 |
 |
Magician Offering Wednesday Catalina Trips
The popular dive charter boat Magician is now running open boats each Wednesday to Catalina Island. Trips include three dives, food, and air fills, and are value priced. Conveniently located in an easy to reach San Pedro location, the Magician is a 62-foot custom built Westport with a wide beam of 18 feet for extra roominess. She is one of the fastest dive boats in her class. Other amenities include bunks for 9 singles and 7 doubles, 2 heads, hot freshwater shower, color TV/DVD/VCR, 3 Air compressors, and NITROX.
For more information, visit http://www.magicianscuba.com or call 661-268-0590.
Rare Catalina Species Sightings Wanted
Under the auspices of the Catalina Conservancy Divers (CCD) the new Catalina Species Archive (CSA) will document sightings of rare and uncommon marine species found in the nearshore waters surrounding Santa Catalina Island. All divers visiting Catalina Island are invited to participate.
Many of experienced divers who can recognize easily what is common or uncommon at Catalina. If you see (or have seen) an uncommon marine plant or animal at Catalina Island, please help us document it with some simple data.
Here are the data that CCD’s CSA would like you to document if you see (or have seen) an uncommon species:
Common and scientific names
Location
Date and time
Depth
Temperature
Size of organism
Photos if you have them
Please also include your dive experience (years, number of dives at time of sighting, etc.), your marine species ID background (novice, experienced amateur, professional), as well as contact information of anyone who assisted you with the ID of your organism.
Catalina Species Archive appreciates your efforts to document rare species. The data will eventually be made available to the public* and our hope is that it will be useful (and fun!) not only for the diving community but also for the marine resource community. (*Note: CSA may withhold from public viewing location data for at-risk species)
If you send photos, please send files that are less than 1 MB. CSA may ask for higher resolution files later.
E-mail your sightings to: rare@OCdiving.com please.
Shark Diving Website Launched
Horizon Charters has launched a new shark diving web site in response to unprecedented interest in cage diving at famed shark site Isla Guadalupe. It is the globally recognized destination for divers seeking National Geographic style encounters with great white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias). Horizon Charters based in San Diego, California has been an integral part of the Isla Guadalupe shark story since the beginning.
“We have been running dive charters to this spectacular dive site for the past 13 years,” says Greg Grivetto owner of Horizon Charters. “It just took us a while to launch a shark related web site, and we’re pretty excited about sharkadventure.com. It’s a complete shark diving resource.”
For the past five years, divers from all over the planet have been boarding either of the Grivetto’s two shark diving vessels, the MV Horizon and MV Ocean Odyssey to encounter great whites in the spectacular underwater environment at Isla Guadalupe. The site quickly earned the nickname white shark Heaven by returning divers. “Our dive crews have had the most time on the water with these magnificent animals,” says Grivetto, “and that translates into some pretty exciting encounters over the past few years.”
Horizon Charters along with the launch of www.sharkadventure.com is proud to announce its continued support with the ongoing shark research effort at the island. “We have been very involved with the entire project” Grivetto acknowledged. The study in tandem with Mexico’s CICIMAR, U.C.Davis, PIER, Shark Diver and now Nautilus Explorer is a collaborative effort to understand what this unique shark population is doing from year to year at this site.
“We would like to know if chumming has an effect on these animals and what they are feeding on while they are here. This is the kind if direct science that we are always supporting. Shark diving is just one aspect of what we do. You have to give back to the resource in a real way.” Grivetto and the crews from Horizon Charters will continue ongoing operations at this remarkable dive site this fall. To discover your own shark diving adventure, go to www.sharkadventure.com.
DAN Announces DES Quest
Divers Alert Network announces the launch of the DES Quest, a challenge to all interested divers to pursue and achieve the level of Diving Emergency Specialist (DES). DES is a DAN Training recognition program designed to commend divers who have continued their education and training in order to obtain knowledge and be both better buddies and better divers. It incorporates DAN Training programs with those of other training agencies, providing the diver with a well-rounded dive education.
To achieve the level of Diving Emergency Specialist, a diver must:
1. Be a rescue level (or higher) diver with their training agency
2. Hold a current CPR and First Aid certification
3. Hold a current certification in Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries (or equivalent)
4. Complete three of the following:
- Advanced Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries (or equiv.)
- First Aid for Hazardous Marine Life Injuries (or equiv.)
- AEDs for Scuba Diving (or equiv.)
- On-Site Neurological Assessment for Divers (or equiv.)
- Remote Emergency Medical Oxygen (REMO2™)
The DES Quest will run from June 1 – Dec. 31, 2006. During the Quest, when DAN is notified of a diver’s achievement of DES, the diver will receive a specially designed T-shirt and ballcap prize package. In addition, the diver will automatically be entered in a drawing for a DAN Gift Certificate worth $250. Not to forget those who teach, the DES Quest includes incentives for training centers and instructors as well.
For more information on DES, the DES Quest or becoming a DAN/DES Instructor, visit www.DiversAlertNetwork.org online.