Off the coast of Hawaii, a young sea turtle named Squirt was swimming happily in the bright blue Pacific ocean. He and his friends were exploring the waters north of the Hawaiian  islands when something unexpected

happened.

Squirt was suddenly caught in a powerful ocean current called the Subtropical Countercurrent. The strong current pulled him nearly 300 miles east, going toward the west coast of the United States, carrying him far away from his friends and the only home he had ever known, a coral reef at Hanauma Bay.

As he realized he was in a completely new place, Squirt began to miss home. He thought about his best friend, Nemo, a bright little butterflyfish, one of many fish found around coral reefs. Nemo had always been by his side; from coral reef to the Hawaiian Trench, part of the Pacific Ocean Basin, the two of them went everywhere together. The ocean felt so much lonelier without him.

Squirt was trembling in the deeper cold waters, and it made him remember gliding through the warm, sparkling seas around Hawaii, usually around 75–82°F, as he swam between the hard and soft corals. A rumble in his stomach reminded him he was hungry, and his mind drifted to the tasty seagrass and juicy shrimp he loved to nibble on back home.

Squirt knew he had to get 

home before he became 

dinner for the sharks - 

especially the great white, 

short-fin mako, and blue sharks. 

He decided to wait until nightfall to start his journey, when there would be fewer sharks out hunting. Although he didn't want to be dinner, he needed to find dinner!

As he swam in search of food, he passed through a forest of kelp and came across some drifting jellyfish. Carefully, he nibbled on them to

fill his stomach before continuing on his dangerous journey..

As nightfall fell, Squirt began his journey. He had already passed through many different ocean environments, including harsh, strong currents and dense, towering kelp forests. In the distance, a huge blue shark appeared. Squirt tried to stay quiet and swim around it, but the shark

 spotted him. 

Swimming for his life, he was lucky to be near the Pacific Rise, a mid-ocean ridge, an underwater mountain range filled with caves and nooks. 

Here he was able to hide until the shark left.