Please Help show your support of Dolphins

Sea Shepherd E-News: Call to Action - Feb 13 - World Love for Dolphins Day

Inbox

x

Sea Shepherd USA via mymail.seashepherd.netcommunity1.com	3:39 PM (4 hours ago)
to me

Demonstrations against Taiji’s brutal dolphin hunts to take place at Japanese Embassies and Consulates view this message online Dear Jessie, On Friday, February 13, Sea Shepherd will show Japan just how much the world reveres dolphins with peaceful “World Love for Dolphins Day” demonstrations at Japanese Embassies and Consulates worldwide. For details about where demonstrations will be held around the globe, please visit our website. You can also show your support for the dolphins by taking a “selfie” picture holding your “World Love for Dolphins” Day sign and sending it to Sea Shepherd, and be sure to tell us your first name and where you are from. We will post your selfies on our social media pages to proudly display your love for dolphins! Download the "selfie" image to print out and email to worldlovefordolphins@seashepherd.org. Make sure to use the #WorldLoveForDolphinsDay hashtag when posting on social media! You can also download & print a Valentine for a dolphin and send it directly to the Embassy of Japan: Ambassador Kenichiro Sasae C/O The Embassy of Japan in Washington, D.C. 2520 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20008 Join Sea Shepherd supporters around the world and stand in solidarity with Sea Shepherd's Cove Guardians as we show our love for dolphins and call for an end to the brutal capture and slaughter of cetaceans in Taiji’s infamous cove. For six months of each year — from September until March — entire family units, or pods, of dolphins and small whales are driven into Taiji’s killing cove. The dolphins and whales face brutal slaughter, a lifetime in captivity, or in a drive just as stressful as the drive into the cove, remaining pod members must endure an exhausting drive back out to sea. Operation Infinite Patience aims to bring a permanent end to the drive hunts and slaughter.

Be Back Soon

Hi
I have checked again with Mark the vet. He said the gashes are healing but it will take some time before they healed. He said the salt water is the best thing and that it's a good thing he's in the ocean where if he were confined there would be a better chance for infection.
I am leaving for six days. I'm hoping to see an improvement when I return. If you see him let me know how he's doing. Remember he's not back to normal yet.

Jay

Better But Has A Long Way To Go

Hi All,
With the nasty weather at home, I can't really complain about huge waves and wind here but, the wind is out of the West which makes for big waves rolling in toward the beach. John has a phone conference this morning so my friend Melanie and I are on our own! We hear from Miss Turquoise, the Club Med snorkel boat, that they saw JoJo as they were leaving the dock. We head toward Club Med and spot him on his way to the skiff outside of Ocean Club (OC) where he's been hanging since the injury. We have quite a time trying to set the anchor while bobbing up and down. I will admit we ended up inside the swim line but luckily didn't get the prop tangled in the swim line. JoJo I'm sure was wondering what our problem was as he watched us throwing the anchor numerous times to get it right. It took two of us trying to pull it up when I miscalculated how far the wind and waves would take us in. Every time a wave came we would get half dragged over board as the wave crested then we'd pull like mad as we went back down. After finally securing the boat in a good spot, Melanie and I got in. She got to watch JoJo as he swam around us. This is her third visit to Turks and her first spotting JoJo (not a myth!). JoJo now and again would head off and we'd climb in and start the anchor process only to have him return just as we got it up:).
JoJo and I start swimming along visiting a few people who have swum out to see him, when he heads off slowly toward Club Med. I am accompanying him as we head through the big waves. There was no way Melanie could pull the anchor by herself to follow. JoJo and I head to the Miss Turquoise and he goes under the boat. I decide I'd better return to Spy Hop which was now way off in the distance. Being out there with no boat to protect me isn't a good thing and Melanie bobbing all over isn't either! I get back and we go through the whole anchor ordeal (making me really appreciate John) and head back to find JoJo who is heading our way! I drive past him and he gets in our wake. Off we go to Turtle Cove. JoJo visits Reef Peepers then he wants to head back. I phone John to say we will be coming by OC so he can swim out to meet us.

Its great to see JoJo slowly becoming his old self. His cuts as you can see in the video are sill far from healed and he is still resting a lot or he wouldn't be hanging around the swim line as much. He has a way to go but, he does seem to be on the mend. I think traveling with other dolphins will be the next step.

