May 2012    Download the Entire Issue (PDF)

Vol. 27, No. 5   What's this?

M/V Bilikiki, Solomon Islands

fishy reefs and WWII wrecks

from the May, 2012 issue of Undercurrent  

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Dear Fellow Diver:

Jet lag does nothing for attitude enhancement. So when I travel from the U.S. for a full day or more, my annoyances are magnified. After the flight to Fiji, then on to Honiara, I and 10 other divers arriving on the same flight had to hang around the Honiara Hotel from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., before being transported to the Bilikiki. Assured by the pleasant office manager that he would look for us around 4 p.m. for pickup, I roamed the muggy open-air lounge and the cooler restaurant, then settled into a lounge chair in the shade overlooking the harbor. A birthday bunch of children laughed loudly and peed in the pool. Unable to nap and knowing I had to pass time for 90 minutes more in my travel malaise, I ordered lunch and read a book. At 3 p.m., I looked around and saw that my 10 companions were missing. When I asked at the desk, I was told they had left for the Bilikiki. In a slight panic after I discovered the phone numbers listed in my paperwork did not answer, I sought aid from a hotel staff member, who went to the beach and flagged down one of the Bilikiki's tinny drivers, and I was soon on board. Without an apology, cruise director Kellie graciously gave me the briefing, and I set up my tank. Cocktails on the upper deck before dinner adjusted my attitude.

Ten days later, I had nothing but good diving memories. For sheer coral beauty adorning winding canyons and reefs, Kicha, a dive site in Morova Lagoon, was a standout. A few dozen schooling barracuda and a large white-tip were in juxtaposition to pygmy seahorses, deep blue sea stars and cushion stars. You can't beat an awesome site, so we dived this one a second time. Catching my attention were a group of squarespot anthias, males painted magenta with a blue square. An Indonesian pipehorse, or its close cousin, was swimming near a fan; I watched it gently curl its tail to attach.

The Russell Islands host great caves, caverns and swimthroughs. At Custom Cave, three of us followed divemaster Sam though a 60-foot-long tunnel that opened to a wide cave in which shimmering shafts of sun burst through. After exiting, Sam went his way, and I finned into one cave after another with gradually smaller openings. I spotted a comet in a crevice at a cave entrance; deeper within was a paddlefin cardinalfish. A larger crevice led inside the island to a pool of water opening on land; sunlight filtered through the trees on thick vines. At Bat Cave, I swam through a wide crevice for 50 feet before surfacing to view bats inside a cave. Seventeen self-absorbed divers popped up with their shining lights, disturbing the creatures. I dove deep to avoid being kicked by fins. At Leru Cut, I swam through a narrow passage, surfacing to find hanging vines and boulders with the filtered light. Magical....