West End Village, Roatan, Honduras, Bay Islands Department, HondurasApril 2, 2015: For the first time in my undersea life I felt equal to, if not better than, the fish I swam with.
Sure, they have built in fins, but the portable ones I wore were bigger and stronger. An angelfish smiled at me, a triggerfish winked. I gave them both the all-is-well dive signal. I looked at my depth gauge. We were at 36.5 metres as I began my silent chant "Let's dive deeper, let's dive deeper.” But then the divemaster burst my fun-bubble by making a sharp left while pointing up. We were now in our ascent up an underwater canyon, just like the one we'd come down. Within seconds my fish friends had gone away and I no longer wanted to swim to the bottom of the sea.
I had just experienced the "martini effect" or "raptures of the deep", sexy, fun names for nitrogen narcosis, the buzz you get from having nitrogen dissolve into your blood stream. This effect occurs when breathing compressed air at depths, usually beyond 30 metres. We made our way up to a depth of seven metres where new fun awaited. We spent the next 45 minutes decompressing while we finned through a labyrinth of tunnels, canyons and caves. Another advantage to this site: it's less than a three minute boat ride from the shores of Half Moon Bay.
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That was then, this is now: Today, I dived the Hole in the Wall, but it wasn’t quite the same. The tunnels, canyons and caves are still there, as well as the massive coral heads, but there’s been a colour change; the reef is now kind of brownish. A gift we climate heating humans have given the poor coral reefs of the world.
Renate
2022-02-03
Great Jack, you can do it still. That's fantastic. And yes, it's hard what do you write about corals.
Valerie
2022-02-03
Glad you are still able to go into the Hole-in-the-Wall . Very daring . You have convinced me to go to Roatan. It seems so beautiful. Plus I have a cousin living there .
Stephanie Zilinski
2022-02-03
I'm sure you can procure some Cannabis and get the affect afterall.
Magnus
2022-02-04
Well done amigo. We've certainly fucked up the oceans. You'd be lucky to see a fish in Roatan these days. Happy holidays. X
Peter
2022-02-04
The reefs are such a fragile ecosystem, often the first to go. So sad.
Irene
2022-02-04
Hey guys, sorry to take so long .... was shovelling snow!! we got lots. beautiful pics - Elanka is a fantastic photographer - National Geographic is still out there.... looking fwd your next adventure.
Leta
2022-02-05
Great updates on your trip, nice you were able to get away from this snow & cold weather. Yes, sad about the coral, such a shame we’re destroying the oceans. Love your stories Jack & Ellie love the photos! Wishing you a great trip. Enjoy & take care xo