Just in time for World Oceans Day on June 7, artist/conservationist Joshua Sam Miller is showing his new 25-minute film “Sounds of the Ocean.” To raise awareness about ocean issues, Miller has offered planetariums around the world a one-week free license to show his film during June. Some of the planetariums taking him up on his offer include Juneau, Alaska’s Marie Drake Planetarium and Uruguay’s Planetario de Montevideo. Check out this list of all the planetariums showing Miller’s film, and learn more about it below.
“Sounds of the Ocean” combines original music, whale and dolphin sounds, art, and ocean imagery to take viewers on an underwater journey. The filmmakers want to demonstrate that oceans are worth protecting.
Image courtesy of Embodied Sounds
“Believing in the power of peaceful activism, the project’s intention is to inspire ocean action to protect life underwater, while also helping to reduce stress in our modern society,” an official statement about the film explains.
Miller, the film’s director, grew up surfing and scuba diving. He founded Embodied Sounds, which offers several different types of immersive experiences. These experiences include live music shows, multimedia performances featuring dance, art, and marine life sounds, and, trippiest of all, an underwater music experience offered in heated pools at some spas. Miller’s work has been featured everywhere, from an installation at Burning Man to a presentation during the 26th United Nations Climate Conference.
Image courtesy of Embodied Sounds
U.N. World Oceans Day traces its history back to 1992, when Oceans Day was first declared at the Global Forum in Rio de Janeiro. The United Nations officially designated World Oceans Day in 2008. It’s grown since and is usually celebrated around the world on June 8. However, this year, the date is June 7. This 2024 theme is “Awaken New Depths.”
Image courtesy of Embodied Sounds
As it says in the 2024 World Oceans Day trailer, “As humans, we depend on the ocean for survival. But compared to what it gives us, we invest little in return.” Instead of continuing to make shallow, short-sighted decisions, World Oceans Day urges humans to conserve the ocean before it’s too late. On June 7, you can join virtually from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. EDT as global policymakers, scientists, activists, and artists discuss how humans can better protect oceans. And look for Sounds of the Ocean coming to a planetarium near you.
Liz Clark logged 20,000 miles in 10 years sailing along the Central American coastline and around the Pacific Islands in the 40-foot sailboat Swell. In her book “Swell: A Sailing Surfer’s Voyage of Awakening,” she pours her heart out about her inner struggles as a lone female set on freedom and outer challenges like navigating the oceans and keeping her craft shipshape. The hardcover edition came out in 2018, but the new paperback (released this month) will expand the story’s audience.
Clark grew up in San Diego, the child of sailing parents. When she was nine, the family took a seven-month sailing trip along the coast of Mexico. She started surfing while earning her environmental studies degree at UC Santa Barbara. In 2001, after graduating, she met Barry Schuyler, who had founded the environmental studies program in 1969. Schuyler wanted to help her live her sailing dreams, so he offered her the use of Swell in exchange for vicariously accompanying her on her voyage.
Captain and author Liz Clark. / Photo by Jianca Lazarus, courtesy of Patagonia
“Swell” is the story of a young woman who prizes self-discovery and freedom above all else. She faces the ambivalence and inner contradictions that most people do, especially the young and those with a lot of time to think. While she is critical of the capitalist priorities of the U.S., she’s also extremely American. What other country so strongly emphasizes the right to the pursuit of happiness?
Clark stays determined to see the best in people despite plenty of brushes with creepy guys and a terrifying, drawn-out situation of being stuck on an island with a broken boat and an abusive boyfriend. She is very earnest about her spiritual epiphanies and tries to put them into practice when dealing with other people. She loves ocean creatures and faithfully reports underwater encounters with those she meets while swimming and surfing. She sees up close the horrific human-generated plastic waste floating in the ocean and washed up on islands. And it scares her.
