Which of the 2 LOB's have more shallow dives in a week?

[Saniflush]

@miserkris (Say "Hi" to Virginia and Captain Ron for me.)

@Hoag thought I would let you know since you may not have seen it, Virginia just hung up her mermaid tail for a little while. She was so awesome last year with us and I was really looking forward to seeing her again but life is about experiences and she is going to get some more. Also we will have Captain Des next week in lieu of Captain Ron. The only holdover that will be on our boat this year from last year will be DM Jill and Kelly handling the food but I am sure everyone else will be great.

@miserkris like everyone else has said above you are overthinking this. Last year was our first time on the Aqua Cat and we overthought it as well. people told us last year to pack as light as we could then divide that amount by half and take that. They were not wrong. Couple of swim suits, tshirts, and shorts. Not much else is needed. Credit cards are accepted except for American Express. We will get in about noon, drop our gear at the boat and probably walk over to Atlantis for some gambling before needing to be back on the boat at 1800 that night. Look forward to meeting you.

 

[Hoag]

@Hoag thought I would let you know since you may not have seen it, Virginia just hung up her mermaid tail for a little while. She was so awesome last year with us and I was really looking forward to seeing her again but life is about experiences and she is going to get some more. Also we will have Captain Des next week in lieu of Captain Ron. The only holdover that will be on our boat this year from last year will be DM Jill and Kelly handling the food but I am sure everyone else will be great.

@miserkris like everyone else has said above you are overthinking this. Last year was our first time on the Aqua Cat and we overthought it as well. people told us last year to pack as light as we could then divide that amount by half and take that. They were not wrong. Couple of swim suits, tshirts, and shorts. Not much else is needed. Credit cards are accepted except for American Express. We will get in about noon, drop our gear at the boat and probably walk over to Atlantis for some gambling before needing to be back on the boat at 1800 that night. Look forward to meeting you.

OK, thanks. In that case, please say "Hi" to Capt Des for me. (Although it has been a few years since I have been on the boat when he was on it and he may (or may not) remember me.)

 

[Hoag]

Thx guys.

Is there wifi avail at the dock areas?

Also,
I always shave my moustache before any scuba lol. ... but i do see some experienced divers with a hairy face....

I noticed that the mask seal isn't great with the moustache, is it the case with others?

Just curious

@miserkris There is WiFi while you are at the dock in Hurricane Hole, but it can be good at times and pretty flakey at others. Once you "set sail" there will be no WiFi till you return to the berth.

 

[Hoag]

Gotcha! I thought you meant the crew!

Yikes! The crew works hard, but nobody works THAT hard!

 

[miserkris]

Yikes, hoping florence would go to Boston or weaken...

Hope it doesn't mess our plans starting Sunday from Nassau to back to Nassau at the AC!

 

[Saniflush]

(Famous last words) Florence looks as if it will be of no concern for us. I started watching 92L which is behind Florence and it also looks like it will not impact us. From a timing perspective if 92L develops into something and gets in our area then we should get most if not all of our dives in and back to port. If I were booked for the 15th I would be much more concerned at this point.

As a side note, my next day as a meteorologist will be my first. I think the last lines on @Hoag post hit the nail on the head.

To paraphrase the great poet-philosopher Jimmy Buffett:
The difference between a tourist and a traveler becomes apparent when things don’t go according to
plan. A “tourist” will freak out to some degree, while a “traveler” will simply roll with it.
Try to be a traveler not a tourist. Something will inevitably go wrong, that’s just a fact of life. Relax, and
roll with it. It will likely be OK and if nothing else, you might end up with a great story.

 

[Hoag]

FWIW, last October, on my most recent Aquacat trip, Tropical Storm Phillipe became a factor. It passed between Florida and New Providence Island (where Nassau is). It was expected to pass through this area on the night we boarded. The Captain told us that he basically had two options. One was to stay tied up in the shelter of Hurricane Hole Marina until after the storm passes but that meant we might lose a day of diving because we wouldn't leave until after the storm had passed. The second option was to head south as soon as the last guest arrived and to try to put as much distance between us and the storm as quickly as possible, but this meant that they would be traveling at night and it could get a little rough at times. Well, we opted for "Door Number Two" and we tied up to the mooring down at the south end of the Exumas Land and Marine Park about 4:00am. The first few dives had pretty sketchy vis, but we didn't miss a single dive. This demonstrated one of the huge advantages of a LOB. If the weather or the dive conditions are less than ideal where you are, you can simply move to where the conditions are likely going to be better.

@Saniflush did that Trips Tips write up have anything useful in it that might help? As I said, I originally wrote it for some people that I have traveled with a lot, so I didn't hesitate to use humour but I hope that it was still able to give folks who had never been on a LOB or specifically the Aquacat a heads up on what to expect.

 

[Saniflush]

@Saniflush did that Trips Tips write up have anything useful in it that might help? As I said, I originally wrote it for some people that I have traveled with a lot, so I didn't hesitate to use humour but I hope that it was still able to give folks who had never been on a LOB or specifically the Aquacat a heads up on what to expect.

I didn't see it last year before we went and had not looked for much information since the LDS we were going with had a number of folks that had been on the Aqua Cat previously. Reading it now though and thinking about our experience, I would say that it was spot on. I would not hesitate to pass it along to anyone who has never done Aqua Cat before as a great reference guide.

 

[Hoag]

@Saniflush & @miserkris have a great trip. Let us know how it went when you get back!

 

[miserkris]

@Saniflush & @miserkris have a great trip. Let us know how it went when you get back!

Thanks.... can't wait really. I'm off friday and going to y.m.c.a just to practice some clearing the mask technique...

I do this before every dive vacation.

See some of you Saturday.... thanks!