: Exquisite soft coral

What an epic voyage. We covered 520 nautical miles over 11 days. Thankfully the Weather and Sea Spirits were kind to us and we had smooth sailing and great conditions the entire time. Our extensive travels revealed amazing geographical and marine diversity. Before we even left port a Manta circled our boat wishing us Bon Voyage. A few days later at Magic Mt. we were surrounded by swooping Mantas all around us.

: Mandarin Fish

: Ringed Pipefish

There were so many highlights it’s hard to know where to start. Let’s talk Frogfish. Many of us had never seen one. During this trip we saw four! They are weird and wonderful. Oh, and Mandarinfish…I’ve seen teeny tiny Mandarinfish hiding under rocks in Palau, the Mandarinfish of Banda Neria are muscly beasts that strut their glorious selves proudly. Even the normally swift-moving Mantis Shrimps paraded slowly enough for everyone to get a great photo.
Other stand out moments were spending time watching a Cuttlefish lay her eggs in coral, encountering a school of circling Barracuda, and discovering cryptic Scorpionfish and Crocodilefish.

: Cuttlefish laying eggs in coral

: Orbicular Cardinalfish

We were a go for it group. We had three snorkel sessions during the day and four or five opportunities to snorkel at night. When we weren’t being entertained by the marine life we enjoyed sunrises,sunsets, lively conversations and good food!