Ken Kurtis
Contributor
Want to travel??? Upcoming 2016-2017 vacation trips:
• November 2-18 - Maldives on the Manthiri [ 1 FEMALE-SHARE SPOT LEFT ]
• March, 2017 - Bonaire (???)
• June, 2017 - Isla Mujeres (early in the Whale Shark Season)
• 2017 - July 7-19 - Yap Immersion #1 (special 13-day trip featuring all that Yap has to offer) [ LIMITED TO 12 DIVERS - 5 SPOTS LEFT ]
• 2017 - July 21-August 2 - Yap Immersion #2 (week #2 - same sked as above) [ LIMITED TO 12 DIVERS - 9 SPOTS LEFT ]
• Fall of 2017 - Ultimate Indonesia - A week at Murex in Manado, 10-days in Raja Ampat, 3 days in the Lembeh Straits
GET MORE INFO ON ALL OF OUR VACATION TRIPS HERE: www.reefseekers.com/foreign_trips.html
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Upcoming local dives:
• October 22 (Saturday) - Avalon Underwater Park (3 dives - include tank rentals) - $150
• October 26 (Wednesday) - Vets Park night dive (single tank) - FREE!!!!
To sign up for any of these dives, either call us at 310/652-4990 or e-mail us at kenkurtis@aol.com
———————————————————————————————————————————
What a difference a few miles makes . . .
HURRICANE MATTHEW AFTERMATH - At least in the U.S., it could have been far worse. But Hurricane Matthew, one of the most powerful storms to threaten the U.S. in recent years, veered farther offshore than the computer models predicted, and that saved much of the eastern seaboard from a pounding. The downside of this is that many people were ordered to evacuate when it turns out they didn't need to so the next time a evacuation order is put forth, it may be harder to sell people on because they'll go "Well, nothing bad happened LAST time" and they won't realize it's luck of the draw. Matthew has now headed out to sea where it will fizzle out. (However there's now a second hurricane, Nicole, strengthening, and it looks like Nicole may take dead aim at Bermuda.) Haiti was not so fortunate in dealing with Matthew and took pretty much a direct hit resulting in over 800 deaths and tremendous damage to one of the poorest countries in the world. If you'd like to donate to the Haiti relief fund, here are links to the donation pages for CARE and UNICEF:
CARE - CARE response to Hurricane Matthew
UNICEF - Support UNICEF’s Hurricane Matthew Relief Efforts
DISASSEMBLING THE CHAMBER - I spent Saturday over at Big Fisherman's Cove on Catalina and more specifically in the hanger where the Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber is located as this was the weekend for the annual Chamber Washdown Party. Each year, the Chamber tests the automatic overhead fire-suppression system (sprinklers). The way they do that is to pressurize the Chamber to 165 feet (it's max operating depth) and set the system off, which then soaks anything and everything inside. Usually that includes five or six Chamber Crew members as well (and two of them also "test" the fire hoses as well) who all get soaking wet. The Chamber's then brought back up to surface pressure (the entire cycle takes about 45 minutes since it's got to be done as a dive so no one gets bent). And since everything is wet, the crew members inside start scrubbing down all the surface areas. Once the Chamber is back to surface pressure, then others join to start drying everything off. Part of the process involves removing all the steel plates the make up the floor to get every accessible inch of the Chamber perfectly spic and span. It takes a lot of hours but it's just one more way we try to make sure that, should you ever need to use it, your Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber is ready to help you out. Keep that in mind when we start talking about Chamber Day donations next year. (And if you'd like to see a 2-minute time-lapse video of the washdown endeavor, use this link: .)
LOCAL DIVING - Just a reminder that we've got two more local dives coming up this month as we'll be heading over to the Avalon Underwater Park (where there were supposedly a DOZEN Black Sea Bass over the weekend) on Saturday, October 22, and then we'll be doing a night dive at Vets Park on Wednesday, October 26. Sign up for either or both by calling us at 310/652-4990.
