Diving in Bermuda while docked from cruise
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atldaniel
New
I just got back from 4 days of diving with Triangle and would highly recommend them to anyone staying in Bermuda - unfortunately they are not exactly close to the Dockyard (Kings Wharf). There is a ferry that runs over from the west end so that's always an option. My understanding is that Triangle dives some sites that the other operations do not - and they do many on the generally calmer north side of the island.
They're a fantastic crew!
They're a fantastic crew!
We really enjoyed diving with Triangle. They brought the dive boat to St. Georges and picked us up about 100 feet from the cruise ship then took us to the shop which was farther into the harbor. Call and ask what they recommend as far as transportation from Dockyard (King's Wharf).
This was our first cruise and I was really glad the only gear we brought was mask/fins/snorkel and exposure protection. Our room didn't have a balcony so the bathroom was the only place to hang gear to dry. Bring along plastic hangers for your wetsuits and a couple garbage bags to stuff wet gear in if your dive gear bag tends to drip. Our ship x-rayed everything we were carrying any time we re-boarded but they made an exception for the dripping wetsuits I had thrown over my arm.
My rental BC was a ScubaPro Pilot and my reg was a ScubaPro MK2, I believe hubby had the same type of BC I had but his reg was a Sherwood Brut I believe. Rental gear was in good shape, much better shape than I was expecting actually.
I made a mini save-a-dive kit with a couple double-enders, a ponytail holder and a few zip ties. I used a little bit of everything. Bring along something to use to clip off your gauges if you don't like them banging in the sand; I used double-enders, zip ties and a ponytail holder for hubby and I. I would also throw in a necklace if you like your octo necklaces or some other sort of octo holder just in case. My BC had an octo hose holder, hubby's octo hose was run under the velcro of the pocket; it worked but I would rather have some sort of holder.
Triangle doesn't do many AM dives because that's when he does the Peppercorn Helmet Dives. That actually looked like fun too.
They did ask we keep our dive times to about an hour but the night dive had no time limit at all. It took about an hour to get to the site so definitely plan on a minimum of five hours for a two tank trip.
Water was 83 degrees and visibility was down because the coral were spawning, we had about 60 feet or so of vis.
I'll post a full trip report later but that was the meat of our trip. We had a great time and are tempted to go back next year on one of the final cruises that will dock at St. George.
Ber :lilbunny:
This was our first cruise and I was really glad the only gear we brought was mask/fins/snorkel and exposure protection. Our room didn't have a balcony so the bathroom was the only place to hang gear to dry. Bring along plastic hangers for your wetsuits and a couple garbage bags to stuff wet gear in if your dive gear bag tends to drip. Our ship x-rayed everything we were carrying any time we re-boarded but they made an exception for the dripping wetsuits I had thrown over my arm.
My rental BC was a ScubaPro Pilot and my reg was a ScubaPro MK2, I believe hubby had the same type of BC I had but his reg was a Sherwood Brut I believe. Rental gear was in good shape, much better shape than I was expecting actually.
I made a mini save-a-dive kit with a couple double-enders, a ponytail holder and a few zip ties. I used a little bit of everything. Bring along something to use to clip off your gauges if you don't like them banging in the sand; I used double-enders, zip ties and a ponytail holder for hubby and I. I would also throw in a necklace if you like your octo necklaces or some other sort of octo holder just in case. My BC had an octo hose holder, hubby's octo hose was run under the velcro of the pocket; it worked but I would rather have some sort of holder.
Triangle doesn't do many AM dives because that's when he does the Peppercorn Helmet Dives. That actually looked like fun too.
They did ask we keep our dive times to about an hour but the night dive had no time limit at all. It took about an hour to get to the site so definitely plan on a minimum of five hours for a two tank trip.
Water was 83 degrees and visibility was down because the coral were spawning, we had about 60 feet or so of vis.
I'll post a full trip report later but that was the meat of our trip. We had a great time and are tempted to go back next year on one of the final cruises that will dock at St. George.
Ber :lilbunny:
Here's the link to the full trip report I promised you.
Ber :lilbunny:
Ber :lilbunny:
osd9
Registered
Hi all:
New to the board...
I'm heading to Bermuda on the Dawn this Sunday which docks at the Wharf. I've self booked two AM 2-tank dives with BWD for Thursday and Friday. Cruise ship only had one 2-tank dive on Friday and it was $169. I was able to book two dives for $195. Now, I will have to arrange my own transport, but I still come out ahead, plus I get to dive twice. Because I'm not flying to the ship, I decided to bring my own equipment....what the heck...what's one more bag to drag around. Anyway, quick question about the rental tanks if you know....what size are they and are they DIN or Yoke?
