WANTED: Inexpensive diving on Izu

[ciedd]

West Coast Izu - Kumomi can be around 8000 for 2 boat dives.

 

[jagfish]

I checked with my Japanese dive buddy. I asked how much we were paying for hydro's he said Y3000 in Yokohama. Probably got a discount though since we have over 60 tanks. I also asked about the fee that gets paid to the Japanese Fishing Association in some areas. He said that it's true that theres not a law saying we have to pay, but it is a custom to pay and people alway pay it. Don't know how much someone would want to rock the boat. He tells me in Izu it's normally only around Y300. I'll find out if there are any recent changes when I dive there next weekend.

Hey Bill
I used to dive Hayama once in a while with a buddy or two from Yokosuka. They've both since PCS'd. It could be a good dive for me at times. It's certainly close for the guys living in that area. To be honest, the entry got a bit old for me in a hurry. Sloshing and bouncing over sharp rocks and holes in low waves for 150 meters while wearing a $2,000 drysuit and carrying a $1,500 dollar canister light just didn't make sense after a while. I elected to pay for smoother entries, but a longer drive.

Maybe see you sometime. Say hi to Greg if and when you see him...

Jim

 

[bill22]

Hey Bill
I used to dive Hayama once in a while with a buddy or two from Yokosuka. They've both since PCS'd. It could be a good dive for me at times. It's certainly close for the guys living in that area. To be honest, the entry got a bit old for me in a hurry. Sloshing and bouncing over sharp rocks and holes in low waves for 150 meters while wearing a $2,000 drysuit and carrying a $1,500 dollar canister light just didn't make sense after a while. I elected to pay for smoother entries, but a longer drive.

Maybe see you sometime. Say hi to Greg if and when you see him...

Jim

Hi Jim, I know it's a hell of an entry compared to anything else I had ever had to do. I made a few beach dives in Florida where we might have had to worry about getting beyond the surf line, but nothing like this ) I think I mentioned before I had taken a break from diving. Bought all new equipment. It got that "used" look really fast diving in Hayama )

Still... I really love Hayama, the more I dive there. Can't say I love the entry but, I've gotten used to it. It's convenient, there is good fish life, and every dive is different. I might get dived out of it eventually, but for now I like it . Besides it's basically free.... my budget doesn't allow me to pay to go diving as often as I would like I don't mind paying every once in a while. I'm sure I probably will pay for a few trips while I'm here. The club allows me to dive more often though.

I'll be going back to days in a couple of weeks. I may start making some trips further afield after that. I'm really looking forward to going to Izu and I've heard a lot about the Izu Islands to.

I see Greg all the time, he's still very active in the club. He's been busy with his full time job. I'll be starting my Rescue Diver with him soon. One of those things I put off for years that I need to go ahead and do ) I'll definitely say hi to him for you.

 

[bill22]

West Coast Izu - Kumomi can be around 8000 for 2 boat dives.

That's good to know. Y300 was for shore dives. That's what most of our diving is. I wouldn't mind paying Y8000 for a two tank boat dive. That sounds very reasonable for Japan. Thanks for the info

 

[CanadianSushi]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for the tips received so far (both in the forum and via PM)... I'll keep everyone updated on my progress in hunting for cheap dive shops...

Just finished a 3-day dive trip in Futo -- went with Papalagi again for one day and I finally managed to get in with my dive buddy's group -- the one that's afraid of foreigners.

Well, he didn't seem too terrified of me -- it was inexpensive enough too... He's a very skilled dive guide and he showed us some wonderful stuff underwater, but I cannot consider him as a serious option on a regular basis -- the most important consideration being the fact that his (cheap) accommodations will only hold 3 people, whereas if I want to bring my wife, there would be four of us. Second, being the foreigner thing again -- seems that 2 foreigners is OK right now, but faced with the prospect of taking a third may be just a bit much for him still at this point.

Thanks to ciedd for the new tips (that I haven't heard of before) and to Bill: help me figure out a way for us regular folk to get on-base... You've got a hellava good deal... Or like Mar Scuba said -- bring some extra tanks with you and let us dive with you... ;-)

Anyway, it was a lovely, lovely weekend. I didn't get as many good pictures this time -- but I thought I'd share my favorite from Sunday... It's some kind of Batfish I believe... From what limited resources I have, I THINK it's a Platax orbicularis (Orbiculate or Round Batfish). Some call it the "ugly duckling" of batfishes, but I respectfully disagree... There was a pair of them very close to the Yokobama entry point. (Taken with a Ricoh Caplio RR30 in a Sea&Sea DX3000 underwater housing).

 

[Geoff_H]

That's an awesome shot of the batfish - the vis looks great. Was that taken with a strobe?

Also, are my eyes deceiving me or is the top of the batfish actually out of the water? Surely not but that's how it looks to me?

 

[CanadianSushi]

Thanks, Geoff... No, no strobe.... The sun was at my back, and indeed -- your eyes don't deceive you -- the fin of the batfish is actually out of the water. There were two of them and they seemed to be "playing" at the surface...

I don't know batfish very well -- is that normal behavior?

 

[Geoff_H]

Checking my Debelius book (Asia Pacific Reefguide) I would agree that is a young Round batfish. The annotation states "Small juveniles float at the surface with the current or wind-driven land debris, in particular orange-brown leaves".

Here is a adult tailfin batfish that was hanging around during some safety stops in Truk, lots of particulate in the water though.

 

[bill22]

Our Japanese members are making all the arrangements for our trip this weekend. Discovered at the last meeting that apparently we're also taking a few cases of beer as a "gift" for the local fishermans association. Hey... nothing wrong with promoting international relations ) I should know a little more about Izu after this weekend and I'll post a trip report next week with any new tidbits I find out. I'm really looking forward to the weekend. Thanks to everyone who has posted on this thread

Went diving last Wednesday in Tokyo Bay off the base. Vis was pretty bad, but hey it was a night dive anyway ;-) Lucky to have 2 meters of vis. Still pretty stirred up from the typhoon. Had to work all weekend so no diving :-( Still practicing my U/W photo. Got a long way to go )

 

[Geoff_H]

Have a blast bill, you do know which dive sites in Izu you're going to ?