Trip Report Padangbai (Bali) Report: Geko Divers August '23

[matts1w]

My cheapo spandex leggings from Decathlon keep the hydroids and other stingy stuff in the water at bay...and yeah, I brushed up on some hydroids once while taking a picture and had a really itchy rash for weeks!

Spandex counts!

 

[Blackcrusader]

There are a million good reasons to wear a wetsuit and really none to not wear one. Never in my life have I been too hot on a dive, and if things start going wonky, I want every advantage to minimize task loading.

I haven't worn a wetsuit in decades of diving. T shirt and Shorts even at 22c. First time I used my shark skin was in Bali this year. Not on every dive only a few dives. My guide was getting cold in his wetsuit though.

 

[gekodivebali]

With Il Nino coming in last year both above and under water conditions have been really hard to predict at the moment. We have had less rain in general and the cold water has been hanging around longer than I've seen in previous years! I would recommend a wetsuit! 3mm longs are generally fine but if you are someone that gets cold quick a 5mm would be better. My biggest advice is get a HOODIE!! Even if it's just a 2mm thick hoodie it will vastly affect heat loss and you will feel much much warmer. That's why you will always see the instructors and dive guides wearing them. I feel colder with a full 3mm with no hoodie, than with just a 1mm rash guard and hoodie. Hope this helps! Happy bubbles!

 

[JonnieB]

It is really not acceptable to bring a diver with more than half a tank up after 40 minutes. I did two dives with a foreign- owned dive shop in PB some time ago. The guide tried to flog me Nitrox. I then found that my dive group comprised two very large gentleman who had about 30 dives each compared with my 900.

We did a quick swim around, the guide shot over ornate ghost pipefish and many more. We were up after 35 minutes because my buddies were low on air on both dives. If they had said I would have happily paid for a private guide. This is, thankfully, rare in Indonesia. And it should be because of the cost of flying half way around the world during our previous few weeks holidays.

Glad to hear that this is not normal practice in Geko.

I usually always try to dive with locally owned and managed shops...they seem to offer better value for money and more experienced divers as customers. Many newb divers seem to have the impression that foreign shops are somehow better or more safe and they need this assurance so you tend to get more of them at these shops. Also, it's very common to dive 1-1 or 1-2 ratio with such shops. Did you tell this shop your experience level? I make my experience very clear to all shops and they know to never pair me with inexperienced divers.

 

[JonnieB]

Got you all beat by a couple degrees, 17C at Manta Bay to see a couple Mola Mola at 40m depth.

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Great Mola footage...have to comment here because you have "kids video" on YT.

 

[Dan]

Great Mola footage...have to comment here because you have "kids video" on YT.

Thanks. What makes you think that footage should be age restricted? The dive shop would ask you to show them your dive certificate before they take you down.

 

[JonnieB]

Thanks. What makes you think that footage should be age restricted? The dive shop would ask you to show them your dive certificate before they take you down.

The video is tagged as kid's content either by you or YT, and thus comments are not allowed.

 

[Blackcrusader]

Thanks. What makes you think that footage should be age restricted? The dive shop would ask you to show them your dive certificate before they take you down.

I do not age restrict any of my videos. Why should we? Depth is not an issue for video.