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Wife and I dove Bari Reef one night during our August 18-28th trip. As soon as we hit the water a single large tarpon arrived and by the end of the dive there were three. A little unnerving at first, then entertaining and then annoying. They were using our lights to hunt. Focusing on...

For the second year in a row I booked a trip on the Quino El Guardian. Last year it was a seven night southern Sea of Cortez trip. The Sea of Cortez and Socorro trips were my first liveaboard experiences. I traveled solo on both. I am AOW certified with about 170 dives (Roatan, Bonaire...

A video of my Nov/Dec 2019 Socorro Island trip aboard the Quino El Guardian.

I am heading to Socorro on Monday 11/25/19. I use the sites Windfinder and Windy for weather and wave information. It looks like we will have 6-8ft seas from the West and/or Northwest for most of the 9 night trip and breezy/windy at times. I am not worried about sea sickness (ok, maybe a...

I have been monitoring the sea temperatures off the Kona coast in preparation of a shore diving trip this September. The temperatures have been above normal. https://seatemperature.info/september/kailua-kona-water-temperature.html 2019 Bleaching articles. Looks like it will be severe...

We are staying at a VRBO on Heeia Bay (the small bay next to Keauhou Bay) in September. Looking at google earth as well as a navigation chart, Heeia Bay appears shallow for a few hundred yards but may be doable with a long surface swim. Has anybody dove this area from shore? Navigation chart...

Is there a procedure to condition a new 5mm wetsuit prior to use to avoid having to play the weight game? Last fall, with a new 3mm wetsuit, I started with 18lbs on my first dive and was down to 12lbs by my 10th dive. It would be nice if I could eliminate some of the extra inital buoyancy of...

I'm planning our second dive trip to the Philippines for early May 2019. Our first trip was to Puerto Galera in May of 2018. My wife and I are looking for a single resort for 10-14 nights. We are flying into Cebu City. While "island hopping" sounds intriguing, We would prefer not to spend...

Puerto Galera Trip Report - 5/16/18 to 5/27/18 My wife and I just returned from a 12 night stay at Scandi Divers located on Big Lalaguna Beach (Puerto Galera area), Philippines. Prior to the trip, we both had roughly 65 dives (Roatan, Bonaire, Kona Hawaii). My pre-trip research indicated this...

Finally got around to editing my GoPro footage. Stayed at the Sugar Cottage/dove with Gary and had a great time (check it out on VRBO). My wife and I dove two tanks/day for 6 days. Dive sites included Milolii, Pebble, 2-step and Ke'el. Pebble and 2-Step were our favorites. Saw a big...

I am looking to purchase a PADI AOW manual. Does anyone know the year of the current revision.

I am planning a trip to Puerta Galera for 10 days of diving in May. I have worked out all the details with the dive resort. They are requesting 20% down payment to be sent by wire to a bank in Manila. Does anyone know if this type of money transfer is typical for dive resorts in the Philippines?

My wife and I are planning a trip to the Philippines in May 2018 and would like to complete our AOW certifications while there. We completed our PADI OW certification while on vacation in 2015 and found the "book time" was fairly substantial. Any comments to the following would be greatly...

My wife and I are planning our next dive vacation for May 2018 and are seriously considering Puerto Galera, Big Lalaguna Beach. We have 67 total dives (~30 self guided shore dives) since OW certification in 2015. We have dove the Caribbean (Roatan and Bonaire) and Kona, Hawaii. We will most...

My wife and I are planning our next dive vacation for May/June 2018 and are considering Puerto Galera or Cozumel and need help choosing. We have 60 total dives (~30 self guided shore dives) since OW certification in 2015. We have dove Roatan, Bonaire and Kona, Hawaii. Currently researching...

I found several news articles that indicate an oil spill that originated in Trinidad has reached the east coast of Bonaire. The STINAPA Facebook page has lots of information concerning the cleanup efforts. Oil slick and tar pollute parts of east coast Bonaire - BES Reporter STINAPA Bonaire...

My wife and I are new divers (38 dives) and have only worn dive skins for protection so far. We were certified in 2015 on Roatan and returned in 2016 for two weeks. Both Roatan visits were in May and the water temperature was 82. We will be on Bonaire in two weeks. After reading several...

My wife and I will be on Bonaire for the first time in early June. I understand that trade winds, generally from the from the E, blow year round for the most part. The trade winds appear to peak in June (Windfinder.com - Wind and weather statistic Bonaire Airport). A couple of question: 1)...

I will be getting my PADI nitrox certification prior to an upcoming trip to Bonaire. I would like to add some Yoke tank valve o-rings to my kit. Are viton o-rings (Viton O-Ring, Brown, Qty of Five) compatible with both air and 32% nitrox?

I am considering purchasing the DGX 600 (beam angle 8 deg.) as my primary dive light for tropical diving. My main concern is that the beam angle might be to tight for night diving. Any thoughts?