February 5 and 6 - the 46th and 47 Days of Winter

Proof (as if those in the Frozen North especially needed it) that there is no more "normal" weather.

This is Steps Beach, otherwise known as Tres Palmas in Rincon, PR. In a "normal" year this would be packed with surfers surfing 4-6 foot or better waves. This year? "Tres" is flat, summer lake flat. The crowds (including me) are snorkeling, not surfing.

That's kind of cool for me though. Elaine and I snorkeled Steps once before, last summer. Because it is so flat, I've gone back two days in a row. The reef here is amazing! I thought we had some incredible elkhorn coral here on "our" reef at Shacks (actually we do). But it is nothing like Steps. At Steps the coral just goes on and on and on.

"Over the last 10,000 years, elkhorn coral has been one of the three most important Caribbean corals contributing to reef growth and development and providing essential fish habitat.

" Elkhorn coral was formerly the dominant species in shallow water (3 ft-16 ft (1-5 m) deep) throughout the Caribbean and on the Florida Reef Tract, forming extensive, densely aggregated thickets (stands) in areas of heavy surf.

"Critical Habitat

NMFS designated critical habitat for elkhorn and staghorn corals in November 2008 in four areas:

• Florida
• Puerto Rico
• St. John/ St. Thomas
• St. Croix"

 In some areas estimates range from 75% to as high as 90-95% loss of elkhorn coral populations.

(Source: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/invertebrates/elkhorncoral.htm)

That information make this stand of elkhorn coral all the more amazing. Fortunately, it is protected in a Marine Reserve area. I wish we could get Reserve status for our reef at Shacks!

I shot a lot of video of the Steps reef over the last couple of days. I've started editing in to something vaguely coherent. I'll let you know when it's available.