Scubadiving photography and Underwater images by Mark Strickland

Mark Strickland's ESCORTED DIVE TRAVEL PROGRAM

BAHAMAS SHARK AND DOLPHIN ADVENTURES, JUNE-JULY 2008, with Mark Strickland and Andrew Sallmon

These two trips are built around some of the most exciting diving I've ever experienced: Jim Abernathy's Scuba Adventures - expeditions in the Bahamas, specializing in sharks and dolphins. Of course the Bahamas have been famous for such animals for years, but these trips are in a league of their own. For starters, JASA enjoys a well-earned reputation for quality and safety, and is second to none for finding rare and special marine life. The biggest factor, however, is owner Jim Abernathy, who accompanies virtually every trip. A licensed captain and dive instructor with decades of local experience, Jim is also a prolific photographer, videographer, and keen naturalist. More than anything though, it is Jim’s infectious enthusiasm that makes these trips special, as he and his crew delight in guiding guests to the best possible animal encounters and photo opportunities.

As a dive destination, the Bahamas are hard to beat, boasting over 700 islands and rocks surrounded by warm, clear water, miles of healthy reefs, steep drop-offs, coral gardens, colorful sponges, and generally prolific marine life. Perhaps the most compelling feature, though, is the abundance of BIG animals, including Atlantic Spotted Dolphins, which often enjoy interacting with humans. The Bahamas are also home to one of the world's most diverse and healthy shark populations, including Nurse, Black-tip, Caribbean Reef, Lemon, Bull, Silky, Great Hammerhead and Tiger sharks, among others. Check out the March 2007 issue of National Geographic magazine, featuring Brian Skerry's superb photography--the entire story was shot aboard "Shearwater" at the same sites we'll be visiting.

We've reserved two different trips with JASA for 2008, each offering a unique range of special experiences. Depending on your interests, choosing between them could be pretty tough. Luckily, you don't have to - we've planned these trips to run consecutively, so you can easily do both trips back-to-back. Another logistical perk is location - both trips are based out of West Palm Beach, Florida, so no international air travel is required for anyone residing in the U.S.

Here are the details:

Bahamas, Oceanic White-tip Shark expedition (live-aboard w/ JASA's Shearwater, 9 nights) June 28-July 7, 2008.

Cost: US $3,800 plus Bahamas Departure Tax

Among the few truly pelagic sharks, oceanic white tips were once common throughout the world's tropical seas. After years of uncontrolled fishing, however, these nomadic predators have all but disappeared from most of their range. Happily, JASA has located an area with a relative abundance of oceanic white-tips, with 10 and even 15 individuals showing up at a time. Not only have they been consistently sighted during each trip to this area, they tend to hang around for days at a time, giving every participant ample in-water opportunities. Oceanic White-tips are definitely the main priority on this trip, but there will likely be other shark species as well, including Caribbean Reef, Dusky, Silky, Lemon, Tiger and Nurse Sharks, among others.

Click here for more photos

There are also spectacular drop-offs, beautiful reefs, and colorful tropical fish at many sites, should we feel inclined to do any “regular” dives. Other special attractions of this trip include close encounters with Bahamian Iguanas, a visit to the Thunderball Cave of James Bond fame, a Blue Hole, and maybe even swimming pigs!

Click here for commentary about a recent Oceanic White-tip trip

For those who are "critter-oriented", consider joining us before or after the trip for a little-known but amazingly diverse "muck dive" near JASA headquarters, home to an array of fascinating animals including stargazers, batfish, sea robins, sea horses, snake eels and juvenile fish of all kinds.

Added Bonus: The Everglades

For anyone who's interested, there will also be an opportunity to explore and photograph in the Florida Everglades during the days between Shear Water trips. The Glades are less than 3 hours drive by rental car, and offer a tremendous opportunity to observe and photograph all manner of wildlife, including a great variety of birds and of course an abundance of resident alligators!

