Prince Rupert and Baker Inlet, British Columbia
Exiting U.S. waters overnight, we awoke to a deluge of rain upon docking at Prince Rupert in British Columbia, Canada. Today was the perfect day for rain since most of us would either be in a museum or underwater. Guests were treated to cultural displays at The Museum of Northern British Columbia’s “Tsimshian Winter Feast Tour and Performance” and even happier when, upon exiting the buildings, the clouds parted and the walk back to the ship was a dry and pleasant one. Taking advantage of a speedy customs process, bosun Ian and I took a video camera out to nearby Bacon Point (mmm Bacon) for an exploratory dive. Judging by the number of nudibranchs (sea slugs) seen on the dock pilings, we knew there must be good invertebrate life nearby. Nothing could compare to yesterday’s dive at Misty Fjords, but today we were happy to find dozens of nudibranchs and we enjoyed chasing Dungeness crabs in the sand flats.
While searching the charts for a good spot to anchor for an evening Live Dive, the idea was hatched to skip the formalities of Recap and go for a Zodiac cruise into the very narrow Baker Inlet. Off-and-on showers switched with beautiful evening light as raingear-clad guests were treated to their first look at the British Columbia rain forest. Little did they know the real reason for our anchoring.
During dinner service, Ian, engineers Perry, Israel, and Tom (among several others) and I set up for a truly unique experience. Using 300-foot-long, specially designed AV cable, and a full-face mask, Ian and I can take guests with us on our underwater explorations. Tonight we dove on a rocky reef and were greeted by many familiar faces. Taking care not to lean against the sharp spines of a red urchin, we filmed and talked about what we were seeing and feeling. At depth our lights are the only source of illumination, so the scope of our view is limited. However, our lights seem to attract the curious antics of an elongated fish called a searcher (Bathymaster sp.), making for entertaining diving for both us and the packed lounge.
