Ten love...

The fact that it was not raining was encouraging. Of course at the airport the stiff windsock and the met office report confirmed that it was too strong. Simon, one of the Aqua-firma tourists handled the news just fine. He understood my explanation with the clarity becoming of a haematologist. Simon was from the UK and worked for the NHS. Inevitably we explored the state of health systems in our respective countries, but soon the weather dominated our conversation again. Coffee at the airport cafeteria was on the agenda and for the first time this year I found some chocolate éclairs that made my mouth water. They were as good as they looked. (Yes, later on I had another! ;)

We agreed that we would try again tomorrow and I dropped Simon off at the taxi. Of course due to the pressures of the program I willed the wind to slack off, which it did – perhaps only in my mind – and at lunch time I made a run for the south to look for sharks. The wind was howling. There were no sharks and I was stretching my abilities.
Must be ten love to the weather by now…

Wish you were here!
:)

Drizzle...

Racing from the approaching storm. I had just squeezed through a tiny gap between the clouds and the mountain in the background.

I am sitting in the open hangar of the Seychelles Military training academy. It is right at the very end of the runway and offers a great view down towards the south, the direction that most of our weather systems come from. From here I can make better assessments to predict the chance of flying. At the moment it is drizzling and towards the south it is gloomy and grey. For now the prospect of flying is slim to none – at least for the next half hour or so, which is how long it will take given favourable conditions for the system to clear up. Of course it looks more like these systems are taking their time to dissipate.

Normally by 11:30 I have already surveyed the whole island, located the sharks and informed David so that boat crews and passengers can be briefed. Today it is not going to be that easy.

The drizzle has just increased to light rain.

As if the weather is anything to go by, I have just heard on the news that SA lost to Oz in the quarter finals of the rugby world cup. A final score 11-9. It sounds like it was a close game. In a way I am glad I missed it. I am far too much of a Springbok fan to have been able to watch that game without getting worked up. No, it was much better sitting in the car waiting for the rain to clear up so we could go flying. Now what could be better than that? Yes, you are quite right – to be flying!

Later on I managed to get into the air and what an interesting flight it turned out to be. It had all the elements of excitement one could hope for – from a flying point of view: Lots of stormy weather, rain fronts, low clouds, mountains, turbulence. It gets really exciting when you have to calculate all these variables to make sure you can get through a gap between the clouds and a low valley in the mountains before it all turns pear shaped. As it turned out I could not quite get to the boat to offer air support and just to tease them even more, they spotted a whale shark but then lost it. If I had been in the air at that time it would have been a simple matter to get the research team onto the shark. Of course at that time I was sneaking through a low gap between the mountains and cloud with my tail between my legs, before it started to rain all over the show. Perhaps some other time I will bore you with the details but for now, let’s just say I am happy to be on the ground.

Wish you were here!
:)

Quicky...

This was the rain that moved in at lunch time from the SE.
After the dismal forecast the day actually started not too bad. There were signs of rain but not the kind of down pour predicted. Andy and I made our way to the Airport with light conversation. He is an interesting man, working in the security business concerning CCTV monitoring – no doubt with todays’ technological advances an exciting industry to be in. He had also done a hang gliding tandem flight in Rio some years back. “My friends said everyone took of straight but when we launched we just dropped and disappeared off the end of the ramp.” It was by no means Andy’s most memorable moment. “Well, Andy, this is much more relaxing. No need to run and hurl yourself off any cliffs…” Andy liked that idea.

In the end we had a great flight. Smooth air with very light winds – all the time I was monitoring the CB cells which seemed to be all around us, as if we were flying inside a large horse shoe. The storms where slow moving so we snuck around the whole island without getting wet. Unfortunately we did not see any sharks.

Just before lunchtime, one of the large CB cells to our north east moves in and it starts to rain over the whole island. David and I have a hard time to decide if it is worth heading out or not. We are just so desperate to run trips especially since Dirk had such a spectacular afternoon the other day, even though he only got one shark in the morning.