Yes There really Is A JoJo

Hi All,

I spoke with Ralston Humble a fews days ago. He works for channel 4.  He'd heard JoJo had an injury and wanted to know how he was doing . He then told me that people at his news station didn't believe there was a JoJo; they thought he was a myth, nothing more than a publicity stunt! We then talked about how the captive dolphin program the government approved for Grand Turk was a terrible idea. I was eager to meet Ralston! We made a date for Sunday and he showed up right on time at the dock. After loading up all our gear and his, getting footage of our leaving the marina, we headed out to check on JoJo's injury and dispel the belief that he was a publicity stunt!
I don't think I've seen a more perfect day, very little wind and flat, crystal clear water. As we are cruising past the resorts, we hear a boat captain on the radio calling for help. He said he was hung up on the reef. He was trying to come into Blue Haven for fuel but was in completely the wrong place. After many radio transmissions trying to determine where he was, we decide to see if he was ok. We also thought it was news and we have a reporter on board. We figured the boat was outside of Sandy Point on North Caicos. We speed up there and found a sailing vessel which was by now inside the reef but in very shallow water. We radioed the boat and the Captain said he was ok but scraping the bottom and the police boat was on it's way to help him out. I was against trying to guide him out for fear we too would get hung up on the reef.
Back to the mission of finding JoJo! We travel along Pine Cay toward Leeward Cut and as we are coming to Half Moon Beach we hear over our radio "Spy Hop, he's outside of Little Water Cay". We give big thanks to that captain and speed up until we are right near Little Water Cay. There's JoJo coming to our boat just like I told Ralston he would if he were in the area. I drop into the unbelievably clear water to first check on his gashes. The big one still looks awful with lots of white stuff coming out of it. I'm sure it's healing from the inside out but it's not evident. JoJo however is feeling just fine. We swim around the boat giving Ralston plenty of time to get great footage from the boat. In JoJo like fashion, he looks up into the camera as he surfaces. I see Norm a boating friend of ours and swim toward his boat with JoJo following. As we get to the boat, JoJo goes right over and all the ladies in the boat get to gush over him. After much oohing and ahhing, we return to Spy Hop. Ralston is getting lots of JoJo behavior footage! JoJo and I swim a little toward the reef, he starts to echolocate then dives down to fish. I get to see him echolocate on his side right along the bottom then pump his fluke hard to reach the spot where the fish is in the sand. He plunges his beak into the sand and comes up with a 4" wiggly, white fish hanging out of his mouth. He swallows it whole then starts the process again. This makes me very happy. He has a healthy appetite and is successfully catching fish. Now, he's speeding up and I lose sight of him. I get back in the boat to tell Ralston what's happening under the water. Another boat comes by and seeing us, they slow down to see if JoJo's around. The Captain drops anchor, a sure way to get JoJo to come over. When JoJo arrives two swimmers climb in hoping for a chance to swim with him. He swims away keeping about 15 feet in front of them.  He then goes up to another boat, that has stopped to see the famous "MYTH". Now he gets behind their boat and stays there as they motor toward shore. He clearly wants a ride so, John swings by him and JoJo settles into our wake. We now go back up Pine Cay to the end of Fort George where he branches off.  Ralston is getting the picture in more ways than one! JoJo returns to our stern and we take him down Pine Cay, a very long island, past Leeward and all the way to Grace Point where he branches and goes back to fishing. We have now been with JoJo at least 5 hours. I can safely say we have dispelled the JoJo is a myth theory as well as making my point that dolphins should not be in a small cement enclosure when they clearly travel many miles a day.
JoJo is now close to behaving normally, which is a huge relief to me. He didn't interact with all boats that came near and what interaction he did have seemed shorter. He also took advantage of our "taxi service" but we had to go much slower than normal. We'll keep checking on him everyday to see how he's doing.
Ralston was great company on the boat. He totally got my friendship with JoJo. He could see the trust  I've taken time to build up. I think he'll do a great story for the news including my concerns with captains coming to close and how captive dolphins goes against the island slogan "Beautiful by Nature".

JoJo Makes The TCI paper

Hi All,
Read all about it!!
http://tcweeklynews.com/jojo-recovers-from-boat-prop-injury-p5841-127.htm

Where's JoJo

Hi All,
The wind is coming from the East flattening the waves to just a slight ripple. The sun is brilliant. A perfect day to see dolphins. A friend has asked to join us. She had swum with JoJo many years ago and hopes to see him today. We start our routine of traveling up and down Grace Bay checking all JoJo's favorite spots. As we get almost to Smith Reef, I look up and see a juvenile "Magnificent Frigate Bird". This is only the second one I've seen. They are pelagic and it's unusual to see them close to shore.