Photo by Tahui Tufaimea, courtesy of Patagonia
Above all, “Swell” is about the quest for freedom. This lovely sample passage is typical of her life at sea when things are going well, and especially resonates for young women raised on the male gaze. “Out here, there is no one to compare myself with—there’s not even a full-length mirror to critique my appearance. I let my hair go wild. I laugh out loud, and break into dance without a second thought. I can fester in my filth or spend half an hour massaging shampoo into my scalp. I wear an odd ensemble from the clothing bin—or nothing at all. Some granny panties that Mom gave me have become my go-to sailing uniform. I can scream, cry, and sing all in one breath with no one to judge me. I want everyone to feel this deep liberation.”
Photo by Tahui Tufaimea, courtesy of Patagonia
The book resembles her unstructured life at sea. But I would have liked a more practical backbone. I constantly found myself disoriented, asking, where is she? How much time has gone by? Who is this person who’s suddenly popped up on the boat and is sailing with her for some unspecified time?
I also wanted more information about her finances. Clark downplays anything to do with money, apparently as part of an anti-capitalist stance. She grumbles about having to do any work without meaning to her, even as she’s visiting places where people are poor and doing whatever they can to subsist. While sailing, she built up a blog popular enough to inspire strangers to send her money. Corporations sponsored her. At one point, she met up with filmmakers documenting her voyage. She’s asked to speak around the world, write articles for magazines, and eventually write this book. All these career accomplishments are mentioned offhandedly, almost as though they’re intrusions into her life at sea.
Patagonia, one of her sponsors, published the book. Photos show Clark sailing, surfing, doing yoga on beaches, and paddling a board with her darling ocean-going cat Amelia on the front. She also includes portraits of people she meets on the island and a fun photo of her and a friend singing backup for Jimmy Buffett when he did a surprise concert at an obscure Bora Bora Bar.
Photo by Jianca Lazarus, courtesy of Patagonia
This thought-provoking book will make readers question their own lives. Are we free enough? Are we too materialistic? How can we be more spiritual and tread more lightly on the earth? Have we chosen the right path?
Near the end of the book, Clark sums it all up. “I am not the best sailor or the best surfer, or the most credentialed at anything, but chasing my dream has taught me that fulfillment and self-love don’t come from being ‘the best.’ They come from pursuing our passions and connecting to our own spirits, communities, and the world.”
Writer received a free copy of the book for review.
Following a marble ray as it silently ripples just above the seafloor is something you can only do underwater. On my first ever open-water dive, I got to hover above rays, watch a hawkbill turtle eat, and swim among thousands of colorful fish. I saw why divers of all experience levels call the Maldives paradise.
I had hoped to finish my open-water diver certification before arriving in the Maldives. The training consists of an online learning module, confined dives in a swimming pool, then open-water test dives. I’d passed the e-learning and done the confined dives at home in Oregon with Ocean Paradise Dive and Travel, but I ran out of time to try the open-water dives.
Photo by Ahmed Saamee
Try Scuba Diving program
Fortunately, the Sun Siyam resorts where I stayed had Try Scuba Diving programs for non-certified beginners. I had a chance to try diving once at the Siyam World resort and twice at another resort, Sun Siyam Olhuveli.
For Try Scuba Diving, an instructor works with one or two students. My first time out, I was one-on-one with Ahmed Saamee, a dive instructor at Siyam World, who goes by Sam. Two other people were supposed to go on our dive trip, but the others didn’t show. So, I wound up on a dive boat with Sam, the boat crew, and two additional scuba instructors who went along for fun. I couldn’t ask for a safer first time diving with all these pros.
Resort life at Siyam World. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Since I wasn’t certified, the dive staff assembled my gear and helped me put it on. But because I’d already done a lot of coursework, Sam let me have a little autonomy. We reviewed basics like how to clear my mask if I got water in it, made sure I knew what I was supposed to breathe out of, and which button to press to add or subtract air from my buoyancy control device, commonly known as a BCD.
He reminded me to stay calm while diving. “Scuba is for being lazy,” he said. Once we got to a good dive spot and Sam and the other instructors had assessed the current, it was time to jump in.
Sam and I with our gear on. / Photo courtesy of Siyam World Dive Center
Take a giant step
I’ve seldom felt less graceful than I did while walking the short distance across the dive boat with a heavy cylinder on my back and ginormous fins on my feet. Once I reached the edge of the boat, I held onto my mask and regulator with my right hand and my weight belt with my left. Then, I took a giant step with my giant feet. I was in!
