KRI ISLAND
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| photo from resort ad |
Kri Island is comparatively close to Sarong, and here we saw other divers - the only place in Raja we did.
Cape Kri had a current intersection in relatively deep water, and there we saw schools of barracuda, black-tip reef sharks, and other larger fish. A wide open area,filled with fish traffic, and very impressive.
Then we swam to the upper end of Kri and snorkeled the length of the island, then another snorkel around the back side. Again, the most plentiful fish ever. They also were slower - not as skittish. Ron said they weren't afraid of divers because it's a marine sanctuary and they haven't been hunted. They know.
In the morning we set off to the site of a future "home stay" - small eco-resorts built by village groups and advertised on-line. This tiny island had nests of the peculiar Megapode. The bird is like a chicken, with large feet. It builds a tall, rounded
mound in which it lays its egg. The organic material within decays and the warmth hatches the egg. The baby claws its way out, ready to go - born very developed and mature. Wallace writes about seeing it, fascinated with its ingenuity. The nest was right in the center of the compound, probably never to be used again.
Ron had some ideas about returning to the location to preserve the nesting area and make it a feature of the eco-resort.
While we were on the island, it rained, and we were offered shelter in one of the lodges being built. It was warm and beautiful, with mats and quilts for sleeping, made of rattan and woven leaves.
One of the women noticed us picking up shells and brought us some lovely ones to add to our collection. That's MaryAnn with me and the cute little shy children. Then back into the water.
This video is a titan triggerfish fanning her newly laid eggs to oxygenate them.
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| unicorn triggerfish - about 18" |
What a beautiful fish this is - with its deep blue-violet background and the saffron tail and collar, it's stunning.
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| trunkfish - spotted? |
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| Meyer's Butterfly fish - a wonderfully distinctive fish |
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| saddled butterflyfish |
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| Regal Angelfish - rather large, like a dinner plate |
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| Moorish Idol - this symbol of the reef, not seen by me elsewhere, ubiquitous here in Raja Ampat |
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| masked angelfish |
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| foxface rabbitfish |
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| very large titan triggerfish |
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| parrotfish - the most extra-ordinary manganese blue of my dreams |
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| trumpetfish |
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| RL* Grouper - now this is beautiful - I wish fish colorings were fabrics I could wear |
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| RL* |
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| RL* Spadefish - we saw many of these platter-like fish in schools - they are somewhat curious, following us about |
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| RL* |
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| RL* scrawled filefish or map filefish boxfishs? Love this design |
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| RL* school of chevron barracuda? |
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| This charming watermelon was carved with the World Wildlife Fun logo and its panda bear icon for our farewell dinner party. |
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| our wonderful multi-talented crew - took such good care of us. |
Each time we came in from the boat, they would line up and give us a way-to-go handslap, in the style of athletes returning to the dugout after hitting a home run. Very charming.
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| John Lewis, ChristineMcKay , Judy Weis, MaryAnn Lewis, Jo deWeese, Christine Ruttle, me, Mark Ruttle, Gus Lewis, Pete Weis, Marilyn Downing, Ron Leidich, Dalton Amboy |
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| Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins RL* |
The tropical sunset retains its singular purity, remains a great reward to day's end, journey's end.
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