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Thursday our dolphin trip was unfortunately canceled due to bad weather. However, we interns out Thursday morning and for two SCUBA dives with Bimini Undersea! Our first dive was at “Little Caverns”, a 70ft dive. Cat and Janan were buddies and enjoyed swimming around the large rocky clumps of coral. We especially liked seeing the lionfish! Even if they are pests (and invasive species), they sure look cool! Our second dive was at “The Strip”, which we both really enjoyed. It was a shallower dive to 40ft, and the visibility was great.

Tuesday we were unable go on a dolphin trip because it was so windy! All the trees on the island looked like they were growing horizontal; not a good sign for a boat ride. Wednesday began earlier than usual as we met with students from the Shedd Aquarium’s High School Marine Biology program. The students had just seen a group of 7 bottlenose dolphins and were ready with lots of great questions. It was wonderful to spend the morning with such excited, young scientists.

If we thought yesterday was windy, Mother Nature gave a new sense of perspective! Monday was windier and the waves were larger. The passengers aboard the boat were great sports and kept smiles on their faces throughout the trip. After a bumpy start at 16:30, we made it out of the harbor and braved the coastal waters in search of dolphins. Unfortunately due to the wind, we couldn’t go out very far so we did lots of slow loops along the length of Bimini.

Sunday began another week of dolphin trips with Bill & Nowdla Keefe. We set out at about 16:00 with the sun shining, the wind blowing and passengers eager to see dolphins! Everyone picked a spot on the boat and held on as we rode the waves in search of dolphins. We had a nice snorkel stop at “3 Sisters”, and then continued our dolphin search. We hoped that the dolphins would stay close to Bimini since it was so blustery.

Thursday we set out with our fingers crossed for cooperative weather since there were some squalls in the area. As we set out around 15:30, the wind began to pick up which made for an exciting ride! Everyone held on tight and kept a sharp eye out for dolphins. After the bumpy cruise north, we turned around and slowly headed back towards the island. Seemingly out of nowhere, spotted dolphin calves appeared around 17:45, leaping toward the boat.

On Wednesday, we had the luxury of not only one dolphin trip, but two to choose from! Kel and Cat set off with Bill & Nowdla Keefe while Janan stuck with Bimini Adventures. Although there were some squalls passing through, the Hatteras was able to head out at 13:40 towards the Bimini Road for a nice snorkel stop. After a leisurely snorkel, swim, lunch break, we continued on at 16:20 to look for dolphins.

On Monday, Cat and Janan (DCP’s 2010 summer interns) arrived in Bimini for the first time! We made it safely (albeit on the tiniest plane either of us had flown in) and were excited to get started on a dolphin trip. Unfortunately, we got a taste of “island life” when there was literally no fuel on the island. Obviously with no fuel, there could be no dolphin trip!With our spirits high for another chance at our first dolphin trip, we set out on Tuesday at about 15:30.

I began Sunday with a talk aboard the Coral Reef II. The high school marine biology students were very engaging and full of great questions – thank you! The afternoon was the start to another “dolphin week” with www.biminiadventures.com. As excited passengers boarded the boat, the crew and I were just thrilled to have clear skies and calm seas. We did not have to go far before we saw of about six bottlenose dolphins.

While everyone on Bimini was celebrating their country’s independence, we were headed in search of dolphins. The seas were calm and we were optimistic about finding dolphins. We searched. We waited. We searched some more. And we waited some more…then, we saw it! A big splash in the distance… and it was dolphins! We watched Tina (#14), Lone Star (#56) and a calf (like Lone Star’s) for a few minutes before observing them underwater.