Guided scooter – as in diver propulsion vehicle (DPV) - in Kona?

[diver858]

Guided Apollo scooter tours can be found in South Maui (I recommend Maui Dreams), but not on Kona. Jack's Diving Locker has a relatively recent YouTube video promoting the option, but their website only offers the PADI DPV course, which appears to be based from a boat - kinda defeats the purpose of using a scooter.

Anyone aware of scooter options for shore diving in the greater Kona area?

 

[diversteve]

I've seen it mentioned that Kona Honu does scooter dives. They also list shore diving on their site. worth a call..

 

[grantwiscour]

First I've heard of scooters around Kona. Please update the post when you find out more.

Thanks!

 

[diver858]

Jack's is willing to rent the Apollo for $100 per day / $600 per week - provided you pay for a private guide ($200), plus a boat or shore dive ($135 per person). Bit too rich for 1 or 2 people, I am exploring other options.

Anyone visiting the Kona area in late April or early May, interested in splitting the private guide fee?

 

[Aquanomad]

My dive buddy and I live down in South Point and both have Genesis 1200s. We have been talking for over a year about doing charters down here and offering DPV guided tours. The off the beaten path diving here in Kau is amazing and in my opinion blows the Kona coast away. The problem is limited weather windows and the willingness of customers to pay for the experience.
I would note that there are not many sites that would make shore diving easy with a scooter. Timing getting in is reasonable but its also easy to get further away from your exit with the DPV making the exit tricky. I think the combination of DPV and boat is the way to go. Gets you on better sites and have a live boat in case things go sideways. Its just difficult to find a price point that makes it profitable for the operator and affordable for the customer.
Pic attached is one of the benefits of of dpv diving.

 

[coloradojay]

Diver 858, we haven't book our dates yet but that's the timeframe we're looking at being in Kona and I'd be interested in giving DPV a try.

That said, I've never used one. Is it the case that once you've got the cert (presumably from them which would serve as their check-out of your skills), they'd let you rent them without the guide or is it that you always need a guide and/or charter to rent their DPVs?

Here's what their site says "With a little classroom instruction one afternoon followed by a 2 tank morning charter, you will learn to scoot around safely. Once you obtain the specialty you can rent the DPV and scoot around on your next charter! "

 

[diver858]

Diver 858, we haven't book our dates yet but that's the timeframe we're looking at being in Kona and I'd be interested in giving DPV a try.

That said, I've never used one. Is it the case that once you've got the cert (presumably from them which would serve as their check-out of your skills), they'd let you rent them without the guide or is it that you always need a guide and/or charter to rent their DPVs?

Here's what their site says "With a little classroom instruction one afternoon followed by a 2 tank morning charter, you will learn to scoot around safely. Once you obtain the specialty you can rent the DPV and scoot around on your next charter! "

I simply emailed Jack's, there was no mention of the course as a prerequisite. Same for scooter dives with 3 different outfits on Maui over several years.

It is one thing to tool around on a scooter, entirely another to take full advantage of its capabilities to find unique experiences. For me, I am interested in the latter (like the image in Aquanomad's post), see little value in renting a scooter without a knowledgeable, experienced guide.

I have no formal training, quick briefing prior to the dive has been more than enough for me. There are some safety considerations, particularly if diving relatively deep - important to watch your depth, do not go up or down too quickly. With that said: my wife did not get it on her first attempt, ended up in a circle, decided to bail, I went out alone with the guide. Like anything else, there are benefits in gaining knowledge and proficiency, would not discourage anyone from first taking the course.

Most of our recent dives on the Big Island have been with KDC, we have also had a great night shore dive experience with http://www.divingbellscuba.com, Chad is interested in acting as a guide, trying to help locate scooters. I have not yet asked KDC if they are able, willing to make any such arrangements.

 

[coloradojay]

I understand the value of a guide, I even hired one in Bonaire for a shore dive because he knew the location of 3 separate sea horses- worth every penny. I saw mention of shore-diving, but that turns out it was in someone else's post. I'll stay tuned to see if the dates work out.

 

[sea_ledford]

Might want to check with Balanced Divers (http://www.balanceddivers.com/home.html). Tyler might have scooters to rent.

-Chris

 

[garrytuba]

Yes, Chad Bell (www.divingbellscuba.com) has been getting involved with the scooters and may be of some service. I use him for my guests (sugar-inc.com) when they need to be certified before I take them out on diving tours in south Kona.