Bits and Pieces

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Katrina

Coral Monitoring
People wonder if our coral monitoring program is fun, if there is a lot of diving and if you see new stuff. I think that I can say that the answer is YES!.

Yesterday I went through some of the photos I took during last year’s monitoring session, looking for a parrotfish that I remembered seeing. At the time, I thought that it was a fish that was new to me and I was right. According to some of the information I’ve read, it is not a common fish.

Tan Faced Parrotfish (Chlorurus frontalis)

Tan Faced Parrotfish (Chlorurus frontalis)

If I’ve misidentified it, please let me know.

So, do we have fun? yes! Do we see new stuff? Yes! Do we spend hours in the ocean and work really hard? YES! Come find out for yourself, Oct 5 – 18, 2013.

Photo Gallery
I’ve added some photos to my photo gallery and also a “subscribe” box so that you can be notified when I add new photos. I don’t have access to the email addresses so you don’t have to worry about your address being used for anything else.

Trade Shows
Next month, April 20-21, I will be at the NW Dive and Travel Show in Tacoma, Washington. Stop in to see me if you are in the area.

Cheers!
Katrina

 
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My New Photo Gallery :)

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Katrina

Apologies to you who have already received this through the Kosrae Village newsletter or Facebook page.

I’ve just updated my photo gallery. I’ve added a “Travel” section for the photos that I take when I am away from Kosrae, and a “Favorites” group to highlight the photos that are currently my most hated? nah, probably my most loved. But I’m fickle, today I love you, tomorrow? Well, we’ll see.

Never fear, probably most of YOUR favorites are still in the gallery and there are a whole lot of new ones.

You can get there from the links on the Kosrae Village main site menu or from this blog, just click on Katrina’s Photos in the menu bar. But just in case, here is the address: http://katrina-adams-photography.com.

Enjoy!
Katrina

PS – The one thing that I’m struggling with in the new gallery is the thumbnail structure. It seems to be unrelentingly horizontal and chops photos off in unexpected places. If you see a thumbnail that looks interesting (or really strange :)), click on it to see the real deal.

 
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Solomon Island Tsunami Kosrae Tide Levels

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Katrina

Last year a joint project between KIRMA (Kosrae Island Resource Management Authority), NIWA, SPREP and FSM PACC resulted in the installation of our first ever tide gauge in Lelu Harbor. The project was funded by GEF/UNDP. The tide data is collected every 10 minutes and transmitted to the various offices.

I thought that you might be interested in the following graphic of the sea water height in Lelu Harbor as the tsunami wave passed Kosrae. The red circle marks the point when the wave should have been passing Kosrae and it looks like there was about 2 inch increase in water height at that time.

Kosrae Tide Levels

Kosrae Tide Levels

My thanks to Doug Ramsey at NIWA for creating the graph and the folks at KIRMA and FSM PACC for allowing me to publish it.

Katrina

 
Posted in Kosrae Island | Tagged | 1 Comment

Solomon Islands Earthquake and Tsunami

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Katrina

Earlier today there was a huge earthquake (8.0) of off the coast of the Solomon Islands. The Solomons are directly south of Kosrae and when the tsunami was generated, Kosrae was included in the warning issued by NOAA’s Tsunami Warning System.

Very fortunately for Kosrae (and us, since we are right on the coast) the wave died out before it reached Kosrae. We are safe and sound, but that is not true of the Solomons and other islands closer to the earthquake.

We are extremely lucky the the warning system exists and even luckier that our local leaders pay attention to this and other warnings.

Katrina

 
Posted in Kosrae Island | Tagged | 27 Comments

Introducing Yosio!

Posted on February 2, 2013 by Katrina

We have a new Dive Guide (in training). :) Thursday he completed his Advanced course and one of his elective dives was the Photography dive. I thought that you might enjoy a couple of his images.

Tiny Tiny Squid

Tiny Tiny Squid

Flowery Sole

Flowery Sole

Yosio has a few things to learn about the science of diving and leading dive groups, but he already has a great eye!

