Ken Kurtis
Contributor
Want to travel??? Upcoming 2018 vacation trips:
• April 14-21 (note new dates) - Bonaire (Buddy Dive)
• June 8-20 - Yap Immersion (same 10-day format we did this year)
• July 14-28 - Sulawesi, Indonesia with our friends at Murex (includes a day at Lembeh Straits)
• August 18-25 - Isla Mujeres (Whale Sharks, Cancun Underwater Museum, Cenotes)
• October 27 - November 3 - Roatan at Anthony's Key
GET MORE INFO ON ALL OF OUR VACATION TRIPS HERE: Foreign Trips
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Upcoming local dives & classes:
• Sat., Dec. 9 - Catalina Express - Avalon Underwater Park, maybe more BSBs ($150)
• Tue. Dec. 12 - (CLASS - new date) Fish ID - Reef Seekers West(wood) ($25)
• Thu., Dec. 28 - Night dive (Squid???) - Redondo, Veterans Park (FREE!!!)
• Thu, Jan. 11 - Night dive (Squid???) - Redondo, Veterans Park (FREE!!!)
• Sat., Jan. 20 - Catalina Express - Avalon Underwater Park, maybe more BSBs ($150)
• Thu., Jan. 25 - (CLASS) Fish ID - Reef Seekers West(wood) ($25)
To sign up for any of these dives, either call us at 310/652-4990 or e-mail us at kenkurtis@aol.com
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The tree is up (at my sister's place) plus I got the traditional Chocolate Santa. Let the holidays begin!!!!
SCARY/SAD NEWS COMING OUT OF COCOS - The short version of this is that a diver from New York has died after being bitten by a Tiger Shark. There are still many unknowns so some of what follows may ultimately not prove to be correct. It sounds like she was with a group including a DM and they had finished their dive. They either had just arrived at the surface or were waiting on the surface to be picked up. Unclear as to what time of day this was. But it sounds like the shark struck (I'm avoiding the word "attacked" because I think this was a case of mistaken identity, not "I'm-gonna-eat-a-human") from below, which is quite common. The old adage is that it's not the shark you see that will get you, but the one you don't see. Sharks generally strike from below and behind their intended target. I'm unclear if this was one bite or multiples, but the DM apparently realized what was going on and went to help her and was also bitten, though not as severely. Also bear in mind that Cocos is some 300+ miles off of Costa Rica so medical help is definitely NOT nearby or readily available. From what is being said, it sounds like they tended to her as best they could, including getting help from the park rangers, but she bled to death. My GUESS would be that the bite hit something like the femoral artery (main artery in your leg) and that's pretty serious and without immediate advanced medical care (like a hospital), there was likely nothing that they could have done to save her. It sounds like the DM will survive. During the two Reef Seekers trips to Cocos in 2006 and 2007, we never saw a Tiger Shark. But people who have been there more recently say that they've become more common at Cocos in the last 10 years or so. They also say that the Tigers are generally not aggressive but definitely curious and will swim right up to a diver. I'm not trying to make light of this but since sharks have no hands, the only way they can figure out what something is (or isn't) is to bite. So whether this was an actually attack or simply a what-is-this-thing bite is unknown. Regardless, it's a good reminder that when you're in areas where you think there might be predators, it's always a good idea to keep a 360º view as best you can. And when you're on the surface - and this is in no way a criticism of anyone in this tragedy - that also means looking down occasionally while waiting for the pickup. There's a pretty active discussion about this going on at ScubaBoard and you can view it (you can lurk - don't need to be signed in as a member) through this link: Death in Cocos..
NO SHARKS IN AVALON - Well, none that I know of. But perhaps some Black Sea Bass. That's the best segue I've got right now to pitch our Avalon Underwater Park trip this coming Saturday. 9AM out of San Pedro on the Catalina Express, taxi ride over to the Park, we'll pick up tanks there, do three dives where we'll look for the Black Sea Bass in the "usual" spots where we've seen them gathering the last two months, taxi back to the Mole, 5:30PM ferry back to San Pedro. $150 covers you for the day including ferry, tank rental, and taxi rides. Call us at 310/652-4990 if you're interested in going.
