Sheet glass afternoon conditions revealed a thousand ocean secrets as legions of life migrated up to languish on the beckoning quicksilver slate. From sea turtles to sharks, swordfish to sunfish, and a spectrum of miniatures celestial in scope, every critter out here appears to rise for such occasions. It is remarkable. To see what otherwise appears to be a lifeless ocean come alive in flips, jumps, fins, and humps. A few minutes of peering over the rail exposes layers upon layers of life from plankton to whales in mass and dimension.

And as we blazed a trail through the riches' of the deep, time slid pass liberated from strain and struggle. Don't I wish they could all be this pleasant and wonderful. Disengaging from my reverie however we now prepare for the stark contrast of meeting our group tomorrow and getting down to what we came for. On schedule for our mid day arrival, we plan to be underway for the grounds by mid afternoon again forging ahead for the eerily primal island of San Benedicto.

Beyond that I'll cap it for the day recognizing that my philosophical narrative is prone to be self entertaining. A lot of good fishing should ground the story and revive general interest. Let us hope so. I'd have to guess that by now readers of this report know that if it's nuts and bolts they thirst for Captain Toussaint and Sims are their kind of guys. I have a little broader drive to describe.

Tim Ekstrom