Exploring the Unknown

Arthur C. Clarke - famed science fiction
author.

"How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean." - Arthur C. Clarke

Clarke had a pretty open mind and an extremely wild imagination. He is best known for writing 2001: A Space Odyssey and later adapting it into a screenplay with Stanley Kubrick. Early pioneers of science fiction such as Clarke are astonishing to me. Their imagination fueled the flames of a multitude of other imaginations; like wildfire, the unknown and mysterious became a focal point of discussion and furthered the cause behind the question: "What is out there?"

Me and my extreme snorkeling team.

Being a father of stellar curiosity, I'm glad that Clarke had a deep appreciation for the ocean. The few statistics I have heard about the Ocean while working under the legacy of the Cousteau family are unbelievable to me. We have explored less than 5% of the ocean and through assumption have discovered only 1% of the species living within it. And so the Culture Hound has taken on a beautiful romance with the ocean. Southern California has an avast array of wildlife. The world's largest creature, the blue whale (110 ft on average) pass by our coastline for 5-6 months of the year. We have "grunion running" (a fish only breeding on California/Baja shores) during the summer months, and hundreds of other aquatic marvels hiding within our offshore kelp forests. If there was any sport to get in to, it would be snorkeling and diving, and what better place to do this than the clear-water shores of Laguna Beach?

They (whoever THEY are) say that a picture is worth a thousand words, so here we go:

1.5 ft Sheep Crab 

Blue Whale off Laguna's Coast

2ft wide jellyfish

6ft wide bat ray above sea grass

Leopard Shark I saw earlier today!

Stay Cultured,
The Culture Hound