BONAIRE DATES HAVE SHIFTED AND IT JUST GOT CHEAPER - Our original Bonaire dates were proving a bit problematic because (1) It was still "high season" as well as Spring Break & Easter, and (2) The airfare was sky-high, almost as much as flying to Asia. We had chosen those dates specifically for one's person's sked but they've dropped off the trip. So, after a little investigating and confering with the others already going, we've pushed the trip back three weeks. The new dates are April 14-21. This will drop the overall land price of the trip (what you pay Reef Seekers) from $2,495 to $2,295. And the airfare is roughly $1,000 cheaper. So this is like saving $1,200 off of what the March dates would have cost you. It's almost like it's FREE!!!!! (And yes I admit that sounds a bit silly. Almost as silly as, "The tax cuts will pay for themsevles.") But the reality is that - all in - the April dates will be significantly cheaper than had we gone in March. We also expect that Buddy Dive will be a little less crowded since we are out of the Spring Break time. So we're fairly certain/hopeful that Dive Manager August will be able to get us a boat all to oursevles. Plus we've expanded their normal package from six to eleven boat dives so that means we'll do a 2-tank dive each day (usually in the morning) plus an extra afternoon boat dive at some point during the week. And we plan to do our nightly dusk dives where we generally see the amazing "River of Fish" that cascades by Buddy Dive nightly. (If you've never seen this, check out this video:
.)
We're definitely a "go" for this one so if you're interested, call us at 310/652-4990 and let's get you signed up.
2018 CLASSES AND LOCAL TRIPS - In case you haven't gone through the December newsletter yet, you will find our intended sked for 2018 classes and local trips (beach dives and Avalon dives). I may still add the occasional boat dive as we go along but I'll likely announce those through TWARS &/or the monthly newsletter. One thing you'll notice that's a little different for 2018 is that the classes are now all on Thursdays, as are the night/squid dives at Redondo. (We'd previously offered those on Wednesdays. The change makes it a bit easier on my schedule.) The weekend dives (both beach and Avalon) are all on Saturdays. If you'd like to view the schedule in table form, it's always available on our website through this link: Local Boat Trips. And if you'd prefer a single-page copy that you can tack up on your bulletin board or refrigerator, it's attached in PDF form.
EXCELLENT ARTICLE TO READ - The December issue of California Diving News arrived in my mailbox over the weekend and there's an excellent article by Bruce Watkins (starting on page 17) about how the oceans, especially up in Northern California where he's based, are changing. Bruce does a good job of pointing out the various links between things in the ecosystem. For instance, showing how Wasting Disease, which has decimated starfish populations all along the West Coast (and which may also be linking to warmer water temps due to climate change), have allowed urchin populations to flourish, which in turn have helped decimate kelp forests, which is turn then affects the abalone population since they graze on kelp plus the fish leave because they now have no habitat. A diminished kelp population coupled with warmer temps allows also Sargasm to take hold which then raises other sets of problems/issues. It's all inter-connected and a lot of times people who aren't divers simply don't get that. But Bruce lays it out in a nice, straightforward manner as well as pointing out that some places who are geographic neighbors see one getting hit hard and the adjacent one not so much. It's a good read. As of this writing (Sunday night) it's not yet up on their website (Home - California Diving News) but I assume it will be soon. Or you can go to your local dive shop and pick up a free copy of the magazine. This should be required reading for every diver.
TURKISH DELIGHT - Well, the underwater kind at least. Seems divers were exploring Lake Van, the largest lake in Turkey, when they came upon ruins of an ancient fortress that no one knew was there. They don't indicate how deep it is but they make mention of how the waters of the lake have risen "hundreds of meters." I don't think it's 300 feet deep but you never know. The estimate is that the fortress is roughly 3,000 years old. You can see a short National Geographic video about this (and I'd assume there's a full-length episode in the offing) through this link:
.
