Saturday: Coffee, Curieuse curiosities and contemplation around Chauve Souris.

Lou Lou has been bringing my morning coffee to my little forepeak berth and when she presents it she gives me a BTS morning news brief. She updates me on what’s gone wrong or what needs doing or what minor mishap had her and Richie up in the night. These things are real occurrences in some state of solution, but her news reports - complete with news anchor lilt in refined British - are charming and make us both laugh. This morning, I’m happy to report, was a slow news morning. Nothing out of the ordinary occurred last night and both she and Richie slept through. Huzzah!

Worth mentioning is that countless little things often go awry behind the scenes on these trips, and this one is certainly no exception. Our crew implicitly understands that our job is to solve problems and buffer our guests from that process as best we can. It’s a bonding experience to be problem solving behind the curtain with a great team. And I feel so lucky to be working and solving with some of the best. And I hope tonight is another boring one!

Our morning swim was an A to B from the northernmost point on the western shore of Curieuse Island, where Richie would do a “live drop” with us. The boat is not at anchor, engines are running but props are not spinning. It takes coordination and attention to Lisa who sends us plunging into the water with a Navy Seal style GO GO GO at Richie’s say. I briefed our new SVers, and reminded our repeats how it’s done. The biggest thing they need to do is do exactly as they are told when they are told.

And so we did. Lisa shouted GO GO GO and 10 seconds and 10 splashes later we were all in the water. We gathered up and made for the high cliffs of Curieuse. No zaps! Another Huzzah! We put our heads down and mostly swam in a pretty decent clip. We had a bit of a tidal push behind us which didn’t hurt. This group is relatively even paced which makes for a nice group swim. I find this makes for a connective, tight trip. The first half mile was over more expanding beds of the sea weed I’ve been seeing more and more in the spots we’ve hit in the last day or so. It troubled me some, because I know that seaweeds and algaes often take up residence on dead reef areas, and neither Alina nor I remember it from our last time here. We swam on and eventually came to a white sandy expanse, dotted with some really healthy coral heads, complete with bright blue chromis. Beautiful. What a relief to see.

Dana skims easily over the seaweed beds. Maria spotted the tail of this sleeping nurse shark! A healthy coral head hosts wrasses and chromis near the end of our swim.

After about a mile we swam over to our yacht which Richie had anchored in the channel between Praslin and Curieuse. We rinsed off and he moved us around to the eastern side of the island, where we went ashore to meet the many Aldabra Giant Tortoises which are kept in a sanctuary here. It was a lovely visit - the Tortoises are scattered all over the property which has a very appreciable amount of shade. Some are on their own, slowly munching on fallen leaves and fronds, some are in pairs attempting to perhaps make more Giant Tortoises. All of them are quite old. Well over 100 years in some cases. Some look at us curiously when we kneel beside them. One beautiful female seemed to look me right in the eye and I felt compelled to just speak quietly to her and ask all sorts of questions I shall never get answers to. It was curiously calming. When I got up, she actually followed me as I walked. Curiouser and curiouser.

Miriam and I took this fun selfie with a tortoise here in 2022. We replicated the selfie again today!

After our short visit with these wizened wonders, we all met at a little beach on the corner with classic Seychelles granitic boulders arranged just so. If I didn’t know any better I’d say the whole area was staged for social media. Thank goodness I do know better. We made lots of lovely pictures there none the less.

While we waited in the shallows for Richie to collect us in the dinghy, we were mesmerized by a group of baby sharks zipping around in just inches of water. Sharks often spend their early days in mangroves just off shore, and these looked like they had just emerged from mangroves and were getting ready to transition to the great big blue. They were beautiful, swift and agile. We stood among them and oohed and ahhed and I could have watched them all day. Rather than reacting fearfully, all of our guests watched with curiosity and amazement. Observing unique and rare creatures both very old and very young, just feet from one another. Wild. How many people get to see something like this?  

Thanks, Myssie for this pic of me with the babies! And look how perfectly the shadow of the sea bird is framed!!! Great catch!

We devoured Caesar salad and bbq wings for lunch. The crew got at the cookies in the snack basket after that and last night’s left over cupcakes after that. Richie and Simon made a dingy trip to town on Praslin to resupply our drinking water which we have been absolutely ripping through. In this heat, no one can drink enough. Pause while I fill my water bottle.

The naps came, and the boat got quiet at our new anchorage off the little island of Chauve Souris and its satellite rock islet. By 330, we were gearing up to jump in.

This little island has a very small but well appointed guest house and handful of cottages, complete with a little restaurant and resident fruit bats. The whole island is probably not 2 full acres, and seems like it would be a lovely place to spend a night or a week or a year.

We planned a figure of eight swim around the island and its granite companion islet. We cruised easily through the shallow water over bright white sand. We saw many sea cucumbers and snappers, mullet and other white fish who blend almost seamlessly into the sandy bottom. We rounded the corner to the channel in between islands and sand gave way to more depleted reef covered with algae. I found this discouraging. The research I have done indicates that the algae is not necessarily introduced from elsewhere, but most likely is opportunistically responding to a reef die off. But I also looked closely here and there and noticed lots of fish darting around among the greenery. I saw rock hinds and lizard fish and sculpin - all bottom dwellers who like this type of green environment. The reframe I came to is that, without question, we are seeing an area with dramatic reef loss. And as always, life, albeit different life, finds a way. So now there is a carpet of seaweed covering all of the rocky reef zone, and it is filled with species who find nourishment there. Change is change. For now, I’m choosing the objective, practical view on that. There’s not a lot else I can do.

Hopper and I have both written many times in recent years about the changes we see in the places we work due to extreme conditions and severe weather. The pace of these changes has quickened, especially out here on the edge. I see places where the wild and natural world is becoming harsher and harder for humans to inhabit due to these changes. The Earth will always change and some form of life will always adapt to it. Long after we are gone, there will be life here. 

We lingered for a while at the foot of Chauve Souris watching the fruit bats circle overhead, land in trees, climb around on branches then repeat the dance again. We all started to itch a little, and knew that was our cue to move. Some opted for another lap, some of us headed for the boat and cocktail hour.

A sangria appeared along with some dips. Dinner was an exquisite salmon (prawns for me - thank you Lou Lou!) with beautiful vegetable sides. Just as I was working up the gumption to pass on a second dessert of the day, a plate of crepes with all options for dressing came out. Ok I’ll skip dessert tomorrow night.

Everyone is abed. As they all trailed off, they thanked us for another great day here in the Seychelles. Regardless of the changes we see to the reef, regardless of the wild and sometimes itchy ways the ocean pushes us, they are all fully immersed in this experience and living it to the fullest. They are all going to bed each night amazed by what they have witnessed. I love them all for that.

Goodnight, Seychelles.

Love,

Heather