Day 1

Wow.  Today was very long & very good.  After finishing all of the prep work last night in time to get to sleep at 1 a.m., it was up at 6:00 a.m. to head to the dock.  We were heading out of Bimini harbor at 735….By 900, I was further south than I’d ever been before.  As we approached Orange Cay, there stood (and I mean stood) a massive squall, blocking us from our destination.  Once the squall kindly passed, we continued on – and as we prepped for the long day of searching we were greeted by a large group of bottlenose dolphins!  Not what I was expecting, but it was very welcomed.  After a good round of dorsal fin photos, I decided to give an encounter a try.  The visibility was not great & they were not terribly interested, so I headed back to the boat.  We caught back up with the group & this time could clearly see that Atlantic spotteds had joined!  I raced to get back in the water & am hopeful that I was able to capture some great observations of the mixed species interactions – which including a lot of biting & mating attempts.  I was so pleased…and the day had only just begun.    The rest of the day proved to be quiet in terms of dolphin contact time, but the afternoon was filled with both acquainting ourselves with the area & searching for dolphins at the same time.  We never did find more dolphins, but that’s what tomorrow is for!  We saw several sea turtles & as were preparing dinner, just after sunset, a young great hammerhead shark came to the back of the boat to investigate our fishing lines.  It was at least 6 feet long & very interested….I’m not sure who was more excited, the shark or me!    This field report will be posted when I return to Bimini – so keep reading to see what happens next!    Until then,  Kel