Shore Diving?

[duckie26]

I'm looking for suggestions on some great shore diving. I get very sea sick in boats. The problem I'm having is I would LOVE to see larger marine life!

I recently visited Bonaire, we did all shore diving, it was beautiful. . but I didn't see any large marine life.

My first diving experiance was in Cozumel and I think the sites spoiled me, huge turtles, nurse sharks, a lot of beautiful things to see, but I had to go on a boat and I was sick most the trip.

I'm looking for a great deal where I can do mostly ALL shore diving and still get to see the larger marine life. Any good ideas?

On another note, anywhere so spectacular that it would be worth being sick the entire time :-)

[Jorgy]

You may want to consider Maui............

We did some great shore dives with sharks, turtles and even a Manta Ray.........

Molokini Crater was really great but required a boat ride.............

We used Scuba Shack, they have a jet boat so the ride to the crater was short.......

Shaka Doug has his famous scuba bus for shore diving............

Hope this helps............M

[RoatanMan]

I'm looking for a great deal where I can do mostly ALL shore diving and still get to see the larger marine life.

Larger Marine Life = Cooler Deeper Waters ≠ Shore Diving

There is much more in the Ocean than large critters. Much more.

[aku321]

I don't know how far you want to travel, but Guam has a lot of shore dives with a short swim out to huge reefs or WWII wrecks. Of course they also have boat dives and if you want to dive at Big Navy, thats how you will have to do it unless you are in the military. Another plus to diving Guam is, it is really inexpensive! I think it was about $15 to rent a reg, tank and weights. We dove Big Navy most of the time since we were military.

[Gen San Chris]

Gen San in the Southern Philippines has great shore dives!

[duckie26]

[QUOTE=RoatanMan;4370533]Larger Marine Life = Cooler Deeper Waters ≠ Shore Diving


I was afraid I was going to get that answer. I know there is more to see than the bigger critters, but I rather see the bigger things. The last trip was tons and tons of small critters and coral, very beautiful but this next trip I want something different.

My husband is talking about just going back to Bonaire, or maybe Roatan. We haven't visited Roatan yet.

[Damselfish]

or, have you exhausted all the seasickness remedies yet so you can do boats? Lots of people have this problem and find something that works for them.

[robint]

[QUOTE=RoatanMan;4370533]Larger Marine Life = Cooler Deeper Waters ≠ Shore Diving


I was afraid I was going to get that answer. I know there is more to see than the bigger critters, but I rather see the bigger things. The last trip was tons and tons of small critters and coral, very beautiful but this next trip I want something different.

My husband is talking about just going back to Bonaire, or maybe Roatan. We haven't visited Roatan yet.

Well, you are going to be surprised by my answer.......
go on the Nekton liveaboard, one of the Bahamas trips! The boat is very stable, much more so than little boats that rock with every wave. It is like being on a small island out in the ocean. I was skeptical before my first trip, back in 2006, but it really is true. There is very little motion to the boat. Not that it doesn't move, it just is different than a little boat and once moored it doesn't really move at all. Check out my trip reports:
http://www.rnrscuba.net/NektonRorqual_TripReport.html
and
http://www.rnrscuba.net/NektonCaySal.html
We saw lots and lots of big critters - turtles and sharks everywhere!

Roatan is great, Cocoview Resort has excellent shore diving but there isn't the big life you are looking for. But it is great diving!

Other than that, my recommendation is to try different sea sick medications. Other things to consider: dehydration, too much sun, and fumes from the boat tend to cause seasickness in addition to the rocking boat. There are drugs to combat it but I find that most people are so sure they are going to get sick that they do! Instead of dwelling on "that feeling coming on" it is best to stay busy, talk to others on the boat, relax, breathe deep and stare at horizon (stable point) if necessary.

Years ago, I thought I had a seasickness problem for sure. Bobbing at the surface waiting for the boat to pick me up after a dive made me feel queazy. Then I got full blown barf time in the Keys when our boat sat (no cover, just blazing sun) with diesel fumes blowing in our faces, in 3' seas for a surface interval. I thought I was gonna die!!!!! The next year we went on the Nekton and I took a box full of Ginger Tablets, the kind sold at the dive shops for seasickness. Well, I took them a couple of times, but I was determined NOT to get seasick. I didn't and haven't since.
Here are rules I follow:
1. stay hydrated, drink lots of water
2. don't eat greasy or acidic foods - no coffee, OJ, or bacon at b'fast
3. stay out in the open air, fresh air helps, and stay out of fumes
4. stay busy - chat with others, double check your gear, whatever is necessary to keep you mind off being in a boat
5. As many people will tell you, seasickness isn't a lifelong affliction. Most people get over it eventually when you brain gets used to the feeling. Some people say that on a liveaboard they get used to it after a couple of days, others say it takes a few years. Just tell yourself that one day you will wake up and not be seasick again!
6. And if you must get sick, go ahead. But afterwards drink tons of water and start over with this list!

robin:D

[duckie26]

robint you did 24 dives? I've never been on a liveaboard before. I assumed it wouldn't be worth the money for as little diving as I thought went on. Will someone explain to me how most liveaboard trips really go. I looked at some sites for liveaboard but I guess maybe I didn't understand how it works.

[Rick Inman]

Monterey, CA.

[robint]

robint you did 24 dives? I've never been on a liveaboard before. I assumed it wouldn't be worth the money for as little diving as I thought went on. Will someone explain to me how most liveaboard trips really go. I looked at some sites for liveaboard but I guess maybe I didn't understand how it works.


