I grab a banana from the fruit basket. I skip the dive skin today and pull my wetsuit on over my Sharkskin that will keep me warmer, even if the sleeves bunch up. The divers’ gear is set close to each other, so it would’ve made more sense to have buddies sit every other tank so we could get ready together. It’s nice not to feel rushed, though, knowing we have just as much time at this site as everyone else regardless of when we get in the water, so I get out of the way. It takes me ten minutes to descend at Coral Kingdom, which I know isn’t a good sign, but I take my time knowing I could turn back if it becomes medically necessary.

I average 28ft for over an hour and see pickhandle barracuda, a school of humphead parrotfish, and one or two whitetip reef sharks. Caleb finds a banana nudibranch and a blackspotted puffer. It’s a great dive, one that made me unaware of how much snot was accumulating in my mask. I could’ve cleared it underwater, and I should have, but the crew offered the outdoor shower to wash my face and rid my nose of more before I climbed the steps to put my tank in its spot and initial the log sheet documenting my return. Breakfast is served, and after, Helen gives a presentation on the reef: history, preservation, and then gets me a glass of water.

I’m still coughing, so I excuse myself to grab a cough drop before returning to learn more about the flora and fauna that thrive here when the temperature is right, the water is clean, and they’re not over-fished or over-harvested. Helen tells us about a photo competition that will include three categories: compact (TG-7 and GoPro), DSLR (Nikon and Canon), and fun (a pale-spotted combtooth blenny and one yellowfin surgeonfish attempting to blend in with a group of blackfin barracuda). Our second dive is at Lighthouse Bommie. The boat provides everyone with an SMB (safety sausage) if they didn’t bring their own and a Nautilus marine rescue GPS (just in case the small boat hasn’t reached you in 15 minutes).

I’m able to descend more easily and stay around 30ft for 45 minutes watching saddleback clownfish, bluestreak cleaner wrasse, a coral grouper, butterflyfish, unicorn fish, and fusiliers (the fish, not the British infantry) until Caleb gets cold too. I see a shark during our safety stop, which is required beyond 30 to 33ft, since I went down to 43ft. Caleb agrees it’s best to conserve our energy this afternoon so that we can do the night dive. I’m just glad to have the energy to even consider it. I’m reading Into the Abyss by Carol Shaben when Amy comments about how she enjoys me laughing out loud. Simon asks what book it is, and I leave the room with the title as the description would place my humor out of context.

Lunch, for me, is mostly fruit, some salad, and a piece of barramundi (also known as Asian sea bass) that I pass onto Caleb after trying. I don’t finish my plate, which is unlike me on this boat as all the food is freshly prepared each day. Becky is accompanying her husband, but not diving, and spends the day cross-stitching. We overhear her ask Maria, the host, if she will be staying the length of the trip with us. She could take a small boat to Lizard Island and make her escape that way, but Maria let Becky know that she will be staying with us until we return to Cairns.

Amy shares her Snickers Pods, an Australian snack that is a specialty import to the US even though they’re headquartered in Virginia and expanding in Chicago. There are a ton of fish as Caleb and I enter the water at Challenger Bay and watch the sea turn to darkness before we are soon joined by other flashlights spotting starfish, sharks, and puffers. I reach 29ft three times as we navigate the ocean, feeling like a predator (anglerfish) and a prey (human) at the same time. The most common problems at night are running out of air, both flashlights dying, and getting trapped somewhere. This is why some dive companies use shallow areas to reduce fatality percentages.

We were down for 49 minutes, and I debated sharing part of Caleb’s video as he returned to the boat, but it almost made me seasick. It doesn’t get better onboard either, as I’m not sure he realized it was still recording. It’s probably for the best, as I cursed for the sake of my little fish friend when Caleb said I highlighted him for another fish to snack on. No fish were harmed while filming, but I also wouldn’t interrupt if they had been eaten. The wind is still blowing, so I’m quick to take off my wetsuit and get inside. Sometimes I help Caleb, but mostly that just means I’m in the way.

The crew asks that you remove your regulator so that they know to refill your tank. I’m unable to do so, whether from being sick or having wet hands. There’s a convenient bucket for each diver under the bench where I can toss boots, gloves, fins, and mask. Wetsuits get hung up on pipe pieces with metal D-rings. The cameras get their own dunk tank to get the salt off, and my computer will get washed in the shower. Dinner is Italian-style and dessert a white chocolate panacotta with ice cream. I’m in bed by 915 and stay up to finish one of the few books I have downloaded.