Steve D's Scuba Blog

FYI

2007-12-30T12:26:00.000-05:00

We have changed blogs so look for updates off of the diverstwo web site www.diverstwo.com

HAPPY NEW YEAR

2007-12-27T15:05:00.000-05:00

2007 was a rather strange year in my opinion as far as diving is concerned. The vis off shore seemed to be touch and go yet the inshore vis during May, June and July was outstanding. Spear fishing was very popular around the jetties that is if you can keep up with the ever changing game laws. Certifications were certainly up this year and there were great turnouts for our Happy Hour Dives yet there seem to be less divers getting off shore. We had some fun trips this year including a couple down in Florida. (You know they were good when the local bar calls you to find out when you are returning)..

We learned recently that the Charter boat Outlaw is up for sale. I personally have many many fond memories of diving and crewing on the Outlaw. I probably learned most of what I know about Diving off shore in NJ from being on the Outlaw and working with Captain Bob.

So it look like 2008 is going to provide us with a few changes and a few challenges but look for the staff at Divers Two to provide you with the best service and the best training and to keep you diving as much as you want to. Look for more Local dives including off shore and inshore. Look for more trips both exotic and those within driving distance.

Have a Happy and Healthy 2008
Steve D

Merry Christmas

2007-12-23T14:19:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone,
Well we are still waiting for the weather to cooperate and allow us to get a few more dives in before it get really cold in January. So Santa please bring me better visibility and calm seas so i may go diving before the really cold weather gets here next month. Well it doesn't hurt to ask...

Merry Christmas from our family to yours and may the Christmas spirit stay with you throughout the year.
Your friends at Divers Two

Rich Goldman's Florida Pic's

2007-12-20T10:02:00.000-05:00

Well, Do to the weather I haven't had any local reports do give you so he is what is going on down florida way;

12/19/2007 – Twas a few days before Christmas and the Ocean was a stirring. The wave heights were less then 2 feet high and the water temps were down to 75 degrees on Black Condos Reef in Boynton Beach , Florida . The visibility was a poor 50’ (usually around 100’) and the fishies were quite friendly. The reef systems at Boynton & Delray Beaches start only ¾ of a mile off shore. The tops of the reef are at 60’ and you are 80’ in the sand. That leaves you with a 20’ wall of plenty of places for critters to hide. This is a common place for the loggerhead turtles to hang out. They are quite friendly and will often approach right up to you if you just hang out with the drift. I frequently dive with Lynn of Splashdown Divers because of their knowledge of the area, hospitality of their diver masters and spaciousness of their dive boat.

Try Another Day

2007-12-14T15:58:00.000-05:00

Well, After looking at the vis we made the decision not to go in to the inlet today.It also looks like this weekend is going to be a washout but hey, that's northeast diving as they say Hopefully it will just rain and we can give it another try the Tuesday. I'll keep you posted.

Conditions Off Shore

2007-12-11T16:03:00.000-05:00

Hi Folks,
I haven't made it out lately (there's a surprise) But i did get some reports last weekend. reports from Sunday on the lady go diver said they had about 15 to 20 foot vis on some of the inshore wrecks and the temps were in the mid to upper 40's I am going to try to do an inlet dive on Friday morning however i don't think the sun will ever come out again so we will see what happens.

Things to do when it's chilly.

2007-11-30T14:27:00.000-05:00

Hi Folks,
We haven't been in the water this week but there is allot going on around the store. We have an Emergency First Responder course coming up on the 12th of December. This class will train you on basic first Aid, Adult CPR. If you are considering taking the Rescue Diver course next year you will need this course.
We Still may pull a dive off in the next week or so but you will probably want to have a dry suit unless you are brave enough to go in with a we suit.
Also coming up we will be having a Happy Hour dive...OK not really a dive but something fun. look for details on that next week.

Carl went diving

2007-11-25T13:13:00.000-05:00

Carl made it offshore yesterday and dove a couple lesser known wrecks but had a blast. He braved the Freezing cold air temps in the morning but the diving made it all worth it.
Visibility was around 10 ft with water temps around 52 degrees top to bottom. All in all it was a great day.

Things you can learn from a 2 yr old.

