Best trips to log dives?

[Steve_C]

4-5 dives a day with NC wreck diving? That is the exception. Most dive trips are two tank and a few are three tank trips. A private charter inshore might get to four but not that common. I have managed to get 4 in once but it was two two tank inshore dive trips with the second SI a boat ride in and a boat ride out. Aquatic Safaris now runs that to the Dredge/Stone once in a while on their smaller boat. Nice little dives but not what folks think of as NC wreck diving.

 

[KathyV]

Hey folks,
I'm looking for suggestions on great trips to log lots of dives! I've been diving since 2003 but I need to rebuild my logbook if I'm going to move forward in my cert plans. I'm living in Colorado these days, so I expect to travel a bit. (I know, bad time to travel now but not bad for planning!) Also, you know, more diving is clearly required.

So far, it seems like the best value is in the live aboard trips. 25+ dives in a week would rack them up quickly.

Any suggestions for other options? Currently pondering going back to hawaii, belize or BVI since I'm familiar with the areas.

When do you want to travel? Since you are at the university are you looking at the spring, summer, and holiday breaks? Spring/Easter and Christmas/Winter are 2 of the most expensive seasons to travel, but you can find some decent deals if you research and plan in advance. Summer is a cheaper time of year to travel to many destinations but keep in mind that there may be a lot of families with kids traveling to some destinations.

 

[drrich2]

So now I'm seriously trying to plan a blackbeard's trip... and my wife already wants to go too.

Haven't been; here are threads where others have shared info. that might help you.

JlcNuke’s 2017 My Blackbeard's Cruise Report - My Blackbeard's Cruise Report Includes some need-to-know discussion about bathing and bathroom concerns.
T.C.’s Report on Blackbeards May 2014 - http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/bahamas/484271-trip-report-blackbeard-s-cruises-24-30-may.html
Kimbalabala’s Blackbeards review 2013 - http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/wo...-liveaboard.html?highlight=Blackbeards+review
Craig66’s Question thread about Blackbeards - http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/li...stion-about-dives-blackbeards-liveaboard.html

 

[willo]

When do you want to travel? Since you are at the university are you looking at the spring, summer, and holiday breaks? Spring/Easter and Christmas/Winter are 2 of the most expensive seasons to travel, but you can find some decent deals if you research and plan in advance. Summer is a cheaper time of year to travel to many destinations but keep in mind that there may be a lot of families with kids traveling to some destinations.

Oh god no more uni work for me. I'm a network engineer at a company with a bird logo. This is why I can afford to go diving now.

 

[willo]

Yes, this is a very different picture. Your plan for more experience is good. I also image you could reconstruct the dive count for those classes and present that to an instructor. If you were a 30' etc. scientific diver (AAUS, 100 hours of instruction, 10 dives, roughly NAUI MSD + Rescue + DAN) and helped TA that a few times, that is a significant cert. (30' + multi year TA myself)

Very different picture than the appearance of 'I need dives for my DM quick'. Good luck.

I didn't want to get too distracted in the original post, but figured I'd add context since folks were interested.

 

[Chavodel8en]

If you find a good shore diving location and a buddy, you can dive dive dive according to your schedule. If they are shallow enough, you can do 4+ dives a day. I understand Bonaire is a good shore diving destination. Oahu has several good shore diving spots, but they are dispersed farther away from each other. There may be others I am not familiar with. Monterey/Carmel has some shore diving, but as much as I love it, I would be heading to warmer waters if I wanted to dive dive dive.

If you dive off a boat, you will be limited by the boat's schedule. And shore diving is cheaper.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I didn't want to get too distracted in the original post, but figured I'd add context since folks were interested.

Thanks for giving the backstory. Now I can see how you might feel you’ve got some experience and just need to document X dives already.

 

[stuartv]

I didn't want to get too distracted in the original post, but figured I'd add context since folks were interested.

As you can see, when you leave out info, some people around here will automatically assume the worst.

It sounds like you have a lot of good experience already. Way better than many Divemaster candidates when they start out.

As for taking your wife on a Blackbead cruise, just be aware that it's very much like going camping. Sharing a big tent with a bunch of other people. They do have a small number of berths that are wide enough for you to share, if you want. There was one family on the cruise I did, with the husband, wife, and son all sharing one compartment that had a single and a double in it.

If you would rather go on a similar liveaboard that is a little more "couples friendly", the company that runs the Blackbeard cruises is AllstarLiveaboards.com. They run the Cat Ppalu out of the same marina. I think it's about $700 per person more than a Blackbeard cruise. Otherwise, I think it's the same basic itinerary.

That is just FYI. I have not done the Cat Ppalu. I went on the Blackbeard cruise with a few other people from my local shop, so I knew about half the people on the boat. Everyone was really nice.

 

[scubadada]

Hi @willo

if you are going to do a liveaboard with your wife, might want to choose one a bit upscale from Blackbeard's. I did Cayman Aggressor V and got in 24 dives in 6 days Cayman Aggressor V, November 24-December 1, 2018 Depending on the time you have, you could stay over on Grand Cayman and get in some more dives, including good shore dives.

 

[Aviyes]

You read about advertisements of 24 dives on a liveaboard, but only 35 minutes per dive. I don't pay for dives under 60 minutes or I must abord them myself. My average divetime is now about 67 minutes over 2100 dives, including the shorter dives in winter because of the cold.

Incorrect. All the Caribbean LOBs that I have been on through Aggressor and Explorer Ventures just state the max depth/time, usually 60 min unless a deep dive, but its really NDL/air consumption as long as you are the first in and don't mind not following the guide. I had many dives of 60-70 min on the T&C Explorer II.