Galapagos

[merxlin]

Mike, I just saw your countdown timer, looks like we'll be down there at the same time! Maybe we'll see eachother in passing.

Looking at the itineraries, we may have to wave. You are at most of our spots the day before. I'm ready to go. The viz reports and water temps sound like So Cal diving, so think I'll feel right at home. Well, except we don't have whale sharks and all those other cool fish (not that our fish aren't cool, but.....).

 

[tstormdiver]

Looking at the itineraries, we may have to wave. You are at most of our spots the day before. I'm ready to go. The viz reports and water temps sound like So Cal diving, so think I'll feel right at home. Well, except we don't have whale sharks and all those other cool fish (not that our fish aren't cool, but.....).

I do mostly fresh water quarry diving year round, so cold water & low vis is no issue. The biggest difference will be critters, currents & salt water. Should be fun! Our coolest fish is the KY Piranha (aka bluegill) Man those buggers are vicious! Very dangerous to ear lobes

 

[sylpha]

I've been advised to take my dry suit by a meterologist because of the el nino effect this year. (today i had 14 degrees c with a whole meter vis).

many thanks for the tips, i have a day to explore the park before i come home so looking forward to it. I'm booked on a liveaboard and relieved you were unimpressed with booking boats because that was our first idea. Our tour operator has just changed hands & needs us to re-do a booking form & indemnity waiver - for which they will give us free nitrox!

Have a great time boys & please give me any tips you pick up over there.

 

[tstormdiver]

I've been advised to take my dry suit by a meterologist because of the el nino effect this year. (today i had 14 degrees c with a whole meter vis).
Have a great time boys & please give me any tips you pick up over there.

I will be diving my drysuits in a couple weeks. The biggest thing I've been warned about, is to take plenty of Aquaseal & duct tape to repair any rips that may occur. I'm going dry mostly because the Semi Dry Suit I ordered would not fit (men's XL) & the next size up swallowed me. I really don't tolerate thick wetsuits very well anyway, so hopefully this will be a blessing in disguise. Which live aboard are you booked on?

 

[louisianadiver]

The biggest thing I've been warned about, is to take plenty of Aquaseal & duct tape to repair any rips that may occur.?

Dry suit damage is an issue. We had several "rock hugging" dives in high current. Everybody on our trip dove wet, and one guy bought a semi-dry especially for the trip because he didn't want to risk a dry suit tear. I dove in a 6.5 with a hood and gloves and was reasonably comfortable. The coldest water we encountered was 63 F. Topside temps were in the mid-70s during the day and mid to low 60s at night in the southern islands. The weather was misty rain most of the time, and viz was not very good--usually 15-20 feet. But, man, there are plenty of amazing things to see.

 

[Deefstes]

OK, that first pic of the red lip batfish is just INSANE! Awesome capture. That one fish might be enough reason for me to visit the Galapagos.

 

[louisianadiver]

OK, that first pic of the red lip batfish is just INSANE! Awesome capture. That one fish might be enough reason for me to visit the Galapagos.

Thanks! I dedicated a whole dive to getting that shot. We found several subjects soon into the dive, but it took 20 minutes of creeping and wrangling to get close enough for that head-on with a 60mm. It was a lot of fun. BTW, the site was Punta Cormoron on Floreana.

 

[merxlin]

I will be diving my drysuits in a couple weeks. The biggest thing I've been warned about, is to take plenty of Aquaseal & duct tape to repair any rips that may occur. I'm going dry mostly because the Semi Dry Suit I ordered would not fit (men's XL) & the next size up swallowed me. I really don't tolerate thick wetsuits very well anyway, so hopefully this will be a blessing in disguise. Which live aboard are you booked on?

Have you thought about separate knee pads, like a lightweight soccer pad or something like that? Could double as gaiters!

 

[tstormdiver]

Might look into that! Thanks!:blinking:

 

[louisianadiver]

A few more shots. You can see the bad viz in some of them, but it sort of adds a mood to the cow-nosed rays. I'm including the whale shark pic as a documentation despite the fact that I cut off its tail (grrr!).

Clay