Ken Kurtis
Contributor
Want to travel??? Upcoming 2015-2016 vacation trips:
• August 1-6 - Isla Guadalupe & Great White Sharks [ NOW $1,000 OFF - ONLY 1 SPOT AVAILABLE . . . although we may be able to get a couple more ]
• August 13-20 (WEEK 1) - Isla Mujeres & Whale Sharks, cenotes, and statues [ SOLD OUT!!! ]
• August 20-27 (WEEK 2) - Isla Mujeres & Whale Sharks, cenotes, and statues [ A FEW SPOTS LEFT ]
• November 3-16 - Maldives on the Manthiri [ FILLING - ONLY 6 STILL AVAILABLE ]
GET MORE INFO ON ALL OF OUR VACATION TRIPS HERE: www.reefseekers.com/foreign_trips.html
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Been a busy week but mostly on the personal side . . .
HAPPY 65TH TO ME - Celebrated my 65th b-day on Friday and my sister threw me a nice party Saturday evening with what has to be the most fabulous scuba-themed cake ever done. (And it was tasty too.) If you're looking for a scuba-themed (or other) cake, we can highly recommend www.deliciousarts.com. They're on Pico just east of Overland and they do fabulous work. Not cheap but definitely worth it. Take a peek at the cake (everything you see is edible):
MAY WE PAY YOU TO GO SEE SOME SHARKS??? - Well, maybe not PAY you per se, but how about a $1,000 discount? That's what we can offer now on our Nautilus Belle Amie trip August 1-6 out to Guadalupe Island. And we had four people grab on to this over the weekend so it means technically we're down to one available spot out of the six allocated to us. I say "technically" because we're sharing our dozen spots with Ocean Adventures and I know they haven't filled theirs yet either, so we can likely grab a few of theirs if there's a sudden surge of interest. And even though it's "only" three full days of shark diving (caged), that's really plenty to get you up close and personal. It's a day to get there and a day to get back which is also nice so there's time to set up cameras and just get mentally ready to face the ocean's top predator, and then there's time on the way back to relax. So with the discount, the trip is now $2,595 which includes all diving, 16% Mexican tax, all meals & non-alcoholic drinks, crew tip (they work their butts off), and a port tax. We don't cover one other port tax nor do we cover the drive to San Diego (we rendezvous at a Ramada Inn) or the $50 parking to leave your car at the Ramada. Don't let this opportunity slip away. Give us a call at 310/652-4990 and secure your spot.
BLACK SEA BASS IN THE U/W PARK - If you want to get technical, they're now know as "Giant Sea Bass" but you get the idea. Hal Wells from Hollywood Divers spotted one on Sunday and others have chimed in that they've been seeing them as well, down towards the Suejack. We saw a pair a couple of times last year, also in that same vicinity. Go to the Cousteau plaque, then head towards the Suejack (reef on your right) at a depth of about 60 feet, and just keep looking left and right. I've seen them deep and I've seen them shallow. They'll also possibly be cruising around but if you don't make any sudden moves or swim towards them like a bat out of hell, you might be able to closely approach. Just remember that even though they're big, they're still a bit skittish. They don't get that big by taking chances so keep that in the back of your mind.
MY EYEBALLS AND REDONDO - What's the connection? Well, since I have to be out of the water for eight weeks (mid-July at the earliest) due to my recent cataract surgery, and since I'll be spending three of the four weeks in August in Mexico (week 1 at Guadalupe, and weeks 3 & 4 at Isla Mujeres), it means I won't be able to schedule any Redondo dives, day or night, until September. But rest assured we'll get back into the swing of things once my sked opens up.
IS YOUR GEAR TUNED UP? - Some people view Memorial Day Weekend (which is this coming weekend BTW) to be the start of their diving season. You want to make sure that not only you are ready to go, but that your gear is ready to go as well. Maybe you need a full service, or maybe just a tune-up, or maybe just a bench check to make sure everything's on the up & up. We can do all three through our repair guru, Robert Stark. You can contact him directly on our repair line which is 310/947-8523. Let him know what you need and he can advise you of what needs to be done. Also remember that he's out by LAX (a few blocks from Manchester & Lincoln) so if you need something done, that's where you'll go. But we also have our Concierge Service, which means that for an extra $25, Robert will come to you to get the gear (metro L.A. area only) and he'll bring it back once it's completed. Give him a call so you're ready to dive.
MALDIVES IN NOVEMBER - No $1,000 discounts here but we've still got some space on our November Maldives trip. We're really looking forward to returning and this will be our third Reef Seekers trip on the mighty Manthiri. The waters surrounding the Maldives are some of the most prolific in the world with literally thousands of species of fish and giant shoals of them to be observed. Because of the distance involved, we're making this a 9-day trip (instead of 7) to squeeze as much diving in as we possibly can. And it looks like we'll be doing a stopover in Istanbul on the way back. Give us a call at 310/652-4990 for more info or to get signed up.
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week and let's go diving . . . one of these days after my eye has healed.
- Ken
• August 1-6 - Isla Guadalupe & Great White Sharks [ NOW $1,000 OFF - ONLY 1 SPOT AVAILABLE . . . although we may be able to get a couple more ]
• August 13-20 (WEEK 1) - Isla Mujeres & Whale Sharks, cenotes, and statues [ SOLD OUT!!! ]
• August 20-27 (WEEK 2) - Isla Mujeres & Whale Sharks, cenotes, and statues [ A FEW SPOTS LEFT ]
• November 3-16 - Maldives on the Manthiri [ FILLING - ONLY 6 STILL AVAILABLE ]
GET MORE INFO ON ALL OF OUR VACATION TRIPS HERE: www.reefseekers.com/foreign_trips.html
———————————————————————————————————————
Been a busy week but mostly on the personal side . . .
HAPPY 65TH TO ME - Celebrated my 65th b-day on Friday and my sister threw me a nice party Saturday evening with what has to be the most fabulous scuba-themed cake ever done. (And it was tasty too.) If you're looking for a scuba-themed (or other) cake, we can highly recommend www.deliciousarts.com. They're on Pico just east of Overland and they do fabulous work. Not cheap but definitely worth it. Take a peek at the cake (everything you see is edible):
MAY WE PAY YOU TO GO SEE SOME SHARKS??? - Well, maybe not PAY you per se, but how about a $1,000 discount? That's what we can offer now on our Nautilus Belle Amie trip August 1-6 out to Guadalupe Island. And we had four people grab on to this over the weekend so it means technically we're down to one available spot out of the six allocated to us. I say "technically" because we're sharing our dozen spots with Ocean Adventures and I know they haven't filled theirs yet either, so we can likely grab a few of theirs if there's a sudden surge of interest. And even though it's "only" three full days of shark diving (caged), that's really plenty to get you up close and personal. It's a day to get there and a day to get back which is also nice so there's time to set up cameras and just get mentally ready to face the ocean's top predator, and then there's time on the way back to relax. So with the discount, the trip is now $2,595 which includes all diving, 16% Mexican tax, all meals & non-alcoholic drinks, crew tip (they work their butts off), and a port tax. We don't cover one other port tax nor do we cover the drive to San Diego (we rendezvous at a Ramada Inn) or the $50 parking to leave your car at the Ramada. Don't let this opportunity slip away. Give us a call at 310/652-4990 and secure your spot.
BLACK SEA BASS IN THE U/W PARK - If you want to get technical, they're now know as "Giant Sea Bass" but you get the idea. Hal Wells from Hollywood Divers spotted one on Sunday and others have chimed in that they've been seeing them as well, down towards the Suejack. We saw a pair a couple of times last year, also in that same vicinity. Go to the Cousteau plaque, then head towards the Suejack (reef on your right) at a depth of about 60 feet, and just keep looking left and right. I've seen them deep and I've seen them shallow. They'll also possibly be cruising around but if you don't make any sudden moves or swim towards them like a bat out of hell, you might be able to closely approach. Just remember that even though they're big, they're still a bit skittish. They don't get that big by taking chances so keep that in the back of your mind.
MY EYEBALLS AND REDONDO - What's the connection? Well, since I have to be out of the water for eight weeks (mid-July at the earliest) due to my recent cataract surgery, and since I'll be spending three of the four weeks in August in Mexico (week 1 at Guadalupe, and weeks 3 & 4 at Isla Mujeres), it means I won't be able to schedule any Redondo dives, day or night, until September. But rest assured we'll get back into the swing of things once my sked opens up.
IS YOUR GEAR TUNED UP? - Some people view Memorial Day Weekend (which is this coming weekend BTW) to be the start of their diving season. You want to make sure that not only you are ready to go, but that your gear is ready to go as well. Maybe you need a full service, or maybe just a tune-up, or maybe just a bench check to make sure everything's on the up & up. We can do all three through our repair guru, Robert Stark. You can contact him directly on our repair line which is 310/947-8523. Let him know what you need and he can advise you of what needs to be done. Also remember that he's out by LAX (a few blocks from Manchester & Lincoln) so if you need something done, that's where you'll go. But we also have our Concierge Service, which means that for an extra $25, Robert will come to you to get the gear (metro L.A. area only) and he'll bring it back once it's completed. Give him a call so you're ready to dive.
MALDIVES IN NOVEMBER - No $1,000 discounts here but we've still got some space on our November Maldives trip. We're really looking forward to returning and this will be our third Reef Seekers trip on the mighty Manthiri. The waters surrounding the Maldives are some of the most prolific in the world with literally thousands of species of fish and giant shoals of them to be observed. Because of the distance involved, we're making this a 9-day trip (instead of 7) to squeeze as much diving in as we possibly can. And it looks like we'll be doing a stopover in Istanbul on the way back. Give us a call at 310/652-4990 for more info or to get signed up.
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week and let's go diving . . . one of these days after my eye has healed.
- Ken