And on that'll do it for now. Have a great week and let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
• April 14-21 (note new dates) - Bonaire (Buddy Dive)
• June 8-20 - Yap Immersion (same 10-day format we did this year)
• July 14-28 - Sulawesi, Indonesia with our friends at Murex (includes a day at Lembeh Straits)
• August 18-25 - Isla Mujeres (Whale Sharks, Cancun Underwater Museum, Cenotes)
• October 27 - November 3 - Roatan at Anthony's Key
GET MORE INFO ON ALL OF OUR VACATION TRIPS HERE: Foreign Trips
——————————————————————————————————————————
Upcoming local dives & classes:
• Sat., Dec. 9 - Catalina Express - Avalon Underwater Park, maybe more BSBs ($150)
• Tue. Dec. 12 - (CLASS - new date) Fish ID - Reef Seekers West(wood) ($25)
• Thu., Dec. 28 - Night dive (Squid???) - Redondo, Veterans Park (FREE!!!)
• Thu, Jan. 11 - Night dive (Squid???) - Redondo, Veterans Park (FREE!!!)
• Sat., Jan. 20 - Catalina Express - Avalon Underwater Park, maybe more BSBs ($150)
• Thu., Jan. 25 - (CLASS) Fish ID - Reef Seekers West(wood) ($25)
To sign up for any of these dives, either call us at 310/652-4990 or e-mail us at kenkurtis@aol.com
——————————————————————————————————————————
The tree is up (at my sister's place) plus I got the traditional Chocolate Santa. Let the holidays begin!!!!
SCARY/SAD NEWS COMING OUT OF COCOS - The short version of this is that a diver from New York has died after being bitten by a Tiger Shark. There are still many unknowns so some of what follows may ultimately not prove to be correct. It sounds like she was with a group including a DM and they had finished their dive. They either had just arrived at the surface or were waiting on the surface to be picked up. Unclear as to what time of day this was. But it sounds like the shark struck (I'm avoiding the word "attacked" because I think this was a case of mistaken identity, not "I'm-gonna-eat-a-human") from below, which is quite common. The old adage is that it's not the shark you see that will get you, but the one you don't see. Sharks generally strike from below and behind their intended target. I'm unclear if this was one bite or multiples, but the DM apparently realized what was going on and went to help her and was also bitten, though not as severely. Also bear in mind that Cocos is some 300+ miles off of Costa Rica so medical help is definitely NOT nearby or readily available. From what is being said, it sounds like they tended to her as best they could, including getting help from the park rangers, but she bled to death. My GUESS would be that the bite hit something like the femoral artery (main artery in your leg) and that's pretty serious and without immediate advanced medical care (like a hospital), there was likely nothing that they could have done to save her. It sounds like the DM will survive. During the two Reef Seekers trips to Cocos in 2006 and 2007, we never saw a Tiger Shark. But people who have been there more recently say that they've become more common at Cocos in the last 10 years or so. They also say that the Tigers are generally not aggressive but definitely curious and will swim right up to a diver. I'm not trying to make light of this but since sharks have no hands, the only way they can figure out what something is (or isn't) is to bite. So whether this was an actually attack or simply a what-is-this-thing bite is unknown. Regardless, it's a good reminder that when you're in areas where you think there might be predators, it's always a good idea to keep a 360º view as best you can. And when you're on the surface - and this is in no way a criticism of anyone in this tragedy - that also means looking down occasionally while waiting for the pickup. There's a pretty active discussion about this going on at ScubaBoard and you can view it (you can lurk - don't need to be signed in as a member) through this link: Death in Cocos..
NO SHARKS IN AVALON - Well, none that I know of. But perhaps some Black Sea Bass. That's the best segue I've got right now to pitch our Avalon Underwater Park trip this coming Saturday. 9AM out of San Pedro on the Catalina Express, taxi ride over to the Park, we'll pick up tanks there, do three dives where we'll look for the Black Sea Bass in the "usual" spots where we've seen them gathering the last two months, taxi back to the Mole, 5:30PM ferry back to San Pedro. $150 covers you for the day including ferry, tank rental, and taxi rides. Call us at 310/652-4990 if you're interested in going.