Liveaboards vary by destination, but basically the Nekton boats and most other Caribbean liveaboards:

(boat moves during night and moors at dive site)
7:30am..breakfast (buffet of eggs, pancakes, etc, all the usual stuff)
8:30am...dive briefing and gate opens for diving until noon so 2 dives with an hour surface interval is possible, between dives snacks are served
noon...full hot lunch buffet, boat moves to new site
1pm-ish....dive briefing for new site and gate opens for diving until 5pm-ish so 2 dives with an hour surface interval is possible, between dives hot snacks are served
6pm...full hot dinner buffet
dark...night dive gate opens
(after everyone is back onboard the boat moves to the dive site for the next morning's dives)
No dives are mandatory, some people do all 5 each day, some only do a few.

If prior arrangements are made with crew, it is possible to do a "dawn dive" some days before breakfast, but you need to let crew know so they can be on deck to assist and bubble watch. The Nekton doesn't guide dives unless you need a guide. Then you have to let them know, once again, that you want a DM with you. There is usually a DM available or someone else onboard to accompany anyone.

Some people just dive with their buddy, others go with a group of others on the boat. When we were on the Pilot at Cay Sal, there were 5 single men who buddied up and dove all week together. Also, on the night dives, everyone usually goes in together and stays together. Otherwise, most dives you don't really even see others.... it is really nice for that reason alone!!:D


Our liveaboard in Palau was different as diving was not done from the Mothership. All dives were done from a skiff so we did every dive as a group with at least 2 DMs and the skiff picked us all up at the end of the dive and took us back to Mothership. We did 4-5 dives per day on that boat, also.

check out the website:
http://www.nektoncruises.com/


robin:D

[duckie26]

I would be accompanied by my spouse who is a DM. What about getting to go on any of the islands?

[robint]

I would be accompanied by my spouse who is a DM. What about getting to go on any of the islands?


you need to get on the Nekton website and read the itineraries!
or read my trip reports, which I gave you the links for, the answers are there.

[DeputyDan]

robint you did 24 dives? I've never been on a liveaboard before. I assumed it wouldn't be worth the money for as little diving as I thought went on. Will someone explain to me how most liveaboard trips really go. I looked at some sites for liveaboard but I guess maybe I didn't understand how it works.

Liveaboard day:

Wake up
Breakfast
Dive briefing
(2) dives
Lunch - Boat moves
Dive Briefing
(2) Dives
Dinner
Night dive
Sit around and BS
Sleep (Boat moves)
Start over.

That's the typical day. It's all about diving - not going to different islands

[annlaur]

I'm looking for suggestions on some great shore diving. I get very sea sick in boats. The problem I'm having is I would LOVE to see larger marine life!

I recently visited Bonaire, we did all shore diving, it was beautiful. . but I didn't see any large marine life.

My first diving experiance was in Cozumel and I think the sites spoiled me, huge turtles, nurse sharks, a lot of beautiful things to see, but I had to go on a boat and I was sick most the trip.

I'm looking for a great deal where I can do mostly ALL shore diving and still get to see the larger marine life. Any good ideas?

On another note, anywhere so spectacular that it would be worth being sick the entire time :-)

Dahab in Egypt is all about shore diving (only a few ops have boats, otherwise you go to the sites by truck -- or even by camel if you chose that option).

While I didn't see any big fish while I was there last February (I stayed in the 50 ft range at the most, so that would have been very unlikely anyways, especially that time of the year), some SB members have reported sightings of sharks while diving the Blue Hole. You might want to look at the Red Sea subforum as well as Red Sea Shadow's website for more info about the big marine life there.

The Nekton does seem like a great liveaboard but if I were in your fins, I'd ask other people who usually get seasick if they ever stayed on it before spending $$$. It is my understanding that the little, slow motions are sometimes worse for people who get seasick than the big waves, but I could be wrong.

[Damselfish]

robint you did 24 dives? I've never been on a liveaboard before. I assumed it wouldn't be worth the money for as little diving as I thought went on. Will someone explain to me how most liveaboard trips really go. I looked at some sites for liveaboard but I guess maybe I didn't understand how it works.
which liveaboard sites did you look at? It almost sounds like you are thinking about cruise ships, which is an entirely different matter.

[duckie26]

at first I just googled different sites for liveaboard, then I looked at the Nekton website that robint listed, which obviously I missed something and was told I needed to review the itineraries which i had done also and printed them out. I think the best bet for my situiation would just be to go back to Bonaire.

[fmichaelk]

The shore diving is great in Fort Lauderdale and we do see larger creatures like manta rays, sting rays, manatees, nurse shark and so on. We just do not see them on every dive.

[WarmWaterDiver]

duckie26,

Consider Curacao in addition to Bonaire. We've been to Bonaire 3 times now, and will be on Curacao for our third trip there in June 2009. We swam with some 5' to 6' tarpon regularly on Bonaire.

Grand Cayman is a spot with lots of shore diving opportunities - the spot right by the turtle farm (old Divetech spot) was our favorite.

Also think about St. Croix - we encountered a 4'-6" long barracuda regularly at Cane Bay.

In Hawaii we had good shore diving on the big island (Captain Cook / Place of Refuge area) and Maui (Old Airport Beach was enjoyable). The vis at Kauai and all the construction work there kind of turned us off from going there again.

[duckie26]

Thank you WarmWaterDiver, I will look into those places, I do believe I will be better off shore diving instead of the liveaboard, so these suggestions will help. I will do some research on those places and see what I can find.