Sam let me slowly deflate my BCD with my left hand while I pinched my nose and gently blew to keep my ears from plugging. Down we went, a foot or so at the time. My first dive was very shallow. At about 15.5 feet, it was only slightly deeper than the swimming pool I’d trained in. But with a much better view.
Photo by Ahmed Saamee
Once we got horizontal, we slowly glided around, checking out the underwater world. The fish were amazingly beautiful. The coral wasn’t especially colorful, but the shapes were varied and interesting. One challenge of being underwater is communication. But some of Sam’s sign language I could easily understand, such as when he pointed at a moray eel and made a biting motion with his hand. Noted.
My buoyancy needed some fine-tuning. Too low, you damage the coral, or it scrapes you. But mostly, my body wanted to float up like a balloon. Throughout my time in the Maldives, helpful instructors would give me tips like exhaling more fully to sink or using my head to steer my body.
A moray eel. / Photo by Ahmed Saamee
Diving in the Maldives
The Maldives is one of those destinations that makes many “best of” lists for diving. I talked to several scuba pros about what makes this archipelago in the Indian Ocean so alluring. But first, I’ll mention one thing I like about it: nothing will eat you. True, the moray eel might want a nibble, and the triggerfish will defend its territory. Even so, you aren’t going to lose an arm to a great white.
“Maldives is one of the best destinations in the world for beginners to start their career. Because we have the easy access to the ocean and the shallow lagoons to practice,” said Ibrahim Maahil Mohamed, dive manager of the five-star resort Sun Siyam Iru Fushi. Meanwhile, advanced divers can swim in currents. “If you dive with the current then there’s high chances to see bigger animals, like sharks, rays, like schooling of fishes,” said Mohamed, widely known in dive circles as Token. “Long story,” he said of his nickname.
Eagle rays. / Photo courtesy of Olhuveli Dive Center
Sam, Token, and Sun Siyam Olhuveli dive center manager Ahmed “Nafsu” Naffaz all come from the same island, Naifaru. This seemed like a strange coincidence to me in a country with almost 200 inhabited islands. But Nafsu explained. “We have the highest majority of divers in the whole Maldives,” he said. “When you look at a resort, there will always be one Naifaru guy.”
Island life is closely tied to the water. Many Maldivian men become fishermen or scuba instructors. “The first divemaster in the whole Maldives is also a Naifaru guy,” Nafsu said. “And I think because of that there’s a high influence in the island.” Nafsu first met Sam when they were both working on liveaboard dive ships. Sam and Token grew up together.
Photo courtesy of Olhuveli Dive Center
The Maldives’ advanced diving sites are special, according to Luca Diamante, an Italian marine biologist and scuba instructor at Sun Siyam Olhuveli. Deep drift dives of 25 or 30 meters, where divers take advantage of strong currents, yield especially good marine sightings. “In this area you can spot in the right condition hundreds of sharks, hundreds of eagle rays. You have a very nice cleaning station for mantas,” Diamante said.
Cleaning station? He explained that small fish called cleaner wrasse clean the skin or gills of other animals. “And different communities are adapted to clean different animals. So there are cleaning stations for turtles, cleaning stations for mantas, cleaning stations for sharks. And all these animals, of course they move. But in every place they go, they have their own cleaning stations. Like public toilets.” Okay, once I’m certified, I need to return and watch a manta ray’s ablutions.
A manta ray swims by to say hello. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
I greatly enjoyed the beauty and ease of resort life, staying in a lovely villa and strolling over to the dive center for an excursion. But the Maldives are changing. Now, there are more budget travel options. “Maldives is also a place where people can now do solo traveling or backpacking,” Nafsu said. He suggested staying on a local island, rather than a resort island, as a money-saving option. There, you’ll experience a little more of the local culture.
Advice for new divers
All the dive center instructors I met were pumped up about the Maldives, sea life, and diving in general. “People think that scuba diving is difficult or it’s dangerous to do,” Token told me. “But if you follow the rules and regulations, there’s no fear in it.”
