SECRETS OF THE RED SEA

Ithas been 23 years since I first visited Brothers Islands. The reefs are situated so far from the mainland that diving from a liveaboard was—and still is— the only transportation option. But much has happened since: The quality of the diving vessels that are operating in Egypt has changed, and my skills as a diver and underwater photographer have, too.

After my first visit in 2000, I wrote one of my earliest magazine articles, but I had to get images from other photographers, as I had yet to purchase my first Nikonos camera. The liveaboard was neither particularly seaworthy nor particularly comfortable, and it was quite windy during the whole trip, so it was not an entirely pleasant experience to be on board. I was actually most comfortable underwater. The relentless wind was so strong that the boat rocked violently 24/7, even in the shelter of the reef. Most of the passengers were permanently seasick during the three days at the Brothers Islands. But, to me, it was totally worth it!

I still remember the first dive on Numidia, where I saw my first hammerhead shark while we were holding on to the shallow parts of the wreck in a ripping current. Numidia drops down to 80 m/260 ft, but the region wasn’t yet equipped to supply technical divers. Nitrox was barely available, so it was good old-fashioned air diving on single cylinders. As I said, a lot has happened since.

The super dive at Big Brother’s North plateau involves scootering between the Aïda and the Numidia.