May the Force be With You

by Doug Pemberton

The orient, a place steeped in thousands of years of closely guarded culture, traditions, myth and mystery. Slowly, the secrets of the orient are being revealed to the western world and, as their merits are realized, many are being adopted by us.

One that has recently come to light is the ancient philosophy of wind and water or Feng Shui (pronounced fung shway). It is the method for determining the most appropriate location of every object that surrounds us, which in turn leads to a more harmonious life. It is believed that living in harmony with one's environment allows the surrounding energy to work for us rather than against us.

We, as divers, need only look to the oceans to see this philosophy in action. Mother Nature has been practising it for millions of years and in some areas, through an endless variety of species, shapes and colours, elevated it to an art form.

The swirling, current-swept waters of Discovery Passage between the Vancouver Island city of Campbell River and Quadra Island attract visitors from around the world. It has long been an irresistible attraction for sport fisherman, lured here in search of a trophy Chinook salmon or giant halibut. Divers come here as well, to experience and marvel at the marine splendour beneath the waves.

Within minutes of leaving the dock at Quathiaski Cove on Quadra Island our dive boat was positioned at any one of a dozen great dive sites. Diving this area is slack tide dependent and so we always arrived on site before the predicted slack. Upon arrival at a site aptly named Row and be Damned, the current was still too strong for safe diving but within a few minutes the bulbs of the bull kelp began to pop up to the surface, indicating that the tide was entering slack.

As we floated to the bottom the dying remnants of the current were evident but we could move about easily. The only problem was deciding where to go. We had been given a thorough briefing but the temptations were hard to ignore. Surrounding us was a riot of colour and texture, any direction promised a good dive. Invertebrate life of all description covers the bottom but the main attraction are the tiny, pink strawberry anemones that grow so densely, they form a living carpet over just about everything in sight. In places the blanket of pink is interrupted by large clumps of yellow bread sponge and patches of encrusting, crimson sponge. Close inspection occasionally revealed the nearly invisible crimson nudibranchs which lay eggs among and feed on the red encrusting sponge.

Giant, fist-sized barnacles sweep the water for nutrients while crimson anemones lie in wait for their prey. Hiding around the stalk of the crimson anemone, below the stinging tentacles, we often found the festively coloured candy-stripe shrimp.

Scurrying about are many beautifully embellished decorator crabs dressed in their finest suits of sponges, barnacles, algae, bryozoans and strawberry anemones. Contrasting the tiny size of the decorated crab, tank-like Puget Sound king crabs, which can reach a span of well over a foot, blend in very easily with the bottom. Psychedelically splattered red Irish lords mimic the palette of colour that surrounds them while brightly banded tiger rockfish, peering out from cracks and crevices, offer a splash of contrast. Other nooks and crannies are also home to octopus and wolf eels.

At other sites, such as Steep Island, we descended a sheer wall. A profusion of yellow cup corals, large fish-eating urticina anemones, sponges and small clumps of pink soft coral kept us relatively shallow. At 60 feet, densely grouped, two-foot long feather duster worms, their leathery stalks festooned with pink or orange brooding anemones, adorn the wall.

At the north end of Discovery Pass, where it enters Seymour Narrows, lies Maud Island, and home of the artificial reef HMCS Columbia. Nearby, the walls of Seymour Narrows seduce divers with a continuing orgy of life, and a promise of more adventure.

The fantastic variety and colour of the marine life found in this area is spectacular. It has taken thousands of years to make it so and everything is just where it should be. The Feng Shui masters would be pleased.

DIVER Magazine would like to thank Dynamike Dive Charters and Bed and Breakfast for their assistance.