Luca acknowledged newbies’ worries. “I mean, all this gear we use looks scary maybe at the beginning,” he said. And while some instruction is necessary, “It’s not like getting a university degree. It’s something you can do in three or four days.” As divers progress and get more experience and training, they slowly approach more difficult dives. “Diving is very hierarchical,” Luca said. “You have to learn everything step by step.”
Beginning instruction in a shallow lagoon at Olhuveli. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Why not just snorkel? I love snorkeling and always felt that would be enough. But I spent more of my snorkeling time freediving to get a closer look. It started dawning on me that I wanted to go underwater and stay for a while.
Token explained why he finds diving superior to snorkeling, saying: “When you go underwater, you’re going into a peaceful world where there’s nothing to disturb you. It’s just yourself hanging out with the fishes and the beautiful marine life. And you’ll be moving underwater like a fish. You’ll be observing the fishes like a fish.” Token urges visitors not to settle for sitting around on the sand. “Other than just coming and enjoying the beaches or the luxurious villas, the best way to get yourself into some adventure is to explore the oceans.”
Disclaimer: While this article was not sponsored, Outdoors Wire did visit the Maldives during a press trip with Sun Siyam Resorts. As always, Outdoors Wire operates independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.
The evocative title of Chris Bertish’s books says a lot. When I read the title “All In!: The Atlantic Standup Paddle Crossing – 93 Days Alone at Sea,” I got an inkling of what I was in for. There would be weather, loneliness, waves, problems, and probably sharks. And, since Bertish obviously survived to write the book, inspiration. I was right! But it’s still worth reading the book for the stories and motivational tidbits.
The journey Bertish chronicles in “All In!” took place from December 2016 to March 2017, when he paddled more than 4,000 miles alone from Morocco to Antigua. He became the first person to ever stand-up paddleboard across an ocean. But Bertish was no stranger to firsts and awards. He was already a big wave surfing champ with multiple world records. When he’s not in the water, Bertish is addressing giant companies like Google, Coke, and Salesforce as a motivational speaker.
Photo by Brian Overfeld
While Bertish clearly has superhuman strength and a need to embrace challenges most of us would pay everything to avoid, he’s also driven by philanthropy. His grueling 93-day paddle raised over half a million dollars for Operation Smile. This global nonprofit provides free cleft palate surgery for children. Bertish also raised money to support ocean conservation initiatives.
Of course, the first question a reader probably has is, “How does a person cross an ocean on a SUP?” I can barely paddle my inflatable SUP across a small lake on a slightly windy day. But Bertish’s 20-foot craft, the Impifish, was named for Zulu warriors called Impis. This extra-long SUP had a tiny cabin that Bertish could curl up in to escape the elements. The SUP was tricked out with a ton of high-tech communication gear, including GPS, VHF radio, Echomax, an emergency position indicating radio beacon, and a satellite phone, to name just a few. Gearheads will love this book for the tech alone.
Photo by Alan van Gysen
While the book is full of exciting tales, it’s also a bit repetitive — just like 93 days of paddling would be. There’s a pattern of disaster followed by motivational insight, and repeat. Storm! Ah, survived. Great white shark! Ah, survived it. Crucial equipment malfunction! Survived again. You can see why all the big companies want Bertish to speak to them. The man doesn’t give up or take no for an answer.
As he says at one point early in the book, “People will make up every possible excuse not to do something, or give you a whole laundry list of the reasons why they ‘can’t.’ You can always find plenty of reasons if you look for them, but instead you should be finding reasons why you ‘can.’ Focus on that and then find a way to accomplish it. If you believe you can’t you won’t, but if you believe you can, and you want it badly enough, you will always find a way. It’s that simple, period.”
The thing that irked me most about the book was an unsolved mystery. Before Bertish set out on the Impifish, some unidentified entity tried to prevent his SUP journey. Somebody sabotaged his car, messed with arrangements for his gear and food, and, most horribly of all, killed his cat. This still makes me sick to contemplate, especially since the mystery angle of the story was dropped. The reader never finds out who did these horrible things or why.
