You wouldn’t believe the number of comments I’ve received lately suggesting that I should "just go to the grocery store" instead of harvesting my own food from the ocean or my backyard. It’s as if people forget that the pre-packaged meat or seafood they buy didn’t magically appear on the shelf. The reality is, if you’re eating meat, shrimp, oysters, or any seafood, the process of getting that food to your plate isn’t clean or pretty—you’re just letting someone else do the hard part.
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Welcome to My Ocean Chronicles
Hey everyone! 🌊 Welcome to my blog! For those of you who are new here, I’m Gabriella, and I’m thrilled to share a bit about myself and my journey.
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Diving with My Dad: A Journey Back to the Ocean
I learned how to scuba dive with my dad, and though he stopped diving years ago, we recently had the chance to explore the ocean together again for the first time in almost ten years. 🩵🤿 We went diving in French Polynesia, creating unforgettable memories.
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Unleash your inner mermaid with Neritic Diving
When it comes to freediving and spearfishing, having the right gear is crucial for a successful and enjoyable experience. My favorite brand for diving essentials is Neritic Diving. Their products are top-notch, offering both quality and performance that I can rely on during every dive.
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Costa Rica Jungle Adventure
Our 2024 Costa Rica adventure was an unforgettable experience filled with romance, thrill, and natural beauty.
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Discovering Tuna Spinal Jelly: A Culinary Adventure
CJ brought us a bluefin tuna while spearfishing in San Diego, and in an effort to use every part of the fish, we decided to try tuna spinal jelly. Inspired by a video from @sooziethefoodie, I asked CJ to save the bluefin tuna spines for me.
Read MoreBahamas Birthday Bash - Spearfishing for Hogfish
Celebrating my 31st birthday in the Bahamas was an unforgettable experience, filled with adventure, laughter, and the thrill of the hunt. Surrounded by friends, we embarked on an exciting spearfishing trip, targeting the elusive and delicious hogfish.
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Diving with Kelly Young in Key West | Hand Spearing fish in murky water (catch, clean & cooking over primitive fire)
I went diving with Kelly Young a few weekends ago in Key West. I was busy taking pictures of mangroves and crabs but she was hand spearing mangrove snappers in murky water and the made dinner over the fire in the backyard! She prepared it with pineapple and Valentine Thomas’ Bahama Mama blackened spice mix and it was 🔥
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Spearfishing for Yellowfin Tuna in Costa Rica: A True Test of Teamwork
Our recent spearfishing adventure for yellowfin tuna in Costa Rica was an exhilarating challenge. I worked incredibly hard for this tuna! I shot at 4-5 tunas, and one of them was almost 200lbs according to CJ. Unfortunately, they all ripped off or barely poked the fish because I was just a little too far. Despite the frustration, I did some of my best diving.
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Weekend Trip to Dry Tortugas
I just spent an incredible 48 hours immersed in nature. CJ and I, along with 3 other couple of friends, left early on Friday morning for an adventure in the Florida Keys.
Ponce de Leon discovered the Dry Tortugas in 1513 when he caught over 100 sea turtles there. Subsequently the islands were referred to as the “Tortugas” (turtles). During the 1600s and 1700s the area around these islands was used by pirates as a base for attacking merchant shipping in the Gulf.
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Sustainable Fishing with Gabriella Gerbasi & Salt Life
Sat down with Salt Life to talk about sustainable fishing because it is our duty to protect the water we all enjoy. Environmental conservation and species protection ensures future generations can enjoy the water as much as we do. As a diver and spearfishingwoman, I want to see our ocean full of life for years to come.
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Bahamas Adventures - The Ocean Provides
I am incredibly grateful to have been introduced to freediving and spearfishing by no other than Valentine Thomas, a freediving instructor, published chef and advocate for sustainable eating, who quit her job in London to live a simple life and to spread the word about eating responsibly and following her dreams.
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Sisters of the Tide
We all come from the sea, but we are not all of the sea. Those of us who are, we sisters & children of the tides, we are bound by sand, salt, sea and we must return to it again and again 🧜🏼♀️🌊
I love how diving and the ocean forms bonds with people. Ocean people are my people. We still like to play just like when we were kids meeting after school. We look outside in the morning and when the weather’s nice and the water is calm, we make plans to spend time outside, no phone, no distractions. Just friends, nature and stories to tell.
Join me in the Florida Spearfishing Tournament
Join me in the @floridaspearfishing tournament. An event that allows people from all over the state of #Florida to compete! Spearfish all the time like you normally do, except now when you get a fish you can enter it to win prizes.
I’ve always felt inspired by the sea women of Jeju and the Ama divers who represent the feminine strength and resilience as a self sufficient sisterhood of diving women, mothers and grandmothers. These women are treated like heroes by the people of their island because they support their families, they fish and harvest what they eat and provide in the most natural way possible.
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Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Thanks for supporting me! :)
New Dive Mask Pre-Treatment
I recently shared a video on TikTok showing how I was taught to prepare a new dive mask to make sure it doesn’t fog while diving. It got so many reactions and comments because a lot of people never new you had to burn your dive mask. New masks require pre-treatment before you dive with them because they leave the factory with an invisible protective film coating the tempered-glass lenses. Left untreated, a mask is prone to fogging.
Many divers are adamant that using fire to burn the silicone coating off the lenses is the most effective way to pre-treat your mask. It may seem counter-intuitive to your shiny new mask but when done correctly, it can be very effective.
You can only use this method on masks made of tempered glass and which do not have bifocal lenses.
Here are the steps to prepare your mask like I did in the video:
Find a sheltered area at the dive site or on the boat if you’re outside. Don’t position yourself on a windy dive deck where the flame will dance in the wind. You must be precise to make sure you don’t damage the mask’s skirt and frame.
