Bill Passmore - Blog

Sosua Coral Restoration

2/8/2016

Over the past few days we have started a coral restoration program here in Sosua, Dominican Republic. Using proven processes, we are attempting to grow new staghorn corals to populate our reefs. These processes have been used to great success in a number of locations across the globe !!

Please have a look at the video, share it, and let everyone know not only of the efforts here in the DR, but of the need to preserve our reefs and our oceans!

Thank-you

Bill

January Diving Highlights

1/31/2016

Wow, it was a great month here in Sosua in the Dominican Republic. Lots of variation in weather and ocean conditions and over the past 2 weeks the diving has been fantastic. Literally the best visibility I have seen here on the North Coast!

Been trying a lot of different camera settings, some worked good, some not exactly great :) Overall though, lots of fun experimenting and getting some unique effects!

Big Blue Dive Lights - I can't say enough about them. Excellent service on my main light and picked up a couple of AL1000N torches! Narrow beam, perfect for looking deep into cracks, and cool to use for some interesting lighting in photos.

Check out the photos of some of the hi-lites from the month! All are also available here on my website in the January Diving Highlights section of my store! The perfect gift for the diver you know, or to decorate your walls !!

Looking forward to an interesting February with lots of possibilities and good friends coming down from The Great North to enjoy the sun, the culture and of course, the diving!

Dive safely and Save Our Reefs

Bill

December Diving

1/11/2016

It was a wonderful December of diving here in Sosua, Dominican Republic. Warm water, clear water, and great dive buddies both old and new. Thank-you to everyone I had the pleasure of diving with in 2015 and thank-you to Divecenter Merlin Sosua for another great year.

Spent the Christmas season in the Great White North and had an excellent time with family and friends, and now back in the warmth of the Caribbean sun :)

Please check out the new photos in the "December Diving" gallery in the photo section of website store. Prints are available starting at $15 US !!

We have a few of the Sosua Vivo coffee mugs left as well. Purchase one for 400RD (pesos) and receive a free copy of the first edition of my book, "Diving Sosua"

I hope everyone had a great holiday season and I wish you the best for 2016.

Dive safely and preserve our reefs

Bill

Luke !!

12/22/2015

I had the opportunity to dive with an amazing young man last week here in Sousa.

Luke is turning 13, is a Jr. Open Water diver and had completed 6 dives. He is interested in photography and wanted to see what it was like!

I met him at Divecenter Merlin and we went through the equipment set-up and the dive briefing and he was great! His attention to detail and safety really impressed me. We talked about photography and discussed equipment and headed out on our dive.

Luke chose to put his gear on in the water and made sure we did a complete safety check! He had some equalization issues during the descent but handled it perfectly. No frustration, no getting upset - just handled it calmly and correctly!

His enthusiasm was wild! Cheering and smiling at everything we saw! Great control over his buoyancy and very attentive to his gauges and to mine! It was a VERY enjoyable dive!

Back at the shop he dis-assembled the gear and cleaned it and thanked everyone!

It is GREAT to see a young person so excited and thrilled with the ocean. They are the future of the life under the sea and the future guardians of our reefs.

Thanks Luke - that was an awesome dive! Happy Birthday Buddy - we'll dive together again. Oh, and I love the sign you taught me for "peeing in your wetsuit" :) :) :)

Bill

December 16th, 2015

12/16/2015

It's beautiful living here on the North Coast of the Dominican Republic. The weather is always nice, the ocean is always warm, the people are friendly and Sosua is an amazing town with many activities and cultural experiences to offer to the residents and to tourists. Have a look at the video and experience the wonders of our little town. Hey - you may know the person who did the underwater video ;

Bill
https://vimeo.com/142587648

November Update

11/26/2015

November is quickly coming to a close and soon Christmas will be here! Looking forward to heading home to Canada for Christmas and New Years and of course getting back here to enjoy the island sunshine and the warm waters. Still time to pick up a photo print or a book for that diver on your Christmas list !!

The last couple weeks have given us some big surge here in Sousa but even with the reduced visibility the diving has been great! We've found new anchors from the 16th century, visited the wreck of the Zingara, and observed some beautiful sea horses and frog fish :)

I've the opportunity to meet back up and dive with old friends, Michaela and Matthias as well as meet and dive with new friends Corey and Kd and Cathy and John. Excellent divers all and great people.

Have to give a huge shout out to BIG BLUE DIVE LIGHTS. Excellent customer service and their products are amazing.

Please check out the website, and the photos and leave a comment on our new "Comments" page!!

Dive Safely and Preserve Our Reefs

Bill

Sosua Vivo

11/10/2015

After almost 3 months, Sosua Vivo has come to a close.

A HUGE thank-you to Casa de Arte de Sousa, Adolpho Farington, Leo Diaz, Ilana Neumann and everyone who came out to see my photo exhibit here in Sousa. A very special thanks to all the teachers and students who attended the information sessions. I hope that through my photos we all have gained knowledge about the amazing underwater world we have, the life that exists there, and the need to preserve it.

Please dive safely, and keep our oceans clean.

Bill

325 years of history

9/17/2015

Amazing dive here today with my buddy Eric. Three anchors dating back to the late 1600's. Incredible history here in Sosua. And the reef - WOW - covered in life. Beautiful.

The diving is amazing, the water is a wonderful 82 F and the visibility is awesome.

Changing the light set-up and heading back to take more photo as soon as I can.

Dive safe and Save our Reefs

Bill

Discover Scuba

8/25/2015

A Discover Scuba class is an exciting and safe way to start your introduction to the beautiful underwater world.

After a short classroom session where you will learn some of the basics of diving to ensure a safe and enjoyable day, you head into confined water to take your first breath underwater! Eyes beaming and smiles wide as you experience weightlessness under the guidance of your instructor. Some basic skills and you're off to the ocean for your first open water dive.

I had the pleasure of joining a group of new friends as they completed their Discover Scuba program this past Sunday! It was an amazing day and seeing the smiles on their faces is really rewarding! Watch the short video to find out what they saw! We had a VERY special visitor!

Dive Safely and Preserve our Reefs

Bill

Sosua Vivo

8/17/2015

The opening of the photo exhibit - SOSUA VIVO - took place in The Casa de Arte here in Sosua on Friday evening, August 14th. We had an excellent turnout and it really was a lot of fun! Great to be able to show everyone the amazing undersea life we have here on the North coast and to be able to explain why we need to preserve it. It truly is an amazing resource.

We will be holding seminars for groups of school children to teach them about our environment and how to help to take care of it during the run of the exhibition until October 3rd. The Casa de Arte is open daily; come on out and experience the sights that our ocean has to offer. Admission if free :)

A special thanks to The Casa de Arte, Adolfo Farington, Leo Diaz and Ilana Neumann.

The photos can also be purchased, in a variety of mediums, from the store here on my website !!

Last week we were also interviewed by Costa Norte TV. During the live interview we talked about our Beach and Dive Site Cleanup and why we need to do this. It's very encouraging that the Rotary Club here in Sosua also has a project to clean up the rivers that feed the ocean. Together, we can help to save our reefs and encourage tourism here on the North Coast. Great to see the initiatives growing.

Lastly, we have a special project just kicking off this week. It's very exciting! More information to come in the following weeks! Stay tuned!

Dive safely and preserve our reefs

Bill