Scuba Diver Asia Pacific July 18 - Issue 3

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FREEDIVING GURU EMMA FARRELL EXPLAINS HOW TO LOWER YOUR SAC RATE

IN-DEPTH REPORT ON THE PREMIER TECH-DIVING EVENT IN NZ

DIFFERENT WAYS TO EXPLORE THE GBR

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AGGRESSOR

Real-life action heros await to serve you with super-human charm and amazing attentiveness aboard Aggressor Liveaboards™ worldwide. Our onboard chefs will create out-of-this-world culinary delights to satisfy your appetite between dives.

While the magnificent underwater creatures of the deep are the main attraction, the real heros of Aggressor vacations are the yacht staff who strive to make your vacation the diving adventure of a lifetime!

· Bahamas · Belize · Cayman Islands · Cocos Island · Cuba · · Dominican Republic · Egypt · Fiji · Galapagos · Hawaii · Indonesia · Maldives · Oman · · Palau · Red Sea · Roatan · Sri Lanka · Thailand · Turks & Caicos ·

ADVENTURES™

Join us around the planet for the scuba liveaboard lifestyle with Aggressor Liveaboards®, luxury safari adventures with Aggressor Safari Lodges™ and intimate river cruising with Aggressor River Cruises™.

New Celebrity Cruises, Photo Workshops and Money-saving Specials. Book online at www.aggressor.com NEW! Sri Lanka Safari Lodge

NEW! Aggressor Nile River Cruises

+1-706-993-2531 · info@aggressor.com · www.aggressor.com

Photo by Charlie Jung

IT’S WHAT’S UNDERNEATH THAT COUNTS

THE ULTIMATE THERMAL BASELAYER Updated For 2018

The outstanding thermal performance of the Xerotherm is now available in men’s and women’s styles, redesigned to fit more closely with greater comfort. The extremely fast-wicking fabric maintains an insulating layer of air next to the skin and its lightweight, low bulk design ensures the Xerotherm baselayer can be used to boost the protection of any undergarment configuration.

Ask your local dealer for stocking.

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EDITOR’S NOTE

A breath of fresh air... ALL THE WAY FROM CANADA I am still as addicted to diving as I was when I first took the plunge off Anglesey all those years ago as a wee nipper, but even I can sometimes get a little jaded. This month I had the pleasure of hosting an 18-year-old student from Alberta, Canada, for three weeks of on-the-job work experience in the world of magazines, and seeing her obvious passion for diving gave even this veteran a fresh impetus towards the sport.

Samara Ironside came to me fresh from time in Panama with her Rescue Diver ticket, and while she had dived in some enviable warm-water locations, she had never ventured into cold water. Cue me getting a shedload of stuff in her size ordered in from various manufacturers and then taking her for her first drysuit dives in Vivian inland dive site in Llanberis, North Wales, and off the coast of Anglesey at Ravenspoint in Trearddur Bay and Newry Beach in Holyhead. Vis ranging from a stonking six to seven metres off Ravenspoint to a meagre metre or so off Newry Beach didn’t phase her, and she soon got the hang of diving in a drysuit. Getting used to the cold took a little longer, and she was always happy to get a hat, gloves

and jacket on to warm up on exiting the water, but she was a true trooper underwater, even when pressganged into a spot of modelling and all the palaver that entails - you’ll see plenty of her in next month’s special celebrating women in diving. She is starting uni in Victoria, British Columbia, in September, and is now excitedly looking forward to exploring the nutrient-rich waters that surround Vancouver Island. Good luck, Samara!

MARK EVANS, Editor-in-Chief NB: You may have noticed this issue of Scuba Diver Asia-Pacific is a little down on pagination from your previous issues. As we are an ad-revenue-driven title, it means as campaigns start and end, sometimes we will have more pages, sometimes less - we don’t want to waste paper, after all - but we don’t compromise on our quality editorial, and so when we go down in size, we just drop the spare advertising pages and retain all of our great content covering local diving, travel destinations, equipment, spearfishing and freediving.

EDITOR IN CHIEF

ADVERTISING & SPONSORSHIP

DESIGN

MAGAZINE

CONTRIBUTORS

PUBLISHERS

Mark Evans Email: mark.evans@scubadivermag.com Matt Griffiths Email: matt@griffital.co.uk Adrian Stacey, Jeremy Cuff, Al Hornsby, Richard Smith, Martyn Guess, Emma Farrell

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Ross Arnold Email: ross.arnold@scubadivermag.com To stock Scuba Diver in your centre, email: subscriptions@scubadivermag.com Rork Media Limited Tel: +44 (0) 800 069 8140 71-75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London, England, WC2H 9JQ

Views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily the views of the publishers.

Copyright for material published remains with Rork Media Limited. Use of material from Scuba Diver is strictly prohibited unless permission is given. All advertisements of which the creative content is in whole or in part the work of Rork Media Limited remain the copyright of Rork Media Limited.

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ISSN 2515-9593

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DONSOL AND TICAO:

DIVING DRY:

FREEDIVING ADVICE:

JEREMY CUFF ENJOYS ENCOUNTERS WITH WHALESHARKS AND MUCH MORE

THE LOWDOWN ON DRYSUIT BUOYANCY, WEIGHTING AND MAINTENANCE

TIPS FROM THE PROS ON HOW TO MAKE EQUALISATION ISSUES A THING OF THE PAST

ON THE COVER DIFFERENT WAYS TO EXPLORE THE GBR

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Q&A: RAID's Paul Toomer

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ISSUE 3 | JUL/AUG 18 | FREE

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PHOTOGRAPHER: JEREMY CUFF

13/06/2018 08:01

REGULAR COLUMNS

FEATURES

The winner of the Sairee Cottage competition is announced, plus funding for the GBR.

The Great Barrier Reef is world renowned as a top diving location, but as Jeremy Cuff explains, there are a wide variety of ways to explore this iconic dive destination, from dayboats to multi-day liveaboards.

8 News

20 Dive like a Pro

A panel of training agency experts offer advice on how to dive and maintain a drysuit.

26 Underwater photography

Martyn Guess discusses how to use innovative lighting on your macro photographs.

63 Our-World UW Scholar

Olivia Johnson has fun in New York, then dives with bull sharks in Fiji.

82 The Zen Diver

Tom Peyton explains how to become the ultimate Zen dive buddy.

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16 Australia

24 HOUSE REEF: Maldives

We explore the house reef of Kuredu in the Maldives, which offers a myriad of dive spots, from coral gardens and bommies to some walls and gullies.

29 Tonga

Al Hornsby gets up close and personal with humpback whales on a mind-blowing trip to the island nation of Tonga, and captures some amazing imagery of the whales in their natural environment.

32 Thailand

Adrian Stacey ventures to Koh Lanta, which he reckons gives you a taste of the ‘real Thailand’ as it is much quieter than some of its near-neighbours.

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CONTENTS

36 Philippines

Challenging weather conditions, lousy visibility and a sinus infection didn’t stop our man from making the most of his trip to the Philippines.

42 SPEARFISHING: News and What’s New

Issac Daly provides six actionable tips to increase your bottom time.

GEAR GUIDE 54 What’s New

New products recently released or coming soon, including Fourth Element swimwear, and the Szanto vintage dive watch range.

56 Group Test

Freediving guru Emma Farrell offers up some hints and advice on ways in which to improve your equalisation techniques.

The Scuba Diver Test Team heads to Vivian Quarry in Llanberis, North Wales to trial a selection of high-end regulators from a range of manufacturers.

47 Divers Alert Network Asia-Pacific

64 Long Term Test

44 FREEDIVING: Equalisation

Each month, DAN AP will examine a potential diving incident and how it can be avoided (if possible), or best dealt with after the event. This issue, a diver runs low on air while concentrating on her camera.

50 TECHNICAL: Q&A with Paul Toomer

The Scuba Diver Test Team gets to grips with a selection of products over a six-month period, including the Mares Quad Air, Apeks XL4 regulator and the Fourth Element X-Core vest.

The tech legend discusses how he got started in diving, where he sees RAID going in the future, and why he loves his closed-circuit rebreathers.

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NEWS

Each month, we bring together the latest industry news from the Asia-Pacific region, as well as all over our water planet. To find out the most up-to-date news and views, check out the website or follow us on social media. www.scubadivermag.com/news | .com/scubadivermag | @scubadivermag

WE HAVE A WINNER for the Sairee Cottage Divemaster Package

COMPETITION!

A

fter so many emails, so many great blogs and so many amazing videos and interviews, the team at Sairee Cottage Diving on Koh Tao in Thailand have finally picked a winner for the all-inclusive PADI Divemaster Package competition which was run in conjunction with Scuba Diver – congratulations to Christina, from Germany!

