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January 27, 2007

Scuba Information

Here are some sites that I regularly peruse about scuba diving (these are not Cayman specific):

Diving

www.scubadiving.com (Magazine)
www.scilib.ucsd.edu/sio/nsf/ ((Diving under Antarctic Ice -- sound cool but those guys are crazy)
www.scubahistory.com
www.nedu.navsea.navy.mil/ (info on the U.S. Navy Experimental Diving Program)
www.divefilm.com
www.divernet.com
www.divingintheworld.com
www.scubasource.com
www.gue.com
www.recreational-divers.com
www.sportdivermag.com (Magazine)
www.undercurrent.org (Magazine)
www.immersed.com (Magazine)
www.sfdj.com (South FL Dive Journal; Magazine)
www.diversdown.net
www.tidivers.com
www.findarticles.com (For diving in Cayman, Articles/ tips)
www.seapix.com

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:37 PM | | Comments (0)

January 26, 2007

Plan Your Trip: More Sites to Look At

Here are a few more sites I found to help you plan your trip:

www.travelon.com
www.travelscape.com
www.travelocity.com
www.vacationspot.com
www.byebyenow.com
www.lastminutetravel.com
www.gorp.com
www.divecayman.ky
www.cayman.org/scuba
www.findarticles.com (For diving in Cayman, Articles/ tips)
www.discovercaymans.com

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:34 PM | | Comments (1)

January 23, 2007

Scuba Web Sites -- Plan Your Trip

Apparently I've done a good job of selling Cayman as a scuba diving destination because I have received three emails asking me for help planning dive trips. People, I am many things, but a travel agent is not one of them!

So, to help you out, here are a list of sites that may be of some use to you (in no particular order):

Plan Your Trip
www.866thebrac.com
www.jharp.net
www.saveonvacationpackages.com
www.discounttravelpackages.com
www.lonelyplanet.com
www.away.com

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:31 PM | | Comments (0)

January 22, 2007

Little Cayman

The walls of Little Cayman are another one of the world's scuba diving wonders of the world. The most famous dive spot,

Bloody Bay Wall
, offers the finest drop-offs in the Caribbean. The walls are completely covered with brightly hued sponges and corals. If you go, you will see spectacular formations of Yellow Tube, Strawberry and Orange Vase Sponges and tangled masses of scarlet Rope Sponges. And if you're tired of little fish, keep your eye out for some Eagle Rays and octopus.


Most divers never see them, but Little Cayman also has pristine shallow reefs with an incredibly abundant and diverse collection of marine life, both large and small. Since the fish and animals know the human presence as being benign, even Barracuda can be photographed. I've gone on a couple of night dives off Little Cayman which were good too. I once saw a big octopus roaming the reefs looking for dinner. I felt like Jacques Cousteau.

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:26 PM | | Comments (2)

Diving in Cayman Brac

Cayman Brac is about 10 miles from Little Cayman. The name

Brac
comes from the Gaelic word for
Bluff
. Cayman Brac's bluff is the highest point in Cayman Brac at 140 feet. Besides Russian naval destroyers, the bluff is home to a wide variety of birds like the Red Foot Booby and lots of scary looking bats that live in caverns that are more inland. Don't worry, bats don't swim underwater or come out in the daytime so you're safe!


Cayman Brac is surrounded by miles of shallow reefs that are inhabited by a lot of extremely mellow marine life. Seriously, it's like the fish there are on xanax or something. I've touched eels and a friend of mine once got some great close up photos of intimate fish acts (I'm keeping this blog clean so don't ask!). One of my fondest memories of diving at the Brac was when I stumbled upon an odd site -- a fish cleaning station. Fish of various types were queued up waiting to get cleaned by a very hard working cleaner fish.


A good plan for a full day and possibly evening of diving at Cayman Brac is to do two dives on the Tibbetts before heading to the Island for some lunch. That way you have enough time between dives and you get a little time off the boat. If you're feeling strong, and don't drink anything at lunch, you could also do a night dive at Radar Beach.


