After a uneventful night, Dad and I set off for our run, up and over the board walks, spotting a massive fruit bat hanging out lazily in a tree. We then continued up and down the jetty and along the beach where we found turtle tracks in the sand where she had come up the beach to lay her eggs. A promising start to the day.

After breakfast we left for Watercolours for our second day of diving. The first dive was expected to have a bit of a current so I left my camera behind so I could focus on my buoyancy. As much as I love taking pictures underwater it was actually great to have a dive where I could interact more with the family and enjoy the surroundings a bit more.

After the dive de-brief we once again left Kerry and Mum to the joys of free wifi, and Dad and I set off for The Lighthouse divesite. Here we were met by a Hawksbill turtle enjoying the coral who was unperturbed by our presence. I got to take some great photos and a video before we left him in peace. Other highlights were a large blue spotted ray and a pretty nudibranch. Kerry and Mum popped back for the eggy-bread de-brief as we filled out our logbook.

That evening, after dinner in the hotel restaurant, we were chilling on our verandah when something went swooping between the palm trees. On closer investigation we found a flying fox and I enjoyed trying to photograph him mid-flight until it got dark. I then made a start on my report for Hospital KL's anaesthetic newsletter whilst Mum and Dad did some revision for our wreck dive tomorrow.

22nd August was our last full day on the Perhentian Islands! I got up and dragged dad out for our daily run, which is getting harder every day but the excitement of a wreck dive got me through it ;)

With the parents passing the theory side of their wreck speciality and some good weather we loaded up the boat and headed out into the open water off the islands to the divesite. Descending down a buoy-line the remains of an old sugar cargo ship came into view beneath us. Kerry and I had dived this site during our visit in 2008 and it was great to be able to share it this time with the parents. The dive was clear and full of life. We were surrounded by lionfish, boxfish, stonefish, fake-sharks and even a sea cucumber! We even got the chance to swim inside the hold and have a look around before heading up for our safety stop just above the wreck.

We were all exhilarated by the morning's success so grabbed a quick lunch before heading out for an afternoon dive to De Lagoon. It was a great site to end on as the water was clear and the location, on the edge of a coral reef meant it was full of life. We had some good views of blue spotted rays, trigger fish, boxfish, stonefish and were treated to a swim with a turtle.

It was sad to dissemble our kit for the last time and have our final debrief but it had been a great way to get some excellent diving and improve everyone's confidence.

We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the coast to the jetty were Dad and I run before heading back to the hotel. Not having had enough of the sea I decided to go snorkelling around the bay, leaving Kerry sunbathing on the beach. I got to see a couple of glimpses of a reef shark and spent ages trailing after them, an improvement on my last encounter (in 2008) when I swam away...quickly!

We packed up this evening, ready for our departure tomorrow, a bit sad that it is all over.