Catalina U/W Park worth paying for a Guide?

[Scuba Jerm]

Hello all,

I am planning a trip to Catalina in a couple of weeks and wanted to know if it is worth paying for a guide to dive the under water park out front of the Avalon Casino? Bear in mind my wife and I have been on about 15 dives and have never been diving in Catalina; We have dove in Hawaii and Fiji, and one local lake.... so we feel confident in our abilities but are concerned about diving in a spot we are not familer with. Any advice?

Jerm

 

[sapphire]

I am not sure what you would have to pay for a "guide", but in my opinion you may want to strongly consider it. I am sure a lot of folks will jump in here and say "Oh, the Dive Park is easy to navigate, enter and exit" etc. However, if most of your diving is warm water, having to deal with heavy wetsuits and kelp in an unfamiliar site, might be concerning to you. When I was a new diver I went on a business trip to Monterey. Not knowing anyone, I hired a "guy" from the local dive operation to show me a few dive sites. It was the best money I spent! He was a marine biology student, and could name everything we saw (in Latin too) and I found the experience to be much more educational and fun than I think it would have been otherwise...

Just my $.02....

cheers

Jennifer

 

[Jim Ernst]

Hello all,

I am planning a trip to Catalina in a couple of weeks and wanted to know if it is worth paying for a guide to dive the under water park out front of the Avalon Casino? Bear in mind my wife and I have been on about 15 dives and have never been diving in Catalina; We have dove in Hawaii and Fiji, and one local lake.... so we feel confident in our abilities but are concerned about diving in a spot we are not familer with. Any advice?

Jerm

i would PM dr bill , he lives there and knows most all of the ops there and could give you the best rec on anything about catalina!!! just a thought!!

 

[drbill]

Dr. Bill here. It all depends on what you want out of the dives. You could certainly dive there and have a great time without a guide. You could do some research ahead of your visit (my website could be a good place to start), learn all you can about the common species, and have a great time diving there. This is actually what I would recommend rather than getting a guide... IF it is for that purpose.

However as Sapphire mentioned, your past diving experience has been warm water. Cold (temperate) water diving in kelp is a different experience. You have to decide whether it is worth having a guide to ensure the technical side of the dive experience goes well.

 

[mccabejc]

I did that once, right after I got certified, didn't yet have any dive buddies, and just HAD to try the dive park. I did a "guided scuba tour" with Catalina Divers Supply. Here's a link to their pricing:

http://www.catalinadiverssupply.com/Pricing/pricing.htm

 

[MaxBottomtime]

If you decide to go without a guide, I recommend this book. The map is also available in local dive shops.
http://www.catalina.com/diveguide/casinopt.html

 

[Diver_Jan]

My concern for you is not so much diving the cold water, but diving in Kelp. If you do not have experience in diving Kelp, I would definitely check with Scuba Luv or Catalina Diver's Supply for a 'Discover Local Diving' tour. That way, you will be educated re diving in Kelp and given a tour of the dive park. In addition to the map that Maxbottomtime suggest, Catalina Diver's Supply sells a map of the park there at the fill station that is in color, is water proof (laminted) and can fit inside your dive book. The map is by 'Franko' and all representations are fairly accurate with the exception of the sunken swim platform that lies just outside of the dive park boundary. This is a must see, for there is lots of growth, numerous eels, scorpion fish, nudibranchs, ect.

For your own safety, be sure to dive with a knife and/or scissors in case you get caught up in the kelp. Keep in mind, that it easily breaks in half using your hands.

Have a wonderful time!!! You will enjoy yourself immensely.

 

[Scuba Jerm]

Thanks for all the advice! I think I am just going to bite the bullet and pay for a guide. My wife isn't as extreme as me and I want to make this as comfortable for her as possible. Do they make a 30mm suit? J/K she's not that bad.

But seriously thanks for the help, I look foward to diving at the park. Hope to see some of you there? I'll look for Dr. Bill I'm sure you'll be around. Thanks again.