Christina will not only train with Sairee Cottage to become a PADI Divemaster over a period of three months, but she will also focus on eco-conservation efforts on Koh Tao. She will start with the EFR course, followed by the PADI Rescue Diver course and then the Divemaster course. Her trip will start in the beginning of August.

Christina will be taught by Maddy Barker, one of the best PADI Divemaster teachers in the industry. She said: “I can’t wait to teach Christina and fulfill her dream of becoming a PADI Divemaster! We will focus not only on passing, but truly making her one of the best Divemasters out there, which will increase your job opportunities, safety, customer service and, most important, protecting the environment as a Marine Ambassador!”

Stay tuned to the Scuba Diver website and the Sairee Cottage YouTube Channel for live weekly updates on her adventures!

A WORD FROM CHRISTINA

Hey everybody, my name is Chrissi, I am 26 years old and I live in the beautiful city of Cologne in western Germany, where I am studying cultural anthropology and education.

I first got in touch with diving during my travels in Thailand in 2013. I even did my Open Water at Koh Tao, so I already know to what an amazing place I will return to.

What makes this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so special to me is that I get to fulfill my dream of becoming a dive professional and even combine it with what I stand for – the protection of our environment! I am super-enthusiastic to get involved in different projects to protect and clean beaches, reefs and therefore the ocean.

I am looking forward to learning and helping as much as I can and to getting to know surely great people!

Best wishes from Cologne and see you soon, Christina

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RECORD INVESTMENT IN THE GREAT BARRIER REEF A CAMERA BUILT FOR A LIFE UNDER WATER

The Australian Government has announced it will protect thousands of jobs, improve water quality, tackle coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish and implement scientific reef restoration on the Great Barrier Reef.

The Government will invest more than $500 million – the largest-ever single investment – to protect the reef, secure its viability and the 64,000 jobs that rely on it.

The reef is a critical national asset providing $6.4 billion a year to the Queensland and Australian economies.

The Australian Government will partner with the Great Barrier Reef Foundation through a ground-breaking $444 million agreement to tackle crown-of-thorns starfish, reduce pollution into the reef and mitigate the impacts of climate change.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and the Department of the Environment and Energy will also be boosted with $56 million to expand environmental management and compliance operations on the reef and to support this significant additional investment.

The Authority’s future funding has also been secured with an additional $10 million each year from 2022-23 to continue and expand essential work across the World Heritage Area.

The investment, made in this International Year of the Reef, will also go towards inspiring Australians, philanthropists and companies to co-invest in a united effort to protect the reef, the planet’s greatest living wonder.

It is an investment not only in the future of the Great Barrier Reef, but also in Australian jobs and economy through the tourists the it attracts every year.

Like reefs all over the world, the Great Barrier Reef is under pressure. A big challenge demands a big investment – and this investment gives the reef the best chance.

It builds on and directly supports the intensive work already underway through the joint $2 billion Australian and Queensland Governments’ Reef 2050 Plan.

THIS GREAT BARRIER REEF FOUNDATION PARTNERSHIP INCLUDES: • $201 million further improving water quality with changed farming practices such as reduced fertiliser use, and adopting new technologies and land management practices.

• $100 million harnessing the best science to implement reef restoration and funding science that supports Reef resilience and adaptation.

• $58 million expanding the fight against the coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish.

• $45 million supporting other work, particularly increasing community engagement such as Indigenous traditional knowledge for sea country management, coastal clean-up days and awareness raising activities.

• $40 million enhancing Reef health monitoring and reporting to track progress and inform better management.

According to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, this investment ‘reinforces the environmental, economic, social and cultural importance of the Great Barrier Reef, and that there is a role for everyone in protecting it for generations to come.’

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INDUSTRY NEWS WORLD OF AGGRESSOR EXPANDS TO INCLUDE AGGRESSOR SAFARI LODGES

The World of Aggressor, which includes the long-established Aggressor Liveaboards and Aggressor River Cruises, has announced the launch of their new Aggressor Safari Lodges.

In destination and adventure travel, the name ‘Aggressor’ has long been associated with offering the ultimate liveaboard experience for scuba divers all over the world. Now, the company has expanded its offerings to include a new safari lodge in northern Sri Lanka. The Aggressor Safari Lodge is located near two national parks, two World Heritage Sites, and the famous Smithsonian Primate Research Centre’s Monkey Kingdom, all of which are included in itineraries available when booking the lodge. Nearby world-renowned Wilpattu and Minneriya National Parks provide excellent wildlife viewing and photography opportunities. Safari sightings include Sri Lankan leopards, Sri Lankan sloth bears, buffalo, and sambar,

axis, and spotted dear. A trip highlight, Minneriya is home to over 300 Sri Lankan elephants and two endemic monkeys of Sri Lanka, the purple-faced langur and the toque macaque.

The six-acre Aggressor Safari Lodge property, located on the Kala Oya River, is itself home to a variety of native wildlife, including diminutive mouse deer, the increasingly rare and beautiful star tortoise, Sri Lankan giant squirrels, the rare and endangered red slender loris, brilliant peacocks and a variety of other exotic birds, all of which are protected on the property. Lodge guests will enjoy being surrounded by nature from their luxurious, spacious and air-conditioned private tented chalets, each with a private bathroom and a fridge stocked with complimentary soft drinks, beer, and wine. The lodge also includes a swimming pool, two bars, and an outdoor fire pit for evening gatherings; and the lodge’s private, tented Aliya Bush Restaurant serves meals and snacks prepared by top chefs cooking both local and international dishes, with produce from surrounding villages and farms.

Aggressor CEO Wayne Brown says: “The World of Aggressor has always focused on combining adventure with excellent service and now we’ve brought that combination to the ultimate adventures on land, wildlife safaris. I can’t wait to go again myself, and I know our guests will love the truly ‘untamed luxury’ of our first tented safari lodge in Northern Sri Lanka.” www.aggressorsafarilodge.com

AMERICAN OUTDOOR ENTHUSIAST SURVIVES ATTACKS BY SHARK, BEAR AND SNAKE There is a saying ‘third time lucky’, but that doesn’t hold true for 20-year-old Dylan McWilliams, who hails from Grand Junction in Colorado. A keen outdoor enthusiast, he has just survived a third animal encounter – a shark attack while bodyboarding off Hawaii – having previously been mauled by a bear and bitten by a rattlesnake. In an interview with the BBC, McWilliams said: “I don’t seem to have a lot of luck, but it’s kind of lucky in unlucky situations”.

He was surfing off the coast when what was believed to be a two-metre tiger shark bit his leg, leaving a wound needing seven stitches.

Just last July, on a camping trip in his native Colorado, he awoke at 4am to find his head being clamped in the jaws of a black bear. He survived by poking it in the eye until it let go, and then the 300lb animal walked off after his friends woke up. His first brush with nature was three years ago, when he accidentally kicked a rattlesnake while on a hiking trip to Utah and it bit him, but luckily it was a ‘dry bite’ and so very little venom got into his system, and he recovered after feeling sick for a few days.

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INDUSTRY NEWS MERMAID MAGIC – INAUGURAL SSI MERMAIDS INSTRUCTORS COURSE Mermaids – the illusive half-human, half-fish sirens of the sea. They have been the things of legends and dreams since man-kind began its fascination with the ocean. SSI have taken this concept beyond your fantasies, giving ocean lovers around the world the chance to become real mermaids!

In June 2018, SSI conducted the first Australian Mermaid Instructor Programmes in both Sydney and Cairns. The courses were a huge success, and successful candidates are now eligible to teach four different levels of SSI Mermaid Courses - Try Mermaid, Mermaid, Ocean Mermaid and Mermaid Instructor.

SSI Mermaid programmes can be taught to any guest who would like to learn how to swim with a mermaid-style mono fin, and in doing so learn how to be a mermaid. Mermaid swimming is a great form of exercise, and these courses have had huge success already in other regions of the world. Tipped to be the next big thing in the industry, these unique and fun programmes are sure to attract a whole new demographic of water-lovers. For each level there is also a junior version with more child-friendly online training to accompany the course. For more information about where you can learn to become a mermaid, contact SSI Australia by email: info@divessi.com.au.

As they say, always be yourself… unless you can be a mermaid, then always be a mermaid!

KERMADEC ISLANDS MARINE SANCTUARY PROPOSAL BACK ON THE TABLE A marine sanctuary in the Kermadec Islands could be back on the cards – but not in its original form. Political parties Labour and NZ First are working on an alternative proposal for an ocean sanctuary in the region which allows some fishing to take place, after NZ First raised concerned with the first proposal about the impacts of a no-take zone on the fishing industry and iwi. It remains to be seen whether the Green Party will support a watered-down proposal, though.

