sciencediver1
Guest
We just got back last night from Nanaimo diving the fantastic walls and wrecks they have. If you are looking for a really spectacular low current area, Nanaimo is for you. Within 20 minutes from the dock they have two huge ships which were put down for artificial reefs. One is the former cold war destroyer Saskatchewan at around 370' in length sitting on the bottom at 130' feet. You can be on the wreck in as shallow as 70 feet. Near by is the Cape Breton which was a supply ship built for WW II. She is over 400 feet in length sitting on the bottom near 140 feet. Both are in near current free water with visibility quite often 100' or more. Saskatchewan has been in the water longer so is more well developed. Very near by is the Snake Island wall. It has to be one of the most fantastic deep cold water walls in the world. It drops off to 700+ feet of verticle rock structure and is covered with almost every kind of local fish and invertabrate life. The cloud sponge formations are spectacular at 130'. On a little more advanced level we dove the Orlebar Wall off Gabreolla Island which is about 45 minutes from the dock. Again this is a sheer rock wall spectacular beyond description. Huge fish and bizarre crabs live here. Fantastic cloud sponges and all sorts of invertebrates. This must be done on a slack during low exchange as the current can be swift here. The other three sites I mention can be done at any time without worry of current. The operator we use in Nanaimo Is Ocean Explorers Diving. Ian Hall has been running his two boats out of Nanaimo for years and knows the waters well. He has a 22' for small groups and a larger former Police twin diesel 42' for larger groups. Both are easy to dive out of. He has great dive masters to help you get suited up and they are very tech friendly. On this trip I was diving open circuit nitrox and trimix and both friends were diving their KISS rebreathers. Ian gave us the run of the shop and even stored our heavy rigs overnight for us so we didn't have to keep them in our trucks. He has a compressor, a nitrox bank as well as full partial pressure blending up to pure oxygen for your decompression needs. The small boat docks at the back door of the shop. Heavy duty carts are available to haul your gear to the docks. The Muddy waters pub is next door to the shop for lunch between your dives and has a great menu. This place is one stop shopping. Motels with nice clean rooms in a crime free town can be had for as low as $39.00 a night within 10 minutes of the shop or less. I highly recommend Nanaimo diving and the great service we got from Ocean Explorers Diving. Ian is a center player in getting the wrecks put down. Oh did I mention they are sinking a third one next weekend? The Rivtow Lion which is a huge steel navy tug of aroud 175' will be literally 10 minutes from the dock in protected 80 feet of water for dive training and to let new divers swim on a shallower wreck. You can reach Ocean Explorers Diving from their web page at www.oceanexplorersdiving.com and remember Canada is a great value during the off season. Give them a try, Ian, Terry, Cap'n Arnie, and James are the crew to dive with!!!!! :10:
