Will diving at Rio Bueno this morning trying to spear some lionfish.

Well, the workload has definitely picked up but I think we’re starting to get the hang of things around here. Every morning I’ve had the chance of diving at 6:30AM when the water is still calm and we’ve been exploring some pretty captivating places including M1, the Dairy Bull, and Rio Bueno. I have found a hobby for life in scuba diving. Learning everything in the classroom and collecting and identifying organisms has helped us to appreciate everything we see in the water so much more. We can now go beyond the individual organism and look at life underwater as an ecosystem and understand the interactions at work. We’ve got a lot of research and schoolwork ahead of us this next week here but we’re all having the time of our lives here. Now that the DITS (divers in training) have finally become certified, we’re able to partake in all class activities and research including deploying and collecting the BRUVs (Baited Remote Underwater Videos). I think our professors might be losing their minds being forced to spend so much time with us but I think we’re a pretty fun bunch. [Ed: The professors concur.] For now, enjoy some pictures of our adventures and to our families: I’m sorry we don’t call often but you’ll be hearing plenty of stories and seeing plenty of videos upon our return!

Some classmates and Dr. Warren diving at Rio Bueno this morning perfecting their neutral buoyancy along the wall.

• Suzie