Diary extract from Nathan dive master intern in Punta Gruesa!

It is already the sixth week of the 10 week conservation project here at Punta Gruesa. The first wave of five week volunteers have come and gone and now three more members have been added to our team. For myself it is interesting to be in a different role in the second five weeks. I am no longer new to the base life, the day to day structure, or expectations of our projects, instead everything feels rather comfortable. It puts people who have been here longer in a more responsible position. We are now teaching the newcomers about the very things we found difficult only five weeks ago. It is a measure of our progress. There are few things in which you can see your progress and knowledge grow so quickly, it is very rewarding to be part of a program that makes you grow as a person.

We are learning valuable skills. For those participating in the dive master internship like myself, we are beginning the rescue diver course. A qualification that can be life saving and critical for maintaining safety in the water, the rescue diver course expands our knowledge about scuba diving and challenges us to think before we act. It teaches us how to deal with possible dangerous situations with ease, maintain control, calmness, and most of all to be ready for any scenario that can happen in the water.

As we learn more about diving we are also actively participating in the conservation project. All the skills and knowledge we learned in fish and coral identification are now being used to collect data. Collecting data is rewarding, it is a feeling of accomplishment and confirmation that the work being put forth is worth the time, for we are now collecting data that can be used to protect coral reefs and the fish that inhabit them. The experience thus far has been incredible on so many different levels; it has been challenging, rigorous, peaceful, relaxing, demanding and casual, as well as mentally and physically stimulating. The nights drift swiftly into day and the days float steadily into weeks; before I know it, I will be working in a dive shop working towards my dive master. But just for today, I don't want to forget about living in the moment and appreciate the time left on base, for it will all be over before I know it.

Nathan

Diary extract from Nathan dive master intern in Punta Gruesa!