Northern Fiji Videos

S

scotter

New member
Hi Everybody!

I was asked this year to film/review northern Fijian reefs this year for a Fijian informational website. The request came about through my reviews of my past trips to Fiji (you can see some of them on this forum); funny how these things happen . . . I'm only 1/2 way through the series (they take me a LONG time to do), but if you're interested, here are the results so far:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWu4DOtkQqY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxmm5vVVVrg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXodSSIEmfM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHKUBNcjgy4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaJmoUXxrBI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0m7DBuKirlA


Well, that's it for now. If there's any interest, I'll post the remainder of the videos in another blog installment.

Cheers,
Scott Putnam
Redding, CA
 
Awesome videos!! Would like to think I could take a trip to some of those places one of these days. Thanks for sharing!
 
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfRYAE9Y-RQ

The previous post didn't seem to work. New try . . .
 
Thanks Hul Kogan!

Two things of interest:

(1) UFreefer: I've tried replying to your requests for more information about a potential Fiji trip, but every message is blocked. You're not accepting personal messages? Try contacting me at my email address: scottjeffputnam@yahoo.com Or, anyone that knows UFreefer, let them know how to contact me.

(2) This past May, when I was in Fiji, I visited Taveuni. It was blasted by a category 5 cyclone the month before, Tomas, that did a number on the reefs. At a really nice, inexpensive, "resort" (more like a bed & breakfast), located just above a stunning reef, I went out with the proprietress and taught her how to garden, taking coral fragments and placing them in holes. I was in heaven. It was like being in a "sand box" mode on a computer: millions of frags everywhere and acres of available landscaping. There's no reason to wait years for a reef to recover, when you can do it "artificially" quickly (using the techniques learned here).

Anyway, I just received this note from Roberta Davis (the proprietress at Makaira by the Sea) yesterday:

"The Coral Gardening is going great. We for sure go every Sunday, me with a little group of teenage boys, including the owner of Maravu's son, he is 17 and very dedicated... Some of the guests have been enjoying it as well, I take them out and show them how it is done and then away they go. I think what I am going to do is get a little plastic tape and I am going to write the date on it for areas that we have planted and then tie it around a very dead piece and see how it progresses. If a guest is involved in the planting, then I will put their names on it and when they come back they will see the progress of their little piece of reef. That will be fun since we do get a lot of returnees.
It is looking good that we might be able to turn the two coves into a Marine Reserve. We really must as conceivably it is one of the better natural brood ponds in the area. This means extending our coral gardening to the cove to our right, which really was affected by the high hurricane surf. I might be at this for a good while, but it will keep me out of trouble and semi-fit.
Every time we go we come up with improvements to the system, so we have it working pretty well of hanging a smooth bag of coral cuttings (so they don't get caught in a net bag ) on a buoy, rather than us being weighted down, and half submerged as we are taking it from the shallows to the depths. But on an inspired day it is still about 100 free dives per person. But it is very addicting and fulfilling, so thank you so much for switching me on to it.
I would say we have at least a 50% survival rate and they take off like a shot once they take. So what we are doing now is focusing on a couple of outcroppings in one area, previously we were all over the place, so it was hard to tell. With this system we should be better able to determine the survival rate. Can you tell we are having great fun with it?"

I know most of you would get a kick out of doing this. I know I did. Here's a picture of the reef:

http://gallery.me.com/scott_putnam#100055/MakairaBeach
 
For those watching my videos, follow-up by looking at Hul Kogan's post (Nick Longfellow). Great underwater photographer.
 
I spent about 10 months on Dravuni island in the mid 90's at the field station there while earning my Bachelor's degree. The diving was incredible. I wonder what kind of shape it is in today. Best place we went was a place called Solo atoll. It was in the middle of nowhere. I have been anxious to get back there for 20 years.
 
Dear Bigsink,

My next trip will be to the Astrolabe to review Matava Resort. Besides diving with mantas, Matava also dives Solo Atoll. Are there any distinguishable attributes about the atoll that you think should be captured, i.e., caves, corals, sharks? You're very lucky to have spent so much time down down south during your undergrad years. I was stuck in Connecticut - hardly a fair comparison.

Dear lbaldrey,

Thank you for the complement! I truly appreciate it. Being from the UAE, you must have plenty of opportunities to dive. Lucky you. Are the reefs as beautiful as the Red Sea or is it mostly sand (that's the impression I get from watching all the Dubai land reclamation television programs). Thanks again.

Dear jprince,

You will truly love it if you go. I guarantee you a great vacation. And as you keep anthias, clowns, and clams, you will be in heaven!

__________

New video to watch from Corals for Conservation:
http://www.coralsforconservation.com/default.html

National Geographic just spent a week in Fiji filming the coral farms. The program will air next year. I'll let everyone know when it is scheduled to air.
 
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