Mike Gil, Ph.D.Cayman Islands Reconnaissance
Hello! I am back in the blogosphere!
It’s an exciting time to start a new blog/website, as I am leaving this Monday for a week on Little Cayman Island. The purpose of this trip will be to scout out potential sites to conduct my research in 2012.
It should be a great trip, with a lot of SCUBA and snorkeling to get as broad a swath of the reef system as possible in 7 days. I will be staying at the Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI), pictured below (Images borrowed from the CCMI website, here).
And here is generally what the coastline looks like surrounding Little Cayman:
As you can see from above, it’s not a bad place to work for a week (or a decade). Though this will be my first trip to the Cayman Islands, the reputation of the reefs surrounding the coasts here certainly precedes them. It is said that this is one of the best reef systems in all of the Caribbean. It will be interesting to see how the rumors measure up, but one thing is for sure–Little Cayman is an under-exploited (dare I say ‘near pristine’?) gem in the Caribbean Sea. I can’t wait to check it out!
I will try my best to capture some nice shots, above and certainly below the surface. Stay tuned!
Mike
PS–Thanks for reading my first blog post on my brand new website! Please read the About page, and if this blog sounds interesting to you, please follow it by clicking the link on the right-hand column of the webpage.
Mike Gil, Ph.D. 
Jealous. My SEA semester trip will have me going around the Gulf, but with few port stops. Have fun doing science Mike.
-Patrick