Dive #91 - Rich Torkington's Dive Log

This tiger grouper probably wishes I would scram
Videograph by Rich Torkington in TCI 2002

Dive Journal: Rocks Paradise is located next to Turtle Gardens, just offshore from Salt Cay, so it is a very short boat ride to the site. Descending beneath the boat, we immediately encounter a nice patrol of 6 great barracudas with their menacing (but harmless) scowls.

Linda soon finds a pretty goldentail moray eel emerging from a coral head – very nice. The wall here is beautiful as usual, and we also enjoy lots of time on the sand flats after touring the wall. In one recessed space between corals, I discover a spotted drum, which turns out to be the only one I spied during this entire trip to Turks & Caicos.

Also in a coral swimthrough is a big tiger grouper showing pale phase colors, and some always pretty smooth trunkfish and honeycomb cowfish. Near the dive’s end, there is a pretty hogfish, diplaying the patterned rusty colors of the juvenile phase. There is also an interesting peacock flounder in the sand, nearly invisible until found.

John and Debbie continued with PADI training skills while we dove, and John did very well. Following this dive, Johnny spent another hour at the dive shop taking his final PADI certification exam (while we did the next dive). We then waited expectantly all afternoon for the results. Debbie stopped by in the late afternoon to let John know he’d gotten a 90! Passed with flying colors! John is now the newest certified PADI diver on the planet! Congratulations!

The whole family is now trained and certified to scuba dive together!