We keep traveling up and down occasionally making a pass out past the reef to see if there are any whales around. As we pass out in front of the Sands Resort, I see a dorsal, no I see two dorsals! I climb in hoping one is JoJo. They let me come right up to them and I find it's the ladies, Bo and Raggedy Ann (RA). As they swim along they gently brush  each other with their pecs. If I hadn't drowned the Liquid Image camera I could have gotten some great video!! After a while Bo separates from RA. She is going toward the reef. RA is heading slowly toward Pine Cay. These two mothers had calves at the same time and I've often seen them traveling together.  I figure JoJo will show up at any minute because RA is his favorite lady friend. The dolphins separate with Bo going out over the reef and RA fishing and traveling towards Pine Cay. We follow her the whole way. As we approach Pine Cay, a tour boat stops to tell us there are dolphins ahead. I'm excited! Maybe JoJo is with them. We never leave a dolphin in search of another because usually you end up with no one! As we get to the far end of Pine Cay, I see a dolphin out by the reef. I swim with RA again hoping the other dolphin is JoJo.  I never see the other dolphin I doubt I know it.  We don't find JoJo.

Our friend is dying to swim with a dolphin so we try it. She and I get in, RA comes our way then turns around and speeds away. This is at least the third year I've been swimming with her. She has gotten pretty friendly with me but unlike JoJo doesn't take to other people. 

After searching around Dellis Cay and Pine Cay more, we return to Grace Bay still hoping to find JoJo or to hear he was around. None of the captains we ask has seen him. Maybe he wanted some alone time; maybe he went out toward Crystal Bay.  I think he's okay judging from his level of activity and interaction yesterday but I'm still concerned. In any case, we plan to go out and find him tomorrow. I have an appointment with a reporter for the TCI Weekly. He is coming with us. He tells us some people on island think JoJo is a myth!!! We'll show 'em.

Raggedy Ann and Bo.

Way Better

Hi All,
I thank you for all your well wishes and prayers they seemed to have worked! I barely slept last night with worry. This morning we first saw JoJo going to Kitty Kat the Beaches catamaran. Then he was off to go fishing. Later he was visiting a few tour boats. Now this is the JoJo we all know and love!! He got in our wake for the first time in 9 days. We went really slowly which worked for him. He stayed in the wake for a pretty good distance then branched off to fish. I think he's out of the woods!!
The link for the interview I did with PTV is http://ptv8tci.com/ it is at the end of the program. Clearly I need work on my umms!

Set Back Day 8

Hi All,
Maybe JoJo over did it yesterday because he hardly moved around today. When we first saw him, I really got my hopes up. He tried riding our wake but he only lasted about 100 feet. He dropped out of the wake, swam a short distance to a buoy and started swimming around it and a skiff near by.  He either swam around our boat or the buoy for at least two hours.
He then wanted to move a short way down the swim line to the next big buoy. We moved Spy Hop near the buoy and JoJo again swam around our boat and the buoy. This pattern continued most of the day. He slowly made his way down to the swim line at Ocean Club. He occasionally went to visit a tour boat didn't stay long. He seemed to like my company when he wanted to swim a little way from our boat. We went toward Bat Ray the big catamaran dive boat from Club Med. He then headed a short way toward the reef. John had been following along in Spy Hop. JoJo came back to the boat, I got in and we let our boat drift. There was a long interval where he just drifted beside our boat only surfacing to breath. I was beside myself with worry.

I'm hoping it was just a sleep pattern.  We drifted back toward the same skiff we started from eight hours earlier. He then perked up, swam to the skiff, around the buoy and back to us. We left him when a kayak came to see him and he vanished into the murky water, not wanting any visitors.
 I'm talking to Mark the vet from the island and trying to contact other dolphin experts. Thank you to all the boat captains that have been very concerned and respectful of JoJo's condition.
Jay

Big Improvement day 7

Hi All,
I want to thank everyone for all your well wishes. I'm feeling much better. I had a big breakfast this morning and was able to use my fluke much better. That nasty white stuff that was coming out of my biggest gash fell off. I went to visit a few boats which was fun however I got sore and tired by the end of the day and wanted to rest. Remember if you come to visit me please no touching! With any luck I will be back to my old self soon and riding the wake.
Thank you again for all your concern.
JoJo

