With three knots of wind, a rising tide and minimal cloud coverage, I eagerly walked out into the shallow waters of Bimini, Bahamas in search of adventure. Just 20ft out and snap, the handle of my underwater camera housing broke in two. My face must have told the story as I looked up at my dive buddy; I couldn’t continue the dive with one handle. But I also couldn’t resist the insane conditions we were both gazing at. My heavy Nikon/Nauticam combo with a GoPro strapped to the top and now only one handle wasn’t an ideal setup to freedive with, but as most divers know, the heart is a hard one to beat. Onwards we walked into the water.
Within minutes I realized it was the right decision and I did my best to block out the paranoia that my damaged housing would flood. With 25+ meters of visibility and little to no current, we were greeted with a beautiful array of marine life, including a bold and curious loggerhead turtle. We were immersed in the moment and appreciated every second.
Conditions were dreamy; however, I was on a mission to find eagle rays in a popular feeding spot. I absolutely love all marine life, especially eagle rays, but the reason I regularly venture to this location was in the hopes of seeing a great hammerhead hunting on its preferred prey; a ray, tarpon or similar. After five years visiting this spot, I’d never seen a hammerhead there but with the abundance of life I figured fate would someday bring us all together. Thirty minutes into the dive I spotted a single eagle ray, calmly swimming by. I almost ignored the ray as it was solo, however to my total surprise (and overwhelmed delight) I spotted a hammerhead behind it.
With adrenaline fueling our bodies and me cradling my camera like an injured pet, we slowly made our way back to shore— you can imagine the conversation on the walk home. For a dive that almost didn’t happen, it’s now in the ranking for best dive of my life.
Source: sport diver
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