The Boat:

M/V Shearwater is not an overly spacious or fancy boat, but is very well equipped and suited to her purpose; I have many fond memories of time spent aboard. Here are some specifics: She is a 65 ft. custom built, USCG and Bahamas inspected, sportfisherman-style motor vessel, air-conditioned throughout, featuring 2 shared bathrooms w/ hot showers, 800 gallon per day water maker. 3 cabins with 2 beds in each (over/under) and 6 beds in the bow common area w/ privacy curtains. Two 30KW generators supply continuous 110v power. Salon is well equipped with battery charging stations and multiple power strips, plus 25" TV, DVD/MP3/VCR/CD entertainment system. Fully equipped galley with refrigerator/freezer, stove, oven, and microwave. Ample oxygen supply, fully stocked first aid kit, and full compliment of navigational electronics and safety equipment. 12 ft. inflatable dinghy w/ outboard motor lives on the foredeck. 2 11 CFM compressors provide tank fills; nitrox available on request. There are several large camera rinse tanks on the dive deck.

Click here for more information about Shearwater and JASA

On both of these Bahamas trips, I will be partnering with fellow marine photographer Andrew Sallmon, who brings a wealth of knowledge and many years of experience into the equation. He's a veteran of many trips on the Shearwater, an extremely talented photographer and teacher, and a really nice guy - we are very lucky to have him along! For more about Andy, see his bio below, or visit www.seait.com.

If you are interested in joining us for either of these Bahamas trips, please contact me via e-mail at: markstrickland@verizon.net for more information or to reserve your spot. Please do NOT contact Jenny at Reef & Rainforest Travel about the BAHAMAS, as she is only handling the Solomons and Thailand/Burma trips, and we don't want to bother her unnecessarily.

About ANDREW SALLMON:

Andrew is a freelance underwater and nature photographer specializing in images of marine life. His love of the sea has taken him all over the world looking for ways to capture dynamic portraits of its creatures large and small. He hopes that through the viewing of these images people will someday learn to appreciate and understand the awesome beauty and fragile nature of the oceans and to ultimately change some of the detrimental practices of humankind toward the sea.

A native of California, Andy spends much of his time diving and photographing the rich temperate waters of his home state, but also travels abroad several months each year to create new images for his stock file. A Scuba Instructor since 1980, he picked up his first underwater camera that same year and slowly converted from underwater hunting to the challenges of underwater photography. It was the slower pace of observing and trying to approach marine life closely that helped him to see and understand the intricacies and miracles of the ocean ecosystem. As he learned to appreciate the living sea, his photographic skills also grew and now he is one of a fortunate few that earn a living as an underwater photographer. His work has been featured in hundreds of books, magazines, calendars, posters, catalogs and advertisements. In addition, some of his images are on display at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Smithsonian Institute.

Check out Andy's stunning imagery at www.seait.com

About MARK STRICKLAND:

Mark's life-long interest in the sea has included over 10,000 dives and careers as a lifeguard, boat captain and scuba instructor. His passion for underwater photography has led him to many top dive destinations, including Thailand, where he spent 17 years as Cruise Director/Photo-Pro on a series of live-aboard vessels, including the state-of-the-art Ocean Rover. While he still dives whenever possible, Mark now spends most of his time with his family in California. An avid marine naturalist, Mark has discovered several nudibranch species, including his own namesake, Halgerda stricklandi.

Mark's photos and articles have appeared in dozens of magazines and books around the world, including BBC Wildlife, Geo, National Geographic World, Natural History, Nature's Best, Outside, and most major dive magazines. Mark is also co-author and primary photographer of Lonely Planet's award-winning title, "Diving and Snorkeling Thailand". Currently, he leads several dive trips each year to his favorite destinations, while working on a career-spanning large-format pictorial book. In addition to representation by several stock photo agencies, Mark operates his own photo library, Oceanic Impressions, www.oceanic-impressions.com.

Mark Strickland / Oceanic Impressions

e-mail: info@oceanic-impressions.com

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