"Were I you, I'd be much more concerned about a '..dead..' Pakastani communications satellite falling out of geosynchronous earth orbit...hitting you directly on the head...while riding down the Garden State Parkway...on a unicycle...while playing the cello...in a gorilla suit "

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KDK- you just described my very worst fear! ;o)

That's hilarious stuff.... LOL

KDKSAIL I love reading your comments!!I always seem to laugh out loud when I read you! One question??? How do you know so much? They way you detail things...it's amazing!

The '..dirty little secret..' is that......I DON'T. Over the years (ya' go somewhere often enough, for long enough and eventiually ya' hear s__tuff) I've heard of processes like '..reef spawning..' (I've also heard it referred to in general as '..sea bloom..'). There are no species of Stork native to Bermuda...and Longtails are too small...so where do '..little reefs..' come from??).

There is some medical concerns (minor) that you should have when at the beach on Bermuda. There are bits and chunks of rocks both apparent and hidden. If you do nick or scrape yourself on these rocks, you should make a point of '..rinsing..' any cuts or scrapes thoroughly with water (sea water works just about as well as anything) to flush out any '..biologic..' material that may be introduced. In 99.9% of instances, it probably won't make much difference one way of the other in the healing process....but a bit like chicken soup...it can't hurt (well, that's not entirely true) either.

When you get back to your hotel or accommodations at the end of the day, clean and rinse the wound thoroughly with soap & water (Cuts & Scrapes 101) Any antiseptic cream product (like Neosporin) will tend to speed the natural healing process....after this ordinary salt water will be fine. We've also discovered of late that for minor cuts and scrapes, products like '..liquid bandage..' work well when you're in and out of the water all day at the beach. My wife carries a small minor first aid kit in our beach bag---wet-wipes, band-aids, Neosporen and liquid bandage. She also carries one of those little complimentary '..hotel sewing kits..' but so far we've only needed that to re-attach the occasional bathing suit strap or button that's come adrift......no '..sutures..'. As noted...this really isn't anything that you probably wouldn't do anyway...and is just '..Cuts & Scrapes 101..'.

Sorry...I've got nothin' on repairing they nylon & spandex of that '..perfect..' bathing suit that get '..caught..' on rock outcroppings....it's just back to the flourescent-lit dressing rooms to begin the '..hunt..' for a new one all over again.

I was told by a Bermudian that any time someone has an open wound or even the tiniest cut to the skin that the person should stay away from the water during the spawn. A guest at the Reefs almost lost a finger because some micro scopic material from the spawn entered the site of the cut and caused a nasty infection that was spreading rapidly. Even my Dr. here at home said do not go in the water while in Bermuda. I was throwing the question out there because I grew up and live at the shore and never gave ocean water a second thought. In fact, it was always thought to be good for you.

I'd not quarrel with your doctor....but there are conditions and extremes presumed here that are seldom in place or practice. There are times when the '..bloom..' from the spawn are particularly concentrated and dense. This condition is seldom encountered close inshore at beaches and figured on a parts-per-million basis, quite probably no worse than any other of the microorganisms that inhabit the ocean. As for specific wounds, more often than not, other factors---microorganisms that may have entered from contact with the original source of the injury (always a source of concern, other foreign matter (always concrns), improper care and cleaning of the wound at when it occured originally, etc. Any of these factors are as likely to cause leter problems as '..reef spawn..'.

There is also the practical aspects of the concern. The local newspaper publish the daily tide tables, phase of the moon wind direction, expected air and ocean water temperatures...but I've yet to see a '..Reef Spawn Index....or state of the tide and local current information which would indicate potential '..danger..'.

Over the years, I've been perhaps more concerned than many with the state of the Tides (and by extention the phase of the moon) ....usually printing out the local Tide Tables abd carrying them with me (for snorkeling purposes and the surf and beach conditions most likely at '..our beach..' When your wife is a semi-famous sand sculptor...and you're the poor lackey who has to pile it on the rocks for her, you learn to pay attention to not-so-petty-little-details') and I'm sure that on any number of occasions over all of the days at the beach, over all of the years that we must have nicked, scraped and cut ourselves and gone into the ocean durin 'spawn' periods....and we've still got all of our fingers and toes.

But if 'reef spawn' is that much of a concern, bear in mind that it usually occurs during periods of Full moon...so avoid the ocean during these few days of your visit.

At first I thought you were having me on...but after thinking about I thought the local that told you that may have been yanking your chain. No locals I know swim in september unless they dive with a wetsuit...lol

I have heard of coral spawning and whole sections of reef can all go up at the same time, but 'its something rather quick and rare to acutually see. In fact many divers acutually try and be there at the right time and place but its harder then it sounds. I have never encountered it in bermy in the last 20 years of swiming fishingor diving. But I never really thought about it(could even be wrong) . man I should have paid more atention to that national geographic show ( :

bottom line clean all wounds well...

Apparently the whole reef spawned the morning that I was talking about. The ocean in front of the Reefs Hotel was completely dark colored and not the typical blue-green. Within a couple of hours the water cleared and was beautiful again. The Bermudian who told me about the spawning was the bell-hop Mervin at the Reefs.

>>>I have heard of coral spawning and whole sections of reef can all go up at the same time, but 'its something rather quick and rare to acutually see<<<

As noted, concentrations of '..reef spwan..' will be well-away from shore, out along the barrier reef systems that produce it....and attract divers. The phenomena is limited to a specific season of the year and specific phase of the moon is relatively brief in duration and quickly dispersed....furthermore most of any 'concentration' of polyps at these infrequent periods, is either carried away to open ocean by prevailing offshore currents, '..caught..' by the reef itself as part of it's natural '..growth..' cycle or well dispersed over BILLIONS of cubic meters of ocean. There could well be occasional '..localized..' concentrations that make their way closer inshore...but as a general rule, '..reef spawn..' is neither a '..health risk..' nor a '..problem..' for swimmers at Bermuda's beaches. No doubt over the years hundreds of thousands of tourists who might possibly qualify as being '..at risk..', have swum at Bermuda's beaches during '..reef spawn..' cycles without the least effect.

If you MUST be worried about something untoward happening to you during a visit to Bermuda....be much more concerned about the passenger in the seat behind you dropping their '..steamer-trunk..' carry-on bag on your head as they try to lift or remove it from the overhead storage bin (without a fork-lift) on your aircraft. Now THAT's really DANGEROUS !!!

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