The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary was announced with much fanfare by the National-led Government at the United Nations in 2015, and initially had the support of all political parties, but it was put on hold after iwi challenged it in the High Court, saying that it breached Māori fishing rights.

The Greens sought to have the sanctuary progressed as part of coalition talks after the election, but NZ First, which has links to the fishing industry, was against it. NZ First leader Winston Peters is now in discussion with Environment Minister David Parker about a possible ‘mixed-use’ marine reserve, which would mean the majority of the reserve be off-limits to the industry, but a small amount of commercial fishing be permitted.

VICTORIA DIVERS MAKE HISTORY WITH OFFICIAL GUINNESS WORLD RECORD December 2017 saw 364 scuba divers take to the waters in a Guinness World Record attempt at Rye Pier for the longest underwater human chain. Despite forecasted conditions, a great day was had by all, with over $10,000 worth of prizes and auction items from the fantastic sponsors of the event, which included SSI and Mares.

This June has seen the record attempt verified by Guinness, and it will now appear as one of Guinness’ official World Records. 360 people successfully completed the attempt, with the chain reaching over 270 metres in length, and beat the existing record of 308 divers. Dive Industry Victoria Association (D.I.V.A) spokesman Luke English said that there would have been potential to smash the existing record, however he wanted to leave room for others to have a chance to take part in the future.

The main aim of the attempt was to promote scuba diving in Victoria, which has generally been a bit of a secret among local divers. Few visitors to the area realise that there is a highly diverse range of stunningly beautiful wall and shore dives, as well as four British submarines and over 50 wreck sites to be found just offshore.

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INDUSTRY NEWS TURTLE HATCHLINGS RELEASED INTO LEMBEH STRAITS

North Sulawesi’s Lembeh Strait is best known for some of the world’s best muck-diving, but yesterday, it welcomed 110 cute little new arrivals – baby green turtles!

According to Dive Into Lembeh’s GM/ owner Miranda Coverdale, a large green turtle appeared on the beach right in front of the resort about two months ago and laid 114 eggs right on the waterline. As the incoming tide would have washed them all away, staff quickly made a wooden crate, measured exactly how deep the eggs were buried and very carefully placed them in the same way as the mother laid them – and then crossed their fingers!

On 30 April, Miranda and her team were overjoyed to see they have 110 tiny hatchlings crawling around in the crate,

and these were all released back into the sea by staff and guests.

There are four eggs left which are moving around, so Miranda says she is hoping these remaining eggs hatch soon.

Miranda added: “This is the second time this year we have been blessed with a turtle visiting to come lay her eggs in front of the resort, and we hope it wasn’t the last!” www.diveintolembeh.com

NEW ZEALAND ANNOUNCES END OF BLOCK OFFERS FOR OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS EXPLORATION New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern recently announced that the government will not issue any further block offers for offshore oil and gas exploration – a move applauded by the WWF-New Zealand.

On hearing the announcement, as well as the news that the government will also progressively reduce new block offers for onshore oil exploration to zero, WWF-New Zealand CEO Livia Esterhazy said: “This is a huge step forward for New Zealand, and a landmark moment in the transition to a clean energy economy.

“Modelling by University College London suggests that globally we need to leave about 80 percent of existing coal reserves, almost half of existing gas reserves and about a third of existing oil reserves un-burned to give us a reasonable chance of limiting warming to two degrees.

“This is the coal, oil and gas that has already been found and is already on the books. That is why the decision to stop opening more and more of Aotearoa’s ocean territory to oil exploration is a big step towards unlocking a safe climate future.”

She added: “What’s more, this announcement will be welcome news for New Zealand’s critically endangered Māui dolphins. They live only off the west coast of the North Island, and over 30 percent of their habitat is already open for oil exploration. Seismic blasting for oil can both have physical impacts on dolphins and cause long-term behavioural changes.”

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MEDICAL Q&A DIVING DS N E I WITH FR MALDIVES INDONESIA EGYPT S PA I N NEW: Euro-Divers in Lanzerote!

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Dr Oliver Firth has gained considerable experience in the field of diving and hyperbaric medicine since joining LDC in 2006. He is an Approved Medical Examiner of Divers for the UK HSE, and a medical referee for the UK Sport Diving Medical Committee. He is involved in the management of all types of diving-related illness, including recompression treatment, as well as providing hyperbaric oxygen therapy for non-diving conditions.

He remains a passionate diver and has participated in various expeditions and conservation projects throughout the globe.

Q: I have suffered an orbital floor fracture whilst playing rugby. My doctor has instructed me not to blow my nose due to subcutaneous emphysema (and not to play contact sport for six weeks). Although I have follow up appointments to come, where do I stand with diving, both presently and into the future?

A: Ouch, these are nasty injuries. Firstly, some orientation: the orbit is the cavity in the skull which accommodates the eye. Orbital floor fractures commonly result from blunt objects (fists, car dashboards, rugby or any other sort of balls) impacting on the eye socket, which then breaks. Over 80% occur in males (funny that). What actually happens is that the object in question, say a well-aimed punch from Anthony Joshua, squishes the incompressible eyeball inwards.

The rapid increase in pressure in the socket then causes it to ‘blow out’ at its weakest point, the floor. The fatty tissue around the eye then drops through the hole, often pulling a couple of eye muscles with it, resulting in double vision.

And a rapid lie-down.

In a victim without visual disturbances, where the fracture covers less than 50% of the floor, and where there’s no trapped fatty or muscle tissue, one option is to leave the area alone and treat with steroids and antibiotics. In more serious cases, however, surgery is needed to reposition the disrupted bony fragments and patch up the fracture with a mesh. One issue with this type of repair and diving is whether there is any possibility of trapped gas within the tissues. This is the ‘subcutaneous emphysema’ your doctor is talking about.

After six weeks, I would assume that any gas introduced, through nose-blowing or surgical repair, would have diffused safely away.

Otherwise I can’t see (pardon the pun) any reason you shouldn’t dive once you’re fully recovered.

Q: I recently woke up with a large floater in my right eye. It’s rather like a gelatinous blob with some black specks randomly moving around in the eye and can cause some blurring. A thorough examination at the opticians revealed that the cause was a poste-

rior vitreous detachment (PVD). My eyesight remains unchanged and there are no signs of any tears or damage to the retina or the surrounding area. The Optometrist advised me to cancel my upcoming diving holiday and to avoid any strain, heavy exercise or lifting.

My GP subsequently advised that these conditions normally heal within a six week to six month time frame. The big question is will I be able to dive in six months time, assuming there is no further damage.

A: For those in the dark about what a floater is, this description is classic – they’re those tiny spots, specks, flecks and ‘cobwebs’ that drift aimlessly around in your field of vision, never staying still but moving when your eye tries to focus on them. That is because they are shadows, cast by little bits of the eye’s vitreous (the gel-like material that makes up the major part of the eyeball) breaking loose within the inner back portion of the eye. Normally the vitreous is well adhered to the retina at the back of the eye, but a sudden shower of floaters, especially when accompanied by flashing lights, can signify that the vitreous is detaching itself. In tugging on the retina, it can end up tearing it, which is a sight-threatening complication that needs urgent assessment.

Thankfully it appears you’ve got away without any retinal damage. In the year after one attack, some sufferers get another bout of PVD in the other eye; but in the vast majority, the floaters subside over anywhere up to three months, and don’t return. If floaters are still present after this time, then various surgical techniques can be employed to treat the problem more definitively.

So, to dive or not to dive? Well, I think it’s difficult to countenance it within the six months after symptom onset; but provided your recovery is uncomplicated, diving could be considered after that. Be sure to stick with the advice from the optometrist in the meantime, to give the eye the best chance of uninterrupted healing: the fewer sudden pressure changes, the better.

Do you have a question for Dr Firth?

Email: divingdoctor@scubadivermag. com and we’ll pass it on.

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ScubaDiverUK.ai 1 17/5/2018 14:27:43

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AUSTRALIA

CORAL SEA, GREAT BARRIER REEF, FAR NORTHERN REEFS

spiritoffreedom.com.au

Jeremy Cuff explores the varied ways you can explore Australia’s Great Barrier Reef PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEREMY AND AMANDA CUFF / WWW.JA-UNIVERSE.COM

Monster cod at Cod Hole

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T

he Great Barrier Reef in Eastern Australia is a global icon of travel, attracting a constant stream of visitors from around the world. I remember as a boy watching TV programmes about the reef back in the 1970s, when the area was much less known and diving was perhaps more associated with exploration. Since then, increased infrastructure has opened up a wide range of possibilities for the dive traveller to consider.