The paperback version of “All In” debuted in July. In line with Bertish’s conservation ideals, the book is printed on Forest Steward Certified paper. He also released a super limited edition eco series of only 13 copies. These 100% sustainable books are printed on 40% post-consumer recycled paper with soy and water-based inks. The binding features eco-cotton thread and non-toxic water-based glues. The book’s cover is, fittingly, made using recycled ocean plastics.
The victorious finish! / Photo by Brian Overfeld
Writer received a free copy of the book for review.
World Ocean Day is June 8, and the coastal city of Townsville in Northeastern Queensland, Australia, is doing something special to celebrate. The Museum of Underwater Art (MOUA) will be opening its new Ocean Sentinel snorkel trail.
The MOUA aims to inspire reef conservation by providing underwater experiences that engage people in cultural stories of the land and sea. The new snorkel trail consists of eight sculptures. These hybrids of human and natural marine forms represent marine conservationists — the ocean sentinels in the installation’s title. Most of the sentinels depicted are Australian.
“The stylised marine forms that surround and envelop them represent their particular field of study and expertise,” sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor explained in a statement. “The artworks aim to create an educational and informative introduction to Great Barrier Reef, celebrating its rich history and its connection to some of the world’s leading marine science institutions and its strong links to indigenous cultures and traditions.”
Workers move one of the sentinels. / Photo courtesy of MOUA
The artist is also an environmentalist and professional underwater photographer. Most of his work explores submerged and tidal marine environments.
deCaires Taylor sculpted the sentinels from a new high-grade, low-carbon concrete reinforced with marine stainless steel. Each sculpture is about 7 feet tall and weighs up to 2.8 tonnes. A low center of gravity helps each piece resist the ocean’s pull. The submerged sculptures will be set on barren stretches of the Great Barrier Reef off Townsville. deCaires Taylor hopes that, over time, marine life such as corals and sponges will colonize the artworks.
“Like the Great Barrier Reef itself, they will become a living and evolving part of the ecosystem, emphasising both its fragility and its endurance.”
The new Ocean Sentinel installation is MOUA’s third art project installation around Townsville. Ocean Siren, the first MOUA project, is not underwater but stands alongside Townsville’s Strand Jetty. The sculpture changes color in response to water temperature variations. Divers and snorkelers can also visit deCaires Taylor’s Coral Greenhouse, about a two-hour boat ride off the coast from Townsville.
deCaires Taylor stands beside one of his sentinels. / Photo courtesy of MOUA
We were 10 snorkelers gliding above tens of thousands of black-striped Salema fish. They stretched ahead of and behind us, seemingly endless. Every rock on the seabed 40 feet below was visible in the clear water. It felt like floating through a fish cathedral. Underwater, we heard the crackling sound of sea life going about its business. Above water, the retching noise of male sea lions reminding us who was boss of Champion Rock in the Galápagos Islands.
I was on a new four-night western Galápagos itinerary with Hurtigruten Expeditions. The Norwegian brand is best known for cold water cruising but expanded into the warmer Galápagos in 2022.
Photo by Ashton Ray Hansen courtesy of Hurtigruten Expeditions
If the word “cruise” makes you think of casinos, nightlife, and a moving city at sea, know that expedition cruises are a different beast. The Santa Cruz II holds up to 90 passengers and is about getting outside and experiencing nature without sacrificing comfortable beds and upscale meals. As seasoned Hurtigruten guide Jhover Alvarez puts it, “Are the Galápagos for you? If you have a genuine interest in science. The thing is to understand what you’re looking at and the importance of conservation.”
Getting to know the islands
The Galápagos Islands are 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador and have been part of that country since 1832. Scientists estimate the oldest of these 127 volcanic islands to be around 4 million years old. They were formed by the Galapagos hotspot, part of the famous “Ring of Fire” around the Pacific Ocean. Magma came up through the Nazca plate, forming volcanoes. The volcanoes move with the plate, so subsequent eruptions through the hotspot formed more islands. Underwater volcanic activity is almost constant. “We are floating in an ocean of liquid rock,” Alvarez explained.
About 25,000 people live in the Galápagos, mostly concentrated in a few towns. Most of the islands are uninhabited and only reachable by boat.
