Bladder Wrack (fucus vesiculosus)

Finally, after a long wait, I have the time to write again! I'll start this autumn by writing about the bladder wrack. So why write about a simple sea weed? The bladder wrack is an important part of its eco-system, it has commercial implications, and it has medicinal qualities. So it is not simply a plant growing on the bottom of the sea.

Bladder Wrack, reaching for sun light

THREE GREAT 18th CENTURY WRECKS

The Finnish coast of the Baltic Sea is truly a wreck diver's paradise. For centuries, trade ships have sailed along the coastal waters on route between Russia and central Europe, despite the Gulf of Finland being a dangerous, stormy sea filled with treacherous, often uncharted rocks that are hidden just under the surface.

Along the centuries, storms in the rocky, unpredictable waters of the Baltic have sent literally hundreds, if not thousands of ships to the bottom of the sea. In the 18^th century alone, dozens of ships were claimed by the sea near the Finnish coast. Many of the wrecks have already been found, and even more still lie at the bottom of the sea, waiting to be discovered.

Beginner's Guide to Diving, part 3: Dealing With Problems Underwater

I started writing this Beginner's Guide to Diving series to those who are interested in scuba diving, but are not divers yet. It has been some time since I wrote the first and second parts of this ”guide”, but here, at long last, is the third part.

In part one I wrote about how to get started with scuba diving, and in part two, some thougths about what it takes to be a diver, as well as some information about basic equipment needed. In this third part, I'll try to give some ideas about dealing with possible problems underwater once you actually get to go diving.

Drift Diving - a Rollercoaster Ride Underwater

Speed. It has to be one of the most typical ways adrenaline junkies get their thrills, and really get their juices pumping. It could be motor racing on a track, flying a plane, or driving a speed boat, or it could be base jumping or hang gliding. What speed is not usually associated with, is scuba diving.

Scuba diving is a slow-paced, relaxing activity where you have plenty of time to take in the underwater scenery and enjoy the weightlessness of your body as you calmly glide along, mentally listening to whatever music it is that Buddha would listen to on his quieter moments. And that's good. That's how it's supposed to be. But theres' also another way to dive...

Leech (Hirudo medicinalis)

Last summer, on a family trip to the lakeside, I spotted a leech near the waterline where we were snorkeling. I was startled and disgusted. The last thing I'd want was a leech hanging on my skin, sucking blood. That was the end of

Big Fish at the Abandoned Quarry

Just the other day, being that it was particularly warm and sunny that morning, some friends and I got together to go for a swim at an abandoned quarry nearby. The quarry had filled up with ground water ages ago, when digging for stone ended there. The place is perfect for swimming because the water is clear and warm, and hardly anyone ever goes there, so we have the pond all to ourselves most of the time.

Springtime Baltic Sea

Snorkeling in the freezing cold Baltic Sea, trying out underwater macro-photography

Bladder wrack

I took my first dip of this year in the Baltic Sea a few days ago. Spring has arrived, and beginning new life is blooming underwater, too. I packed my underwater camera and wetsuit on the boat and headed out to the Finnish archipelago. The idea was to experiment with underwater macro-photography in shallow water.