I've been looking at God's Pocket (Port Hardy, BC). It doesn't get easier than an elevator !!
God's Pocket Resort - Boat Elevator - YouTube
God's Pocket Resort - Boat Elevator - YouTube
Who has easy boat AND dock entries and exits?
- Thread starter diverjen
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
K
KeithG
Guest
You may want to investigate divi further. Not only is the resort wheel chair accessible, but they have staff who are trained to handle special needs divers.
So I would assume they will be fully equipt to handle a wonky knee and make sure the appropriate precautions are taken.
On our last trip a physically disabled diver went out on the afternoon boat dive on the Alice (the pontoon boat) with us. The staff was able to get him in and out of the water and on and off the boat with no issues. It was obvious that they had done this before and where very comfortable with the situation. We later learned that there was a large group of mobility disabled divers coming from the Freedom At Depth Canada organization the following week.
So I would assume they will be fully equipt to handle a wonky knee and make sure the appropriate precautions are taken.
On our last trip a physically disabled diver went out on the afternoon boat dive on the Alice (the pontoon boat) with us. The staff was able to get him in and out of the water and on and off the boat with no issues. It was obvious that they had done this before and where very comfortable with the situation. We later learned that there was a large group of mobility disabled divers coming from the Freedom At Depth Canada organization the following week.
lmorin
Contributor
I have a neurological problem in both legs that really, really limits walking, leg strength and greatly affects my over-ground balance. It does not interfere much with actual diving/swimming. The BDA dock on Bari reef has been just great! Entry is via giant stride; exit is via a short set of stairs (10-12) with good railings. Recommended. For what it is worth, I have been using a collapsible aluminum cane (4 sections, bungee corded) to aid with shore diving. My wife stitched a holster for it and I hang it from my BC. The cane has provided a huge degree of stability on both entries and exits. Also recommended. After shore diving Bonaire under surge conditions, I have concluded that, leg problems aside, a cane is a truly useful shore diving accessory.
wwguy - I know I know.......
Lisa - you are so thoughtful and kind to share your experiences and knowledge. It is a few distinct issues. For the boat its the exit after the dive and yes it is a strength issue right now (which I hope will be resolved before I go) but also if it gets re tweaked a bit while shore diving or just tired after 10 days of diving I may need to baby it and have extra help getting gear up to the boat.
For shore diving, I am quite scared but I have read a lot about just getting in and having your buddy help with gear and then gearing in the water. I think this is going to be our strategy. Pre-injury there is no way I would have let anyone carry gear for me! I am not sure if this is gender related, but I have talked to my buddy (husband) a lot about this and I am more than willing to take help if I need it. I think that for those tricky entry sites that the me gearing in the water after entry is looking pretty good - either that or Curacao! Also that is a great suggestion about targeted PT - I will talk with my therapist about it.
JohnN - LOL! I am sure that is pretty handy when you are doing cold water dives and have a lot of weight!
giffenk - You are totally right. I need to look at Divi more, I have discounted them and the Plaza because of my love of Bari Reef (which is why I keep calling BDA, Bari), and that they are large resorts, but it does seem like they have great customer service and are geared to disabled divers. How's the house reef at Divi?
Imorin - thanks for the suggestions, I know I keep wondering if I will ever find a more streamlined setup than the BDA dock! Also that cane sounds pretty flippin awesome! (Yeah I fell last time in some surge, pre injury :depressed
I will do some more googling!
Lisa - you are so thoughtful and kind to share your experiences and knowledge. It is a few distinct issues. For the boat its the exit after the dive and yes it is a strength issue right now (which I hope will be resolved before I go) but also if it gets re tweaked a bit while shore diving or just tired after 10 days of diving I may need to baby it and have extra help getting gear up to the boat.
For shore diving, I am quite scared but I have read a lot about just getting in and having your buddy help with gear and then gearing in the water. I think this is going to be our strategy. Pre-injury there is no way I would have let anyone carry gear for me! I am not sure if this is gender related, but I have talked to my buddy (husband) a lot about this and I am more than willing to take help if I need it. I think that for those tricky entry sites that the me gearing in the water after entry is looking pretty good - either that or Curacao! Also that is a great suggestion about targeted PT - I will talk with my therapist about it.
JohnN - LOL! I am sure that is pretty handy when you are doing cold water dives and have a lot of weight!
giffenk - You are totally right. I need to look at Divi more, I have discounted them and the Plaza because of my love of Bari Reef (which is why I keep calling BDA, Bari), and that they are large resorts, but it does seem like they have great customer service and are geared to disabled divers. How's the house reef at Divi?
Imorin - thanks for the suggestions, I know I keep wondering if I will ever find a more streamlined setup than the BDA dock! Also that cane sounds pretty flippin awesome! (Yeah I fell last time in some surge, pre injury :depressed
I will do some more googling!
Believe me, I know exactly how you feel! I use to be Miss Independent as well. But age and shoulder surgery have mellowed me out and now I don't mind fluttering my eyelashes to get those big strong men to show off their muscles carrying gear for little 'ol me anytime! :blinking:
Last edited:
SayNo2Snow
Contributor
You mentioned Curacao as a possible destination... we were there for a couple of weeks in Feb - March and did our boat diving with Go West Diving up by Westpunt. They are a great operation, however there is a long set of concrete stairs to get from the parking lot to the dive shop at water level. They have 2 boats both of their boats have platforms off the back for a stride entry and about 3 steps up the ladder. The DM's and boat captains were very helpful.