2007-11-21T10:52:00.000-05:00

So i was trying to come up with a Thanksgiving day blog for this year. I was looking back at last years and thought well yea i 'm thankful for good vis ,warm temps blah blah blah, that's a giving.
I was walking on the boardwalk with my daughter this morning and she ask me to take her down to the water so of course i did. When we got down to the edge she looked up and said "thank you daddy" . Then after a while she asked to go up to the playground, we got there and again she says "thank you daddy" after that we went back to the van, dropped her off at grandma's and before I left again she says" thank you daddy" So i thought about it and said you can be thankful for things but how often do we say thank you. makes you wonder. so i will say this.
Thank you to everyone who has taken classes with us this year.
Thank you to my great staff who tries to work hard to make all of our your diving experience safe and fun
Thank you to all of our customers for supporting the store so I can continue to do what I love.
And most of all thank you to my two year old for reminding me to stop and say "hey thanks"

Happy Thanksgiving
Steve D

Bill's St Croix trip

2007-11-18T14:22:00.000-05:00

The diving in St. Croix is done mostly along the North shore at Cane Bay. There are a wide variety of sites including the Cane Bay Wall which runs along the entire North shore. Max time by boat is about 15 minutes on very calm water. The Cane Bay Dive Shop has 4 boats with a maximum of 6 divers per boat. Entries are done through a hole in the bow or over the side with doning gear in the water. What's great here is the shore diving possibilities. Unlike many resorts there actually is great shore diving because the Wall is a short swim off the beach.
The coral and sponge life is abundant and very varied.
There are plenty of hiding spots for critters, including eels, lobsters, crabs, octopus, stone fish, and the always enjoyable find sea horses. Fish life is sparse at times but just when you don't expect it, a sea turtle, barracuda, or rays swim by. The Night diving is available every day, except at the pier where they need a minimum of 2 divers.
Boats go out at 9:30, 1:30, and 3:30. Nitrox is available at any mix but the standard mix is 32. Dive time is not limited and you are free to explore on your own. There are only 2 wrecks, one at 110 ft to 70ft, a 100 ft ferry, and a tug boat at about 60 ft. You never have to touch your gear except at setup and break down, the DM's change over and load the gear.
We stayed at Carambola resort about 2 miles away, and the shop will pick you up and drop you off, but we had a car. The rooms at Carambola have a king bed and pull out sofa bed with the largest bathrooms I have seen, and a screened in porch for a natural feel. We had a fridge but I think some rooms didn't.
Right at the dive shop was a bar and restaurant, not pricy but very local, called Full Moon. Down the road a piece was Off the Wall a real local stop where you will see much of the dive staff relaxing after a hard day lugging tanks.

Today's Shark river conditions

2007-11-11T13:22:00.000-05:00

Sharon and newly certified Joe Parone braved the chilly temps this morning and jumped in to do Joe's final two dives today. air temp was in the upper 30's. Water temp has now dropped to 54 degrees and the vis was only around 4 feet and turned worse as the tide changed. Weather looks better this week but i don't see the water getting warmer. Oh well

brrrrrrr

2007-11-02T16:15:00.000-04:00

So Carl just got out of the bay a few minutes ago, he had 6 ft vis and the water temp has droped to 59 degrees.

Yep we are still diving

2007-11-02T11:40:00.000-04:00

Carl was in the bay the other day here is what he had to say:

Water temp 61 degrees, vis 10-15 ft. Fish are moving out, but did see a couple of butterfly fish, a fluke, and zillions of hermit crabs and green crabs.
One whelk slowly digesting a crab, great for Halloween.
George Koutris was treated to the sight of a cormorant diving and swimming underwater.

Carl

Looks like the happy hour will not go tomorrow due to the high wind.

PUMPKIN CARVING CANCELLD

2007-10-25T14:10:00.000-04:00

Sorry Folks this years underwater pumpkin carving contest is cancelled due to the weather. It dosent mean the seasons over so keep checking for more dives and events.
Happy Hollween!!!!!

GREAT TIME THIS WEEKND

2007-10-23T12:15:00.000-04:00

A great time was had by all last Sunday up at Dutch Springs in Pa. Weather was warm and sunny with the air temperature pushing 80 degrees. Water temps were 73 degrees at 25 feet, 68 degrees at 60 feet and 58 on the bottom.
After the rains last week the back bay mucked up pretty good so we opted to stay out this past weekend being it was the first big rain storm in along time. Today looks pretty good but more rain is for casted for today. hopefully it will all clear up by Friday for our pumpkin carving.
stay tuned for more info on that event.

Manasquan River R R Bridge

2007-10-15T15:12:00.000-04:00

Had a nice dive at the RR bridge last Friday. Vis was around ten feet and the water temp. was around 66 degrees. Unfortunately we had to cancel last Saturday's happy hour dive because the winds were blowing NW and that sometimes can make the dive back there difficult.

This Sunday Carol and Lance are heading up to Dutch Springs for the day. If anyone would like to join them give ma a call at the store for more details. Also don't forget our underwater Pumpkin carving contest on the 26Th. Hope to see a good turn out from the MATES school this year. MAST out did us last year so lets all come out and have fun and you even might win a prize.

