Hi divers
Summer weather has arrived as can be felt by the days of strong southeasterly winds. Sadly this negatively impacts weekend diving on a regular basis so taking the day off occasionally in the week can be very rewarding. I had very good diving on Tuesday and Wednesday this week in False Bay.
I have quite a few new students so I have spent a fair amount of time in the pool. The pool structure has now been completed and the water heaters are back on so it is a very pleasant environment for training, particularly on days where the weather is lousy. The current temperature is 24 degrees and last Saturday I spent close to 6 hours in the water.
Sunday’s boat diving was cancelled due to a very strong wind (southeaster) which is supposed to clean the Atlantic up nicely but when it blows over 30 kph it churns the surface up and the boat ride is horrible and the surface conditions at the start and the end of a dive very unpleasant.
Wind and diving
This weekend looks much the same as last weekend for Saturday, strong winds so I am going to give the Atlantic a miss. Sunday looks way better so I will dive a bunch of students in False Bay.
Clare and I took a drive around the peninsula on Sunday and looked at all the dive sites, and none would have made it onto my “safe to dive” list yet there were charter boats launching and people doing shore entries. I had a bunch of Russian tourist divers with me on Wednesday and was saddened by their story of a local dive centre ripping them off, taking them on the boat in shocking conditions and letting them dive in 2 metre visibility before hauling them out of the kelp and onto the boat with a rope and almost drowning one of them in the process. This kind of behaviour is a blatant disregard for diver safety, and it is bad for the tourist trade and the dive industry.
For swell, weather and wind, check out Magic Seaweed and Windguru and Windfinder – bookmark these in your internet browser.
Next week
Monday to Wednesday next week promises very good diving conditions so that elusive day off for a dive is beckoning. I have tourists next week doing some diving and we are hoping to do a pelagic trip on Wednesday. This involves a trip out to the Ttna fishing grounds approximately 20-30 nautical miles off Cape Point. The idea is to look for the warmer cleaner water of the Agulhas current, hang a chum drum in the water and wait for the sharks. There are usually blue sharks and mako sharks plus many seabirds join the picnic. It is an incredible trip and will blow your mind. There is space for two more people but you will need to contact me asap. We leave from Simon’s Town at around 7.30am and get back around 3.30pm. It’s a cabin boat, has a loo and lunch is served on the way back. Not to be missed!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0yeqvLWq2w&w=540]
regards
Tony Lindeque
076 817 1099
www.learntodivetoday.co.za
www.learntodivetoday.co.za/blog
Diving is addictive!
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