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Archive for December, 2009
Next time you are diving, don’t be surprised if you see an object looking suspiciously like a day-glo yellow Manta Ray fly by. Entrepreneurs from Wales have put on the market the Scubacraft, a strange boat/submersible combo guaranteed to please James Bond fanatics and technogeeks alike.
It’s the perfect gift for the diver who has every trinket known to man. Of course, with a $164k price tag you really have to like that diver. This product uses an internal-combustion engine to reach a dive site, then, at a touch of a button, takes the person onboard under the waves up to a depth of 100ft. There’s no pressurized cabin, so don your gear before pushing button or you’re in for a nasty bath. Computerized “automatic depth control” ensures that the Scubacraft won’t descend or climb too quickly, enabling the captain to avoid a nice case of the bends.
I’m not so sure I’m buying this device anytime soon, however. There is something to be said for the traditional scuba process of motoring out to a dive site with fellow divers on a clunky dive boat, going through the group ritual of suiting up, then returning to the boat afterwards to decompress (literally!) on the way back to the dock. I frequently find myself wanting not to speed up my scuba experiences, but rather slow them down so I can enjoy them longer.
‘Tis the season for gift giving, a time when many people stress out about purchasing the perfect present for their special someone. My family has caught on that I have a scuba affinity and so most of my gifts are ocean-themed (I get Dramamine in my stocking every year.)
Recently I was scanning the scuba catalogs for “Christmas Wish List” items and came across several pieces of “gear” of dubious purpose. Though they may look appealing on a glossy page, these trinkets are destined to be abandoned under a boat’s bench seat sometime in the future by a frustrated diver with a lighter wallet. Links to these actual products have been provided for your enjoyment.
Scuba Lobster Inn (W/Zipper) – “The most popular collection bag for lobstering.” Lobsters check in, but they can’t check out. When you are ready to eat, just unzip and boil. Comes in your choice of 4 colors, none of which you can see underwater.
Cold Water Mittens – 7mm neoprene mitts by Edge with velcro/elastic wrist closures. Warm, but not terribly useful if you need to use any fingers underwater. Plus, your little kid mittens will most likely draw the ridicule of fellow divers. Topside activities with this gear include making snowmen.
Aqua Maracas – “Shake things up next time your down! This lightweight, compact, underwater signaling device is audible over 30 feet away.” It’s a perfect complement to your Scuba Samba and guaranteed to frighten all the fish.
“Dive Naked” License Plate – Conceptually I like the idea, but in practice I would think there might be some chaffing associated with this activity. What I know for sure is that NO ONE at my place of employment needs to see me pull into the parking lot with this on my car.
5-Page Wrist Dive Slate (w/free extra pencil!) – For those who are inspired to write an entire novel while underwater or carry on a lengthy conversation on existentialism with their dive buddy. Or perhaps it is meant to capture a checklist of scuba steps: Step 1 – Inhale, Step 2- Exhale, Step 3- Inhale…People who bought this gift should have also bought the Guide to Underwater Hand Signals.
The Shark Shield – “The Shark Shield incorporates two electrodes, which project the field from the unit and thus create an invisible protective shield that surrounds the user…” Sort of like one of those canine electric fences, but for sea life. Order in the next ten minutes and we’ll include a free can of Turtle Repellent. One question: if it is invisible, how do you know its working?
The road to Atlantis?
Just 55 miles east of downtown Miami, Bimini sits on the edge of the Gulf Stream, so anything can happen underwater–and usually does. The Bimini Islands, near the northwest corner of the Great Bahaman Bank, are the closest Bahamian Islands to the United States. Bimini consists of North Bimini, South Bimini, and several smaller islands and cays originally settled by emancipated slaves from Nassau and then frequented by rum runners during Prohibition.