Thanks again and I wish I had found this site sooner!!!
later,
dom
New to the board...
I'm heading to Bermuda on the Dawn this Sunday which docks at the Wharf. I've self booked two AM 2-tank dives with BWD for Thursday and Friday. Cruise ship only had one 2-tank dive on Friday and it was $169. I was able to book two dives for $195. Now, I will have to arrange my own transport, but I still come out ahead, plus I get to dive twice. Because I'm not flying to the ship, I decided to bring my own equipment....what the heck...what's one more bag to drag around. Anyway, quick question about the rental tanks if you know....what size are they and are they DIN or Yoke?
Thanks again and I wish I had found this site sooner!!!
later,
dom
OP
Soundtracklover
Guest
What cruise line are you going with osd9? I booked my 2 tank dives (which was 2 dives) directly through Royal Caribbean for $150 a piece. It was very easy to get to the dive site as they provided transportation to and from the site directly from the dock.
OP
Soundtracklover
Guest
Oh and a note to others. As stated above that I ended up going through Royal Caribbean to book the dives. It was more expensive than others, but it included transportation. We ended up diving with Dive Bermuda, which was apparently not who we were originally going to go with as we had to fill out waivers again once we got to the dive shop. I am very glad with went with them. The divemasters on board were extremely helpful. Let's just say I was a tad seasick on the boat. It was rocking A LOT, but my stomach was already upset from rockin' on the cruise. I apparently have problems with seasickness, which, unfortunately, is a family trait. It took all my energy not to vomit while getting my gear ready on the short boat ride to the dive site. I was hot and, apparently, hyperventilating, as I became hypocalcemic. My hands were cramping to the point where I could barely get my fins and mask on.
I debated not diving, but hoped that the seasickness would go away once I hit the water as it does for many divers. They were watching me very carefully while I was putting on my gear and forced me to put on my own mask and fins, which I'm sure was a way to gauge how bad I was doing. I got in the water and my stomach was still upset. Unfortunately that day the surge was very strong. I was able to keep the nausea under control during the dive, but it was hard to enjoy it while feeling like that. I was cool seeing on the coral and the St Mary Celestia wreck.
We surfaced after about 35 minutes and I reboarded. As soon as I was on board and removed my regulator I vomited over the side of the boat. I was very proud of the fact that I could make it to the side and that I didn't get the divemaster all covered in it. I felt awful after throwing up still and had stomach cramps. After only a few minutes of deliberating in my mind, I aborted the 2nd dive. There was no way I could do it again. There were 4 divemasters or instructors on board our boat and every single one of them checked in on me, some of them several times. Once they knew I wasn't going to do the 2nd dive, they offered to take me back to shore. My husband, who is a divemaster candidate, had never heard of or seen a crew do that. I was perfectly fine after getting on dry land. Hubby dived the 2nd dive and had a wonderful time. There was no way I was going to let him miss out on diving just b/c I was sick.
Once the boat returned from the 2nd dive, all of the crew members checked in on me again. I was very grateful for the treatment I received. If I ever go to Bermuda again, I will dive with them again and I recommend them to anyone going to Bermuda to dive. Next time I go on a boat dive I'm going to get some prescription seasickness medication b/c I do NOT want to feel like that again. Ugh!
I debated not diving, but hoped that the seasickness would go away once I hit the water as it does for many divers. They were watching me very carefully while I was putting on my gear and forced me to put on my own mask and fins, which I'm sure was a way to gauge how bad I was doing. I got in the water and my stomach was still upset. Unfortunately that day the surge was very strong. I was able to keep the nausea under control during the dive, but it was hard to enjoy it while feeling like that. I was cool seeing on the coral and the St Mary Celestia wreck.
We surfaced after about 35 minutes and I reboarded. As soon as I was on board and removed my regulator I vomited over the side of the boat. I was very proud of the fact that I could make it to the side and that I didn't get the divemaster all covered in it. I felt awful after throwing up still and had stomach cramps. After only a few minutes of deliberating in my mind, I aborted the 2nd dive. There was no way I could do it again. There were 4 divemasters or instructors on board our boat and every single one of them checked in on me, some of them several times. Once they knew I wasn't going to do the 2nd dive, they offered to take me back to shore. My husband, who is a divemaster candidate, had never heard of or seen a crew do that. I was perfectly fine after getting on dry land. Hubby dived the 2nd dive and had a wonderful time. There was no way I was going to let him miss out on diving just b/c I was sick.