Big Gash Day Six

Hi All,
The wind has swung around a little more from the East, which flattens the waves. On our first pass down past all the resorts, we don't see JoJo, I figure that's either good news he's swimming further or bad news, something happened. As we came back, we see him fishing out in front of 7 Stars. Now, this is great news. I don't believe he's had much to eat in 5 days. Dolphins normally eat from 15 to 20 lbs. a day. We follow along until he goes to circle a buoy. Here we drop anchor and I get in to take some more gash footage. He comes over to our boat and stays for about an hour then moves off slowly past the resorts toward Ocean Club. Before reaching Club Med, he turns out toward the reef. I get in and swim beside him as he goes almost to the reef. Once he reaches his destination, he comes back to Spy Hop. We think he wants to rest so we drop anchor. John has a good perspective from the boat and has learned to read JoJo's signals. JoJo rests as he slowly circles our boat for about three hours. He then goes to visit a tour boat. Luckily it's a respectful captain who lets his passengers see the famous JoJo without chasing or crowding him. It's a good sign that he's more interactive but, he's still traveling much slower than normal. As the cuts heal, it's making it easier for him to use his fluke (tail) which is how he propels himself through the water. JoJo then goes towards shore to fish.
Earlier I heard from Jill that the government approved the swim with the dolphins program. The people of Turks and Caicos have fought hard to keep this from happening. There are lots of bumper sticks that say JOJO SAYS NO TO CAPTIVE DOLPHINS. I have been asked to do an interview with Darron a reporter for a local TV station. Now's my chance to not only ask the captains to be careful around JoJo but to tell them many reasons why the captive dolphin program is a bad thing.

I have decided to point out that the island slogan, "Beautiful By Nature" totally goes against the idea of captive marine life. If you are on island and want to watch it (I'm a bit nervous to watch it not being so great in front of a camera, apparently that's not passed through the genes:)it will air on the Wednesday night news on channel 8.

Day Five Big Gash

Hi All,
I'm waiting on the dock at Blue Haven where we keep our boat when we are on Island. I hear a familiar honking sort of noise and look up to see at twenty or more gorgeous, bright pink flamingos fly over head, circle and fly away. I'm a believer in signs and I'm hoping this is a good one. So far JoJo is hurt, my camera bit the dust and our boat didn't start! John returns from Napa we don't need a new battery. A quick fix and we are off and running! I invited Jeremy a guy I met the day before through JoJo . He had swum out to see JoJo and was eager to get to know him.

We leave the marina, head down Leeward Channel and pass by Ocean Club. Once again JoJo is there and swims to our boat. We spend the day with him. He is swimming a little further down the beach than yesterday, stopping at various buoys to circle. A few people come out to see him and as before, he enlarges his circle to keep his distance. I am usually in the water with him but occasionally stay on the boat. It seems he stays away from people who are aggressive as they approach him - swimming directly and noisely at him, attempting to get within his "personal space" and sometimes trying to dive near him when he submerses. Doesn't sound PC but it's usually men who do this.  Women are usually more passive  - not approaching as closely and being more content with observing from a slightly longer distance. He seems to like this approach better.

Day Four Big Gash

Hi All,
The waves are down somewhat and the sun shining with no clouds. We head down the coast where we last saw JoJo. "John, I would feel better if JoJo came to our boat". John points towards a buoy. He's coming to our boat!!! JoJo is in front of Ocean Club East swimming around the buoy where the Carolina skiff is moored. He is coming over to us which I think that is a good sign. That's what he usually does and yesterday he didn't yesterday feel good enough. He starts going back and forth between us and the buoy.
We spend the whole day with him. I think he likes our company and can use us to hide behind if people come out or tour boats come by and he doesn't want to be seen. In the eight hours we spent with him we had time to watch the goings on at the beach. One swimmer came all the way from shore touched the swim line 4 feet from JoJo turned and went back. He had no idea that JoJo was right beside him!! Another guy, was swimming out having a great time diving and frolicking. He came out to the swim line tied his suit to the line and proceeded to swim way out past the swim line.  He dove and froliced bare ass much to the delight of a tour boat that had been loading up on tourists and was just heading out:)) Also, much to my delight because they were so intent on watching him, they didn't notice the dolphin.
I got to watch his behavior with some other people who came out to the buoy. I told them he wanted to be alone to heal but they stayed around. He seemed to like one lady and didn't mind her company. I think what he really wanted was to be around that buoy that she stayed next to. Another guy came over and I saw JoJo open his mouth as a warning . Both he and the lady said he had been doing. I told them he was trying to tell them not to get to near or to touch him.
After eight hours, we decided to leave him on his own. I think his behavior today is a good sign. As the vet, Mark said, he is swimming slowly and trying to let his gash heal.
Until Tomorrow!!

