Scuba Diving, Gozo

Went on a Saturday trip to Gozo with Jesper, Rafn and Lidia for scuba diving.. We had three great dives on the sites Middle Finger, Coral Cave, Coral hole and the Inland Sea, the last site with a very cool tunnel out into the sea.. Got these nice photos as Jesper and Rafn had a camera for under-water photography.. As usual, some big fishes I didn't know the names of.. The grand under-water sceneries were the high-lights. And just spending a long day out in good company of course..

Scuba diving, Beaufort Fighter, Malta

Finally I got the chance to go scuba diving on the 2nd World War Beufort figher plane that made an emergency landing about 1 kilometer from shore and settled on a sandy bottom more some 65 years ago.. A very early start, leaving by boat at 07.30 on a Sunday morning, the morning was amazing with clear skies, a bright sun and a calm sea.. On the dive site we geared up and then followed the line straight down through the deep blue sea and landed just next to the wreck.. The plane is in good condition with all sections easy to distinguish, although it is laying upside down.. Our group of 5 hovered around in great visibility, 25+ meters.. Maximum depth was 37.6 meters so we didn't stay long and the ascent was made in stages.. Full English on the way home, off to the beach in a little while! :-)

Mtb, Tal-Blata, Malta

Rode from Sliema via Pace Ville and Ras il-Qrejten to Tal-Blata, the area east of Mellieha, north-east of Xemxija.. Really nice and varied terrain for mountainbiking, stone and gravel trails, dirt trails, and old salt-pools hacked into the rocks next to the sea that were great fun to play around in for drops and jumps.. Beatiful views.. With all the elevation up and down it is pretty strenous to bike around there.. Went up to the peak with Fort Campbell and then back down again.. Fell over handlebars and on to the side a few times as usual, but no major damage or me or the bike.. Ride back to Sliema included the regular milkshake at Bahar, ic-Caghaq Bay..

Mountainbiking, Malta

Some mountainbiking during the weekend 28th-29th of April on various places on the island.. We passed places such as Ghallis Rocks, Qrejten Point, Marfa Ridge, Popeye Village to Ras il Wahx, and Qlejgha Valley with the Chadwick Lakes.. The latter are actually not much more than dried-up small water-dams, but anyways.. Perfect weather, partially cloudy, around 20-22 C and a nice breeze..

Bouldering, Ghar Lapsi, Malta

On the hillsides above the restaurants at Ghar Lapsi, there are several routes for sports climbing and traditional climbing, but also the possibility to try lots of sections for bouldering.. Especially in and around the shallow caverns that are spread out on the hill side, there are plenty of choices, both very easy and much harder sections.. Superb weather, like a Swedish summer day, a strong breeze that cooled us nicely..

Kayak Surfing, Ghajn Tuffieha Bay, Malta

Saturday paddle session from noon onwards. Blue skies, around 19 C in the air, 16 C in the sea and force 4-5 winds.. A very pretty bay and beach and the waves were ok, just a tad more wind would have been perfect.. As usual in this sport, the best waves are the ones that comes in when you are on your way out, but I still got quite a few quick rides back to the beach.. And didn't swim more than twice I think..

Kayak Surfing, Gnejna Bay, Malta

Finally the winds were quite strong and in a direction that had a suitable beach.. But force 8 (gale) turned out to be a bit over the top, at least for me.. Just holding the paddle in that wind requires an effort, and paddling out from shore head-on into the gale is pretty hard work.. The sea was wipped into a mix of foam and sand and I was glad for the shorty wet-suit under the gore-tex for the numerous swims.. Gnejna Bay is a really nice location on the North-western side of Malta and I'll probably be back next time the waves comes in the same way..

Scuba Diving, Um El Farud, Malta

I never thought I would go scuba diving with a wetsuit in early February on Malta, but with a 2.5 mm shorty under the regular 5 mm wetsuit it turned out to be a surprisingly pleasant last minute decision.. Back at Um El Farud, the tanker ship close to Blue Grottos and the best dive I had last season.. Blue skies, calm winds, and 16 C at the surface.. We had 2 great dives with a hot meal and a rest between them.. Bottom time for both dives was 44 minutes, max depth 33.2 meters.. We whisked around the ship and had a peek into a little cave as well.. Happy day! :-)

Kayak Surfing, Mellieha Bay, Malta

Saturday paddle for 2,5 hours, wind coming in from NE so pretty good conditions in Mellieha Bay although even more wind would have been great. I was surfing and handling the waves a lot better than last time, but still had a few tip-overs as the conditions also was more difficult with larger breaking waves and choppy conditions next to the rocks on the south side of the bay.. I might get a neoprene shorty wet-suit, the sea-temperature is still dropping, around 16 C now..

Kayak Surfing, Ramla Bay, Gozo

Went to Ramla Bay on the north coast of Gozo not expecting to get more than a lazy paddle in calm waters, but to my surprise there were decent waves. So decent in fact that I tumbled over several times, so I got to try the 17C sea water properly.. Being a beginner in this sport, combined with a slight hangover and a long while since the last session, the breaking waves near shore proved quite a challenge.. But despite that, I caught quite a few waves and it was lots of fun! Some 2,5 hours later with heavy arms and a change of clothes, a pint and a pizza completed a great day..

Trekking, Ghar Lapsi, Malta

I drove to Ghar Lapsi to do some kayaking but instead went for a walk to an old watch tower and back along a trail following the sea.. Sunny and warm with a nice SW breeze.. Might try the same route on mountainbike later, although it would mean dragging/carrying the bike quite a bit. Not much of an adventure really, but a nice Mid-January day anyways..