Once the boat returned from the 2nd dive, all of the crew members checked in on me again. I was very grateful for the treatment I received. If I ever go to Bermuda again, I will dive with them again and I recommend them to anyone going to Bermuda to dive. Next time I go on a boat dive I'm going to get some prescription seasickness medication b/c I do NOT want to feel like that again. Ugh!
OSD9, if you can visit this site while on the cruise, I can tell you BWD uses aluminim
80s and yoke valves. My kids and I did numerous dives with them this summer and enjoyed them very much. Next visit, we plan to try Triangle because, as mentioned, they do the north and east dive sites. Have fun!!
80s and yoke valves. My kids and I did numerous dives with them this summer and enjoyed them very much. Next visit, we plan to try Triangle because, as mentioned, they do the north and east dive sites. Have fun!!
osd9
Registered
OK...I just got back Sunday. Had 4 great (two 2-tank) dives. I went solo and ended up buddying up with a co-cruiser onboard the same NCL Dawn cruise ship.
We dived with BWD in Somerset, just south of the Somerset Bridge. The two 2-tank dive package was $190 which included air (80al yoke) and weights. Since our ship was in port for three days, my wife (non-diver) and I each purchased the 3 day bus/ferry pass. However, and this rubbed me the wrong way, the bus wouldn't let me on the bus with gear bag. The driver said that it was too big. It was 7:05 AM and I was the "ONLY" person on the bus only going about 5 miles to the dive shop and he just felt good busting my ba!!s. I had to double back to the ship and I ran into someone waiting for a cab to a golf course (yes...at 7:10AM) and we split a cab. Cost me $15 extra. I was able to leave my gear at BWD so getting back to the ship and back to BWD the next two trips was on the bus. On the last day back to the ship three divers shared a cab and it cost us $6 each.
On the first day there were only 9 divers on the boat. We had plenty of space. We dived a double wreck (Forcefull and King) and the South West Breakers. The SW Breakers had a nice swim thru and is the site seen in the background of the movie the Deep ......in the scene with the T-Shirt.
The second day the boat was full with 20 divers. Still a great day, but a lot more crowded. We dived the Marie Celeste and then Kevin's Reef. Kevin's Reef had a ton of really neat caves to swim thru.
Great few days of diving....bottom temps were 77 deg F, viz was 50'-60' and depths were 10'-65'. I wore a 2 mil shortie with 2 mil gloves and I was just fine.
Crew onboard BWD's 'Tsunami' were great. Andre was our Capt and Rabbit was the dive master. We were buddy-up'd and then let go to dive. Not a cattle ranch follow the leader type of dive.
Each dive was about 45- 55 minutes.
We dived with BWD in Somerset, just south of the Somerset Bridge. The two 2-tank dive package was $190 which included air (80al yoke) and weights. Since our ship was in port for three days, my wife (non-diver) and I each purchased the 3 day bus/ferry pass. However, and this rubbed me the wrong way, the bus wouldn't let me on the bus with gear bag. The driver said that it was too big. It was 7:05 AM and I was the "ONLY" person on the bus only going about 5 miles to the dive shop and he just felt good busting my ba!!s. I had to double back to the ship and I ran into someone waiting for a cab to a golf course (yes...at 7:10AM) and we split a cab. Cost me $15 extra. I was able to leave my gear at BWD so getting back to the ship and back to BWD the next two trips was on the bus. On the last day back to the ship three divers shared a cab and it cost us $6 each.
On the first day there were only 9 divers on the boat. We had plenty of space. We dived a double wreck (Forcefull and King) and the South West Breakers. The SW Breakers had a nice swim thru and is the site seen in the background of the movie the Deep ......in the scene with the T-Shirt.
The second day the boat was full with 20 divers. Still a great day, but a lot more crowded. We dived the Marie Celeste and then Kevin's Reef. Kevin's Reef had a ton of really neat caves to swim thru.
Great few days of diving....bottom temps were 77 deg F, viz was 50'-60' and depths were 10'-65'. I wore a 2 mil shortie with 2 mil gloves and I was just fine.
Crew onboard BWD's 'Tsunami' were great. Andre was our Capt and Rabbit was the dive master. We were buddy-up'd and then let go to dive. Not a cattle ranch follow the leader type of dive.
Each dive was about 45- 55 minutes.
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