The rain seems relentless. We cancel the day. The storm collapses and its clear all around. Eish… (The last bit are for all my South African friends;)

The whole gang goes for an eat-out at one of the islands more interesting restaurants, the Hot Rock but I decide to give a survey around the island another go. I manage the whole island and only run into a few drops of rain near the north. Still no sharks. Perhaps then we did not miss anything…

Wish you were here!
:)

Weather to or not...

If the weather is bad, this is what you miss out on....

We are all guilty of underestimating the magnitude of the role the weather has on our lives. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we are often aware of the effect on our moods but sometimes miss the affects the weather has on our daily physical living – from the threads of clothing we wear to the real threat of living or dying. Even more fascinating are the emotions stirred once we realise the inextricable connection between these two idioms. Rather ironically, if you believe like I do, you can have the one exist without the other but you cannot have the other exist without the one. Be that as it may, I have created a new gadget – a link to “the weather where I am at”, for those that are interested in that sort of thing but also because it is so relevant to my life for the moment. Here in Seychelles our project is so dependent on the weather. Perhaps I should rephrase that to ‘at the mercy’ of the weather, which gives a better description of our current predicament.

Over the years, with the help of the MCSS, Seychelles has developed a reputation as a reliable whale shark ecotourism destination. During the months of September and October daily trips are run with a very high rate of success, probably of more than 95%. The majority of these are multiple encounters with tourists diving with a number of whale sharks in a matter of just an hour or two. The result of this has been repeat bookings for tour operators on an annual basis. This year however, the weather has been so dismal that the Aquafirma tour group, who have booked a whole week of whale sharking, seemed as if they were not going to head out to sea on a whale shark trip even once. They arrived on Saturday and by Wednesday the rain had not let up yet and the forecast for the remainder of the week was bleak. Unexpectedly Thursday offered a reprieve and the boat went out. Of course Seychelles lived up to its reputation and the tour group had a great time (multiple whale shark encounters). However, today (Friday) the rain seemed to have returned with a vengeance. Of course, the forecast for the rest of the weekend looks pretty dismal too.

Earlier this morning, Dirk and I both were woken up by the sharp crack of thunder that rumbled on into the distance. The flash was evident even through my closed eyelids and in my dreamy state I counted the seconds. “One and ‘bang!’ ” – the lightning was less than 600m away! Lying in bed in the dark I knew the odds of Dirk getting into the air today was slim to none. Rain is one thing but lightening quite another, especially if you are flying a tiny, little micro-light.

Still…

Wish you were here!
:)

Rain and rain and more rain.

Tim and I racing from the approaching rain after studying a whale shark.


Tim and I were unperturbed. Like brave little warriors we headed to the airport even if we were completely outnumbered. The odds were stacked against flying but the pressure was on – so much depended upon us getting into the air. Of course safety does come first – always – but after many days of not being able to get into the air one starts to consider that which is not possible. Perhaps it is possible to make the impossible possible. We spotted a small gap between the rain and agreed to have a go. We were not complete fools – if it was bad we could always come back. Of course the fact that sky was filled with large billowing clouds and rain was falling from almost every one of them perhaps there was still something foolish about our efforts…

By the time we taxied out to the runway even the gap we had hoped for down to the south had disappeared. By then, we were hot and bothered. Double sleeved flight suits, gloves and balaclavas were not the best of combinations for the tropics. Of course up in the sky it was essential.
“Approach we will fly to South Point and then report on our intentions depending upon the weather.”
“Roger, on line clear for take of one three with a right turn”
At that stage all that mattered was to get into the air and get the air-conditioning going.

We climbed to 3500ft in a gap in the clouds and from there could make a better assessment of the approaching weather. Some rain was moving in but we could easily fly around it. The question of course was what lied in wait for us behind it. It did not look too bad so we kept going. Cloud base was at 1300ft and the lack of sunlight made spotting conditions very difficult. We found nothing on our first search but on the way back Tim spotted a nice 7m shark. We did an observational report on it and then tried our hand at a couple of interference transect runs. The idea being to find out at what height the shark responds to the micro-light. Of course it is all official and we record every move. It is actually very interesting and for a few minutes we got totally absorbed in what we were doing.

