I got nailed by an undulated moray eel. It was caught by researchers using a lobster trap and was brought to the boat where a piece of its tail was clipped for DNA studies. I was filming the process and for the eels release back to the water I sat on the edge of the boat with one of my legs overboard for balance. As soon as the poor panicked eel took off it went straight for my foot and bit it real hard and deep. Blood was spraying from the top of my foot.

At the ship I was taken to sickbay where I got eight stitches. I am lying in bed now with my swollen foot up in the air. Unfortunately, that’s most likely the end of my diving for this expedition. I feel sadness and naturally upset.

Not only that walking on crutches on a rolling ship is not fun its also dangerous. Also if the wound get infected than a coast guard evacuation from the middle of the sea is complicated. thats why the ship doctor and chief scientist decided that they are going to leave me on midway atoll and continue their way to he next location tomorrow afternoon. the first flight out of Midway is on Wednesday back to Oahu. I was happy to spend four days on Midway.

Lisianski showed up 335 miles from Gardner. We started to see more corals but visibility was not good. It looked kind of murky because of the sandy nature of this atoll. When we went with the dive boat to collect a predator tracking receiver 250 yards from shore, I noticed two obvious things; there were many sea birds on the small sandy atoll as well as lots of human trash (such as floats, plastic tubs, coolers etc.).

355 miles further, Gardner Pinnacles came next and the magic clearly started to unveil. It is a rear opportunity to be able to dive Gardner since the sea is usually rough here. Just two little pinnacles, barely rising above the surface, in the middle of this endless blue.

Here I found myself in tears of joy while diving. So this is what an undisturbed system looks like, so that’s what we could achieve if we were all taking care of nature. The site of many herbivores (Millet seed butterflies and chubs) in the foreground while behind the carnivores (sharks and jacks) touched me deeply and engraved into my soul.

WATCH VIDEO FROM GARDNER PINNACLES

On a research expedition to the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument. I am blessed that I was chosen to go out to the remote North Western Hawaiian Islands, on the NOAA research vessel, the Hi`ialakai.

We were scheduled for twenty-five days of intense diving in the most untouched marine environment on this planet. I am working on an outreach film for NOAA that will describe the significance of keeping this area closed to visitors and highlight the important research that is being conducted out there. We left on July 7th 2007.

Our first dive location was 245 miles from Honolulu, Nihoa, A sheer rock coming up from the deep.

The corals were not as abandon as I expected, I realized later that only in certain areas one could find an abundance of corals since the winter in the middle of the Pacific accommodate harsh weather and strong storms. I was surprised that there weren’t too many fish. Since this area is outside of the monument it is very likely that its being fished.
But non the less, I enjoyed seeing white tip sharks, many chubs in black and yellow and my first underwater sighting of the extremely endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal.