Images from the Red Sea ...

[MXGratefulDiver]

Here's a few more from The Brothers ...

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Very nice pictures. Looking towards a detailed trip report upon return including observations on security and political situation etc.

---------- Post added September 27th, 2014 at 09:18 AM ----------

Btw ... is the wreck Thistlegorm?

Some of those shots were on the Thistlegorm. We did three dives there ... an afternoon dive with very strong current, a night dive with no current, and an early morning dive with slight current. Each provided its own perspective of the wreck, with different conditions, visibility and lighting. The visibility on the Thistlegorm and Rosalie Moeller are affected by which way the tide is going. On an ebb, water coming out of the Gulf of Suez gave us the worst vis of the trip ... on the RM the vis was barely 30 feet. On an incoming tide, water coming in from the Red Sea clears it up quite a bit.

Security isn't an issue here. The area's been hard hit by their internal political strife, and for quite a while tourists stopped coming. Two of the women on our boat told me that when they arrived by taxi from the airport the taxi driver was so delighted to have Americans back here that he refused to charge them for the ride ... he simply asked them to let everyone back home know that Hurghada is tourist friendly and safe. I've found it to be so, although so far I've spent almost all of my time on the boat. Today is my non-diving day before flying out in the wee hours of tomorrow morning ... so I'll find out as I wander around town.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

---------- Post added October 1st, 2014 at 09:15 PM ----------

Stunning Bob!!! And as I said on FB, I can't wait for you to be my dive buddy on the SB Philippeans trip so hopefully I can model for a few shots

I'm really looking forward to that trip, Jody. My dive buddies get to be my "models" when I'm shooting wide-angle, and those who dived with me on this trip managed to get some really nice underwater shots of themselves as a result.

I didn't have a regular dive buddy on this trip, and can tell you that I definitely look forward to having one. It's a bit degrading at times having to constantly go around the boat asking for someone to dive with ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

---------- Post added October 1st, 2014 at 09:19 PM ----------

Great shots. Looks like a great time with all the scooter action

Scooters were definitely the way to go. I didn't think, prior to the trip, that I'd get much use for one. But several of the sites we did were rather spread out ... in Abu Nuhas, having a scooter allowed me to visit four wrecks in a single dive ... and then scooter around to the sheltered side of the reef to get back on the boat. On other dive sites we were dealing with stiff current, and the scooters made it possible to relax and enjoy the dive without worrying about getting blown off the dive site. They definitely allowed us to dive in places we otherwise would not have been able to.

I also, on this trip, learned how to scooter with my left hand on the trigger, while managing my camera with my right hand. That's quite the challenge ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

This post will be dedicated to one dive ... the Salem Express ... a ferry that sank in 1991 with a loss of several hundred lives. It's a great wreck to dive, because it's not terribly deep. But it's sobering in the extreme to see the detritus of human tragedy in the form of the luggage left in the holds. As you go through the ship it's way too easy to envision the scene on that terrible night when she struck the reef and sank in only 10 minutes. This wreck needs a few more decades to "heal" ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Some land shots from the trip ... I'll start with a picture of the boat we were on ... the MV Tala. It's one of two boats owned by Red Sea Explorers ...



This is a picture of Hurghada, taken from the upper deck of the Tala on the morning after our arrival. This mosque is, by far, the largest building in town ...



Sunrise on the Red Sea ... they were pretty much all like this ...



I haven't a clue what these are ... I spotted them as the boat made its way up the coast in the Gulf of Aqaba toward Dahab ...



Not sure if this is Dahab or Sharm al Sheik ... the background is the Sinai mountains ...



A wreck sits on top of a reef off of Sharm ... there are way more wrecks in the Red Sea than I had imagined ...



Big Brother ... as seen from Little Brother ... as you can see, it's pretty popular with the liveaboards ...



My new friend Oskar ... this was on my last night, back at port in Hurghada ...



Finally, a map showing our route and listing the dive sites we visited. We had intended on this trip to go all the way south to Deadalus and Elphinstone ... but weather forced us to remain in Brothers for an extra day, then head north toward Hurghada ...



... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

Awesome! Great perspective on one of my future dive destinations.

 

[shoredivr]

Great photos!
Did you all bring scooters with you or are they available for rent?

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

One of the reasons to dive the Tala is the scooters ... they are available to rent on the boat. I'd never used a Suex scooter before, and I really like them. Not as fast as my Sierra, but really easy to manage. I actually learned how to manage the scoot with my left hand, so I could use my right hand for the camera.

Here's another thing you don't see too often. They offered the opportunity to do monkey dives at three of our shallower reef sites. I didn't try it, as doing photography was really my priority ...



... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[shoredivr]

Ok now scooter rentals are worth the hassle of getting there and back!

 

[steady1570]

Fantastic pictures, thanks for sharing. We did a similar itinerary at the start of September and they bring back memories of how thoroughly enjoyable it all was. As you say, scooters on Abu Nuhas (and the Thistlegorm) are quite special.

-Mark

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Abu Nuhas was special. Where else can you dive four separate wrecks in the same dive. This is only possible with scooters. My favorite shot of the whole trip came from that dive ... on the Chrisoula K ...



... I really liked the Giannis D too ...



... Bob (Grateful Diver)