The first thing to understand about the Great Barrier Reef is that it’s huge. In fact, it isn’t one single reef, but a series of nearly 3,000 individual reefs - the exact number depends on which book or website you read, but I was quoted 2,904 by one dive professional. It stretches from Lady Elliot Island in the south to the northern tip of the remote Cape York Peninsula close to Papua New Guinea, a huge distance of more than 1,600 miles. In recognition of its global importance, UNESCO designated the Great Barrier Reef as a World Heritage Site in 1981, and the entire reef is managed as a conservation area.

There’s plenty of options for diving the GBR, ranging from dayboat trips, island resort visits with local diving options, to short liveaboards, and also longer liveaboards that reach further flung parts of the reef and remote areas out in the Coral Sea. It’s a case of picking the right kind of trip to match available time, geography, budgets, diving experience, interest levels and expectations.

DAYBOATS

In the north of Queensland, the reef is closer to the coast, so it’s much easier to reach for day trips from the tropical hub city of Cairns and Port Douglas, where they’re big business and a major reason why travellers visit the area. After all, it’s the ‘world’s most famous reef’ and features on many peoples ‘must do in my lifetime’ lists.

The day boats (such as Silverseries vessels) operate every day and are slickly run, executed with an almost-military precision based on strict departure times to allow enough time out on the reef, where it’s usually possible to do three dives.

For divers and snorkellers with little time or a budget that doesn’t stretch to liveaboards, or who perhaps find liveaboards too intensive, these trips are ideal. Inexperienced divers will certainly find these trips enjoyable, reassuring and within comfort zones, as all the dives are guided, combined with the opportunity to see plenty.

Families can also enjoy a nice trip to the reef on these day trips, as young children and non-diving grown-ups can join the snorkel groups for what in some cases will be a life-changing experience, and power a lifelong diving obsession. For diving parents, you can mix and match by doing one or two dives and then joining the kids for the snorkelling.

Experienced and fanatical divers like myself, who prefer to dive at a snail’s pace (because of the photography aspect of what I do), may find these trips not quite what they’re looking

Heading out on a dayboat

for, but that’s a personal thing, and not a criticism of the way the dayboat trips are run. It’s a case of horses for courses, and it’s up to the prospective visitor to choose the type of diving experience that best suits them.

If you want a day out on the Great Barrier Reef, there’s no better place than Cairns or Port Douglas for that dream to come true, or perhaps try it from Magnetic Island, near Townsville (which I’ve not done).

It’s also possible to do night dive trips to the reef from Cairns, departing late-afternoons. We jokingly referred to it as the ‘Night Day Boat’ and the ‘Day Night Boat’ and it’s a different twist on the regular day trips.

Vibrant starfish

Shark feed

SS Yongala

THE SS YONGALA

It would be a shame to have travelled all this way and not stop off at one of the world’s best wreck dives – the SS Yongala (see the April/May issue of Scuba Diver for the full story). It’s accessible from operators based in Townsville/ Magnetic Island, and from the tiny settlement of Alva Beach with Yongala Dive.

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SPIRIT OF FREEDOM

The 37-metre-long Spirit of Freedom luxury liveaboard offers scuba dive tours of three, four and seven day duration departing out of Cairns to iconic dive sites such as the Cod Hole, Ribbon Reefs, North Horn and Osprey Reef, as well as special exploratory tours and trips to swim with minke whales. www.spiritoffreedom.com.au

Turtle cruising the reef

Liveaboard dive deck

“Like most dive hotspots, the GBR offers seasonal spectacles, with liveaboard operators creating special trips to coincide with these events, and to cater for special interests such as whale encounters (minke and humpback), shark encounters and even nautilus sightings”

Liveaboard tender

ISLAND RESORTS

For those with more time (and perhaps budget), there are various options to stay at island resorts on or near the Great Barrier Reef system (as opposed to the mainland), from Lady Elliot Island in the south, to Lizard Island in the north. Some of these resorts offer guests diving options to local sites on day boats. We chose to visit Lady Elliot Island, which is located at the very southern tip of the GBR. This island is an eco-resort and surpassed our expectations in terms of the whole experience; excellent diving, nesting and hatching turtles, teeming birdlife combined with simple, back to nature living. It had that indefinable ‘wow factor’.

In three days of diving we logged manta rays (Lady Elliot is a renowned manta haunt), eagle rays, shovelnose rays, bull rays, reef sharks, leopard sharks, batfish, schooling jacks and barracuda, and a lot of turtles. We didn’t see any dolphins during our stay but they are regular visitors, and there’s also the seasonal spectacle of migrating humpback whales.

Turtles are really common around the island. Our visit coincided with the end of the nesting season and slap bang in the middle of the hatching season. If hatchlings are discovered on the island in the day, you are encouraged to hand them to staff so that they can be released at night, to give them a better chance of survival. We were fortunate enough to witness a turtle laying eggs at the end of the airstrip. There can’t be many places where turtles are a hazard to aviation!

Although the price might be preventative for some, Lady Elliot is a great place for divers with families. We took our young son Zac, introducing him to snorkelling for the first time. The reefs, birds, turtles and beachcombing possibilities are highly educational and there’s also a swimming pool and play area. Other GBR islands to check out include (but aren’t limited to) Heron Island, Lady Musgrave Island and the Whitsunday Islands, where various diving options exist.

Lady Elliott Island

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SHORT LIVEABOARDS

If you look around at some of the liveaboard options these days, you’ll find that the majority of them only offer week-long trips.

That’s fine if you’ve got the time and the budget, but if you’re looking for shorter trips, it’s not easy to find something that fits the bill. As the Great Barrier Reef is such a draw, Pro Dive in Cairns offer a unique niche in dive liveaboards; a two-night, threeday itinerary.

Effectively, they’re positioned between the dayboats and longer liveaboard trips and are so popular that you can choose any departure day except Tuesday, with three essentially identical boats in action at any one time. They’re a great way to experience the world’s biggest underwater reef system.

These trips are ideal for divers with little time, or a budget that doesn’t stretch to longer liveaboards. Inexperienced divers will certainly find these trips enjoyable and a step forward towards more challenging diving. They’re also very popular for divers doing their PADI Open Water and Advanced courses, which are often run onboard. It’s a nice way to get qualified. For the more-experienced divers, the good bit is that buddy pairs can do their own thing (within reason, of course) with a maximum of 11 dives being possible.

Families can also enjoy these trips, as children are accepted onboard (unlike the majority of liveaboards), though it’s unlikely that the crew will be able to organise any special activities due to the number of passengers.

In summary, they’re ideal for inexperienced divers looking for a bit of an adventure and a first liveaboard, and fine for experienced divers. Basically, it’s a good all-round dive trip.

Turtle seemingly waving goodbye to the divers

Anemonefish

Fly-dives are a neat way to see the GBR

LONGER LIVEABOARDS

At the higher end of the scale, and for those wanting to visit some of the more-remote areas of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea in the north, there are liveaboard options such as those offered by the Spirit of Freedom and Mike Ball Dive Expeditions, both experienced operators in what are very ‘off the grid’ locations.

Generally, two itineraries are offered in the form of the unique Fly Dive charters, either departing Cairns for the voyage to Lizard Island (visiting Cod Hole and the Ribbon Reefs), after which guests fly back to Cairns at low level. Alternatively, you can fly up to Lizard Island to join a trip visiting the remote Osprey Reef in the Coral Sea before heading back down to Cairns via the Great Barrier Reef. There’s also an option to stay onboard for the full voyage, combining both trips.

Like most dive hotspots, the GBR offers seasonal spectacles, with liveaboard operators creating special trips to coincide with these events, and to cater for special interests such as whale encounters (minke and humpback), shark encounters and even nautilus sightings. They also offer occasional longer exploratory trips to rarely visited areas in the far north, towards Papua New Guinea, which I’ve vowed to do one day. n

“Effectively, they’re positioned between the dayboats and longer liveaboard trips and are so popular that you can choose any departure day except Tuesday, with three essentially identical boats in action at any one time” The GBR still swarms with shoals of fish

MIKE BALL DIVE EXPEDITIONS

The name ‘Mike Ball’ is synonymous with the Great Barrier Reef and luxury liveaboards since 1969, and today the company offers a wide selection of liveaboard trips on the Spoilsport catamaran, from three night/12 dive fly-dives to full week and exploratory trips.

