Handcuffed To The Ocean

One of my favorite dive sites in West Palm Beach in Spearman’s Barge. But before I talk more about about this great dive site, I want to thank my good friend Lazaro Ruda for allowing me to use a few of his photos and the video clip at the end. For more images, visit him at the www.thelivingsea.com.

Spearman’s has a greater abundance of yellow, blue, black, and silver marine life than any other sunken barge in West Palm Beach and is also tied to a tale of murder-for-hire and a missing million dollars.

Robert Spearman loved snaring spiney lobsters and shooting Nassau groupers for dinner.  In 1966, he opened a diving business named Little Fin and spent his weekends under the calm ocean.  He learned that the big game fish preferred the larger boxy structures of artificial reefs to the smaller crevices formed by rocks and corals.  Business expanded, Little Fin grew into Spearman Marine Construction, and Robert sank his first and only artificial reef.  The large- lipped, heavy-bodied fish schooled to a new home.

In November 1985, Robert found his second wife, Anita, bludgeoned to death in her bedroom.  Anita was the assistant city manager of West Palm Beach and well-liked by business associates and personal friends.  Five months later, police arrested Robert and charged him with his wife’s murder.  Days before the court proceedings started, Robert transferred close to a million dollars to his ex-wife to hold until the good citizens declared him innocent.

During the trial, the prosecutor showed that Robert Spearman answered a murder-for-hire ad in Soldier of Fortune magazine and enlisted two gunmen, one an owner of a strip-tease bar in Tennessee.  The jury convicted Spearman and sentenced him to life in prison, plus twenty years at Zephyrhills Correctional Institute.

In the cool spring days on chain-gang duty, Spearman handed out hundred dollar bills to fellow inmates for information on how to break out of jail and get even with the prosecutor.

Finally, he devised a plan to charter a helicopter to fly into the grass compound, carrying two machine guns and four hand grenades, and snatch him free.  On the day he presented the cash to his would-be-pilots, he was arrested by undercover agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Three days later, Spearman hung himself with a bed sheet in his cell.

Anita’s murderers were tried and convicted.  Spearman’s cremated remains were scattered at sea.  Anita’s children won a libel suit against Soldier of Fortune magazine for 12.4 million dollars for printing the ad.  The magazine has stopped running such ads.  The million dollars given to the ex-wife?  She says Robert gave the money to her as a gift and refuses to return it to the State.

And the sunken barge?  The rectangular structure rests on a rise in a sparse patch of sand and rocks.  A row of rusted iron railings at the southern end has a circling school of grunts and snappers that at times block the view of the barge.  Lobsters and morays peek out along the pitted base.  And a goliath grouper roams the outside greeting divers before he slips inside and hides in the shadows.

Please visit Lazaro Ruda’s The Living Sea to view the video: https://vimeo.com/43056003

Until next time,

Honeymooners go for the romance, fishermen for the hook and line, and divers/snorkelers for the gorgeous reefs. I don’t fish, but Kitty and I act like newlyweds everywhere we go, and we both loved the ocean. So I hit two out of three.

Irish Luck

Last July, my good friend Walter Burns invited us to go with him and another friend Carol Chesser for a boat ride to Key Largo and to stay a week for fishing and snorkeling. No way was I turning that down.

My past experiences of diving and snorkeling in the Keys were fun, but the charter boats always seemed to be overcrowded, taken to reefs that had other boats anchored around them, and I always seemed to bring bad weather and rough seas with me. But Neptune was smiling on me this trip. Every day was blessed with flat, lake-like seas, water warm enough to bathe in, and the visibility on the reefs stretched for miles. OK, maybe not quite that far, but several hundred feet.

Kitty

Under the boat

 

 

Into the water I went. Oh, yeah. Lots of fish. The daytime temperatures reached into the mid-90s, so I guess the hull of the boat provided some shade, and all reef creatures moved into the filtered light. Fine with me, as I don’t like to swim far. Isn’t that the purpose of the boat? Instead of swimming a great distance, motor close.

I stayed with the sergeant majors as the sun tracked across the sky. These guys were merciless when it came to attacking the Sargasso weed. The palm size fish would hit the grass with such intensity, bits of the yellow strands would cloud the water. The black and yellow fish would hit the floating grass in onesies, twosies, then in mass so that the ocean was a blur of fins.

 

 

Brain coral

 

 

Then there are times, I like a quieter ocean. To watch the light dance across a bluish-white sand. Often, away from the madding action along a reef line, there is a coral structure sitting out on the plains, its own oasis.

The water was shallow enough to hover above the coral and study it. Flashes of solid yellow or blue fingerlength fish dart around the curves, indentations, and caverns that are a part of the structure. And with a little concentration, one can watch the polyps spread out and latch onto pieces of food floating by in the water column. It seems a quiet place, but the longer I observed, I noticed it was just as busy as the major reef, but on a smaller scale.

