TWARS (This Week at Reef Seekers) - June 14-21

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Ken Kurtis

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Location
Beverly Hills, CA
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Be careful, transport to Catalina, and more

As things seem to move towards normal . . .

DON'T RUSH IT - When I address some of the COVID issues facing us as divers, I never know if I'm Nervous Nellie or Kautious Ken. But I'm doing whatever I can to make sure that (1) I don't transmit it to anyone [although I have zero reason to believe I'm infected or been exposed to someone infected], and (2) I don't get it from someone who's either asymptomatic or simply doesn't care/believe that this needs to be taken seriously. So much as I'm all in favor for crafting the "new normal," I think sometimes we're just rushing it a bit. The continued rise in infections, especially here in California, is troubling. It also seems that there are a number of states that have seen spikes a few weeks after they opened. Whether it's because people aren't following mitigation protocols or because those protocols don't really work (two very different scenarios) remains to be seen. I just looked at the live Redondo shot and even Sunday at 6:30PM, the beach is packed. So much for social distancing. And I cringed a couple of times today when I saw FaceBook posts from people that have resumed diving. In one case, there were 13 people on a medium-sized boat (but all wearing face-coverings), then another boat with 7 people visible but no one wearing a face-covering and many people sitting side-by-side, and yet another small group at a beach with arms around each other and nary a face-covering in sight. Even though you can make the statistical argument that the chances of you catching this, let alone dying from it, are very small, the few people who I do know who have tested positive generally say they wouldn't wish this on their worst enemy. You have to find your own comfort zone and hopefully you'll not only avoid contracting COVID yourself, but also won't inadvertently give it to someone else. Diving's a great sport but some of the things we do and the way we do it may put us at greater risk, so don't be too cavalier.

THE AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC IS OPEN - But we haven't yet resume full dive operations. That's still a work-in-progress. But the place is open again to the general public but on a timed-ticket basis plus a few other changes/restrictions. You can read all about it here: AQUARIUM IS OPEN AGAIN.

THE AVALON PARK IS OPEN BUT . . . - The "but" is that someone raised a snit about being confined to mats and having to pay for the mats on top of that so the island Company caved and re-instituted a free-for-all system. Catalina Divers Supply still asks that you call ahead of time (310/510-0330) to rent gear and even let them know if you'll need airfills, but you'll no longer be limited to just the mats. It also means that, as things ramp back up, the Park's going to get more crowded, which hopefully doesn't cause other issues.

CATALINA EXPRESS BEEFS UP SKED - It's a bit easier to get over to Catalina now that the island is officially open again. The Express now has two morning trips to Avalon out of Long Beach. Starting June 19th, they'll also be running out of Dana Point and running to Two Harbors. And starting June 29th, they will further expand those schedules as well as start running again out of San Pedro.

OTHER PLACES OPENING UP BUT WITH CAVEATS - Cozumel is now open. As best I can tell, Cancun and Cabo are also open. Puerto Rico is open but anyone arriving by air (unclear about ships) must self-quarantine for two weeks. Hawaii has extended their 14-day quarantine requirement for arriving passengers until at least the end of July. The Maldives reopens July 1 with no restrictions on incoming passengers. Cayman will not reopen until September 1. So it's a bit of a hodge-podge. And if any of these reopening or soon-to-reopen places see a sudden surge of infections, look for them to lock back down quickly (and hopefully you won't be there and get stuck). The list changes almost daily. But there is a handy tool to have . . .

PADI'S INTERACTIVE MAP - PADI has created and will keep current an interactive COVID diving status map of the world. But you have to pay attention to what you're looking at. It's color-coded and when you click on any country, it tells you four things: (1) Is diving allowed, (2) Can you travel INTO the country, (3) Can you travel OUT of the country, and (4) Can you travel WITHIN the country once you're there. It'll also list the date everything was last updated. For instance, click on New Zealand and you'll see that as of June 14, there are no restrictions on diving, you can travel within the country, you can leave the country with some restrictions . . . but you can't get INTO the country. Ooops. So it's a handy resource to have and kudos to PADI. Here's the link: PADI TRAVEL MAP.

ENDING ON A MOLA-MOLA HIGH NOTE - Looks like the breakwater cove on Monterrey was the place to be today as dozens and dozens of baby Mola-Molas invaded. Fortunately, someone had a cell phone with them and shot this: MOLA-MOLAS.

And that'll do it for now. Have a great week and let's SAFELY go diving soon one of these days!!!

- Ken
 
People at Casino Point weren't paying for the mats. The charge was due to the extra costs of providing tank delivery, tank sanitization and mat sanitization. If one had a group of seven divers to a mat, that added a paltry $3 per person. Due to the City imposed restrictions on the number of divers at the time, the charge for these added services seemed quite justified.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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