jarhed
Contributor
I had an opportunity to get in a day of diving during a recent visit to the San Juan Islands. It was my first visit to Washington State, my wife and I live in Monterey, CA and really enjoy cold water diving. We went out with Kurt with Bandito Charters on a Thursday afternoon.
http://www.banditocharters.com/bandito/index.htm
We were the only divers on the boat and we pulled out as soon as we got our gear onboard. I have a big DSLR camera system which I didnt get an opportunity to assemble beforehand, but the spacious cabin offered plenty of room to do that.
Kurt maneuvered the boat in perfectly for each drop, picked us up where we surfaced and had sandwiches, hot soup and fresh, warm cookies for us between dives.
Overall, diving was pretty good, vis was ~15ft on the first dive and closer to 25ft on the second. Overall, I saw the most, biggest, and greatest diversity of nudibranchs that I have seen. It was macro heaven. Otherwise, it was very similar to Monterey diving except everything was much bigger.
I attached a few samples for you to enjoy.
I would definitely recommend Bandito Charters to anyone in the area, Kurts flexibility, service and local knowledge was great. I hope to get a chance to dive with him again.
Also, a plug for the little seafood shop on the pier, it has the best smoked salmon Ive ever had. My wife and I grabbed half a pound and some crackers and a bottle of wine, headed out to Pickets Lane to watch foxes chase rabbits next to the beach. Its a great way to spend an evening.
http://www.banditocharters.com/bandito/index.htm
We were the only divers on the boat and we pulled out as soon as we got our gear onboard. I have a big DSLR camera system which I didnt get an opportunity to assemble beforehand, but the spacious cabin offered plenty of room to do that.
Kurt maneuvered the boat in perfectly for each drop, picked us up where we surfaced and had sandwiches, hot soup and fresh, warm cookies for us between dives.
Overall, diving was pretty good, vis was ~15ft on the first dive and closer to 25ft on the second. Overall, I saw the most, biggest, and greatest diversity of nudibranchs that I have seen. It was macro heaven. Otherwise, it was very similar to Monterey diving except everything was much bigger.
I attached a few samples for you to enjoy.
I would definitely recommend Bandito Charters to anyone in the area, Kurts flexibility, service and local knowledge was great. I hope to get a chance to dive with him again.
Also, a plug for the little seafood shop on the pier, it has the best smoked salmon Ive ever had. My wife and I grabbed half a pound and some crackers and a bottle of wine, headed out to Pickets Lane to watch foxes chase rabbits next to the beach. Its a great way to spend an evening.
