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l will second all of the recommendations here for the Ibis Styles. My wife and I stayed there during the 12 hour layover between our arrival in Jakarta and our continuation to Kaimana, then again during the full day we had between returning from Sarong and catching our flight back to CA. It...

I see nobody here suggested the Palau Siren ;-) I was on the Tambora in Raja Ampat last week and one of the other couples on our boat was on the Palau Siren last August when it sank with all their dive gear on board. Siren offered to pay them for their loss with a credit for their next Siren...

I'll second the comments from an earlier poster about Tambora. I just got home from a 12 day trip on Tambora and it was awesome. The boat owner, Uwe, is a very precise, detail-oriented German engineer who is a true diving enthusiast. He went with us on almost every dive and definitely knew...

I just got back to CA last night after traveling all the way from Sorong. We started our trip by flying from Jakarta to Kaimana on Lion Air, and that was a disaster. As I was boarding the turboprop in Ambon somebody decided my carry-on bag was too big to fit in the overhead bin so they forced...

Wesley and I are leaving Dec 5 for RA, doing a 12 day liveaboard trip. I'll let you know how it was when we get back. Bruce

Someone claimed very recently that there was a new version of Windows 10 that did support the IRDA stack. So I downloaded this new version on November 17, installed it, and tried once again. The result: "This device is not working properly because Windows cannot load the drivers required for...

After my hard drive crashed, I had to get a new computer. These days, that means it has to be Windows 10. I managed to recover my log files for my Galileo Sol/SmartTrak, but was surprised to learn my IRDA doesn't work on Windows 10. (See Windows 10 Pro: USB IrDA adapter driver installation...

You can probably find a place to wedge in almost any time of day so I wouldn't let the question of finding the best parking place be the determinant. Instead, I would pay attention to the tide tables the day you are going and try to avoid full low tide. The boat ramp is fairly nasty at full...

He's right: DOT does mandate a visual inspection as a part of the hydrostatic testing. I didn't do hydro tests, so wasn't familiar with that. I sent all the tanks that came to me for hydro out to a test facility and they did it. But that is the only time DOT gets involved with visual...

First off, DOT has nothing to do with standards on visual inspections. That is an industry standard and about the closest you can come to any authority trying to set uniform standards is PSI (PSI-PCI - Home). But DOT does have everything to do with hydrostatic tests. The standards for doing...

Thanks for the report, Andrew. Now I don't feel so bad about not driving down. I saw some earlier pictures taken above the surface that showed dazzlingly clear water and just felt ill that I missed it. But that's OK...I'm on my way to San Clemente & Catalina on Wednesday.

Sunday we headed south and were planning on going well past the Point Sur lighthouse. Listening to the NOAA weather forecast, though, we decided to moderate those plans considerably. There was a forecast for some fairly stiff winds in the afternoon. So our first dive was at Allen's Arch, just...

Been there, done that. Nice clear, warm water...with nothing to see but driftwood and crawdads.

About 10 years ago I worked as a DM at LCBR. We used to laugh at the guests who came in the summer on the MAP and then sat around the pool eating chips for lunch. They were the stingiest tippers ever! But to an earlier point...you can get lunch at the Hungry Iguana or at the Beach Bum Café...

As a general rule, Priceof(Sol)=Priceof(Luna) + Priceof(PMG) + Priceof(HRM). Thus there is absolutely no reason to buy the Sol instead of the Luna unless you know you're going to be using both PMG and the HRM. But this is all retail pricing for new, original owner purchases. If you're buying...

It looks you're on the right path, but about to run into a dead end. Yes, all that information is very easy to change with SmartTRACK. The last time I talked with Jules about Mac's I think he told me that was a no-go. That may have changed by now, though, because I sold my dive shop over a...

I watched 4 of them yesterday in the shallows between BW and Lover's. What an amazing site so close to shore!

My vote would be for Brac Scuba Shack. For many years, Martin managed Reef Divers on both Little Cayman and Cayman Brac. He is a very good fellow and I've heard nothing but good reports about his dive operation from people who have used him. During the winter I go out from shore almost daily...

Meubin, you posted this morning about S. Monastery so I take it your dive was yesterday? I was just studying the swell forecasts, studying buoy data, etc., and thinking about going down on Tuesday. But then I saw your post above and you're doing a good job of talking me out of it! But then I...

Browsing through the above posts makes it clear that the first question you need to answer is what you want to do with that DM certification after you have completed it. Do you really want to spend your time taking cruise ship passengers on DSD's or are you planning on going on to OWSI? I'm...