Dive spots in Bimini range from shallow reefs and wrecks to deep wrecks and walls dropping into the abyss of the Gulfstream waters. The corals are healthy and vibrant. More than 20 sites have permanent mooring buoys placed and maintained by commercial dive operators who welcome the use of the buoys by all boaters. Large schools of fish and other marine animals are attracted to the shallow waters around Bimini. The Gulf Stream, to the West of Bimini, brings hundreds of marine animals close to the islands. It’s not uncommon for visitors to see Loggerhead turtles, Southern stingrays, reef sharks, nurse sharks, and barracudas, along with many game fish and tropical fish. The reefs along Bimini’s protected shoreline range in depth from 35 feet to 95 feet with beautiful white sand bottoms. Other unique diving opportunities include strange underwater rock formations and pods of wild spotted dolphins. Some interesting dives include:
The Bimini Road – The Atlantis Road, or Bimini Road, is just off shore of North Bimini. Limestone blocks sit in 15-20 feet of water in two rows of parallel stones in a “road” formation. Many people speculate that the blocks are the remains of an underwater road to the lost continent of Atlantis, a mysterious explanation first proposed by an American psychic in the 1930’s. Since the 1970s, the structure has been explored by thousands of visitors, filmed for several TV specials, written about in books and magazines and drilled into by geologists. Natural, manmade, or Martian-made, you decide.
Bull Run – Bull Run is a popular shark dive south of the Biminis, a site frequented by the Blackbeard’s and Nekton live-aboard boats, as well as dive and pleasure boats from Bimini. The sharks get pretty used to associating divers with food and typically swim near, whether there is bait in the water or not. Ultra-clear water and high-profile coral heads make for a nice complement to the shark action.
The Kinks – The Kinks offers a scattering of patches of coral heads along a white sandy bottom perfect for night dives. The inner edge of the reef is at 38 – 40 feet. The outer edge lies at 42 – 51 feet. Sea creatures to look for include green morays, spotted eels, hawksbill turtles, lobster, crabs, hogfish, damsels, squirrelfish, and angelfish of all kinds. The occasional shark and remoras have also been spotted here.
Tuna Alley – Tuna Alley is a pristine reef system off of North Cat Cay, where high profile corals have formed walls at 45 feet that gently slope down to 80-100 feet. Divers can swim along a canyon with numerous crevices, caverns, and swim-throughs that exit 100 feet or more down the wall. When the current is running this site is a great drift dive. The site’s name comes from the scores of tuna often found schooling along the reef. In the deep, blue water divers may spot loggerhead turtles and reef or nurse sharks.
The Sapona – This 270-foot troop transport ship was built by Henry Ford in 1911 for WWI. After the war, the Sapona was used by rumrunners between the Bahamas and Florida during Prohibition. Hurricanes have left her where she is today, between South Bimini and Cat Cay, where she is only partially submerged. Her hull is riddled with holes from aircraft target practice bullets and time. Massive schools of grunts are found inside the stern section.
Because Bimini is just 50 miles from Miami, Florida, many people travel to Bimini on their own boats in about three hours. Charter air flights are also available from Miami and Ft. Lauderdale. North Bimini is connected to South Bimini by ferry or seaplane. South Bimini is quieter and mostly residential, but more and more cottages, condos, and resorts are developing here each year. Bimini’s remote location has left the islands with a unique, laid-back, small-town feel with a loyal fan base of recurring visitors. For the topside vibe and varied underwater opportunities, divers find themselves returning year after year.
With more than 300 known shipwrecks–large, small and in between and from warships and schooners to frigates and freighters–Bermuda has a built-in claim to diving fame. Unlike most shipwreck sites, which are located in deep waters, wreck diving around Bermuda is done in shallow waters at an average of about 40 to 50 feet. Also, the Atlantic waters of Bermuda are home to some of the most northern reef formations in the world. Although you can dive while visiting Bermuda almost any time of year, the best times to check out the underwater scenery are from May to November when the Atlantic is at its warmest. Bermuda’s dive season parallels the U.S. East Coast’s, with Water temps are in the mid-60s in winter; high 70s to mid-80s in summer. The visibility averages 70 to 100 feet.
Bermuda’s reef system covers 230 square miles and forms canyons, tunnels and archways that rise to meet the water’s surface. Though it lacks the coral diversity of Caribbean destinations, the Bermuda reef is obviously healthy, with no signs of bleaching or disease. The usual collection of reef fish, from small blennies to big parrotfish, are here, as well as black groupers, tarpon from September through March and even black sea hares.
Some interesting dives in Bermuda include:
King George – A 171-foot dredger scuttled in the 1930s, fully intact at 60 feet and teeming with fish life and a stunning array of soft corals.
