Frogman goes diving #3 . . .

[Frogman]

Here are the rest of the diving photos.



A diver and sponge.



Lion fish are not native to the Caribbean waters.  They are voracious predators and take a heavy toll on baby fish of other species.  Many of the dive guides carry spears to kill the lion fish.  I had some photos of this in my post last year.  None of our guides this year had spears.



A pair of lion fish.



Some of us always go out to Capt. Don's nursery to visit with him at the end of our week.  He turned 87 this year.  Since no firearms are allowed on Bonaire Capt. Don is into air rifles.  I took him some .22 caliber round balls for him to shoot in one of his air guns.  He puts several in his mouth so he can shoot faster??  He would love my new Marauder .25 cal. air rifle.



Here you can see Don in his electric wheel chair with one of his air guns with in easy reach.  Don lost his right leg from just below the knee a couple of years ago due to an old diving injury that finally got infected.



And finally a beautiful Bonaire sunset to finish with.   I hope you guys enjoyed the pictures.  Hopefully I will have some more for you next year!!

Jim

[FinsnFur]

The fish you post pictures of always amazes me. There are definitely some bizarre looking creatures under there.
Thanks for sharing the trip with us.

[Hawks Feather]

Great images and I am glad that I got to go along under the water.

Jerry

[Carolina Coyote]

Amazing animals and a very good post , Thanks for sharing, CC

[HaMeR]

Great post Jim!! A lot of cool things to see under the water. And Thanks to you I get to see them too. 

[iahntr]

Very nice !    That would be cool to do.
Appreciate ya sharing them.

[Todd Rahm]

Thanks for sharing the annual diving pics Frog! I always enjoy them and wish like heck I could be doing it.  Ole Capt. Don's almost like one of the family here at FNF.

[Okanagan]

Yes, thank you for posting the pics.  I always enjoy them and they bring back good memories.

Do you ever dive freshwater near home?  We had clear freshwater in lakes and rivers but except for a little fun going through whitewater rapids underwater, there was so little to see compared to saltwater that I did very little of it.  Kind of wish I'd explored a little more in lakes.

[Frogman]

Okanagan,

We do have a very good lake here in WV, Summersville Lake.  I used to dive there quite a bit, not so much anymore??

Jim

[Okanagan]

It would feel good to be diving today because of our heat, but fresh water lakes I've dived were like the Sahara Desert as far as plant or fish life.  I.e. look at the plant and other life and the colors on the rocks in your first pic in this thread for comparison.  How did you find the lakes you dived? 

It might be fun to go after pike in a weedy bay in some of those northern lakes, clear water say 8 feet deep with a weed bed starting three or four feet below the surface.  Next time out there I plan to take a face mask at least.  Will check to see if spear fishing is allowed.

[Frogman]

Okanagan,

Summersville Lake has always had very clear water.  Most of it's shore line is made up of rock cliffs that go down under water 20 to 30 feet.  This keeps boat wakes from stirring up mud along the shore.  Scuba classes have went there to complete the Open Water portion of their classes ever since I can remember.  In the summer there is even a dive shop located at the marina that takes divers out on the lake for boat dives.  Here are some photos . . .

http://www.google.com/search?q=summersville+lake&hl=en&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=6FYgUJzNKMe62wXSmIGoAQ&sqi=2&ved=0CG8QsAQ&biw=1920&bih=955

Even a few shots of divers in the lake!


Jim

[Okanagan]

What a beautiful lake! 

[possumal]

Froggie, as usual you have outdone yourself.  Thanks for sharing great pictures and obvious great times. Ribbot to you sir! 

[Hidehunter]

Very Awesome and Beautiful!!!