2007 Shark River Clean Up

2007-09-29T20:06:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone,
Despite the higher than expected northwest winds, this years Clean up dive was a huge success. Approximately 60 divers and non divers came to the Belmar Marina to help keep one of the best shore dive sites clean and safe for everyone to enjoy. This was our 14Th year and yet still allot of metal, plastics and other types of garbage were picked up. We brought up everything from fishing line to plastic bottles and bags and also a few fishing poles. One lucky diver got himself an anchor to use for his boat.
Special thanks to the D2 Staff who turned out to help - Sharon, Pete, Adam, Mike, Katie, Blair, Linda, Jeremy, Bob, Anne, Joe, and Carl. (If i missed someone sorry ). Also thanks to the Town of Belmar, The Belmar harbor, The NJ State Marine Police, M.A.T.E.S Kids for being a huge help and Mayor Ken Pringle for helping me put it together.
SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL THE DIVERS FOR COMING OUT TO HELP.
Here are some pics of the day!!

Dosen't get much better

2007-09-24T15:14:00.000-04:00

I was supposed to head off shore but missed the boat (had to close store) so I jumped in the Shark River inlet. Man was that a good idea. 40 ft vis, 70 degree water temp and fish everywhere from tog to sea bass to bait fish and trops. Who knows how long the weather will last so jump in.

Fun Day at Dutch Springs

2007-09-17T21:35:00.000-04:00

SEPTEMBER 16, 2007

DUTCH PLAY DAY

THANKS TO THE EIGHTEEN DIVERS WHO BRAVED THE COOL 45* SEPTEMBER MORNIN TO JOIN US AT DUTCH SPRINGS FOR OUR PLAY DAY.THE WATER WAS A BALMY 63* AT 65 FT WITH A GOOD 30 FOOT VIZ.
LANCE TOOK SOME OF THE FUN DIVERS ON 2 EXTENDED TOURS TO THE SIKORSKI HELOCOPTER, THE NEW HELLDIVER AIRPLANE, THE CESSNA WITH IT'S NEW WING, THE SCHOOL BUS & ASHORT HOPE OVER TO THE NEW TRAINING PLATFORMS TO CHECK THINKS OUT.
WHILE SOME OF THE DRYSUIT DIVERS VISITED THE TROLLEY & THE NEW CRANE. ( MORE TOYS )
CREG B. & CAROL WORKED WITH 8 DIVERS ON THEIR DEEP, NAVIGATION & SEARCH & RECOVERY PORTION OF THE ADVANCED OPEN WATER CLASS .
BY NOON THE TEMPERATURE CLIMBED TO A COZY 73* AS WE ALL ATE LUNCH UNDER A BEAUTIFUL BLUE SUNNY SKY.
SOME EXPRESSED INTEREST IN A RESCUE CLASS & OTHERS ANOTHER PLAY DAY WHICH WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON FOR DATE IN OCTOBER,
SO L@@K FOR THE EMAIL !

HOPE ALL HAD A GREAT TIME,
I KNOW WE DID !

MANY HAPPY BUBBLES,

CAROL, LANCE & CREG B.

Tonights Inlet Dive

2007-09-11T12:12:00.000-04:00

HI folks,
As of now the dive at A street is still on however we will check the weather around 4:00pm and make a finale decision by then.

IT'S A BOY

2007-09-06T08:54:00.000-04:00

Congatulations to Pete and Megan Pfeifer on the the Birth of thier son Sean.

Upcoming Inlet Dive

2007-09-05T13:30:00.000-04:00

Hi Everyone,
It's that time a year again when the benny's go home and kids head back to school so you know what that means...It's time to take back the inlet in the name of us locals. We are meeting Tuesday the 11th at 7:15 PM at the A Street in Belmar for a locals only night dive. Join Sharon and myself for a fun filled evening repelling down the rocks and blow'in some bubbles.

GREAT JOB!!

2007-08-31T15:07:00.001-04:00

Congrats to Tori, Steven, Rachel, John, and Thomas for becoming PADI Open Water divers on Aug. 31st!!

Water temp - 72 degrees, viz - about 5 feet.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

2007-08-26T17:36:00.000-04:00

Congratulations go out to Carol Fletcher, Ray Ruffini, and Tom Matthews on successfully passing thier PADI Instructor Exam this weekend!!

Great Job!!

A good time

2007-08-26T07:17:00.001-04:00

A good time was had by all at the Happy Hour held on Aug. 18th... We had 4 Happy Hour divers, 1 student finishing up there Open Water Cert. and Carl had 4 students working on there Advanced Cert.

Water temperature was about 70 degrees and viz for me was about 5 - 8 feet depending on if you got behind someones elses dust cloud!!

But all in all everyone came back safely and had a great time.