Santa Cruz Island. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Because of the area’s delicate ecology, the Galápagos strictly regulates visits. Ninety-seven percent of the land is a national park, and visitors must be with a licensed national park guide. You can fly into one of two airports in the islands and arrange tours on your own, or take the much cushier option of joining a cruise, where activities and permits are arranged for you.
Animals of the Galápagos
Africa has the Big 5 must-see animals. Guests of Hurtigruten Expeditions look for the Big 15. Since different animals live on different islands, you won’t see all of them unless you visit the right combination of places. On my short four-night cruise, I saw 12.
Land iguanas nest at Cerro Dragon on Santa Cruz Island. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Galápagos wildlife watching takes place on land and in the water. Our activity choices included walks, rides in Zodiac boats, glass bottom boat rides, snorkeling, kayaking, and paddleboarding. On the more populated island of Santa Cruz, we also had a short bike ride.
Kayaking off Floreana Island. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
The Zodiac boats, also called pangas, were great for animal sightings. At Punta Vicente Roca on the west side of Isabela Island, we saw six of the Big 15 — flightless cormorants, blue-footed boobies, Galápagos penguins, sea lions, marine iguanas, and fur seals — on a single panga ride. Plus lots of animals that didn’t make the cut, like pelicans, manta rays, sea turtles, and a bright orange wrasse. Don’t forget your sunscreen and water shoes for this action-packed tour.
Searching for wildlife on a panga, or Zodiac. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Our walk at Punta Espinoza on Fernandina Island was a highlight for lizard lovers. The area is home to immense quantities of marine iguanas. The animals lay in vast formations of scaly glory, draped over each other on rocks, sometimes with a sharp-clawed arm around a neighbor like reptilian BFFs. These are some of the oldest animals in the Galápagos.
The theory is that the marine iguana’s ancestors floated over from mainland Ecuador on rafts of reeds millions of years ago. Lacking much to eat on the stark volcanic islands, they adapted to living on algae, diving underwater and scraping it off the rocks with their teeth. Most marine iguanas have evolved to be darker than other iguanas, “until the whole skin turns black and is working as a huge solar panel,” our Hurtigruten guide Daniel Moreano explained. This solar power is important, as marine iguanas can lose up to 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) of body heat in a single hour of algae foraging.
Can you believe Darwin called these cuties a “hideous looking creature, of a dirty black colour, stupid, and sluggish”? / Photo by Teresa Bergen
We also saw flamingos in several brackish spots around the Santa Cruz and Floreana islands. The lava really complements their pink.
Flamingos of Floreana Island. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Giant tortoise research
The Galápagos are famous for giant tortoises, so most visitors want to see these prehistoric relics. The Charles Darwin Research Station is the place to learn everything tortoise. This site has been essential for tortoise conservation and the repopulation of disappearing species. Workers hatch eggs in incubators, then number the hatchlings’ shells and color code them by island of origin. Giant tortoises are born with soft shells. The first few years are critical to their survival, as they’re easy prey for snakes, feral cats, and other hungry critters. A local exhibition center has more info on the center’s conservation programs and research.
A giant tortoise in the highlands of Santa Cruz Island. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Interesting as the science center is, a trip to the highlands of Santa Cruz to see wild tortoises is more exciting. As our bus approached Rancho Manzanillo, we saw tortoises in the fields, then on the sides of the road, then in the road. Our driver carefully navigated around them — not only would it be terrible to accidentally run over an endangered tortoise, but doing so carries a ruinous fine.
The tortoises roam freely on the land. Our Hurtigruten guide Veronica Sanchez told us about tortoise life as we examined the animals’ giant shells, elephant-like legs, and skull-like faces. If you get too close, they seem to be hissing, but Sanchez explained that’s just the noise they make drawing their head into their shells — like an airlock door. We also watched fascinatingly bizarre tortoise copulation. The much smaller females look squished and long-suffering as the males slowly thrust and grunt. “The females usually try to escape,” Sanchez said.
A long weekend cruise
Hurtigruten offers several Galápagos itineraries. I was on the new western loop. For people who dream of a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Galápagos, four nights might be too short. You can choose a longer itinerary, or combine two cruises for nine nights, which many of my shipmates were doing. Or you can explore more of Ecuador by adding on a few days in Quito, or the Cloud Forest, or the many other special places in the country.
