On Beyond the Blue, Jaime Burns posted an interesting trip report about cave diving in Nha Trang, a city lying on the southeast coast of Vietnam, abutting a huge bay sprinkled with small islands. Claiming the caves were "not hard to dive and anyone with a reasonable standard of diving should not have any problem investigating them," Burns points out that no special equipment is required to explore these caves, although "a large torch is essential." Think of it as Cave Diving Lite.

After motoring into the sheer-cliff'ed bay, Burns swam through 75-foot-viz waters, marveling at giant pufferfish, huge schools of Yellow sweepers, unfamiliar, colorful nudibranchs, cave shrimp, and much more. Burns suggests that hard-core scuba divers may be unimpressed with the overall dive conditions in Nha Trang, although if you're a diver who appreciates a little culture with your dive trips, then Nha Trang might be for you. Personally, I enjoyed the report, though I would've loved some more photos.

Interest piqued? Here are some other (non-cave diving) trip reports to Nha Trang:

• BSAC Travel Club
• This Is The Life

To get an adrenaline rush!

Pelagic Drifter caught this beautiful shot of a tiger shark off South Africa on New Year's Eve. There are so many things I love about this image: I love the beautiful spottles on the shark. I love that there's a diver in the background -- which adds a lot of depth to the shot -- taking a photo of the shark. I love that there are 47 shades of blue in the image. And I love the forboding feeling I get when I notice that, um, another shark is circling. Look out behind you!

If you have any forboding underwater images, how about adding them to Divester's Flickr pool? If you do, we'll feature them on Divester.

Recently, South Africa's Marine and Coastal Management (MCM) announced that recreational divers swimming in the country's marine protected areas would be required to purchase a permit. Beginning January 1, 2007, all divers will be required to keep their $11 permits, or certified copies of them, on the boats they are diving from, or in their vehicles if they dive from shore. Dive operators are exempt from the tax.

So stirred up was Cape Town's dive community that they sought legal opinion on the matter. Arguing that the MCM is not entitled to make rules to control recreational uses of the sea that do not entail the consumption of marine resources (swimming, surfing, diving), the divers believe the MCM is acting beyond its powers in compelling them to buy these permits. Quite logically, Monty Guest, chairperson of the False Bay Underwater Club argued that, "Fishermen kill sharks in marine protected areas and nothing happens to them, but we cannot even swim underwater to watch marine life without buying a permit. There are sewerage outfalls pumping effluent into the marine protected area and nothing is done..." MCM countered that it is allowed to regulate non-consumptive use of the ocean if a particular activity causes damage to the environment. And we all know how destructive divers can be.

In high bureaucratic style, the government informed the divers that they could get the permit legislation overturned -- but that would require high court action that could take three years and cost in excess of $70,000.

Of course, eleven bucks seems like a small tax, but is it fair?

This may be a post you want to come back to, say, in January or February, when the weather outside is frightful, your job is a real cramper, and things just aren't going your way. Sigh. Maybe it's time for a bold career change. Maybe it's time to leave the desk behind and head somewhere sunny to become a certified dive instructor. Oh...forget about the mortgage.

Where ya headed? If you're thinking Asia, you might want to consider Learn-In-Asia, the only PADI Career Development Center between Bangkok and Cambodia. What's more, Learn-In-Asia now works closely with Divers Jobs to provide job advice to recently-graduated divemasters and instructors. Providing a "personalized consultancy" to every recent dive-grad, Divers Jobs is sort of a career development center/job placement center for Learn-In-Asia. (That sure sounds appealing, especially since my stinking Master's program didn't even offer that!) Essentially, the service works by letting dive center managers the world over request that Divers Jobs provide them with a list of job-seekers so they can actively recruit new hires.

If you're not planning on heading to Pattaya to get your divemaster training, however, you can still surf Divers Jobs for vacancies. Personally, I think several current opportunities sound hot right now, like the instructor needed in Oahu; the instructor couple required in the Maldives; or the underwater videographer needed in the Caymans.

A group of researchers from Vietnam's National Agency of Aquatic Resources Protection recently surveyed the reefs off that country's northern Quang Ninh province, adjacent to the Gulf of Tonkin. Unfortunately, the team concluded that non-sustainable fishing practices -- like blast fishing and cyanide poisoning -- has led to widespread coral destruction. In fact, the researchers concluded that "up to 85% of the coral reef had died at Co To Island." Moreover, what fishermen hadn't blown up, they smothered (overfishing has led to the rapid development of seaweed, which covers the reef, preventing its growth), or crushed with anchors.