There is a nice site with great information on Nature Tourism in the Cayman Islands at www.naturecayman.com

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:20 PM | | Comments (0)

January 21, 2007

Tibbetts

So I looked into the story of the Tibbetts a bit more. Apparently the ship was originally named

Russian Warship #356
. I would have expected something more creative from our Russian friends but oh well. The destroyer was strategically positioned in Cuba until the end of the Cold War when the Soviets stopped supporting Cuba. Apparently the Navy did not feel like spending the money to send old #356 back home so they sent the 100 plus officers and sailors home on another ship and abandoned it in 1992.

There sat #356 until the Cayman government bought it to create an artificial reef. Here is an interesting factoid: The destroyer originally cost $30 million USD and the Caymanian government was able to pick it up for only approximate $300,000 USD. Ouch. Depreciation is a killer!

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:17 PM | | Comments (0)

Tibbetts and Cayman Brac

Cayman Brac has a very special diving opportunity -- a 330 foot Russian warship, complete with four deck guns, that was intentionally sunk off the island's west end to create the equivalent of an

E-ticket
ride for scuba divers.


I don't know what the ship's original name was, but here in Cayman she (that's right, a ship is a she even if it's named

Eisenhower
) is called the
Tibbetts
. Named after MV Capt. Keith Tibbetts, a wealthy and popular area businessman.


Anyway, the Tibbetts is the only divable Russian warship in the Western Hemisphere and more importantly, is a very exciting scuba adventure. The Brac is a great place to dive. Besides the Tibbetts, there are two other wrecks, and several miles of shallow reefs with beautiful Elkhorn corals and colorful sponges that support a wide variety of aquatic life. You really have to see it to believe it.

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:13 PM | | Comments (0)

January 20, 2007

Marty Wollf: Marine Photographer

My favorite photographer of marine life is a guy named Marty Wolff. I've never met him but I have seen quite a bit of his work in Hawaii. Marty swims right up to turtles and sting ray (careful Marty) and seems to capture the personality and dignity that these undersea creatures have while going about their daily business.

Check out Marty's web site at:

http://www.martywolff.com/mw/marine-life.htm

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:11 PM | | Comments (0)

Wall Diving Continued

I was trying to think of the best way to express the thrill of scuba diving. Think of it like being inside a gigantic salt water fish tank filled with beautiful fish -- only instead of seeing one or two beautiful brightly colored fish -- imagine seeing a school of hundreds of them. Instead of seeing this thru the glass, imagine swimming with the school of fish or having the fish swim up to look you right in the eye. It's good stuff.

There is an added thrill to diving on walls in Cayman. It's like rock climbing without the work! Instead of struggling to conquer barren cliffs, you can glide effortlessly along breathtaking walls. And, unlike more terrestrial topography, undersea mountain exploration is not limited in terms of the variety of colors and flora and fauna that you see. In Cayman, mountain exploration happens in technicolor as you swim through canyons and lush shallow reefs filled with thousands of different specimens of aquatic life. Note, there is also no risk of avalanche but you do need to watch out for stingrays! Here is a good site for more information:

http://www.divecayman.ky/sites/art_cayman_peaks.asp

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 12:07 PM | | Comments (0)

January 19, 2007

Wall Diving

I love scuba diving. If you haven't tried it yet you're really missing out on one of the great thrills of your life. The freedom to swim and interact with a diverse collection of fish has given me some of the fondest memories of my life.


Cayman has some of the best dive spots in the world. What most peole don't know is that the Cayman Islands are actually mountain peaks -- and not just any mountain peaks. We're talking giant mountains that would dwarf any mountain range in North America in a side-by-side comparison.


Continue reading "Wall Diving" »

Posted by Myron Gushlak at 11:31 AM | | Comments (0)