Cheers,
Katrina

 
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Happy New Year! Kosrae Tide and Weather Info

Posted on January 3, 2013 by Katrina

Hi!

I hope that your holidays were wonderful!

Now it’s time to get back to “real” life, like planning your trip to visit us. :)

Most of our activities, here on Kosrae, are tide and weather dependent, so I’ve posted the 2013 tide predictions here: Kosrae 2013 Tide Predictions

The US National Weather Service Pacific ENSO Climate Center predicts ocean and weather conditions for the entire Pacific Region based on the current El Nino / La Nina conditions. They publish a quarterly newsletter with climate discussion and predictions that is very accurate, for Kosrae at least! Here is the link to their newsletter listing: Pacific ENSO Newsletters

There are links to the current Kosraean time and weather on our Kosrae Today page.

Let me know if they are helpful and if there are other references that would be useful.

Happy 2013!
Katrina

 
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Visit Micronesia Discount Airfare!!! UPDATE

Posted on November 22, 2012 by Katrina

Hi Folks,

In the week since I published the original article, a lot of new information has come to light, so this is an update to the original article with more accurate and current information.

United Airline’s discounted Visit Micronesia fare:

Here are the details on how to buy this discounted ticket and the rules that currently apply:

  • The Visit Micronesia fare is available for ticketing Dec 1, 2012 – March 31, 2014.
  • It can be used to travel beginning February 14, 2013.
  • Travelers cannot live in the Micronesia region. (i.e. The Commonwealth of the Marianas, Guam, Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of the Marshall Islands or Hawaii).
  • The ticket must be purchased outside of the Micronesia region and must be purchased before the trip begins.
  • Travel on United or United Express must begin outside of the Micronesia region. So, your flight into Hawaii or Guam must be on United or United Express.
  • The ticket number for the trip to Guam or Hawaii must be cross referenced on the Visit Micronesia ticket.
  • The Visit Micronesia fare provides a discount fare with multiple stops (2 – 5 islands, depending on the ticket purchased) for travel to the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, CNMI and Palau. The turnaround island is included in the number of stops.
  • The first stop must be scheduled when the ticket is purchased, but the rest can be left open. The traveler has 30 days to complete their travel on the Visit Micronesia ticket.
  • There is a $250 fee for refunds and changes made by the issuing agency (United or your travel agent) before departure. After departure this fare is not refundable or changeable.
  • These fares aren’t available online. Since these tickets have many possible combinations of routes and islands to be visited, you need to buy the ticket through a travel agent or by calling a United reservations agent.
  • The Visit Micronesia fare details are found on page “GG VUS MIC” in United’s reservation system.
  • This is the current contact information for United, from the United Airlines website:
    • For reservations in the USA and Canada: 1-800-864-8331
    • This page, has contact options for other countries and regions.

Your potential savings are huge, for example right now (Nov 2012) the round trip Visit Micronesia ticket from Honolulu to Kosrae and Pohnpei is currently priced at $620.00. But remember that this does not include the taxes and fuel surcharge, which can be quite hefty! Your mileage may vary. :)

Now that you can afford the trip you have always wanted to take, do it!

See you soon!
Katrina

 
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Win A GoPro Camera!

Posted on November 2, 2012 by Katrina

I thought that you might like to know about the Kosrae Visitors Bureau contest to give away a GoPro! Here is the press release and a link to the contest details:

“Picture Yourself On Kosrae” GoPro Outdoor Camera Giveaway

Enter to win this versatile camera loved by outdoor enthusiasts, divers, hikers and explorers
By Kosrae Visitors Bureau
Published: Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012 – 8:09 am

TOFOL, KOSRAE, Federated States of Micronesia, Nov. 1, 2012 — /PRNewswire/ — Now’s your chance to enter to win a GoPro® HERO3 Silver Edition Camera as a part of the Kosrae Visitors Bureau’s “Picture Yourself on Kosrae” Sweepstakes and Outdoor Camera Giveaway.

Here’s how it works. Simply visit the contest website, or Twitter and enter to win by providing your email address. Entries can also be submitted at http://www.facebook.com/KosraeIsland by clicking on the sweepstakes tab at the top of the page.