The dock entry to their house reef (also called Alice in Wonderland) also permits a giant stride into the water and the stairs to clime up are great, rails on both sides and angled just like walking up stairs on land, about 6 steps... you can sort of see the stairs at the end of the dock on the page in the link below.
https://www.gowestdiving.com/about-us.html
Like Bonaire Curacao also has great shore diving, I asked a more travelled fellow diver one day what the difference was between Bonaire & Curaco, his reply was that they are very much the same but that Curacao's shore entries tended to be easier, less rugged. (although Bon has more of the large fish species),
The shore locations we dove were sandy beaches with no uneven rocky surfaces to navigate. We dove Cas Abou, Playa Langun andd Puerto Mari as they had facilities at those locations so we didn't have to cart air along with us. Air ranges for $8 - $10/tank.
Discover Diving is located at Play Langun where you will find a nice sandy beach (I found my first sea horse there) Discoverdiving & Restaurant -> Diving & Courses -> Divecenter they take you with their truck to other dive spots
Cas Abou has a great beach with restaurant and full facilities a great place to spend the day, lockers to keep your stuff in while diving. Again this is a sandy and easy shore entry Cas Abao Beach Watersports and Shop
Porto Mari also has a great beach with full facilities and an easy, sandy shore entry.
As we stayed up at the west end of the island, I cannot tell you about the operators or dive sites to the south. Although Ocean Encounters has a very good reputation.
... in the event you select Curacao for this trip, a couple of things to keep in mind - several of the apartment/condo style accomodations up near Westpunt tend to have stairs to a bedroom on the upper level, so keep that in mind but if you use VRBO you will see each place and the pictures. If you tend to stay in resorts/hotel, the stairs is not an issue.
at least do hook up with Go West Diving on Thursdays they have a Lion Fish hunting expedition with a feast of the Lionfish you just caught afterwards. I'd be happy to share our experiences)
I have a wonky knee too after a dirt biking injury and 2 surgeries several years ago I have no ACL in my left knee for stability. Some how I just know you will be dilligent following the exercises given by your physiotherapist
cheers and stay safe
Ann
The dock entry to their house reef (also called Alice in Wonderland) also permits a giant stride into the water and the stairs to clime up are great, rails on both sides and angled just like walking up stairs on land, about 6 steps... you can sort of see the stairs at the end of the dock on the page in the link below.
https://www.gowestdiving.com/about-us.html
Like Bonaire Curacao also has great shore diving, I asked a more travelled fellow diver one day what the difference was between Bonaire & Curaco, his reply was that they are very much the same but that Curacao's shore entries tended to be easier, less rugged. (although Bon has more of the large fish species),
The shore locations we dove were sandy beaches with no uneven rocky surfaces to navigate. We dove Cas Abou, Playa Langun andd Puerto Mari as they had facilities at those locations so we didn't have to cart air along with us. Air ranges for $8 - $10/tank.
Discover Diving is located at Play Langun where you will find a nice sandy beach (I found my first sea horse there) Discoverdiving & Restaurant -> Diving & Courses -> Divecenter they take you with their truck to other dive spots
Cas Abou has a great beach with restaurant and full facilities a great place to spend the day, lockers to keep your stuff in while diving. Again this is a sandy and easy shore entry Cas Abao Beach Watersports and Shop
Porto Mari also has a great beach with full facilities and an easy, sandy shore entry.
As we stayed up at the west end of the island, I cannot tell you about the operators or dive sites to the south. Although Ocean Encounters has a very good reputation.
... in the event you select Curacao for this trip, a couple of things to keep in mind - several of the apartment/condo style accomodations up near Westpunt tend to have stairs to a bedroom on the upper level, so keep that in mind but if you use VRBO you will see each place and the pictures. If you tend to stay in resorts/hotel, the stairs is not an issue.
at least do hook up with Go West Diving on Thursdays they have a Lion Fish hunting expedition with a feast of the Lionfish you just caught afterwards. I'd be happy to share our experiences)
I have a wonky knee too after a dirt biking injury and 2 surgeries several years ago I have no ACL in my left knee for stability. Some how I just know you will be dilligent following the exercises given by your physiotherapist
cheers and stay safe
Ann
uncfnp
Ann - Thanks for your post will all of that information. That is a fabulous recommendation about Thursday - I had no idea that was going on - but I love to eat those delicious lionfish. We snorkeled in Curacao on our return leg home from Bonaire last time at Lagun, Kaliki and Porto Marie and actually walked down to the Go West dive shop area to check it out. I remember all the stairs down and up from the parking lot. Even if we just buzz through there on the way to and from Bonaire these are great suggestions, TYSM!
Ann - Thanks for your post will all of that information. That is a fabulous recommendation about Thursday - I had no idea that was going on - but I love to eat those delicious lionfish. We snorkeled in Curacao on our return leg home from Bonaire last time at Lagun, Kaliki and Porto Marie and actually walked down to the Go West dive shop area to check it out. I remember all the stairs down and up from the parking lot. Even if we just buzz through there on the way to and from Bonaire these are great suggestions, TYSM!
Similar threads