Marie Celeste – A Civil War era paddlewheel steamer the Confederate Navy converted into a blockade-runner
Constellation – One of the shipwrecks used in the film “The Deep” by Peter Benchley. A 192 ft wooden hull schooner built in 1918 just over 200ft long sitting in 30 feet of water on the northwest end of the island.
Hermes - Purposely sunk and now an artificial reef, the Hermes, once a US built freighter, is one of the few wrecks that lies upright, intact and in 75ft of water. The great visibility of the south shore gives divers the chance to explore her from engines and deck winch to propeller and pilothouse.
Hangover Hole – Dramatic tunnels and arches are a major feature of this site. With many swim throughs and caves it is perfect for video and photography. Marine life is plentiful it is ideal to observe a wide range of Bermudas sea life. The depths range from 10 to 43 ft.
Ceasar - An English brig sunk in 1818 on a reef off the West End of Bermuda, sitting in 35 feet of water. A cargo of grindstones, medicine vials and glassware can still be seen today surrounding the site.
Bermuda is one of the safest, cleanest and most efficient destinations in the Caribbean. There are more golf courses here per square mile than any other place on the planet, museums, shopping, a rich history and a unique culture. The groomed resorts, the pink sand beaches, the quaint cottages and the businessmen decked out in power ties, shorts, dark socks and dress shoes–they’re all the real culture of Bermuda.
The Bond movie Thunderball was on late night TV yesterday. It’s got all the makings of a great Bond film: bad guys, women, nuclear warheads, women, extortion, women, and best of all lots of scuba diving. The flick is from 1965, when diving was much rarer and inaccessible than it is today, making the scuba scenes even more important to the success of the movie. But even today the movie industry uses scuba diving as a way to add action and skimpy bathing suits to spice up the screen. A few examples:
Sean Connery, Thunderball – 1960’s James Bond heads to The Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads. This film is chock full of kitschy scuba diving content including archaic dive gear and shots of sharks that were probably somebody’s pet. If you want to live out your Bond fantasies, you can still dive the Thunderball wreck in the Bahamas.
Hank Azaria, Along Came Polly - This movie was awful, except for a entertaining guest appearance by Hank Azaria as Claude, the smarmy French scuba diving teacher (you can shut it off after his scene is over.) If you have ever dove in a French-influenced place such as French Polynesia you can relate to the speedo-wearing, galoise-smoking, soap-deficient French divemasters out there who pray to the God Cousteau before they go to bed each night.
Jessica Alba, Into the Blue – Lots of diving, lots of skimpy bathing suits. Scuba sex still sells.
Owen Wilson & Bill Murray, Life Aquatic – This is an odd movie: either you love it or you hate it (we here at scuba-dive.org love it’s quirky, offbeat style.) It’s underwater-themed plot enables plenty of diving scenes and sea life shots. Wilson and Murray aren’t exactly sx symbols with scuba gear, but they hold their own.
Woody Harleson, After The Sunset – Jewel theft, the Bahamas, and lots of diving. What more could you want? Brings new meaning to Paradise Island.
Pierce Brosnan, Tomorrow Never Dies– 1990’s James Bond throws on the scuba gear yet again. This time the plot, surprising, includes: bad guys, women, nuclear warheads, women, and extortion. This gear is much more high-tech then last time, and is used more to compliment the plot rather than carry it along. To her credit Michelle Yeoh, the headstrong female lead, doesn’t just flop around helplessly in her gear. Rather, she makes diving look easy.
CubaGooding Jr, Men of Honor– Gooding plays Carl Brashear, the first African American US Navy Diver. The movie is intense, but you get enough insight into the origins of dive gear to really appreciate the gear you use now, no matter how many times your mask floods.
Sponge Bob, Square Pants – Don’t hate us for throwing this in. He lives under the Pacific Ocean in the town of “Bikini Bottom” for clam’s sake. He has to use scuba gear at some point. Did you know this is the most watched cable television show right now? Think of all of the kids (and, sadly adults) that think starfish talk.
Located some 60 miles east of Nassau, Eleuthera and Harbour Island feature both peaceful topside scenery and underwater adrenaline rushes. Wrecks, reefs, and inland blue holes, make these islands fun to dive, but by far the highlight is the Current Cut, a 10 knot drift dive, the fastest in the Caribbean. Divers are dropped off at one end by the dive boat then fly past large coral heads and colorful filter feeders until the tidal channel spits them out the other side.
