|
Tenerife
Naomi and I were holidaying in Golf del Sur on Tenerife's South Coast when we made contact with David & Yvonne
who run Tenerife Dive at Las Galletas on the Costa del Silencio. I got back into the whole idea very easily but Naomi (who
has quite severe, although controlled, asthma) found it quite hard going from a confidence standpoint. We did eventually
get Naomi to do a try-dive in the calm and shallow water in the Harbour at Las Galletas and although still very nervous
she managed it very well and was likewise hooked.
We have been back to Tenerife since (after a couple more diving holidays in Greece) and Naomi & I had several really
wonderful 10-15 metre boat dives with Yvonne and David. Tenerife, out in the Atlantic, gets much better fish than you
generally find in the Mediterranean, larger and with more varieties. We even found the, by then, obligatory octopus to
play with for a while (See Crete, alongside).
I really can reccommend the Costa del Silencio as a place to dive, and Dive Tenerife in particular. They are a really friendly
but professionally run outfit and can & do cater for every level of diver. Since Naomi and I really love Tenerife we'll
definitely be going back.
Red Sea
Naomi and I had a week in the Red Sea in December 2008 sailing about the Gulf of Aqqaba. Lots of snorkelling and I managed
one dive over the week. The sea-life and corals out there really are all they're cracked up to be and this has definitely spurred
me on to get my PADI Open Water certification during 2009. I didn't have my underwater camera with me in December so no
piccies, but we will be going back.
Gulf of Aqabba, Jordan, 2010
In Jordanian waters, you're obliged to dive with a local dive company rather than being able to dive off the boat. One advantage
to this was having someone with you with a really good level of local knowledge, but the cost was not inconsiderable.
- Wreck of the Cedar Pride, Aqabba
- The Cedar Pride was left abandoned for a number of years after a fire on board, but was eventually sunk as a dive site in about 30 metres
of water just off a resort beach near Aqabba on the orders of King Abdullah, who is himself a keen diver. It will probably take a few more years
before the Cedar Pride matures as a wreck, but even so it's a great dive.
I had two dives in Jordan, the second one being close by the Cedar Pride wreck site: Japanese Garden.
- Japanese Garden, Aqabba
- This was a fairly shallow dive but incredibly beautiful with some of the best and most varied coral I've seen in the Gulf of Aqabba.
Plenty of fish too, as we made out way along the ridge. There's no moments of high drama on this dive, but the colours were drama enough.
|
Crete
Having got our foot in the door on Tenerife, our next holiday happened to be in Crete. We were based in Rethymnon
but there is nothing worth diving around there and we happened on the StayWet Diving Centre in Agia Pelagia, not
far from Heraklion. This is an absolutely fabulous location, with its own little sheltered cove which is rarely crowded.
The cove has room for the Dive Centre (which has its own cafe), two taverna alongside a shop and and a small
supermarket. The cove looks out towards Heraklion. Max and Beatrice, who run StayWet, are a lovely couple and all
the [French] staff are incredibly friendly and supportive and endlessly patient.
The first time we went there, Naomi was still very unconfident underwater and she and her 1-1 instructor tended to stay
separate from the group but we did about 10 dives over the fortnight we were in Crete and Naomi was fully with us by
the end. THe second week developed into a quest to find an octopus and in the end we did find out, with Naomi there,
and it was a wonderful moment when Naomi was handling it down at about 8 metres.
Since Greece has always been my favourite destination outside the UK this is one place we'll happily go back to again
and again. The last time we went we have Naomi's sister and her family with us and managed to get Judy and her son
Taylor out on a couple of dives with us. Max and Beatrice are wonderful hosts (Beatrice does all their camera work)
and their situation is just idyllic.
Eilat, 2010
WOW! We had two weeks in the Gulf of Aqabba in the Spring of 2010. Lots of Diving when we were in Israeli waters. The best
dive there was on the wreck of the Satil, an Israeli missile boat sunk just south of Eilat in about 20 metres.
- Wreck of the Satil, Eilat
- Wonderful dive on the wreck of an old Israeli patrol boat sitting upright in 25 metres.
Dove from the Rib straight down the shot line to the wreck; round from the bow deck to the stern where we saw a massive
Yellowbar Angel (about 25-30 cm) and in through a doorway; down stairs and along a corridor to the control room.
Then up and out onto the bow deck again and returned to the surface. Several large Lion Fish on the ascent.
Plenty of fish inside the wreck but nothing dramatic.
Started swimming on the surface back towards Romy, but were met by the Rib again, but subsequently got into trouble
with the Marine Police for drifting back onto the Dive Site whilst we were getting back into the Rib - ho hum: in the shit again!
The other fascinating dive we did was only in about 15 metres and only a very short way out from the waterfront promenade at Eilat.
The Amphibic Vehicles dive is on a group of vehicles, machinery etc that have been strategically placed close to each other on
the sea-bed:
- Amphibic Vehicles, Eilat
- Eyal, who was leading this dive, got lost while we were making our way there from the two catamarans, which were moored nearby,
so we ended up not having too much time on the site itself. We did, however, see a lovely crocodile fish, a large moray eel, Turkey fish, loads of Lion fish and a
couple of large puffers. The machinery that's been placed here for divers to explore has plenty of interest and it definitely worth a visit. The viz wasn't too
great, though, so try to pick a calm day.
|