Jay

Day Three of the Big Gash

Hi All,
Unfortunately the wind is still way up, making the waves huge. We weren't sure if we could get out there to find him but, we did. He was beside a buoy near Seven Stars. He was just hanging there, probably sleeping. I got in with him to take a look at the gash and noticed he also has one under his fluke. The gash as the video shows, has a lot of white matter hanging out of it. I think that is a good sign even though it looks awful. He didn't seem as happy as yesterday. He was moving slower but still crater fishing successfully. He rolled in the sand but was very careful not to touch the gash. He even came to the back of the boat and thought about getting in our wake but reconsidered. He then very slowly made his way out toward the reef. We followed keeping our distance in case he wanted to be alone but there if he wanted company. A para-sail boat was out despite the heavy surf. He saw we were with him and came up. I told him JoJo was injured and asked if they would leave him alone. He promptly drove right over and JoJo slowly swam away. What a jerk if I do say so! We decided that maybe we should leave him totally alone in case we attracted any other boats.

I believe JoJo was hit by a propellor and the scrapes are from the boat running into him. We will keep monitoring him and updating his progress.

The Beautiful Bo and RA

Hi All,

Yesterday, I mentioned seeing Bo and Raggedy Ann (RA) and now I'll fill you in on what happened. As I had mentioned there was a west wind that morning. That makes the waves build toward shore unlike the off shore east wind which flattens the waves. By afternoon the wind had increased and coupled with the wind direction, it made for some big waves. We were hoping to see JoJo before heading in. Reef Peepers radioed to us that they saw a dolphin by Club Med. This worried me because in talking to Philip, he had mentioned that JoJo goes to Club Med when he's injured like the day before. I was thinking he had taken a turn for the worse. After bouncing all over to get there (John driving like a maniac because he too is so worried about JoJo), we see two dorsals amongst the huge waves. They don't look like JoJo's. I get in to find Bo and Raggedy Ann. I get a nice greeting from Bo. Then they catch a wave and are off to surf it. We find them again and they are waiting patiently for me to keep up. By this time there are kite boarders whizzing all around enjoying the strong winds. I hear a slap in the water, too close for comfort. The dolphins pump their flukes and are gone. The kite boarder had landed in the water with a loud slap which is a warning sign to a dolphin. GRRRRR can they just stay on the other side of the island where they aren't in danger of hitting a swimmer, ME or a dolphin! We find dolphins again. This time there are three!! JoJo has joined them :))) They seem to be waiting for me. I see Bo spy hop to see if I'm coming. I get in. I so want to see how they react to JoJo's gash. Not to be, a parasail boat comes rocketing up almost running over me. They all separate and take off. I don't blame them. Too much traffic. I'm disappointed. They were waiting for me until the boat disrupted us. We try to find them again but, with the glare on the water from the late afternoon sun and the large waves, its impossible. We bounce our way back to the marina.

JoJo's Big Gash

Hi All,
The day started out with the wind coming from the West which it rarely does. I notice as we head out that I have two text messages. They both have to do with JoJo. I speak with Philip who owns Big Blue first. He tells me JoJo was injured. He doesn't know how bad or where he is. He said he was sighted at the Club Med dock yesterday evening and he had a big cut near his fluke. The other text is from Jill who has a water sport operation as well as teaching the kids who live on the island how to swim. I also call Jill she tells me apparently there was a posting on Facebook that JoJo was injured . All of this fills my heart with dread. JoJo is getting on in years. I have had animals my whole life and know that as they age, the things that happen in their youth can often be much harder to deal with as the get older.
I'm now beating myself up for going to West Caicos the day before. Maybe this wouldn't have happened if he were following our boat. So many awful things are going through my mind. Mostly please, oh please may JoJo be okay.
We approach Grace Point and I see a familiar shape heading toward our boat. I scramble to get my snorkel and fins on before jumping in to see how he is. He's found a fish, I see him crater fishing. A good sign, he is swimming ok and can eat! As I swim up to him, I see a BIG, deep gash and scrapes. This is perhaps the deepest one I've ever seen. The good news is he's acting totally normal other than not wanting to get in our wake (perhaps he should swear off that for a while).
I know many people on the Island are very concerned because there was a posting on Facebook that JoJo was hurt. I took a long video of our swim this morning that shows the gash but also shows he was crater fishing and participating in one of our games which is "Bang the Buoy". Despite the ugly gash his behavior is a good sign that he's ok. I will be looking at him everyday to see if it is healing properly. Jill gave me the number of Mark, a vet. I will talk to him if JoJo's gash doesn't heal as I hope.