There is a concentration of excellent wrecks near Harbor Island. The Devil’s Backbone off nearby Spanish Wells has claimed many ships over the years, and at least one train. The train was aboard a barge that sank during the Civil War and can be dived in 30 feet of water. Other wrecks include a 200-foot freighter from 1919 and the wreck of a 265-foot freighter that sank in 1971.
Other interesting dive sites in Eleuthera and Harbour Island include:
Plateau: 45-100ft. Rolling coral mounds, undercut by ledges
The Arch: A giant arch of coral that forms a nearly concealed grotto
Current Cut: Divers ride the current through a marine menagerie of fish and Eagle Rays
The Pinnacles: 100 ft. Dive on a cavernous mountain of coral
Carnavon: 35 ft. This intact 200-foot freighter sank in 1919
Smuggler’s Plane Wreck – 70ft. Drug smuggler’s four-passenger plane covered in soft corals and fish
The main island of Eleuthera is a destination for those interested in history and nature. Natural attractions include the Glass Window Bridge, Hatchet Bay caves and Surfer’s Beach in the north, and Ocean Hole and Lighthouse Beach at the south end. Preacher’s Cave on the north end was home to the Eleutherian Adventurers in the mid-17th century, and recent excavations have uncovered Arawak remains at the site. There is not a lot of nightlife on these islands, but after all of the diving and topside exploring, you’ll be asleep before the sun fully sets.
At a party last night I was trying to explain the finer points of underwater communications to a non-diver. Though I found the conversation stimulating, I’m pretty sure I did a bad job, since I left the party phone-numberless. I’ve revised my thoughts into the highlights below.
Highlights of Underwater Communication
Signal: one hand, fist clenched, thumb pointing up
Meaning: I want to surface now because I am: tired, hungry, low on air, bored, needing a margarita, or I just don’t like diving with you anymore.
Signal: hand held flat, palm down, making a sawing motion across the neck
Meaning: I’m out of air. Unless I sprout gills I’ll be dead soon.
Signal: hand held flat, fingers pointing up on the top of the head like a shark fin
Meaning: A shark fin. Rest of shark attached. Swim fast.
Signal: hand held flat, palm touching mouth
Meaning: I am low on air. I am about to rip your air regulator out of your mouth so I can use it. Or, you can pass it to me. Your choice.
Signal: index and middle finger touching the mask, then pointing outwards at an object
Meaning: There is something very interesting that you must see. Ha, ha, I saw it first.
”If only I could make money at scuba diving, then I could do it all the time!”
Divers across the globe lament time and time again as they pack up their gear to return home at the end of their dive trips. Actually, many jobs involve scuba beyond the obvious occupations: dive shop owner (too costly), dive instructor (too many mask flood drills), and dive master (too many foolish people in the sea). A few positions to consider:
Federal stimulus dollar recipient – An opportunity to recoup the tax dollars you “donated” to the economy! The Northwest Marine Conservation Initiative received $4.6 million in stimulus funds to recover most of the nets on the bottom of Puget Sound, and is using the funds to hire divers to remove the ensnaring debris. Make money, scuba dive and save the environment, all at the same time. Next you can conquer world hunger…
“Whatever you do, don’t push the red button” Tester – Thousands of new scuba gear products come out each year (hopefully) well tested by their manufacturer. Become a product tester and reap the rewards of free scuba stuff! Note: demand actual currency compensation for any product testing that involves neon neoprene or gear that combusts upon incorrect button selection.
Aquarium Marriage Proposal Delivery Person – You know those viral YouTube videos shot in aquariums where a scuba diver swims up to a couple at the tank window with a “Will you marry me?” sign? Yes, that can be you (holding the sign I mean, I can’t guarantee someone wants to marry you). Other scuba responsibilities include cleaning the fake rock and avoiding being eaten by the agitated hammerhead recently introduced to the tank.
GI Joe/Jane Diver – Fulfill your James Bond fantasies (tux and martinis not included) by doing underwater surveillance for the military. Job may include the opportunity to use the latest in scuba technology (fun) and the opportunity to clear mines (not so fun). Combine your hobbies for a blast of excitement!