VISAS AND PASSPORTS - Two interesting articles in the Travel section of today's L.A. Times about (1) Having your passport properly stamped, and (2) Overstaying your visa. If you travel (as we know many of you do), this should be required reading and re-emphasize that these days, especially with the refugee crisis in the Middle East, not having your paperwork in order can cause huge headaches and delays. I can't find the links on the Times website but if you've got a copy of the Sunday Travel section, the articles are on page L4 and L5.
IT PAYS TO KNOW PEOPLE - One of my favorite replies to the question of "How did you get to . . ." is to say "I know people." It's like that old adage of it's not always what you know but who you know. So it's very lucky for me that I know someone who got me a ride in the Goodyear Blimp last Wednesday. What a blast and a Bucket List item to boot. The blimp gondola holds six people (5 guests and a pilot) and it's REALLY loud inside since you're right by their engines so everyone wears aviation-style headsets with a microphone. That's fun because you can then easily talk to each other throughout the flight, as well as the pilot provides a lot of narration. We left from the blimp-port at the intersection of the 110 & 405 freeways and headed west towards Redondo Beach. It was a hoot as we flew over Vets Park because I was able to point out the dive area to everyone. Although we were generally flying at 1500 feet, once we crossed the coastline, we dipped down to 500 feet. Then it was up to El Segundo where we turned east (to avoid LAX), cruised over to Lawndale and over a number of golf courses I play, back down to Carson where we took an aerial view of the new Porsche test track, got a glimpse of the StubHub (formertly Home Depot) center where the Galaxy plays, and then landed. The whole thing took about an hour and when we got off, then was another set of passengers waiting to get on. I think they did four flights that day. Now when I say you need to know people that's what I mean because this is by inviation only so you can't just call them up and get ride. (So many thanks to Ellen at AOP.) But if you want to enjoy it vicariously, here's a link to my SmugMug page and all the pix: RIDING IN THE GOODYEAR BLIMP (10-5-16 - pictures are captioned) - kenkurtis
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week, and let's go diving soon.
- Ken
• November 2-18 - Maldives on the Manthiri [ 1 FEMALE-SHARE SPOT LEFT ]
• March, 2017 - Bonaire (???)
• June, 2017 - Isla Mujeres (early in the Whale Shark Season)
• 2017 - July 7-19 - Yap Immersion #1 (special 13-day trip featuring all that Yap has to offer) [ LIMITED TO 12 DIVERS - 5 SPOTS LEFT ]
• 2017 - July 21-August 2 - Yap Immersion #2 (week #2 - same sked as above) [ LIMITED TO 12 DIVERS - 9 SPOTS LEFT ]
• Fall of 2017 - Ultimate Indonesia - A week at Murex in Manado, 10-days in Raja Ampat, 3 days in the Lembeh Straits
GET MORE INFO ON ALL OF OUR VACATION TRIPS HERE: www.reefseekers.com/foreign_trips.html
————————————————————————————————————————————
Upcoming local dives:
• October 22 (Saturday) - Avalon Underwater Park (3 dives - include tank rentals) - $150
• October 26 (Wednesday) - Vets Park night dive (single tank) - FREE!!!!
To sign up for any of these dives, either call us at 310/652-4990 or e-mail us at kenkurtis@aol.com
———————————————————————————————————————————
What a difference a few miles makes . . .
