Rumor or true?

[Cacia]

Hi Everyone,
I heard Midway opened up recently. Or maybe it was a new livaboard going there.....Does anyone know?

 

[sharky60]

I sure hope it's true, I was stationed there in the early '80's and would love to go back!! That's actually where I learned to dive.

The Phoenix Corp. was running a visitor operation for while but it shut down.


Last I knew Tim Bodeen of US Fish & Wildlife was in charge of clean up efforts out there, here's a link to the USFWS Midway site,
http://www.fws.gov/pacific/midway/new.html

I used to have Tim's e-mail address but for some reason it's no longer in my address book, there is a Honolulu phone number and address on the 'contact' page of the site, maybe they have some info.

Let us know what you find, when it does re-open I need to start saving my pennies!!!!

 

[bluemagoo]

I sure hope it's true, I was stationed there in the early '80's and would love to go back!! That's actually where I learned to dive.
.....

I dunno... The diving must be awesome (hope the sharks have enough to eat) but I heard about the smell and the kamikaze quarter-sized beetles....

 

[Piratediver]

Hi Everyone,
I heard Midway opened up recently. Or maybe it was a new livaboard going there.....Does anyone know?

Let me know what you find out. I'd love to go visit there or any of the Northwestern Islands. If it is shut down, do you need to charter a private plane or what??

 

[Cacia]

Let me know what you find out. I'd love to go visit there or any of the Northwestern Islands. If it is shut down, do you need to charter a private plane or what??

I followed sharky60's link and left a message for Tom who apparently lives on Midway. He is supposed to call me back. His phone does have this cool little double-ring and his message says to leave your name and number multiple times because his phone service isn't very good. He must be really busy.... when I hear back, I will post. And then we will all go, right?

 

[sharky60]

I dunno... The diving must be awesome (hope the sharks have enough to eat) but I heard about the smell and the kamikaze quarter-sized beetles....

Yes, the diving is incredible! If you can imagine vertually untouched reefs, lots of fish, sharks, turtles, shells & lobsters! lots of yummy lobsters!!! we would catch one and put it on the hot plate to boil while we cleaned our equipment and then have a fresh lobster snack afterwards. We had a very nice dive shop, with wardrobe lockers, tank compressor and bath, shower facilites, and we sold equipment at a very minimal mark-up, I hope it's still in tact.

Smell? are you talking about the goonie birds? Well it is a bird sacntuary and 3000+ birds might make a bit of a stink, I don't really remember it being that bad, but then again, one usually does only remember the pleasent things. I don't remember the quarter-sized beetles either, but probably for the same reason.

some of the coolest bird memories are of the mother goonies proudly standing up to show you thier newly hatched chicks to you, they nest right on the ground and where ever they decide to do it also, in a street or on a sidewalk. After the chicks start to learn to fly, then the real comedy begins!!! some would take off running for over a block before they would get enough air under the wing to take off and then it would startle them so much that they were flying they would crash. None of them adult or young are very good landers anyway, they spend almost all thier lives out to sea and when it comes to doing a ground landing, it's pretty pitiful.

I once saw a flock of yellow canries, it had to be 70 birds strong and they showed no fear of me and let me walk right up to the tree they were on and observe them up close.

Oh, don't get me started!!!! You've really got me jonesing now!!!

 

[bluemagoo]

...... I don't remember the quarter-sized beetles either, but probably for the same reason......

Yeah, a guy who's been there a couple of times for fishing and photo work said there's this large green iridescent beetle that does a high-angle powerdive to smack a faceplant onto you. Doesn't seem to bite tho' -- or that could be 'cuz it gets thrown off by the dancing human before it gets a chance to unsheath its fangs.

 

[sharky60]

Sounds like the "nightbirds" we used to have that would lay still in the grass until you walked up and almost stepped on one before they would fly up in your face and scare the #@!* out of you!!

 

[Cacia]

Barry Christianson the Refuge manager just called (they have been unloading the annual barge of supplies). He said he has not heard about a live-aboard coming there. He said The Refuge has remained open to visitors although there are no support services at present. You are welcome if you come on a boat...and can take care of yourself basically. He said presently there are 34 people there not counting the construction crew that is there working on infastructure (water treatment, power generator, fuel tanks). It seems there is some investment happening with the intent of building a Visitor Youth Program.