Cayman questions--SMB and Tipping Practice

[Kharon]

Not sure why you have an issue with calling this "shore diving", Kharon. Certainly meets my definition. You enter from shore on your own schedule, swim around on your own profile and then exit to shore. Total dive freedom. The ladder is a bonus, not something to be sneered at. There is plenty of ironshore on Bonaire making it difficult to exit there at times as well.

Diving from shore, to me, means there is an area of shore for entry & exit - not a single point. There are places on Bonaire where it's difficult to exit other than the main entry, that's true - but it can be done, if necessary (or desirable). On GC it's impossible. Also, there are some dives on Bonaire that are impossible to exit till you swim/drift to the next site. These I avoid. On GC I have no choice but to use a single point of entry/exit. Not saying it can't be done. I simply don't like it.

Also, to the OP - be aware that many dive shops will be charging you for weights. Some by the pound, some a fixed fee for the day. Only place I ever ran into this. If I ever go there again I'll be bringing my own weights. $6 to $7.50 for weights just struck me as money grubbing. I'm particular about weight placement (trim) and when I asked for 12# as four 3# weights, one shop couldn't even give me anything close even though I was being charged.

 

[Doctorfish]

Different strokes Kharon.
You posted in September about the miserable time you had on GC, which was as I recall more related to your trip organizers than anything else.
I think this has flavoured your comments above. A shore dive is still a shore dive imo, independent of steps versus beach entry. Further, you can always enter at the Cemetery or Smith's Cove if you truly want to avoid steps.

Weights frequently go missing on GC and the dive shops have to pay for the lead and the shipping to replace. You can't blame them for passing those costs on to the customers. I've never been charged by weight, just a fixed amount.


Even so, 10-12 bucks for a tank plus 6-7 dollars per day for lead still makes for very inexpensive diving.

Too bad the shore sites on the north and NW are blown out at present.
Anyone know where the safe entry sites for shore diving in the south are?

 

[JohnnyRock]

I work for Divetech so while I appreciate people passing on the recommendation to use our shore dive sites I would like to ask the OP to check with us first on the weather. We are currently experiencing strong northerly winds which have forced us to close both sites, for shore dives for today at least you are going to be staying down south.

Thanks for the heads up; hopefully we'll get up there soon.

---------- Post added November 29th, 2014 at 11:08 AM ----------

Thanks also to the rest of you posters--appreciate all the advice & updates until we depart on 12/5. Thanks!

 

[scoobydrew]

Diving from shore, to me, means there is an area of shore for entry & exit - not a single point.

There is a shore on GC which is 5.5 miles long, its called 7 mile beach and you can dive from it, Divers Supply will let you rent tanks to take off site and once you have them there are a host of places along SMB you can pull up and wander in over the sand in to the dive. For example from cemetery beach you would have to dive for about 5 miles before reaching a part that you can not get out of in an emergency, just sayin...