Pristine Waters

Got a chance to take a trip to tropical Diego Garcia in the British Indian Ocean Territory. It's a gorgeous atoll within the Chagos Archipelago in the direct center of the Indian Ocean and one the world's largest Marine Reserves. Well, I couldn't let this opportunity pass me by, so I borrowed some SCUBA gear (as mine hasn't arrived in Japan yet!) and brought it out to swim with the other approved divers; totaling a whopping 5 dudes. They just opened diving up here last year in 2009 under strict scrutiny from the Navy unit on the island. There is no commercial diving allowed on these untouched reefs and there is more life in these oceans than I've seen anywhere else, Palau being a close exception. Truly, it's a "feeding stop" for sharks on their way from South Africa to Australia. We saw Silvertip Sharks up close and personal and so many Butterflyfish, Triggerfish, Parrotfish, Surgeonfish, Trevally, Ramoray, and Groupers it made the dive site seem crowded at times! :) We spotted everything from sport fish to starfish; what an awesome experience, "to go where so few had gone before". It had an alien world vibe to it, because you could tell by the looks on the bug-eyed fish faces that we were definitely not from around here.

Brandon