Looking for input to help me plan a SoCal diving road trip

[Rudebob]

You SoCal forum folks were real helpful in the past in helping my plan a couple of trips to Catalina so I am hoping you once again might be willing to give me some additional input for a trip we are working on in August.

We had originally planned on doing 3 days in Catalina again this August but neither of the boats out of Avalon (King Neptune or Scuba Cat) have enough divers booked as of yet to even guarantee we would be able get in some boat dives-so we are rethinking our trip for this year.

Basically, we are talking about driving over to get in three days of diving in a variety of locals. We would like to do two days of boat diving and then a third day trip over to Casino Point via the ferry. The two days for boat dives we are open to just about anywhere between Ventura to San Diego. That is where I would appreciate input as to which operations you would recommend. One other favorable consideration would be dive boats that would let us sleep on board the night before so to forgo the additional cost of a motel if possible. Of coarse I am always looking for value so the cost vs. number of dives, food provided, etc. is all a factor when considering the total cost of the trip.

Any thoughts or input would be appreciated.

Thanks,

mg

 

[Chaos the Crazy]

If you're thinking about coming up Ventura way, then the Peace does Thursday dives out to Anacapa and various weekend dives. They do allow sleepovers the night prior to the dive and are pretty reasonable - the weekday dives are $100 and I think the weekend one day dives are just a little more.

 

[JMdiver]

The Spectre out of Ventura also allows sleep overs & goes out Wed. & Fri. as well as the weekend. Week day rates are $85 for 4 dives w/ food & air.

John

 

[tc]

In the Long Beach/San Pedro area I know Sundiver, Great Escape and Bottom Scratcher will all allow sleep overs the night before. (But it's always wise to verify first- sometimes the boats run night trips too.)

 

[dannobee]

In the Long Beach/San Pedro area I know Sundiver, Great Escape and Bottom Scratcher will all allow sleep overs the night before. (But it's always wise to verify first- sometimes the boats run night trips too.)

So does the Sand Dollar.

 

[Teamcasa]

We are having a ScubaBoard dive on the Great Escape in August - see the link in my signature.

 

[ShakaZulu]

If you come to San Diego, I recommend:

Yukon Wreck
Ruby E Wreck

and the Los Coronados Islands, let me know if may even join you

Dive Connections
http://www.gottadive.com/

Marissa Dive Charters
http://marissadivecharters.com/

 

[JMdiver]

The Magician lets you sleep over also but check with the captian first.

John

 

[fnfalman]

Most boats that have bunks would let you sleep aboard the night before.

The numbers of dives depending on which Channel Islands you're going to.

If you're going to the Northern Channel Islands out of Oxard or Ventura then it's a good chance that you get to do 4-dives because Anacapa & Santa Cruz aren't as far out. If it's Santa Rosa or San Miguel then chances are it's going to be a 3-dives day because of the further distances involved.

Catalina is usually a 3-dives day because of the distance involved.

San Clemente is the same way, assuming that the US Navy opens up the area for dive boats.

Oil rig dives are usually 3-dives, but more because of the depth involved and the condition of the ocean.

As far as maximum cost vs quality quotient, in Ventura/Oxnard area the Peace gets high marks from me even though it tends to be the higher cost (if not the highest) due to the superb foods that Joe the galley cook serve. His grubs are without equal. Also the hot tub is a verrrry nice touch. Good boat layout, with two fairly roomy heads. Nitrox capable.

Also in Ventura, the Spectre is pretty much the same as the Peace but the grubs aren't quite as good. No Nitrox.

Down in LA, the Great Escape is a massive boat that has plenty of room for gearing up and laying about with two cavernous heads. Grubs are definitely excellent though not Peace quality. No hot tub & no Nitrox though.

There are a host of smaller but faster boats that trade comfort & amenities for speed. If all you want is wham, bam, thank you ma'am, then these boats might be for you: Raptor in Ventura, for down in LA area Sundiver/SundiverII/Sundiver Express, Sea Bass (Nitrox).

There are a host of other perfectly good & serviceable dive boats but these are my favorites.

 

[Rudebob]

Wow! Thanks for all the replies, good information and invites. We have to schedule the trip between the 12th and 16th of August as my son will be heading off to college after that so that limits our schedule somewhat.

We had planned to stay over in Catalina during the week as hotels rates seem to jump about 50% more for a weekend stay. That is probably why we the dive boats there have yet to get any bookings. At least if we do the "road trip" that will allow us to push the trip over the weekend saving me a couple of vacation days.

Our intent it to dive a much a possible. While 3 dives is good, 4 or more per day would be better. That is one aspect I like about Catalina in that there is always night diving at the park even after a day of boat dives.

The other possibility is to try and include some shore diving. I originally had not planned on it-mainly because I know the viz can vary and we have no experience in dealing with surf conditions for entry and exit. So if conditions were excessive it is something I would not want to attempt without tagging along with someone with more experience. However, if there is a good location you could recommend for shore diving newbies that would also be appreciated.

Mg