Later in the afternoon, we found two of JoJo's favorite friends, Raggedy Ann and Bo. I got a great welcome from Bo who swam all around me. I had been hoping all day that they would be around and meet up with JoJo. We had got just gotten past The Sands when JoJo appeared. I think they will take good care of him.

The Whales are Definitely Here

Hi All,
The sky is clear, the water is glistening and flat. The perfect day to look for whales. We head out past the reef toward Northwest Point which is at the end of the Island. We see Big Blue's boat going in the same direction come to an abrupt stop. They have spotted a whale! We motor over, but this whale is on the move. We see it surface a few times then it's gone. We decide with the weather so perfect, why not go to West Caicos. This island is drop dead gorgeous. There are cliffs and beaches without a soul on them. There we find another whale passing by. We don't get a good show but, its great to see them.
We tie up to a dive buoy right off the shore.  The "wall" is very close to shore on this side of the Island and we decide to swim out to it. The wall is a sheer vertical drop where the water goes from about 30 feet to several thousand. Because of the depth change, the water changes color from turquoise to deep dark blue.  As we approach, it becomes very dark and a bit eerie. Then like looking off a cliff it goes straight down and we couldn't see anything but inky black water. I was expecting some sort of big scary thing (Nessie?) peer back at us from the edge but that was my imagination!! When we get back in the boat John sees a spout right near the shore! Even close to shore, the water here is deep  making it a perfect place for a whale to rest and have a little protection. I figure this will be our friendly whale. Not to be. This one also surfaces and swims off in a big hurry to get to the Silver Bank.
We head around the Island to the South side where the water is much shallower. The beaches are spectacular and the water is so clear you can see rays and star fish from the boat. We stop and have a beautiful swim in a cove. There are huge cliffs surrounding us and glittering water stretching for miles.  It's getting late so we get back in Spy Hop and start our long ride home. A Petrel swoops down to see who's out in his water then travels out to the horizon to patrol for fish. Petrels are pelagic bird meaning they don't come on land except to have their chicks.

Dolphins or Whales

Hi All,
Despite not seeing a single cetacean on our first day back, we are up early and on the search. Bob, the marine weather man, has told us the wind is from the Southeast which although quite strong, will help to flatten the waves on the Grace Bay side of the Island. The waves are barely breaking on the reef and it looks great for spotting dorsals. As we pass other boat captains, they wave and give us the no dolphins spotted sign. We press on. As we pass Half Moon Beach and head further up Pine Cay, I see a dorsal heading towards us!! That would of course be JoJo.
He heads to our boat and I get in to greet him. It's a bit murky as the photo shows but, I can see him well enough to have a short swim. The photo I'm trying to take is of him following me, not an easy thing to do when you are swimming with a snorkel and camera. He wants me to take the lead so he can follow me like he does with the other female dolphins. I however am too slow for whatever mission he's on this am.
After he swims off to make his point clear that he wants to go faster, I climb back in Spy Hop. He swims into our wake as we go the way he wants. We take him past all the resorts and all the way to the channel leading into Turtle Cove.  John spots the under water submersible, Undersea Explorer. This is a boat that has a glassed in compartment beneath the water for people to observe marine life without getting wet! John radios ahead to tell Alistair that we are coming with JoJo in our wake. He heads our way and as we get close, JoJo darts over to their boat and puts on a show for the passengers.
After he was through entertaining, he went off for brunch in Crystal Bay. The area is loaded with coral heads and is relatively shallow. It can be quite treacherous. We decided not to try and follow him. In addition, earlier, just as we had found JoJo, we heard over the radio that a whale was spotted by Pine Cay. This is the time of year the Humpbacks pass through on their migration route to the Silver Bank to calve and breed. We had made the choice then that, "a bird in hand is worth two in the bush".

With JoJo in Crystal Bay, we decide to head up to Pine Cay and go outside the reef to see if the whale is still around. I'll keep you posted!!