 

 

 

Anemone

 

 

One of the creatures in the ocean that seems to captivate me is the anemone. The long fingers reaching upwards, swaying back and forth with the current. With some of the species, I like to hold my hand near-by and watch them reach over and explore by fingertips, palm, and the back of my hand. Sometimes, it feels like tape bouncing along my skin. Caution should be given at this point. Not all anemones are friendly, and can leave you with a nasty infection. Know your cnidarians before attempting this.

 

 

All in all, this was the best vacation I had in the Keys. Every day the ocean was flat, the water warm, and the skies a peaceful blue. They were the type of days that you hated to see the sun set.

 

I will return.

 

Until next time.

Which seas are considered the “7 Seas”? Historical scholars cannot agree on which ones to include or excluded. These muses of wisdom say it depends on which civilization you’re talking about. It seems the Romans had a different set than the Greeks who had a different set than the Arabians. From my limited history in grade school, I think the most romanticized sailors were the Arabians, thus in their world the 7 Seas are: Adriatic Sea, Arabian Sea, Black Sea, Caspian Sea, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and the Red Sea.

Fueled by stories of Sinbad from my childhood days (OK, I still like stories and movies of Sinbad), I’ve always wanted to travel the routes he sailed. And when the Eurythmics had their hit song, “Sweet Dreams”, the lyrics were forever planted into my mind. You know the song: “Sweet Dreams are made of this,  Who am I to disagree,  I travel the world and the 7 seas,  Everybody’s looking for something.” 

Thus on my bucket list is to swim in the 7 seas.

Adriatic Sea - View from Hotel

Last October, while with my wife on her victory trip of beating breast cancer, we went to Tuscany. In the middle of the two weeks there, we scheduled a side trip to the eastern shore of Italy and visited the town of Rimini and splashed into the Adriatic Sea. For a Florida boy, the water was a little cool. While in West Palm Beach our ocean temperatures were still in the upper 70s. Here in the waters that have seen battles by the Arabians, Greeks, and Romans, I’d say warmth of the sea was just below mid-70s.

Into the water I waded. Had to get in, didn’t come all this distance just to wimp out.

In the summer time, this beach is a tourist destination. There is barely enough of the sandy beach to go around for the thousands of blankets needed by the bikini wearing sun worshipers. In October, the place is deserted. The hotel we stayed in was the only one open. Season closes October 1st. The hotels were boarded up for the winter. It looked like the town was abandoned. Thus, my wife and I didn’t have to share the beach or the water with anyone. The way I like it.

The sea was calm, and with the hard packed sand bottom, it was easy to wade out from shore, letting my body adjust to the temperature. The  Eurythmics’ song blaring in my head. Visions of Sinbad sailing in the distance.

Swimming in the Adriatic Sea

I love the oceans and the salty seas. It must have something to do with the water and our bodies being mostly composed of water and salt. I feel a true connection that cannot be broken.

The swim was relaxing. I didn’t quite swim out to the horizon and back, but I did go far enough to have a nice workout. It felt amazing to be in the same waters that eons of history have been written upon.

Now, I’m trying to decide which sea I should visit next, and how I can combine more than one on a journey.

Until next time, “Sweet dreams are made of this.”

Frank Green, Jeffrey "Hammerhead" Philips and Me

In my last post my post I mentioned I had the cytomegalovirus. I have been receiving daily infusions (seven days a week) of foscarnet  which is a drug designed to control the virus. If we can get the CMV count down to zero twice then we will discontinue the treatments but monitor the CMV counts. The foscarnet kicks my butt.

Last week two of my good friends paid me a visit. Frank Green, who has taught me more about the craft of writing than anybody. He is truly a master of the Word. He holds a free writer’s workshop in his home every Wednesday night and has for twenty years. Frank has crewed for me on my boat and I have killed him three times but each time he has resurrected. His doctor won’t let him travel with me any more.

The other friend was Jeffrey “Hammerhead” Philips who has also crewed for me. I’ve known Jeffrey for almost 20 years. He is a terrific writer and you can buy his book Murder on Devil Ray Reef by clicking on the book cover to the left of this post. It’s a terrific read and I recommend it.

It is good to have friends who support you when times are tough. They stayed with me while I slept through part of the 3 1/2 hour infusion process and then we made a quick run to the store.

Trying to knock out the CMV

Thank you to all of my friends.

As with most large companies, quarterly or annually, it’s best to stop and assess where your business is and where you want it to go. I work for a small periodontal company and we do the same. But instead of meeting in some boring board room with a dull paint job and a conference table strewn with electronic gadgets and smudged coffee cups, we headed to a palm tree lined beach.