HURRICANE MATTHEW AFTERMATH - At least in the U.S., it could have been far worse. But Hurricane Matthew, one of the most powerful storms to threaten the U.S. in recent years, veered farther offshore than the computer models predicted, and that saved much of the eastern seaboard from a pounding. The downside of this is that many people were ordered to evacuate when it turns out they didn't need to so the next time a evacuation order is put forth, it may be harder to sell people on because they'll go "Well, nothing bad happened LAST time" and they won't realize it's luck of the draw. Matthew has now headed out to sea where it will fizzle out. (However there's now a second hurricane, Nicole, strengthening, and it looks like Nicole may take dead aim at Bermuda.) Haiti was not so fortunate in dealing with Matthew and took pretty much a direct hit resulting in over 800 deaths and tremendous damage to one of the poorest countries in the world. If you'd like to donate to the Haiti relief fund, here are links to the donation pages for CARE and UNICEF:
CARE - CARE response to Hurricane Matthew
UNICEF - Support UNICEF’s Hurricane Matthew Relief Efforts
DISASSEMBLING THE CHAMBER - I spent Saturday over at Big Fisherman's Cove on Catalina and more specifically in the hanger where the Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber is located as this was the weekend for the annual Chamber Washdown Party. Each year, the Chamber tests the automatic overhead fire-suppression system (sprinklers). The way they do that is to pressurize the Chamber to 165 feet (it's max operating depth) and set the system off, which then soaks anything and everything inside. Usually that includes five or six Chamber Crew members as well (and two of them also "test" the fire hoses as well) who all get soaking wet. The Chamber's then brought back up to surface pressure (the entire cycle takes about 45 minutes since it's got to be done as a dive so no one gets bent). And since everything is wet, the crew members inside start scrubbing down all the surface areas. Once the Chamber is back to surface pressure, then others join to start drying everything off. Part of the process involves removing all the steel plates the make up the floor to get every accessible inch of the Chamber perfectly spic and span. It takes a lot of hours but it's just one more way we try to make sure that, should you ever need to use it, your Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber is ready to help you out. Keep that in mind when we start talking about Chamber Day donations next year. (And if you'd like to see a 2-minute time-lapse video of the washdown endeavor, use this link: .)
LOCAL DIVING - Just a reminder that we've got two more local dives coming up this month as we'll be heading over to the Avalon Underwater Park (where there were supposedly a DOZEN Black Sea Bass over the weekend) on Saturday, October 22, and then we'll be doing a night dive at Vets Park on Wednesday, October 26. Sign up for either or both by calling us at 310/652-4990.
VISAS AND PASSPORTS - Two interesting articles in the Travel section of today's L.A. Times about (1) Having your passport properly stamped, and (2) Overstaying your visa. If you travel (as we know many of you do), this should be required reading and re-emphasize that these days, especially with the refugee crisis in the Middle East, not having your paperwork in order can cause huge headaches and delays. I can't find the links on the Times website but if you've got a copy of the Sunday Travel section, the articles are on page L4 and L5.
IT PAYS TO KNOW PEOPLE - One of my favorite replies to the question of "How did you get to . . ." is to say "I know people." It's like that old adage of it's not always what you know but who you know. So it's very lucky for me that I know someone who got me a ride in the Goodyear Blimp last Wednesday. What a blast and a Bucket List item to boot. The blimp gondola holds six people (5 guests and a pilot) and it's REALLY loud inside since you're right by their engines so everyone wears aviation-style headsets with a microphone. That's fun because you can then easily talk to each other throughout the flight, as well as the pilot provides a lot of narration. We left from the blimp-port at the intersection of the 110 & 405 freeways and headed west towards Redondo Beach. It was a hoot as we flew over Vets Park because I was able to point out the dive area to everyone. Although we were generally flying at 1500 feet, once we crossed the coastline, we dipped down to 500 feet. Then it was up to El Segundo where we turned east (to avoid LAX), cruised over to Lawndale and over a number of golf courses I play, back down to Carson where we took an aerial view of the new Porsche test track, got a glimpse of the StubHub (formertly Home Depot) center where the Galaxy plays, and then landed. The whole thing took about an hour and when we got off, then was another set of passengers waiting to get on. I think they did four flights that day. Now when I say you need to know people that's what I mean because this is by inviation only so you can't just call them up and get ride. (So many thanks to Ellen at AOP.) But if you want to enjoy it vicariously, here's a link to my SmugMug page and all the pix: RIDING IN THE GOODYEAR BLIMP (10-5-16 - pictures are captioned) - kenkurtis
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week, and let's go diving soon.
- Ken
