and friendly gray angels, this was a nice interlude. And in only 20 feet of water we weren't loading nitrogen for those flying home early the next day.
I'd like to give a special thanks to my old friends Bruce and Peggy Purdy for creating a world-class live-aboard for us to enjoy in the Bahamas, and to my new friends aboard Aqua Cat for delivering such a professional and hospitable cruise. The only problem I can see with this organization is that they are too darn popular. This is a tour I would like to do again, but I hear whole boat charters are hard to come by in the foreseeable future. Oh well--2004 sounds like a good time to be cruising the Bahamas again aboard Aqua Cat. By then, my daughter will be a scuba diver as well, so our family can dive together. Of course, she probably won't like modeling any better then than she does now and I doubt the cow-milking-at-dawn analogy is likely to make an impression.
For more information on Aqua Cat, visit www.aquacatcruises.com. For general dive information in the Bahamas, visit www.bahamasdiving.com. For details on shark diving with Stuart Cove see www.stuartcove.com, and to contact Stephen Frink visit www.stephenfrink.com.