Melissa, Angie, June

 We meet at 9 am at the Jupiter Island Beach Resort for breakfast. I’m sure that sometime between bacon and eggs, pancakes, and hash browns, we mentioned the business. This resort we chose is just south of the Jupiter Inlet and has a rock ledge that runs in front of the hotel extending north and south for about a mile. The reef is close in shore, 50 feet from the beach, and at low tide the depth ranges from eight to fifteen feet. The off-white colored beach is narrow, but has room for blue lounge chairs, white oversized umbrellas, and plastic tables for cold rum punches. At the water’s edge is a series of rectangular boulders, perfect for sitting and splashing the ocean with your feet. There are several sandy cuts so entry into the blue water is easy. Perfect for snorkeling.

Reef fish

June and Angie

 

 

While helping another member of the staff with her mask and snorkel, I let June hold my camera. It is an Olympus Stylus Tough, waterproof to ten feet of water. The camera is small and compact which makes it perfect for snorkeling. You can imagine my surprise when that night as I was reviewing the day’s shots and came across the ones that June and Angie shot of themselves. Obiviously, they were having a great time.

 

Some of us snorkeled the day, some laid in the sun and worked on their tans, and some did both. One thing nice about working in an all woman office, the cabana boys checked on us every ten minutes. Drinks? Lunch? Towels? Phone number? Well, they checked on everyone except me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Relaxing after a tough day

 

 

After the grueling day of planning, projecting - OK, we didn’t do any of that - we decided to retire to the pool area. And of course, get in the hot tub.

 

I’m fortunate to work for a small office where the doctor likes to have all day staff meetings and do some fun activities.

 

Until next time.

Friday, May 25th., three days before Memorial Day. God bless all of our veterans.

There are many different ways to arrive on Peanut Island. I usually hop a ride on Captain Joe’s ferry, the Buccaneer. Ten bucks for a round trip ticket. 

Peanut Island - Bringing the family

          Some people motor their own boat and tie up at the docks or drop anchor in ankle deep water close to the beach. Some come by canoe or kayak and beach their vessel on the sand. Today, I saw a first. A couple came by paddle board. No, that wasn’t that unusual, but strapping a life vest onto the family dogs, sticking them into a plastic box, that is. And this is before the craziness begins. Each to their own.

Peanut Island - Sergeant Majors

Peanut Island - Barracuda

 

 

          Of course, anytime you have this many fish swimming out in the open, enjoying life, a predator will come lurking. With his mouth being close to 1/4 of his body length, and his jaws lined with teeth designed for slicing flesh, the barracuda can be very intimidating. This fish loves to engage in a staring contest. His mouth slowly opening and closing. He wants to be king.

 

          In reality, this fish is timid. His behavior of swimming close to people is one mostly out of curiosity. If you swim towards him, he dashes off in the opposite direction to hide in the hazy blue. But still, each time a six-footer comes in to inspect me, I do get a chill down by back.

Peanut Island - French Grunt

On Sunday, the 20th. of May, Kitty and I arrived at Peanut Island on the backside of high tide. But knowing it’d be slack for about an hour and have maybe another 30 minutes before the out going tide dragged the dirty water over the rock islands, we hoped for clear water. And we were right.

Peanut Island - new friends

Porkfish

 

          Kitty counted 43 species of fish in about 50 minutes. That’s almost a different specie every minute. No wonder this is a great place to snorkel. But staying around the rocks and not glancing out across the sand is depriving yourself of seeing more fish. This porkfish stayed about fifteen feet from the second most northern set of rocks and on the inlet side.

 

          This guy was bashful. He swam from rock to rock nipping at the algae and grasses. But I never saw him with any of his buddies. And every time he felt the pressure wave from me swimming towards him he darted off. To get closer, I tried the old ”float and drift on the surface and see what happens”  method. Once, he swam underneath my stretched out form. Never venturing closer than a couple of arm lengths away. Still it was a pleasure seeing him skirt from one stone to another.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glassy Sweeper

 

 

 

          There were two schools of glassy sweepers. One towards the surface and the other closer to the white sand. Both, however, stayed within the protection of the rocks and at times would slip into the shadows to hide. I like the way they swim in tight packs, circling one another. I was taught that their names were hatchetfish, and I still call them that today. Not many fish have that deep belly like they do. And like most fish, if you relax and stay still, they come to you. Within minutes these beauties were circling my finger tips. What joy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bearded Fireworm

 

 

          This creature is called a bearded fireworm. If you ever touch one, you’ll know right away why the name fireworm was given. The hairs, or bristles, extending from its backside can easily pierce your skin. Very painful. And the reminder that you touched one will stay with you for days. But some people, like my wife, can get these worms to crawl up onto her palm. I’ve never tried it and I don’t recommend it.

 

          This reef inhabitant never gets in a hurry. He crawled across the sand from rock to rock. Sometimes, raising his head and surveying what’s in front of him. Then slowly preceding in that direction. This is one creature that you can easily show your fellow snorkelers. Even if they are several yards away from you. Unlike fish, who promptly swim away and hide in the rocks, this worm doesn’t travel fast or far.

 

 

As always, another great day at Peanut Island.