“We’re giving away a GoPro® because it’s the ultimate camera for the outdoor enthusiast, and Kosrae Island is a bona fide outdoor paradise, both underwater and on land,” said Grant Ismael, executive director of the Kosrae Visitors Bureau. “People who visit Kosrae are treated to magnificent scuba diving, challenging jungle hiking, natural beauty and the warm smiling faces of Kosrae. All are ideal subjects for capturing with the GoPro HERO3 camera to share with others.”

The winner will receive a GoPro® HERO3 Silver Edition. Sweepstakes entries will be accepted October 31 through December 1, 2012. The winner will be randomly selected and announced on December 5, 2012.

Sweepstakes entrants who have visited Kosrae are also invited to share their Kosrae stories and images by sending them to Kosrae@Placemakinggroup.com.

ABOUT KOSRAE: Kosrae is an eco-traveler’s paradise and an internationally acclaimed dive destination. A 42-square-mile island, it is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and is located between Guam and Hawaii. Kosrae’s reefs are considered to be among the most pristine remaining in the world. United Airlines’ Island Hopper serves Kosrae via Hawaii and Guam. Visit the Kosrae Visitors Bureau web site: http://www.kosrae.com.

SOURCE Kosrae Visitors Bureau

I’d love to enter, but somehow I don’t think that I’m eligible! :)

Good Luck!
Katrina

 
Posted in Kosrae Island | Tagged | 3 Comments

Lions and Tigers and Bears!

Posted on September 26, 2012 by Katrina

Oh, well, maybe not. :)

I mentioned in my last post that I’ve been up to my ears for the past couple of months. Part of this is because Ben Frank, our amazing dive guide and dive operation supervisor, has moved to Hawaii. So while I’m training new guides, I’m also the primary dive guide. AND, we’ve been buried in divers for the past month or so. Did I say I’ve been really, really, busy?

But all of this means I’ve been diving almost every day, and that has been wonderful!

Coral Silhouette

Healthy and Diverse Coral


Last week we had great vis, light currents and no swell or wind for the entire week. To top things off, we’ve had dolphins playing around the boats and a constant parade of sub adult white tipped reef sharks, Napoleon wrasse, a giant travelly, wahoo, barracuda, puffers, peacock sole and of course the constant small tropical reef fish and invertebrates that live on our healthy and diverse reef.

Tomorrow night a night dive and in a week the coral monitors arrive!

I hope that you are all having a great September.

Cheers,
Katrina

 
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Hey! Surprise! I’m Back!

Posted on September 23, 2012 by Katrina

Hi Folks!

I’m so sorry that I’ve been AWOL for the last couple of months. Life has been busy and frantic.

Sonya Koshuta of S K Design in New York was kind enough to send me her experience in purchasing the Star Alliance Micronesia Airpass and I thought that her info might help some of you.
—————————————————————-
From Sonya:

Hello there!

Your site greatly helped me!

After being transferred thru 5 desks and too many people via UNITED AIRLINES yesterday on the phone, I was able to reach the “Alliance” desk.

As of 9/19/12, the Micronesia Air Pass still exists and the way it is priced is via what cities you plan to go through.  I understand these prices to be cheaper than what you would normally pay if you booked on your own, but in order to get the cheapest route, you do not want to back-track through 2 zones at a time.

There is no base price to pay for the pass, but you just have to know it exists.

There is a 3 days stay minimum at each stop-over, and you must complete at least 2 stop-overs in order to get the discounted fares.  I believe that you can “start” at any of the airports they service with the Micronesia pass, however they do include Tokyo as a starting point…

Additionally, you might want to know that you can only buy the airpass discounted fares following the purchase of a round-trip ticket to one of the origin cities, using award miles or money on a Star Alliance / United partner….

Best,
Sonya
::::::::::::::::::::::
sonya koshuta
S K  DE S I G N
p 646 245 7916
—————————————————————————————-

I hope this is useful!
Cheers,
Katrina

 
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