Try to use a lighter that has a mechanism at sufficient distance from the flame. Unlike using it for a second to light a cigarette, you’ll need to keep the flame ignited for at least several seconds and you don’t want to burn your fingers or the mask’s skirt.
An ideal tool is a wand-style lighter for candles or barbecue grills that’s got a longer stem and keeps your fingers far away from the flame. If you’ve got one at home, burn your new mask before your trip.
Hold the lighter’s flame close to the inside of the lens, but not directly in contact with it. Begin at approximately 1.5 to 2 inches (35-50 mm) away from the surface.
Gently move the flame around the center of the lens in a continuous motion. The intense heat from the flame will make the mask fog and blacken slightly, but you will be able to see the silicone burn away and leave a clear area. When moving the flame closer to the frame be extremely careful not to get too close to the edge or you may burn or deform the skirt.
When you’re done, remember that the lenses will be hot. Put the mask down on a safe surface where it will remain untouched for 2-3 minutes. Wipe any soot away using a tissue or cloth. Make sure to wipe the soot away from the skirt without smearing it, especially if you have a clear or pale skirt. Once the mask is completely cool, rinse it with water to remove any remaining residue.
After using the lighter, I used some toothpaste with no microbeads.
Gently squeeze a small, pea-sized blob of toothpaste into the center of each lens on the inside.
Firmly rub the toothpaste around the inside of the lenses with the tip of your finger until you’ve worked the paste into all parts of the lens. In contrast to the burning method, there is no danger in going right to the edge of the lenses where they meet the skirt.
When done, put a small amount of water into the mask to cover the lenses.
Thoroughly rinse your mask and repeat two or three more times. The greater the repetition, the less chance you’ll have a foggy mask or condensation on your initial dives.
Need a New Mask?
Find everything you need for your next diving adventure in my Amazon List of essentials.
So let me know in the comments on the video, do you burn the lense of your new dive masks? If not, how do you prepare it?
Ready to Start Freediving & Spearfishing ?
Read my previous blog post about my favorite gear to either start or upgrade!
Dive Babe & Spearo Essentials
The following list is for all the dive babes and spearfishing aficionados. Whether you’re already a scuba diver that wants to get into freediving or a freediver that wants to start spearfishing, here are a few essentials to get you started or to upgrade your equipment.
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Most Epic Valentine's Day Ever - Diving in Costa Rica
I woke in Pavones, known as a surfer's haven, and got ready to go diving. On our way to the boat CJ picked some flowers and that immediately put a smile on my face. There’s just something about wearing flowers in my hair that makes me feel like a real island / coconut girl. I mean it was a Monday morning and I was wearing a bikini on a remote beach in Costa Rica with flowers in my hair next to the jungle. It felt pretty amazing.
Dolphins
We were on the boat for a while before getting to our first location of the day. On the way there, we saw a pod of dolphins swimming right next to us. For those who know me, I love dolphins and the symbolism associated with this creature. Dolphins have been a symbol of protection and good luck since Ancient times. To encounter a dolphin at sea has throughout the ages in cultures around the world been considered a good omen and a great symbol of good luck. The Dolphin is an emblem of living our true purpose of living a creative life, filled with joy and fulfillment - living a life on purpose and contributing to the greater good of all. Needless to say that I felt pretty lucky and aligned in that moment.
Humpback Whales
A few minutes later, we were putting our wetsuits on and getting our dive gear ready when our captain noticed a humback whale swimming right next to our boat!!! I don’t think I ever had the chance to be so close to one of these giants. We saw the whale swim up and down, coming up for air a few times before finally diving into the depths.
Personal Best Cubera Snapper
CJ then got in the water, saw this monster cubera snapper and stoned it. I took some underwater pictures of him and listened to him tell the story of what happened below the surface.
This 60 pounder would have gotten dragged him around if he didn’t hit the off button. These fish usually destroy gear and break hearts, but not this day! When he saw this fish, he knew it was going to be hard to play tug of war and keep this fish from rocking up.
He was using his @neritic_diving enclosed track reel gun, pulling the trigger just as it turned its head. He watched as the shaft entered the the head of this animal, immediately sinking without twitching.
We then jumped in the water for a quick mermaid shoot and then headed back home while seeing more dolphins swim by. It’s like they were escorting us back safely.
The day couldn’t have been any better! The view was amazing, the weather was perfect and I was with my person enjoying the ocean.
Liveaboard & Spearfishing in Mexico with Neritic Diving
Last November I had the opportunity to go on a spearfishing expedition with Neritic Diving while staying on a liveabord in Baja California Sur.
What followed was just magical, epic views, blue water, tons of fish, fire sunsets and delicious food. I even got the chance to go spearfishing and swim with sea lions.
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Discovering Valerie Taylor - A Living Legend and Pioneer in Underwater Filmmaking and Shark Research.
My new hero! ‘‘Playing with Sharks’’ on the life of Valerie Taylor, a living legend and true pioneer in both underwater filmmaking and shark research.
I learned that most of the great environmentalists and conservationists, they all started with hunting. Because they are the only ones who were out, involved in these things, seeing firsthand the impact of what we do out of the water on marine life. Divers, surfers, fisherman and hunters are some of the best ocean advocates I’ve ever met. We want to protect what we love and share it with the rest of the world.
Valerie set the standard by being the first glamorous female to go out and have these dangerous adventures. She was a revelation to me. She was strong and she led the way.
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Sustainable Spearfishing
Nowadays, we are almost completely divorced from our food sources; it is a recognized symptom of modern life. This is one of the reasons why I like spearfishing so much. It allows me to prepare an entire meal with my own hands, breath and body.
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