Ken Kurtis
Contributor
The calm before the storm . . .
QUITE LITERALLY, ACTUALLY - Nice and calm this morning at Redondo. In fact, calm all week. The 3-5' surf that was predicted never materialized. However, I'm fairly certain that what you see below will NOT be the way the beach looks once this storm starts rolling in Monday (with another behind it as well).
CATALINA EXPRESS BAGGAGE POLICY FOR DIVERS - It's pretty straightforward: 2 bags (50 pounds max for each), one carry-on that fits under the seat, a single tank, and divers can bring an extra piece of luggage. There are some other more detailed rules and that's why the Express has put out a one-page flyer that goes into details about this. We've got it up on our Reef Seekers website (under "Local Trips"). Here's the direct link to the flyer. Feel free to print it out or download it and send it to others you dive with, or who are in your club, etc.: CATALINA EXPRESS SCUBA DIVER BAGGAGE GUIDELINES.
WANNA SAVE 40% ON A LIVEABOARD TRIP? - This is not a Reef Seekers-guided trip (in other words, I won't be on it) but we can book this for you and help with co-ordination. Simply put, two of our Reef Seekers stalwarts - Shirley Parry & Marilyn Lawrence - have booked through us onto the Indo Aggressor for a really wonderful and interesting 11-night trip (April 6-17) to what's termed "The Forgotten Islands." These are islands in the Banda Sea on the south side of Indonesia, basically between Sulawesi and Australia, that are rarely dove. The Indo Aggressor (100' x 26' - in a traditional Phinisi style) takes 16 passengers and has 18 crew (not a bad ratio) but for this trip, they are WIDE open. And I'm sure that's why they're offering such a steep discount. YOU should take advantage of that. Their twin stateroom normally goes for $5,050 but for this trip only, you can grab a space for only $3,030!!! That's quite a deal. (And remember, it's 11 nights, not 7.) For an extra $60, you can move up to a Deluxe stateroom (but it's queen bed only). But the bottom line is that this is a remarkable opportunity. If you'd like to take advantage of it, call us at 310/652-4990 and we'll go over all the details with you.
BACK FROM CABO PULMO - In case you didn't see the e-mail from Saturday, we've got the trip report and pix from our Cabo Pulmo adventure posted on-line. The easiest thing to do is start on the trip report page. There are links there to the Picture Page which will also take to to the SmugMug pix and the YouTube videos. Enjoy: CABO PULMO REPORT.
LITHIUM-ION CHARGING BAG - As attention focuses on lithium-ion batteries being a prime suspect as the cause of both the Conception and Red Sea Aggressor fires, fireproof charging bags have become very popular. Arnold Lesin gave us a recommendation for one you can get through Amazon for $7. Here's the direct link: LIPO CHARGING BAG.
VISITOR FROM THE SOUTH? - Curtis Majeurs was diving Shaw's Cove Sunday when another diver got his attention near the big arch and shined his light on what appeared to be a Cortez Angelfish hiding in a crevice. They couldn't get it to come out but that fish is going to be in for a rude awakening n the coming months as the water gets colder. We saw plenty of them down in Cabo Pulmo, but I've never seen one up here. Good find Curtis!!! Here's what he saw: CORTEZ ANGELFISH (from Cabo Pulmo).
And that'll do it for now. Happy Hanukkah to all who celebrate that. And assuming Christmas doesn't get washed away by our impending rain, keep an eye on your e-mail Tuesday for our annual JibJab card as well as perhaps an adaptation of a traditional Christmas poem.
Have a great holiday week and let's go diving soon!!! (But after the New Year . . .)
- Ken
QUITE LITERALLY, ACTUALLY - Nice and calm this morning at Redondo. In fact, calm all week. The 3-5' surf that was predicted never materialized. However, I'm fairly certain that what you see below will NOT be the way the beach looks once this storm starts rolling in Monday (with another behind it as well).
CATALINA EXPRESS BAGGAGE POLICY FOR DIVERS - It's pretty straightforward: 2 bags (50 pounds max for each), one carry-on that fits under the seat, a single tank, and divers can bring an extra piece of luggage. There are some other more detailed rules and that's why the Express has put out a one-page flyer that goes into details about this. We've got it up on our Reef Seekers website (under "Local Trips"). Here's the direct link to the flyer. Feel free to print it out or download it and send it to others you dive with, or who are in your club, etc.: CATALINA EXPRESS SCUBA DIVER BAGGAGE GUIDELINES.
WANNA SAVE 40% ON A LIVEABOARD TRIP? - This is not a Reef Seekers-guided trip (in other words, I won't be on it) but we can book this for you and help with co-ordination. Simply put, two of our Reef Seekers stalwarts - Shirley Parry & Marilyn Lawrence - have booked through us onto the Indo Aggressor for a really wonderful and interesting 11-night trip (April 6-17) to what's termed "The Forgotten Islands." These are islands in the Banda Sea on the south side of Indonesia, basically between Sulawesi and Australia, that are rarely dove. The Indo Aggressor (100' x 26' - in a traditional Phinisi style) takes 16 passengers and has 18 crew (not a bad ratio) but for this trip, they are WIDE open. And I'm sure that's why they're offering such a steep discount. YOU should take advantage of that. Their twin stateroom normally goes for $5,050 but for this trip only, you can grab a space for only $3,030!!! That's quite a deal. (And remember, it's 11 nights, not 7.) For an extra $60, you can move up to a Deluxe stateroom (but it's queen bed only). But the bottom line is that this is a remarkable opportunity. If you'd like to take advantage of it, call us at 310/652-4990 and we'll go over all the details with you.
BACK FROM CABO PULMO - In case you didn't see the e-mail from Saturday, we've got the trip report and pix from our Cabo Pulmo adventure posted on-line. The easiest thing to do is start on the trip report page. There are links there to the Picture Page which will also take to to the SmugMug pix and the YouTube videos. Enjoy: CABO PULMO REPORT.
LITHIUM-ION CHARGING BAG - As attention focuses on lithium-ion batteries being a prime suspect as the cause of both the Conception and Red Sea Aggressor fires, fireproof charging bags have become very popular. Arnold Lesin gave us a recommendation for one you can get through Amazon for $7. Here's the direct link: LIPO CHARGING BAG.
VISITOR FROM THE SOUTH? - Curtis Majeurs was diving Shaw's Cove Sunday when another diver got his attention near the big arch and shined his light on what appeared to be a Cortez Angelfish hiding in a crevice. They couldn't get it to come out but that fish is going to be in for a rude awakening n the coming months as the water gets colder. We saw plenty of them down in Cabo Pulmo, but I've never seen one up here. Good find Curtis!!! Here's what he saw: CORTEZ ANGELFISH (from Cabo Pulmo).
And that'll do it for now. Happy Hanukkah to all who celebrate that. And assuming Christmas doesn't get washed away by our impending rain, keep an eye on your e-mail Tuesday for our annual JibJab card as well as perhaps an adaptation of a traditional Christmas poem.
Have a great holiday week and let's go diving soon!!! (But after the New Year . . .)
- Ken