BONAIRE DATES HAVE SHIFTED AND IT JUST GOT CHEAPER - Our original Bonaire dates were proving a bit problematic because (1) It was still "high season" as well as Spring Break & Easter, and (2) The airfare was sky-high, almost as much as flying to Asia. We had chosen those dates specifically for one's person's sked but they've dropped off the trip. So, after a little investigating and confering with the others already going, we've pushed the trip back three weeks. The new dates are April 14-21. This will drop the overall land price of the trip (what you pay Reef Seekers) from $2,495 to $2,295. And the airfare is roughly $1,000 cheaper. So this is like saving $1,200 off of what the March dates would have cost you. It's almost like it's FREE!!!!! (And yes I admit that sounds a bit silly. Almost as silly as, "The tax cuts will pay for themsevles.") But the reality is that - all in - the April dates will be significantly cheaper than had we gone in March. We also expect that Buddy Dive will be a little less crowded since we are out of the Spring Break time. So we're fairly certain/hopeful that Dive Manager August will be able to get us a boat all to oursevles. Plus we've expanded their normal package from six to eleven boat dives so that means we'll do a 2-tank dive each day (usually in the morning) plus an extra afternoon boat dive at some point during the week. And we plan to do our nightly dusk dives where we generally see the amazing "River of Fish" that cascades by Buddy Dive nightly. (If you've never seen this, check out this video:
.)
We're definitely a "go" for this one so if you're interested, call us at 310/652-4990 and let's get you signed up.
2018 CLASSES AND LOCAL TRIPS - In case you haven't gone through the December newsletter yet, you will find our intended sked for 2018 classes and local trips (beach dives and Avalon dives). I may still add the occasional boat dive as we go along but I'll likely announce those through TWARS &/or the monthly newsletter. One thing you'll notice that's a little different for 2018 is that the classes are now all on Thursdays, as are the night/squid dives at Redondo. (We'd previously offered those on Wednesdays. The change makes it a bit easier on my schedule.) The weekend dives (both beach and Avalon) are all on Saturdays. If you'd like to view the schedule in table form, it's always available on our website through this link: Local Boat Trips. And if you'd prefer a single-page copy that you can tack up on your bulletin board or refrigerator, it's attached in PDF form.
EXCELLENT ARTICLE TO READ - The December issue of California Diving News arrived in my mailbox over the weekend and there's an excellent article by Bruce Watkins (starting on page 17) about how the oceans, especially up in Northern California where he's based, are changing. Bruce does a good job of pointing out the various links between things in the ecosystem. For instance, showing how Wasting Disease, which has decimated starfish populations all along the West Coast (and which may also be linking to warmer water temps due to climate change), have allowed urchin populations to flourish, which in turn have helped decimate kelp forests, which is turn then affects the abalone population since they graze on kelp plus the fish leave because they now have no habitat. A diminished kelp population coupled with warmer temps allows also Sargasm to take hold which then raises other sets of problems/issues. It's all inter-connected and a lot of times people who aren't divers simply don't get that. But Bruce lays it out in a nice, straightforward manner as well as pointing out that some places who are geographic neighbors see one getting hit hard and the adjacent one not so much. It's a good read. As of this writing (Sunday night) it's not yet up on their website (Home - California Diving News) but I assume it will be soon. Or you can go to your local dive shop and pick up a free copy of the magazine. This should be required reading for every diver.
TURKISH DELIGHT - Well, the underwater kind at least. Seems divers were exploring Lake Van, the largest lake in Turkey, when they came upon ruins of an ancient fortress that no one knew was there. They don't indicate how deep it is but they make mention of how the waters of the lake have risen "hundreds of meters." I don't think it's 300 feet deep but you never know. The estimate is that the fortress is roughly 3,000 years old. You can see a short National Geographic video about this (and I'd assume there's a full-length episode in the offing) through this link:
.
And on that'll do it for now. Have a great week and let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