The liveaboard is also well set up for photographers, and can cater for rebreather divers too. www.mikeball.com

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This month, our panel of experts tackle the subject of DRYSUIT DIVING, and offer up a host of helpful hints and advice to get you comfortable, warm and with no buoyancy issues PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARK EVANS AND MARK POWELL/TDI-SDI

DRYSUIT DIVING

D

rysuits should be in every diver’s arsenal, as there is nothing worse than feeling cold both on a dive and when you exit the water, and no amount of neoprene in a wetsuit or semi-dry is going keep you as warm and toasty as a good-fitting drysuit. However, it seems some divers still have some bizarre, inherent fear of drysuits, which is odd, as with a little bit of practice and tuition, diving in one is a doddle, and you are soon happy bouncing back and forth between wetsuits and drysuits. And remember, drysuits aren’t just for real cold-water diving, you will also find diving in a drysuit in New Zealand in winter, for instance, is far more preferable to layering up the neoprene.

PADI TecRec Instructor Trainer Martin Robson said: “Drysuits are designed to keep you dry and, with the right undersuit, warm too, so use the suit to keep you dry and insulated and not for buoyancy.

That is what your wing/BCD is designed for. Less air in your suit will make trim and buoyancy easier to control. Unless you are very well practiced, leave your drysuit dump valve open so that you can vent gas from the suit quickly should you need to.”

Matt Clements, UK Regional Manager at PADI, commented: “Cannot stress this enough, buy your own suit and make sure it fits you.

Often hired suits leak, which is mostly due to poor fit. It is never fun to go in for a second or third dive wet and cold. When it’s your own suit you can trim the seals to fit you. Wrist and neck seals also tend to be the weak spot, so keep an eye on their condition as you can repair them pre-dive rather than at the water’s edge (unless you have a quick-change system).”

PADI Course Director and TecRec Instructor Trainer Alan Whitehead said: “Drysuit training is essential, but please remember although it affects buoyancy, try not to use it primarily for your buoyancy, as this could lead to too much air in the suit, which can easily migrate to ‘problem’ areas, such as your feet. It is also not as easy to dump as a wing/BCD during ascent. Start with small amounts of air in the suit for comfort and warmth, but just enough to avoid squeeze.”

Vikki Batten, Director of Rebreather Technologies, Training Supervisor and Instructor Examiner at PADI, said: “If you find your feet are a ‘little’ floaty in a drysuit, instead of pushing your legs down, which risks cramping, try looking up slightly. With a cylinder on your back, this tips your hips down slightly and your legs will follow. Of course, this only works for minor problems - if it gets worse, you may have to ‘roll’”.

TDI/SDI Business Development Manager Mark Powell said: “Much of the advertising you see for diving involves warm water and divers in swimsuits or thin wetsuits. It can be a bit of a shock to those divers who were certified in warm water to come back to the UK and discover that the water is a bit cooler. For those of us who dive and teach in the UK or Europe, talking about the differences is much like talking about how to choose a mask. We are often asked about the

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differences between diving wet and diving dry. Of course, there are some key differences.

“Warmth - This is probably the most-important reason to decide to dive dry. You know that neither a wetsuit nor drysuit actually keeps you warm. What they do is slow the amount of heat loss.

Wetsuits do this using a layer of neoprene and a thin layer of water trapped between that and the skin. Drysuits use air and a combination of undergarments - no water to take heat away if a seal is lost and allowed to flush through the suit. With drysuits you can add layers of insulation to slow the loss of body heat.

“Buoyancy - Wetsuits compress with depth and lose some of their inherent buoyancy. Drysuits allow the diver to add air and compensate for the increased pressure at depth. As the wetsuit compresses, it gets thinner and loses insulating capacity. The drysuit does not.

“Purchase cost - At one time, drysuits were prohibitively expensive for the average diver. One could purchase several wetsuits for the cost of one drysuit. They often had to if diving in a wide range of water temperatures! With the introduction of new materials and manufacturing competition, a quality entry-level drysuit can be had for roughly the same price as a higher-end wetsuit. By varying the undergarments the diver can also avoid having to buy several different wetsuits. One drysuit will work in numerous environments.”

Garry Dallas, Director of training RAID UK (Recreational/Technical/ Cave Instructor Trainer) said: “The purpose of a drysuit is in the name, to keep you dry! Often mistaken for other attributes, such as keeping you warm, which is actually the purpose of the undersuit.

“There are various drysuits on the market, with all the bells and whistles, but the most-important features are often overlooked.

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Neoprene suits have a place in recreational diving but membrane/trilaminate suits are best suited for technical and/or recreational diving. Whichever suit you choose, in-water comfortable flexibility, tailored fit throughout the body (especially under the crotch and armpit” preventing restrictive movements), constant neutral buoyancy characteristics at depth, pocket accessibility, ease of donning/doffing with telescopic front/ back entry, self-replaceable seal material, durability, zip material and quality are important factors to name a few. When it comes to repairs/warranty, customer service is up there too.

“When you’ve chosen your first drysuit, train to use it. Ability to dive well in a wetsuit is one thing, but drysuits are a different ball game. However, once mastered, hovering in a drysuit is the most-pleasurable experience and will open up a whole new world of diving.

“To keep your drysuit seals in tip top condition, periodically check wrist and neck seals for deterioration, splitting, dozing and cracking of rubber, avoiding prolonged exposure to sunlight and chemicals.

Regular lubrication with bee’s wax increases the life of the zip teeth and smooth operation of the zip, while preventing fraying. Suit inflator and dump valves need checking for proper operation. Obviously, the suit could develop a leak anywhere - commonly, valves, the soles of boots or socks, seals, seams on the crotch, armpit or zip area and even delamination of the material. The best solution is to take your suit to your reputable dealer or repair centre and let the experts sort it out for you. Let them check it over annually, as time alone without use will deteriorate a suit.”

Alex ‘Woz’ Warzynski, Advanced Instructor and BSAC Chairman, said: “One of the most-common questions I get asked is ‘which drysuit should I buy?’ and the answer is ‘well, it depends on the type of diving you do’. If travel is important, then a lightweight suit that folds up small is a high priority. If your thing is squirrelling around wrecks, then a suit that doesn’t snag and stands up to sharp edges is important. If you’re diving in a high-current area, then a close-fitting, streamlined suit would be best so you can whizz about with minimal resistance. Diving a twinset? A suit with lots of flexibility in the upper body for shutdowns.

“For UK diving, where you are likely to be spending all day in your suit, the most-important thing is fit and comfort, both in and out of

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the water. Getting into and out of it should be simple, and it should have a way of staying up when the top half is undone. Neoprene neck seals, especially the comfortable super-stretchy ones, stop the hangman’s noose effect that you can get from the irritation from latex.

“Once submerged, you need to be weighted properly and add just enough gas to the suit to take the squeeze off. Otherwise, you end up with large volumes of air migrating round the suit which can, for inexperienced divers, lead to difficult buoyancy control. For compressed neoprene suits, a little extra weight will be needed to get you off the surface (and keep you on your safety stop) as the suit material compresses at depth. This isn’t a problem with membrane or crushed neoprene.

“For warmth, I’m a big fan of layering. A merino base layer to start, a mid-layer if it’s really cold, then your main outer undersuit on top. Just add and remove layers as the temperature varies, and change your weighting to suit. Good notes in your logbook helps with this. A close, tight fit works best with undersuits, and choose them carefully to maintain flexibility while still retaining some structure to resist the force of the drysuit pressing down as it’s the air layer that keeps you warm.”

John Kendall, GUE Instructor Trainer, said: “There are many things that can make a drysuit great or terrible. The first of which is the fit. Some manufacturers make their suits baggy, some make them tight, some cut the arms one way, others do it differently. I am very, very fussy when it comes to the fit of my drysuits, and make sure that they will be cut to allow me full overhead movement of my arms. Without a good fit, the drysuit is useless.

“The next thing that can make a big difference to how good a suit is, is the zipper. I don’t like rear zips, as it means I am reliant on other people to help me in and out of my suit, and they also stiffen up the shoulders and make reaching valves hard.

“The last thing is the position of the dump valve. For me, the dump valve should be on the outside of the bicep, that way I can simply lift my left elbow in order to dump gas, and not have to contort myself to get the gas out.

“When you find a good drysuit, that fits you well with a good zip and proper dump valve placement, you should look after it. Don’t be afraid to invest in servicing before things go wrong. I replace the seals on my suits every 200 dives or so (which means about six months for me) to make sure that I am never surprised by a ripped seal just before what turns out to be an awesome dive for my buddies. If you are a regular diver, it might be worthwhile investing in a second drysuit, so that you never have to miss a dive while one is being serviced.”

IANTD Instructor Trainer Ian France said: “The drysuit is an essential part of many diving scenarios. Despite offering both thermal insulation and redundant buoyancy, the drysuit is an often-over22

looked piece of equipment due to its relatively high cost for a decent product. With increased redundancy becoming the norm in diving, with divers carrying two of all essential kit, it is only realistic to take one drysuit. A poorly fitting drysuit will often result in the diver being restricted, preventing management of other equipment effectively, e.g. the ability to manipulate valves while diving back-mounted cylinders, and to effectively manage a divers stable platform, resulting in poor trim and buoyancy. In turn, this decreases the diver’s ability to manage simple tasks underwater, resulting in additional stress.

