Aldora Divers trip report

[MXGratefulDiver]

i found that interesting, too. i have been to all three places. fish life and coral is clearly best in bonaire. and between roatan and cozumel i prefer coz because of the more dramatic underwater topography - not to mention that there is a town that offers some entertainment and many great restaurants. i think what he means by convenience is that in bonaire and CocoView you can shore dive. however, getting there is a whole different story. as far as bang for the buck i'd say bonaire is way more pricey - flight, accomodations, food. of course, you can choose to do all dives from the shore and that way make up some of the difference.

The topography was the high point of the trip ... I love the swim-throughs, which you don't get so much of in Roatan (and not at all in Bonaire) ... but there are trade-offs. I love abundant marine life ... especially things like frogfish, sea horses, and nudibranchs. Didn't see any of those in Coz ... most likely due to Wilma. And you nailed it with the shore diving. We're used to that where I live, and I'm comfortable with it. I like being able to just get in the water whenever I feel like it, and dive without a DM telling me when it's time to end the dive. I even enjoy doing some solo dives in those places. Can't do that in Coz.

Pilot Fish - I was on the trip with TSandM ... so I dived with Aldora ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Bob, you and I should plan a Gratefully Dedicated Dive Trip to Wakatobi some time with a bunch of like-synapsed water hippies...talk about unlimited dive time...

That's one place I considered for next year's trip to Indonesia ... but eventually decided in favor of going north to Tasik Ria and KBR for that week ... we're doing approximately a week each in Bali, Komodo and Sulawesi. We will be using Wakatobi's liveaboard (the Pelagian) for the Komodo segment of our trip ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[pilot fish]

Pilot Fish - I was on the trip with TSandM ... so I dived with Aldora ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)[/QUOTE]

Ahh, that clears it up. Obviously Christi knew that from off the Board .There was no indication of that on the Board in this thread

 

[pilot fish]

Basically, anyplace that does not offer shore diving is not going to be high on your list. There is a view that just doing shore diving limts you to overdove spots. You really need to do a boat dive to get to some interesting places that a land locked shore diver can't get to. I think maybe your dive budget is more limited.

The topography was the high point of the trip ... I love the swim-throughs, which you don't get so much of in Roatan (and not at all in Bonaire) ... but there are trade-offs. I love abundant marine life ... especially things like frogfish, sea horses, and nudibranchs. Didn't see any of those in Coz ... most likely due to Wilma. And you nailed it with the shore diving. We're used to that where I live, and I'm comfortable with it. I like being able to just get in the water whenever I feel like it, and dive without a DM telling me when it's time to end the dive. I even enjoy doing some solo dives in those places. Can't do that in Coz.

Pilot Fish - I was on the trip with TSandM ... so I dived with Aldora ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Christi]

Makes me wonder if YOU read MY post and whom it was addressed to? I was asking Bob, NWgratefuldiver, who HE dove with. I know the OP dive with Aldora.:shakehead...

...Obviously Christi knew that from off the Board .There was no indication of that on the Board in this thread

No that's not how I knew. Bob was mentioned in the OP's report as he traveled with her and was part of her group. They also discussed in in several posts prior to the trip. It's called observation, so go roll your eyes at someone else.

 

[pilot fish]

No, I'm rolling my eyes at YOU. Bob could have been her husband. BOB could have been anyone. It is a common name. You obviously had some knowledge about that trip that was NOT obvious in THIS thread.

Yes, and Bob wasmentioned in the OP's report as he traveled with her and was part of her group...so go roll your eyes at someone else.

 

[cowboyneal]

That's one place I considered for next year's trip to Indonesia ... but eventually decided in favor of going north to Tasik Ria and KBR for that week ... we're doing approximately a week each in Bali, Komodo and Sulawesi. We will be using Wakatobi's liveaboard (the Pelagian) for the Komodo segment of our trip ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Any spaces on this trip? I'm actually easier to get along with than my make believe persona I created for Scubaboard (LOL!!!!)...I'd pass on the Bali and hook up in Komodo and do Sulwesi as well...spend the first week in Waka...

 

[pilot fish]

"They also discussed in in several posts prior to the trip. It's called observation, so go roll your eyes at someone else.]"] christi

No, it's not called OBSERVATION, it's called constantly reading the Cozumel thread and everything that pertains to it, which not all of us do. There are other places in the World besides Coz, you know.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Basically, anyplace that does not offer shore diving is not going to be high on your list. There is a view that just doing shore diving limts you to overdove spots. You really need to do a boat dive to get to some interesting places that a land locked shore diver can't get to. I think maybe your dive budget is more limited.

Ah ... no. This is wrong on all counts.

It's not the shore diving, per se, that appeals to me ... it's the freedom to make and execute my own dive plans that does. I sometimes wake up at 4:30 in the morning wanting to go diving. Places like Bonaire and Roatan give me the option to do that.

And it's not necessarily true that shore dives are limited to overdove spots ... or that you need a boat dive to find interesting dives. I've gone shore diving on days when I didn't see another diver all day, and come out of the water on some of them just vibrating with excitement over what I saw. Perspectives are based on experiences ... mine are very different than yours.

Oh ... and FWIW ... my dive budget is approximately $15K to $20K per year over the past five years or so ... my preferences have more to do with perceived value than with cost.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

No, I'm rolling my eyes at YOU. Bob could have been her husband. BOB could have been anyone. It is a common name. You obviously had some knowledge about that trip that was NOT obvious in THIS thread.

Common knowledge ... the trip's been discussed in several different threads. Most people know that Lynne's husband is Peter, and that we're all close friends. That gets discussed often on many threads on ScubaBoard. Not trying to be argumentative ... but it's just that people who participate in discussions here do tend to associate certain relationships without spelling it out.

Also, we met Christi while we were in Coz ... she lives there ya know ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)