Local officials claim that the restoration of the reefs will require great effort, time, and money. Their first suggestion was to limit the amount of fishing allowed in the area. Happily, Vietnam has already vowed to cut its fishing fleet in half by 2010. Their next suggestion was to restock the reefs with indigenous fish. I wonder if the researchers know how to force the fish to stay on the reef.

Divers spent nearly the entire month of September installing Thailand's first underwater tsunami memorial on the sea floor in Tonsai Bay, some 2 miles off Koh Phi Phi Island. Comprising three, 5-foot-tall granite markers (representing earth, wind and water), the monument forms an equilateral triangle and features a 2-and-a-half-foot granite marker in the center. Non-divers can see the memorial's location from three yellow buoys on the water's surface.

The distance between each of the markers is 5395 centimeters, which corresponds to the number of identified victims of the tragedy. Additionally, exactly 2874 centimeters from the memorial site is a traditional Thai sala, built from wood collected from the wreckage of the tidal wave. 2874 represents the number of victims whose identity could not be determined. Local officials are hoping the memorial will become a popular attraction for divers and snorkelers.

[Via Asia Dive Site]

Why do divers dive? Because it makes us smile, of course.

Seawaters captured this funny little shot of a porcupinefish grinning in Mauritius. Titled "Happy Fish," he was clearly thrilled to be having his picture taken. That said, maybe he was hoping Seawaters was going to present him with a little chapstick as a "sitting fee."

Do you have photos of happy fish? Add them to Divester's Flickr pool and share them with us!

In addition to their regular full-time jobs, Andrea and Antonella Ferrari moonlight by writing and publishing a wide-ranging assortment of books -- from a guide covering Malaysian dive resorts to Oceani Segreti, a coffee-table book awarded the World Grand Prize at the Underwater Image Festival at Antibes. The couple also serves as associate editors for FiNS dive magazine.

Recently, the Ferraris published A Diver's Guide to Reef Life, a 478-page reference guide detailing 1200 tropical species that divers might encounter from the Caribbean to the Indo-Pacific. In addition to more than 1300 photos, the Ferraris also provide detailed descriptions of the creatures that include distribution, size, habitat, and "life habits" -- a summary of the animal's characteristics that may include color variations or other trivia. Scattered throughout the book are "bonus" chapters that, for example, discuss specializations fish have achieved, or showcase brilliant images. Thoughtfully, the Ferraris also provide underwater photo tips, so you can come home with photos as resplendant as those in the book.

A Diver's Guide to Reef Life will be available from both SeaChallengers and Amazon soon. The book will cost around $55, but, according to the review on Wetpixel, you should consider that money well-spent.

Early this week, and without any fanfare, the Royal Thai Navy hauled the RTN Kood -- a sister ship to HMS Khram -- out to sea and sunk it off Pattaya beach. Scuttled among Thailand's Near Islands -- a 45-minute boat ride from shore -- the 203-foot Kood's hull now rests in approximately 100 feet of water. Since it's conning tower rises to a mere 36 feet, the Kood appears to be easily accessible to most divers. If you want to learn more about Pattaya's third shipwreck, check out Aquanauts, which has -- forgive me! -- a boatload of information about the ship and her sinking, including a cool video of her final topside moments.

[Via Divehappy]

Based in Singapore, Tony Wu is an amazing photographer working primarily in SE Asia. In January 2007, Wu and fellow-photographer Takaji Ochi will be heading to Western Australia to snorkel among the area's sea lions. If the idea doesn't immediately appeal to you, then consider Wu's description of snorkeling with the pinnipeds: "Imagine being surrounded by playful, mischievous puppies zipping acrobatically by you, sneaking up behind you to play tag, nipping at your limbs, and just generally having lots of fun." Fun!

Unlike some dive trips, this one is going to be decidedly comfortable. Staying at the New Esplanade in Perth, the hardest part of the trip will be waking up early to spend time with the animals when they're at their most playful. However, if you're an underwater photographer, you'll probably be leaping out of bed to snap photos of these graceful, dynamic creatures. Check out Wu's gallery of sea lions for proof. There are a few spaces open, so if you're interested in frolicking with these irresistibly cute animals, let Wu know.

[Via FiNS]

Karen Wilshaw has posted one of the most fabulous stories ever on DivePhotoGuide. Karen lives on Cocos Island -- about 560 miles south-west of Christmas Island, its closest neighbor -- and works for Cocos Dive. Four years ago, Karen learned that a dugong had moved in to the area, and although this news was pretty much unbelievable (the nearest known dugong habitat is in Australia, 1700 miles away!), she was pleasantly surprised to discover that it was true. Amusingly, Kat, the dugong, enjoys being in the presence of divers, and he even seems to engage in play with them. Karen's story about Kat is fantastic -- and the photos she's posted are just as good! Oh, how I wish I could hop on a plane and fly out there for a visit right now!