“Poor drysuit maintenance also increases the likelihood of zip or dump failure, while carelessness can result in damage and leaks. A failed drysuit on a dive can lead to potential hypothermia, negative buoyancy, or at least, increased thermal stress affecting decompression efficiency.

“However, a little care with simple maintenance after each dive can prolong the life of this investment for many years. Remove equipment from the pockets after each dive, rinse off salt, lubricate the zip as per manufacturer’s instructions and store dry.

Inspect seals regularly and attend to nicks before they become splits or perish.”

Gary Asson from the Sub-Aqua Association said: “There are two main types of drysuit in use today, neoprene and laminate, neoprene having the better thermal insulation, but losing out on flexibility and weight. My personal preference is for crushed neoprene, which has good thermal insulation and flexibility. When it comes to maintenance, both materials need to be completely dry before a repair can be made. This can usually be quickly achieved with a wipe over in the case of laminate, but can take a considerable amount of time in the case of neoprene.

“Ideally, a drysuit should be made to measure. However, this is associated with additional cost. Regardless, don’t forget you will require additional insulation, and that if you intend to dive in UK waters all year round, that this requirement will change. Make sure it still fits, and that you can perform any shutdowns, etc, when you are wearing your winter gear. Also, make sure that the suit does not have large spaces where air can migrate, causing buoyancy problems.

“Buoyancy underwater in drysuit diving can be by using the drysuit only (the jacket is used only at the surface), or by a mixture of the jacket for buoyance, adding air to the suit only to stop squeeze. The advantage of drysuit only is that you only need to consider the gas in your drysuit, whereas when adding air to both drysuit and jacket, you need to consider both. As always this is a mixture of personal choice, and the type of diving you do.

“Moving to a drysuit requires practical training, from a competent instructor, to master the basics. Then, practice, practice, practice.

Build up experience until it is second nature, before putting yourself into a position where buoyance failure can put you in danger.” n WWW.MIFLEXHOSES.CO.UK | WWW.MIFLEXHOSESHOP.CO.UK

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Kuredu

This month, we look at the house reef off Kuredu Island Resort in the Maldives, which is absolutely teeming with marine life of all shapes and sizes PHOTOGRAPHS BY RAY VAN EEDDEN

T

he Maldives consists of 26 atolls and each of them has something unique to offer ocean and marine life enthusiasts. Kuredu Island Resort is situated at the most-northern tip of the Lhaviyani Atoll and has quite a few unique experiences to discover.

Before we immerse ourselves on Kuredu’s house reef, it is well worth mentioning the magic one can experience before you even get to the reef.

Just while walking on the beach you can have sightings of an abundance of marine life. You could spot the dolphins breaking the surface as they come through the close-by channel, or turtles popping their heads up to get a breath of air.

The nature-made nursery offers sightings of juvenile stingrays, blacktip reef sharks, lemon sharks and many other fish species using it as a safe haven while they grow bigger.

As the house reef is 200 metres away from the beach, this allows one a chance to view the marine life attracted there by the seagrass and shallow lagoon. Not only does the seagrass create oxygen, but it offers a feeding ground for the great number of green sea turtles. The other forms of life you can find in the seagrass are stingrays, blacktip reef sharks, ghost pipefish and a variety of fish species, including snapper, parrotfish, surgeonfish, triggerfish and special species of nudibranchs. The Kuredu Prodivers Marine Centre, headed by the Olive Ridley Project Marine Biologist and Educator, is the go-to venue for information on turtles, as well as a research institution whose findings will feed into the important work of protecting the sea turtles. Here you can do tours to meet and experience snorkelling with the turtles, and learn how to identify and photograph them. The marine biologist will let you know if the turtle is already known to the database, or if it is new to science. If it is new, you have the opportunity to adopt and name the turtle.

Once you immerse yourself in the ocean on the house reef of Kuredu, you will be impressed by the abundance of marine life just before your eyes. Schooling fusiliers, sergeant majors and unicornfish keep your attention until you get to the reef, which slopes down from 5m-20m. Every coral block is home to a plethora of beautiful reef fish, from damselfish to nudibranchs, shrimps, crabs, pipefish, lionfish, surgeonfish,

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scorpionfish, parrotfish, moray eels and butterflyfish. The list goes on and on…

After looking into the various nooks and crannies for small critters you then get to the shipwreck. After 16 years of being on the ocean bed, the marine and coral life which have taken over is a delight for those who like macro diving.

As the house reef is close to a channel, there are often sightings of grey reef sharks, mantas in the right season, eagle rays and the very rare ornate eagle ray have been spotted on more than one occasion. In the right season you could even come across the very peculiar-looking guitar shark.

At night time, the house reef transforms to a place where predators roam, the corals bloom and wondrous macro life pop up. You can see fish hunting, witness the magical colour changes of the octopus as it hunts or mates, parrotfish in a bubble for protection made of their own mucus, nurse sharks, eagle rays, stingrays, turtles and when you get to the shipwreck there are thousands of small crab eyes reflecting in the torch light. A family of humphead parrotfish make the shipwreck their home at night alongside Napoleon wrasse.

In the early hours of the morning, just as the sun is rising, the family of humphead parrotfish are off to the cleaning station on the house reef. If you stay at that cleaning station or move on to one of the other cleaning stations, you can witness some remarkable things.

If you look closely at the surgeonfish, you will notice that they turn light blue while they are being cleaned by the cleaner wrasse. When they are done they go back to their dark blue colour. If you get close enough, the cleaner wrasse will start to clean you too. As the sun’s rays come through the ocean surface, the reef again transforms into the busy bustling place as a new day begins. There are many highlights of diving in the Lhaviyani Atoll. When you join the boat dives you can experience the out-reefs, the underwater islands called Thilas or the many small channels called Kandus. While crossing these channels, your jaw will drop at the amount of grey reef sharks around you, as well as schools of eagle rays. This is a definite additional highlight to experience in the Lhaviyani Atoll, with many a diver leaving the Maldives vowing to return. n

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UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY

LIGHTING TECHNIQUES

FOR MACRO

Following his last article on getting the basics right with macro photography, Martyn Guess provides some ideas on how to use different lighting techniques rather than just point the strobe straight at the subject PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARTYN GUESS

A

s I said in my last article, ‘good macro photography requires us to follow a few basic rules and then to apply these to our images. As well as being well composed, striking and colourful, with maybe some interesting behaviour, it is critical that the image is creatively and well lit’.

There are various lighting techniques that you can use (or put simply – putting your strobe (flash) or strobes in positions that will help you get better results) that will help you to separate the subject from a messy and distracting background, make the subject pop and help show texture and a 3D effect. If used carefully these techniques will then show off the subject in the best possible light (no pun intended!).

Most underwater photographers starting out are just happy to get enough light on a subject so that the viewer can see what it is.

The strobe position at this stage is normally just pointing straight out from the housing, directly at the subject and the background behind. Everything in the frame is then illuminated and backscatter can be an issue. Compact users with just the in-built flash have only this choice of lighting. If, however, you have graduated to an external strobe or strobes then the position of the strobe can be adjusted so that the angle of light hitting the subject is directed in the best way to suit the subject and its position.

CROSS LIGHTING – Helps you separate the subject from the background and add texture. The picture shows the strobe positions for this technique, which are basically pointing straight at each other or the side of the port. Strobes have a remarkably wide angle of coverage so don’t be afraid to turn them away from the critter you are shooting. If only using one strobe, the position is the same and the lighting will be more directional, with strong shadows on the side of the subject without any light, which can be very effective.

I regularly turn one strobe off when using this technique. Cross

Moray Eel lit by cross lighting

Rhinopias Frondosa back lit with a blip of front light

lighting limits the light hitting the background and it is this directional light which adds texture to your subject and can give a 3D effect (see the moray image which was lit using this technique).

For smaller subjects the strobes are pushed closer together and to the port and pulled further apart for larger subjects and for softer lighting. Try and shoot upwards into the water column by getting low to the subject. as this will help darken the background. Backscatter is not an issue. Use longer strobe arms to enable you to push the strobes forward. If you move closer to the subject, you can introduce some back lighting where the rear of the subject is starting to get light. Great for subjects like hairy frogfish. One of the strobes if using two can be turned down slightly to help create a softer and more natural light effect. Like anything in photography practice, practice and practice this technique and you will soon see the difference in your images.

INWARD LIGHTING – I use this when the subject is very close to a messy background. The strobes are set pointing back towards my head (see picture). Push the strobe or strobes forward. The diffusers can be removed as you are only trying to use the edge of the beam to light the subject and the edge will be harder without them. The harder light will help lift the texture of the subject too.

