Jan Messersmith

I started diving when a friend (who shall remain unnamed) offered to 'teach me how to dive.' Though we frown on that sort of thing today, I'm very glad I got started by any means. My wife urged me to take the Open Water course. That experience of learning, along with the encouragement of fellow divers and instructors eventually led to a Divemaster certificate.

Madang has been our home since 1981. About 95% of all my dives have been within 20 minutes by boat from our house on the harbor. It has been a great privilege to live in a beautiful place with so many great dives sites, and to have years of weekends to explore them thoroughly. For me, one of the great joys of diving has become a familiarity with specific small habitats.

Another wonderful thing about having many dives in the same area is that it forces you to expand your interests beyond the technical aspects of diving. For me, though the exploration, excitement, and technicalities of diving still interest me, diving itself has become a means to an entirely different end. I have experienced cararaderie and friendships unlike any others in my life. These spring from the shared experiences and mutual trust that is so common among divers in our small community of 'locals'. We dive every Saturday, rain or shine. Those of us who are able also dive on Wednesday afternoons. We are fortunate to have local dive shop operators who value our experience and occasional assistance.

I've been an amateur photographer since I got my first Kodak twin lens reflexwhen I was about ten years old. A few years ago, I decided that I really ought to give it a try underwater. I had no idea how much I had to learn. For several years I used an Ikelite Aqua Shot houing with a slave flash. Many of the (lower quality) pictures on this site were taken over several years with that outfit. Finally, I decided to spend some money to see if I could get better results. I've used Minolta Maxxum 7000 series cameras for years. They are dead cheap in a used camera store, have a universe of lenses to choose from and if I get a bad picture with the 7000, I can only blame it on myself. I found that Ikelite makes a housing for this camera. With a 24-80 zoom lens, a domed port, and a model 100 strobe, it is so simple to use that I'd call it a point and shoot outfit, though it is a bit bulky out of the water.

Combining photography with computers makes things even more intersting. We have a lot of fun enhancing our pictures with various paint programs.We often make tshirts to celebrate special dive adventures.

Madang has a lot to offer to divers. We have no ice dives or cave dives, but just about anything else you can imagine can be found here. Visibility can vary from 10 meters to WOW!, and is not predictable, since it depends so much on rainfall and plankton levels. Take a good look at this web site. Our main goal is to present an honest and realistic picture of the diving opportunities in Madang. Yes, we ARE in love with the place, but we try also to tell it like it is.

Jan Messersmith is the Administrator of Data Processing & Publications for Pioneer Bible Translators, Papua New Guinea Branch.
Eunice Messersmith is the Assistant Director of Support Services for Pioneer Bible Translators, Papua New Guinea Branch.

EMAIL: jemessersmith@pioneerbible.org.pg

Current News (July 1999)

Our Newsletter Archives:
December 1998