South Africa for 8 months!!

[giggity]

So I am going to Johannesburg on dec 6th-aug 28th, hopefully still dealing with the visa. I am going there to be with my girlfriend who is South African, and we are wanting to do lots of diving while I am there. She is a new diver, just got her certification, I have been diving a while and am very comfortable diving. We plan to go to Mozambique, at least one time, and I really want to catch the whale sharks and manta rays, my understanding is that the whale sharks are out in dec-jan, is that correct? Also are the Mantas always there? It seems like a lot of the dives in Mozambique are pretty deep and I am not sure if my girlfriend will be comfortable with that yet, so before we go there I was thinking about going somewhere closer like the Durban area to do some easier dives, and/or beach dives (to save money, opposed to boat dives) to work on her buoyancy and to get her a little more comfortable diving. She is also a little scared of seeing sharks, although I kind of want to see some, I am wondering if there are areas where the sharks are more dangerous, and how common are they in those areas? Also any more info that anyone can give me for diving in the South Africa/Mozambique area?

 

[craigw]

Hi

you may have done some research and seen that Johannesburg is about 600km away from the nearest coastline. Having said that more divers are qualified in Johannesburg than any coastal town in South Africa. I would suggest that get in contact with an active dive school who will be able to facilitate your diving. For example we do 2 trips to the coast every six weeks ( usually over week ends). we regualrly dive Mozambique ( Ponto Do Ouro for sharks, Inhambane in the correct season for Manya and whale shark. ) this week end past we where in Ponto do Ouro and managed to get some spectacular dives in ( on one we had 6 species of shark with us, 4 Hammerheads, 6 Bull Shark, Black Tips, Silver Tips, a Bronze Whaler,2 Tigers you should see the video footage it is amazing.

The point I am trying to make is that with the right club you are entering the region of the world that has some of the best diving and diversity in the world. If you want I would be more than happy to show you various dive destinations and activities at the correct time of the year.

 

[giggity]

I have don't some research into the diving around there, but still need to do more. My girlfriend has lived in Johannesburg her whole life, except for the past couple of years in the USA. She got certified here though, and doesn't know the dive sites there. Are you in a diving club there? I would definitely be interested in looking into joining a club while I am there.

Sent a PM with my e-mail, I would definitely be interested in finding out more about the dive sites, and times of year to go.

 

[craigw]

Hi

Yes I am an owner of a dive school and we have a very strong dive club attached. Mentioned we travel to the coast about twice every six weeks and are in the water every week end in and around Johannesburg

 

[Sharks at Aliwal]

Where about does your girlfriend stay in Johannesburg? There are many dive schools with clubs and u will find it better to choose one closer to where you stay

 

[giggity]

We will be in Midrand, so a little north of Johannesburg. I would like to try to find something kinda close. Also I have the visa and am leaving next week. I want to try to plan a trip to Durban area, before Christmas. Should we try to stay in Durban, or find something closer to the good diving spots? I think we would be doing mostly beach dives on this trip, but maybe a boat dive one day. What can we expect for the beach diving this time of the year, and what would be some of the better beach dives, under 30mtrs?

 

[Sharks at Aliwal]

If you are going to stay in Midrand I would have a look at Sandton Scuba ( Gabby +27 839450758) which will be about a 10/15 minute drive for you. They havea very active club. Meeting once a month at the shop for some drinks and a chat and at least one coastal trip per year.

There is not much beach diving in South Africa becides in Cape Town. For the rest of the coast most of the diving is a bit to far from the coast line to swim there and our waves can be a bit big as well. The best diving in the Durban area is at The Aliwal Shoal which is about 35 miles south of Durban. Have a look at www.agulhashouse.com which has a guesthouse and dive centre all together. There is also some more infomation on there site.

 

[Jas0nP]

The point I am trying to make is that with the right club you are entering the region of the world that has some of the best diving and diversity in the world. If you want I would be more than happy to show you various dive destinations and activities at the correct time of the year.

A quick semi-highjack of the thread but i would be very interested in this. I have 6 months of traveling up the east coast starting in SA and finishing in Kenya as of June. While I enjoy Scuba diving I don't want to do more than 20 dives along this trip but would like to choose the best dive sites for those dives along my trip. Would you have any recommendations?