Inward lighting is therefore a background problem-solver and is an extreme version of crossed strobes. Push the strobes forward and wide enough so they are out of the field of view. If necessary, use longer strobe arms. While adjusting the angle of the light I use back button focus, and if yours does, I recommend you use

this (see my last article). Compose the shot and focus and then leave the button alone. As I move the strobes around I can then go back to the same shot by moving the camera in and out - when it achieves focus I know it is in the same position and the light angle changes can take effect. With practice you will be able to isolate the subject. Try also using a small aperture and fast shutter speed to help darken the background. The porcelain crab was shot using inward lighting and I was able to hide the rest of the anemone, which was distracting.

MY ESCORTED TRIPS

Want to learn how to take or improve your underwater images?

Why not come on a photo-specific trip? These trips are meticulously planned to the best destinations at the best time of year where the conditions should be perfect for building a portfolio of great images. The workshops, which are for all levels of experience but mainly aimed at people with a few trips under their belts, include classroom sessions and presentations as well as in-water help and guidance, all done in a relaxed and non-competitive friendly environment.

As I sit here writing this article I am about to journey to Anilao in the Philippines to run a workshop, but will be back there again soon.

This year there are macro and wide-angle photography trips through Scubatravel to the Azores for macro, reef and shark photography (September 2018) and Bali for macro and wide-angle opportunities (October 2018) and again in August 2019 and the Azores in September 2019, as well as a Red Sea trip being planned.

UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY BACK LIGHTING – You can use a strobe with a piece of old wetsuit arm attached to reduce the light beam and a long strobe arm or arms linked together. This will enable you to position the strobe behind the subject. Clearly this method of lighting can only be used where the critter is in a position which enables you to get a light behind without disturbing it or the reef! I prefer to use a narrow beam torch, which is far easier to position, or to get the guide or a buddy to hold. I always carry such a torch in my pocket on macro dives. Back lighting will transform anything hairy or see-through or something with an interesting shape or edge, such as a seahorse or Rhinopias. This technique will elevate the image to something very memorable if done well. It is also great for hiding backgrounds. It is an easy method of lighting to achieve good results without too much practice. You can just rely on the back light which will create a slightly mystical image, or you can also introduce a blip of light from your strobe position to light the front of the subject and allow the viewer to see the subject more clearly, but still maintain an edge light from the back around the subject to give it considerable impact. The image of the purple weedy Rhinopias is an example of back lighting with a little front light allowing you to see the wonderful pattern of the fish’s skin.

The back lighting gives the subject great impact. The camera should be positioned so that it is in the shade of the back light, so move your position so you cannot actually see the light beam in the viewfinder. A strobe will give a bigger back light than a torch, so has to be positioned well out of the frame.

Cardinal fish with eggs lit with inward lighting

CONCLUSION

All three techniques will help you get better images. As a photographer you can choose which to apply to suit the subject and its position. As a rule, I nearly always use one of these methods but in addition, also tend to take a diffuser off when shooting frogfish, and turn one strobe off when shooting a subject sitting on the sand so that I can create a shadow to set it off against.

A lot of information to take on board, but concentrate on these basics and I am confident your images will start to take a quantum leap forward. Next time - dealing with black sand or muck, and introducing Snoot lighting… n

BIOGRAPHY: MARTYN GUESS

Martyn has been diving for over 30 years and taking underwater images for nearly 25 years. He has been very successful in National and International competitions and regularly makes presentations to Camera and Photography clubs as well as BSOUP. (The British Society of Underwater Photographers) Today he shares his passion and knowledge, and as well as teaching underwater photography courses he leads overseas workshop trips for Scubatravel.

Porcelain crab lit with inward lighting

Sea horse back lit with blip of front light

THE HUMPBACK WHALES OF H

aving arrived in Tonga the evening before, in mid-afternoon, we - a mixed group of 18, including both divers and whale-lovers from around the globe - begin the 72 nautical mile, nine-hour run from the capital, Nuku’alofa, to the Ha’apai Islands Group, where we’ll spend the next nine days searching for and interacting with humpback whales. Our ship, the Nai’a, is a 37-metre-long, deep-hulled steel vessel, which quickly shows itself to be an extremely stable craft, handling even wind-blown, open-ocean seas with scarcely any detectable roll or heave. Nai’a, based in Fiji for most of each year, has carried out voyages to Tonga for whale season since 1996 and has considerable ex-perience and expertise with in-water whale encounters. En route, we learn about humpbacks and what we could expect throughout our voyage (and, as I was pleased to discover, even my most-grand imaginings were to quickly prove paltry, indeed).

Tonga’s humpback tribe consists of more than 2,300 whales.

They live and feed - chiefly on swarms of krill - in Antarctica, swimming some 5,000km to Tonga each year to spend July to Oc-tober mating and giving birth. Once the newborn calves, some five metres long and weighing one to two tons at birth, are strong enough for the arduous return trip, they head back.

After they leave Antarctica each year, the whales do not feed for approximately five months until their return (calves are the great exception, enjoying some 100 gallons a day of their mothers’ thick, fatty milk until they mature enough to feed themselves).

Once in the Ha’apai Group, our routine would be simple - beginning each morning just after day-break, the ship would slowly cruise, looking for whales. When whales showed interest in the ship, or a willingness to be approached, we would quickly board our two inflatable skiffs and move in carefully for in-water (on snorkel) encounters. Nai’a’s experienced Fijian and Tongan crew proved incredibly adept at spotting and approaching whales; our two Divemasters were equally expert in leading close, in-water encounters. Each late-afternoon, if no encounters were occurring, WWW.SCUBADIVERMAG.COM

a reef scuba dive and a night dive would be provided (though, several afternoons, whale encounters ran on into sunset - only a few people ever decided to stop for a dive, although it was always offered).

On our first morning, after many far-off sightings (a massive humpback breaching - leaping out of the water - and its huge splash can be spotted from surprising distances), we find our first whale group that allows us to approach. The whales seem unconcerned with the ship, and we follow closely. They are rowdy and aggressive, apparently three males competing for a female, in what’s known as a ‘heat-run’. The males display, slapping their tails on the water, breaching, slapping their fivemetre-long pectoral fins and jostling each other, trying to be the nearest to the female. Visually, it’s incredible, watching these 15-metre-long, 40-ton behemoths exhibit such wild behav-iour.

When it’s clear they show no intention of avoiding us, we quickly board the skiffs for our first in-water encounter.

Since they are constantly moving, the encounters will be ‘fly-bys’, moving in close and dropping in, in their path. Up close, it’s high-adrenaline, with their wild behaviours occurring at times just metres away from us, huge tails raised above us in our low skiffs, with spray and their exhalations splashing down upon us.

When the time seems right, we slip in, at first seeing nothing but deep, blue water. Then, there is a hint of motion and a sudden flash of white pectoral fins as three huge whales, shoulder to shoulder, swoop by just below us. In a moment they are gone, leaving us wide-eyed and whooping with excitement at our first in-water experience with humpbacks.

After several such fly-bys, as their rowdiness increases, our Divemasters make the call - the whales have become too rough

Having dreamed of doing so for years, Al Hornsby finally shares some in-water time with humpbacks and is expectedly blown away PHOTOGRAPHS BY AL HORNSBY

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“It is a stunning display; after several minutes of thrilled enjoyment, we climb back into the skiff, happy to give the whales their peace”

A humpback prepares to dive next to watching snorkellers Humpbacks displaying underwater

Desert island paradise

Majestic humpback breaching

and unpredictable; although they show no malice towards us, in their wildness an accidental brush by one of these huge animals would be disastrous. We return to Nai’a to search for calmer whales. In late-afternoon, we spot what we quickly learn can provide the ideal situation for in-water en-counters - a mother and calf. When a mother becomes comfortable with the ship and the skiffs, magic can happen. The calves tend to be curious and often unafraid of approaching people in the water, and the mothers let them explore their growing independence. On this occasion, it’s even more interesting - there is also an escort, another adult whale, which can be a male or female that serves as a protector.

During a more than two-hour series of encounters, at one point the escort and mother hang sus-pended vertically at about 15m, while the calf makes repeated approaches to us, giving me pictures from only a few metres away. Nearing sunset, as they begin to finally show signs of moving away, I freedive down to the adult whales as the calf moves in to rest on top of the mother’s head. I take several photographs, close to them in the cool, dim light; surreal moments I’ll never forget. They regard me serenely, then move slowly off, one of their massive tails passing just two metres away from me in its downward arc, the pressure wave gently lifting me off and away.

So goes day one.