Turtles nest on this white sand beach on Floreana Island. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
If you like outdoor activities, science, and wildlife, it’s hard to imagine a more perfect place than the Galápagos. As I paddleboarded in a calm turquoise bay watching sea lions leap and play, it really didn’t seem that life could get any better.
At the non-profit research organization OCEARCH, the motto is “facts over fear.” While many people have learned to appreciate and respect sharks, the world still has a ways to go in destigmatizing these aquatic creatures. By sharing facts and resources like the popular Shark Tracker, OCEARCH helps people overcome their shark fears. But what if reading about sharks and tracking their movement isn’t enough for you? For marine life enthusiasts who crave a more extreme experience, OCEARCH is now accepting entries for the “Meet A Shark” sweepstakes. Here are the details on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and how you can get involved.
As explained in an OCEARCH press release, the “Meet A Shark” sweepstakes will invite one winner and a guest to join the OCEARCH team on an ocean research expedition. “The lucky winner will be able to watch some of the world’s top shark researchers at work and have the opportunity to meet and tag a white shark,” the press release stated.
This experience may not be for the faint of heart, but it is an excellent way to support a scientific cause and learn more about marine life. Even if oceanic adventures aren’t your speed, other prizes may entice you to enter the sweepstakes. In addition to the grand prize trip, OCEARCH will reward 100 entrants with prize packs including a hoodie, sun shirt, hat, pair of Costa sunglasses, and custom YETI travel mug.
So, how do you enter the “Meet A Shark” sweepstakes? Until Sept. 30, curious shark fans can enter by donating to OCEARCH or sending an email entry (instructions here). Winners will be randomly chosen on Oct. 3. Until then, satisfy your craving for more shark content with this cool live shark cam.
All fish look a little strange. With scales, fins, and gills, these creatures are built to navigate a weird, watery world. As a result, fish can sport some odd features. But what are some of the most peculiar fish the world has to offer? And where can you find them? Dive into this list of four of the world’s weirdest fish to learn more.
Human history and marine life meet at the site of underwater shipwrecks. After years of residing on the ocean floor, ships can take on a strange second life as a habit for local fish. One example of this fascinating phenomenon is U-352, a sunken German U-boat off the North Carolina coast.
Built in 1940 and sunk on May 9, 1942, the boat now hosts an ecosystem of algae and coral. Thanks to photography from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Monitor National Marine Sanctuary, curious explorers can take a virtual tour of this shipwreck and learn more about its history.
Amid World War II’s Battle of the Atlantic, U-352 was sunk by USCGC Icarus. Decades later, the ship’s abandoned shell remains nestled in its watery grave. Now federally protected by the Sunken Military Craft Act, the wreck site welcomes intrigued divers for a visit as long as they leave the area unaltered. As the dive slate for U-352 reads, “take only pictures, leave only bubbles.”
Visitors who brave the depths to explore this shipwreck can expect to find red barbier baitfish, amberjack, sea anemones, and more. Marine life has claimed the crash as an unconventional home, giving the wreckage a new purpose. Even turtles and sand tiger sharks have been known to visit the site.
While photos and videos show the ship in great detail, adventurers craving a firsthand glimpse of the site can visit with help from North Carolina diving companies. Companies like Olympus Diving even provide helpful information about what to expect during your visit. At a depth of 110 feet, the ship entices divers for a closer look at this historical site.
Surf’s up! Here’s where you can catch some awesome waves.
Surfers know that riding waves provides an adrenaline and endorphin rush like nothing else can. With a board in hand, surfers brave the ocean for the challenge and thrill of navigating tricky waters. The combination of mental calculations and physical exertion makes surfing a unique sport full of enthusiastic athletes. These athletes form a worldwide community of passionate surfers constantly looking to carve waves on new coasts.
On a planet 71% covered by water, oceanic adventurers have plenty of incredible surfing locations to explore. Still, some coasts are better than others for catching quality waves. If you’re on the lookout for new beaches to visit, consider these five surf sites.