Hhhmm… A large rain cell snuck in and was almost upon us.

“OK, Tim. Time to leave for the airport.”
“I agree!” he said. We still need to fly around South Point to beat the rain but managed not to get wet.
“Approach, this is Echo Pappa Echo, ready for re-joining…”

All in a day’s work.

Wish you were here.
:)

Slim to none…

I got this rainbow pic from our balcony the other day...

Outside the airport cafeteria it was pouring with rain. Tim and I had been chatting all morning about various conservation projects, from the Rodrigues Island in the north to the east coast of Africa. Many of these entailed shark conservation projects and that is so my cup of tea. Sharks have really been getting a raw deal with modern man – many large well known species are on the brink of extinction. Of course, in some areas the influence of man has been kept at bay and very healthy shark populations are encountered. We speculated about ones chances of survival when swimming in these oceans – slim to none were probably not far off the mark.

It was lunch time and Dirk joined us after he bravely cycled all the way from home. Of course he was sopping wet.
“If I am not wet from perspiration I am wet from rain but I am always wet!” he says while we tuck into lunch.

Our conversation was laced with the advantages of aerial surveys and what a great tool that was for conservationists. It was well known in African National parks and used even in combating pouching but very few people, including pilots and scientists alike, know about its uses for marine applications. Tim and I dreamed for a while about the possibilities the future might hold, something so typical of pilots and marine conservationists alike.

Three cups of coffee and some cool drinks later Dirk greets us and heads out somewhere on his bicycle in the rain. For a while Tim and I admire his commitment to staying fit. Then we start to feel bad ourselves and stop.
“To be honest Tim, the chance of us flying this afternoon is slim to none.”

He leaves for the bus station while I am left staring at the rain and contemplating the reasons for hanging out at the airport. Even though we have canned the boat trip for the afternoon, the idea is for me to use any clearing to get out to the shark area and see what conditions are like – is the water rough, is the water visibility good and most important are the sharks still there. The rain of the past two days has caused a lot of flooding and there is every chance that most of our target dive areas are covered in brown rivers of fresh water making diving and whale shark trips a complete waste of time. I watch as the water pours from the roof ignoring the gutter. Slim to none I think again before ordering another cup of coffee.

Wish you were here!
:)

Certifiable depressions...

This is the lenticular cloud we watched above Beau Vallon Bay....

I have been thinking about the word depression. It’s quite ironic that the meaning of the word swings into the same direction in both humanistic wellbeing and weather terms. Their cyclic nature is so representative of life too, the ups and downs, the highs and lows. And to make this relationship even more interesting, you will find the two are inexorably linked with one another. In fact, we are experiencing that very thing. Let me put it this way.

There is a depression over the inner islands and it is raining cats and dogs. Our crew and tourists are suffering from depression that seems to range from mild to bordering on the certifiable.

The truth is that it has been raining for two days already and the forecasts are not looking any better for the coming week. One can only hope that the forecasts are wrong.

Just before the rain started, for the clued up, we were treated to a spectacular sight. If you are a weather buff or a pilot used to using Mother Nature as your power source, the beautiful lenticular cloud forming above Beau Vallon bay would not have escaped your notice. These types of clouds are extremely rare in Seychelles; occurring perhaps less than a handful of times per year. Dirk and I watched with joy (we were happy to be on the ground!) at the fast forming cigar shaped cloud. It was a beaut! The bottom had cumuli tendrils, swirling and curling in random fashion while the tops were ironed smooth in its familiar and predictable lens shape. The winds were gusting to 40knots on the water below the wave cloud – the white streaks of foam were reminiscent of Cape Town’s bays during a storm strength southeaster. To see such ferocious weather action from the usual tropical bliss brought with it a pleasurable awareness. After all, variety is the spice of life.

Wish you were here!
:)