First day of snorkeling

Wow! What a day! Now I know what it is like to snorkel in the sea. We started today with breakfast at 8 (fresh watermelon...yum) then walked the short few blocks to the ocean where our boat was waiting for us. Our boat captain, Jody, was great! We headed out to "Tres Cocos" for our first stop.

 It was called this because there used to be three coconut trees on the shoreline to mark it, but after a few hurricanes, the trees were destroyed. At our first stop, we were close to the reef and you could see the waves crashing.

 After the first few minutes, I realized very quickly that snorkeling in the ocean is MUCH harder than in the Texas Tech pool! The waves knock you around! Some people in our group were feeling a little sea sick from the waves. But, wow! I think I saw just about ever fish in my study book! The first fish we saw were the Slippery Dicks. There were a lot of them! I also saw Butterfly fish, Sergeant Majors, Blue Tang, Damselfish, and many more! It was so amazing! The first area we were in was more shallow, and the coral was right there in your face almost! Elk coral was the main type.

 After a lunch break, we went out to pillar coral area. There we saw many more species of fish and highlight of the day, a spotted eagle ray! It was so beautiful! Another interesting site to see were the Blue Headed wrasses. We saw several terminal stages as well as transition stages. The Sergeant Majors defending there territory were also fun to watch. Today, was such a great adventure. I was a little nervous at first, but after the second trip, I feel much more confident in the water. I ditched the life jacket after the first run. It is so much easier without it! Finally, I did get to see one of my favorite from the fish book...the Fairy Basslets! They are purple on the head with gold in the back. Our leaders are doing a great job to help us see all the cool different things in the water...Dr. McGinley, Ken, and Jody. Tomorrow will be a full day of snorkeling! We will make three stops. More species that we saw... Angelfish, Horse Eye Jack, Dusky Damselfish, Spotted Goatfish, and so many more that I can't remember!