For the next eight days, while each is different, there is really no let-down. On another day, again a mother-calf-escort is spotted. As we ease the skiffs in for an encounter, the escort appears to be-come protective, exhibiting a warning display with repeated pectoral and tail-slaps; perhaps the calf is very young, perhaps there is fear we wish it harm. We pause the skiffs and wait. Suddenly, the adult whale rises out of the water in a near-full body

Whales displaying next to the RIB

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breach, perhaps 50 metres away. The sight of this gigantic creature rising, in seeming slow-motion, so close by, is utterly awesome and unworld-ly - like a four-storey building suddenly emerging from the sea, only to hang for a moment, then to crash down in a massive spray of water in all directions.

We wait patiently as the whale calms down, with no need to rush, no desire to upset the mother and calf. Finally, we enter the water and slowly approach the threesome resting at the surface.

For ten breath-taking minutes, we watch as the calf moves back and forth between us and the adult whales. Eventually, the escort decides we’ve seen enough, and it moves toward us, stopping, blocking our path to - and our view of - the mother and calf. After a short while, it pointedly lets us know we are no longer welcome; it goes vertical, raises its tail up and begins slapping the water in loud, percus-sive slaps. It is a stunning display; after several minutes of thrilled enjoyment, we climb back into the skiff, happy to give the whales their peace.

Early one morning later in the cruise, a mother and calf give us a most-beatific experience. At sit-ting down to breakfast, just after dawn, the crew calls out that they have spotted a mother and calf sleeping on the surface, just a few hundred metres away. We jump into the skiffs and slowly ap-proach them. They awaken, but don’t move away. Quietly slipping into the water, I’m afforded a view that, for all the world, looks like a painting, in gigantic scale… clear, blue water, the early morning’s sun rays slanting across in soft beams, a mother humpback whale resting motionless a few metres below the surface, her calf nestling gently against her side. As I watch, the calf goes to the surface for a quick breath, then comes back down to snuggle against its mama. There is nothing to do but to float motionless, to simply soak in one of the most-lovely, ethereal scenes I’ve ever witnessed. Fortunately, I do also remember to aim my camera and press the shutter periodically. As they finally begin to move away, they swim downwards slightly, then glide back upwards as they turn my way, the two of them almost touching me as they pass at the surface.

On an afternoon toward the end of our tour, Nai’a approaches a mother and calf on the surface. It seems to be lessons-day for the calf, and we follow along, fascinated, as the mother exhibits a be-haviour, and the calf repeats it and practices. For nearly two hours, we watch mother breach, swim the back-stroke, spy-hop (standing vertically with the head and eyes out of the water), perform tail and pectoral slaps and more. After each manoeuvre, it is the calf’s turn, and there are repeated at-tempts at baby-breaches, baby back-strokes, baby spy-hops and baby slaps. When the calf becomes tired, it swims over to ride on mother’s back for a while, then takes up the lessons once more. Periodically, baby comes over to the side of Nai’a and gives us a look, as if making sure we are watching. You can bet we were.

Those days with the humpback whales of Tonga were an utterly unique experience. After years of thinking about making this voyage, I had very lofty hopes, but uncertain expectations. The very thought of being in the water, up close, with these huge, beautiful whales - and even possibly their calves - was something almost beyond imagination. Well, I’ll happily say it again - those hopeful imaginings were nowhere near the incredible reality. Now, that’s truly special. n What a view to end the day

Humpback tail-slapping

Humpback on the surface...

...and below the waterline

Evening sing-along with the locals

Humpbacks put on a show

“For ten breath-taking minutes, we watch as the calf moves back and forth between us and the adult whales” 31

T

he island of Koh Lanta, in the Krabi province of Thailand is an undiscovered gem located in the Andaman Sea. Well, not exactly undiscovered, but relatively so compared to its more-famous neighbours, Koh Phi Phi and Phuket. I find the presence of global fast food chains to be a good barometer of how developed an island is - Koh Lanta has none! Not that I am against such establishments, and after working for a few months on the island, one of my first priorities is to get a double Whopper with cheese, it is just that when I travel somewhere different for a holiday, or to work, I want it to feel different, and having a McDonalds or Starbucks on every corner takes some of the mystique away.

Though it is more off the beaten track than Phuket or Krabi, getting to Koh Lanta is fairly painless - either catch a flight to Phuket followed by a scenic three-hour ferry; or fly to Krabi and then travel a less-scenic two hours by car.

There are actually two Lanta islands; Koh Lanta Noi, the smaller of the two, and Koh Lanta Yai, which is commonly referred to as just Koh Lanta. This is where all of the resorts are located, from basic beach huts to five-star luxury. Around 20 dive centres pepper its 32km length, the majority of them situated in the main village of Saladan on the northern tip. A fairly decent road runs down the length of the island, with spectacular beaches on one side and rainforest-covered hills the other.

It is difficult to find a bad Thai restaurant on the island. Saladan has a number of stilted establishments along the klong, the stretch of water that separates the two islands. The main road has an endless supply of excellent cheap eateries and the many beaches that stretch along the western coastline also offer a plethora of establishments. They tend to be a bit more expensive, but they do come with a fantastic view. There is plenty of nightlife on the island but it not as in-your-face as some of the other islands and you have to know where to look for it.

Apart from partying and diving, the two of which don’t mix particularly well, there are plenty of other things to do. You can watch kickboxing at the small stadium on the island and if you enjoy being beaten up on a daily basis, you can join a kickboxing camp. For something a little more sedate, there are a number of Thai cooking schools, or you could just wander around the national park on the southern tip of the island, or go on an elephant trek through the forest. There are a number of festivals thoughout the year, the pick of which has to be Songkran, the water festival which is the Thai New Year. This festivals occurs around mid-April and allows grown-ups to roam the streets with water pistols soaking anyone and everyone with impunity; if you don’t want to get wet, don’t leave your room.

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Unspoilt

THAILAND If you want a taste of the real Thailand, Koh Lanta is an unspoilt island more off-the-beaten-track than its near-neighbours.

Adrian Stacey waxes lyrical about its attractions topside and underwater PHOTOGRAPHS BY ADRIAN STACEY

Stunning above-water rock formations

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Now that is what you call ‘waterside living’

All the bars, restaurants and shops have huge containers of water outside and anyone who passes gets a good soaking, followed by a handful of flour thrown in their face. Very messy, but good fun!

The season on Koh Lanta starts in November and finishes in April, the busiest time being around Christmas. Throughout the year visibility can range from ten to 30 metres, averaging 15-20 metres, and can vary from week to week. The one thing that does stay fairly constant is the water temperature, usually a very pleasant 29-30 degrees C, occasionally dropping to 26 degrees C. Diving from Koh Lanta is mainly done at the Koh Bida islands or the Koh Haa islands. Regular trips also go to the world-class dive sites of Hin Daeng and Hin Muang, but more on these sites in a later issue. Trips to the King Curiser wreck and surrounding reefs, Shark Reef and Anemone Reef, can also be arranged from Koh Lanta, but are less frequent. Most people want to visit Hin Daeng and Hin Muang instead, where there is a chance of diving with manta rays and whalesharks.

To get to the sites, divers have a choice of either speedboat or big boat. Both have advantages and disadvantages. The big boats are slower but more stable and comfortable, with breakfast and lunch served on the boat. The speedboats get to the dive sites in less than half the time of the big boats. This means they can set off later, meaning more of a lie-in, which is always welcome if you have been enjoying the nocturnal activities the island has to offer. But they are not as comfortable, especially in rough seas.

Koh Haa means ‘five islands’, but just to confuse things there are actually six. This picturesque little group of islands offer some beautiful scenery both above and below the water. Koh Haa 3 has a white sand beach which sits below cliffs covered in vegetation.

A shallow crystal-clear lagoon connects to the smaller islets of Koh Haa 2 and 4, which are actually little more than limestone pillars. The boats usually moor in the Lagoon, a large sandy area around 5-6m deep. It is punctuated by hard coral bommies, home to some very large giant morays and a good place for finding sea moths, flounders and the occasional walkman. It is possible to navigate from the lagoon around both Koh Haa 2 and Koh Haa 4 and then back to the boat. Depths around the back of 2 and 4 can reach 30-plus-metres, large schools of yellow snapper swirl around their base, and glassfish blanket the walls. A sandy slope separates the two islands, and a school of juvenile barracuda patrol lazily back and forth. Other highlights of these dive sites include ornate ghost pipefish, frogfish, mantis shrimp and a generous smattering of scorpionfish. Koh Haa Yai or 5 is home to two cathedral-like caves, a spot popular with freedivers, scuba divers and nudibranchs alike. Outside the caves an interesting topography of pinnacles, ridges, canyons and plateaus house a verity of marine life, including one very territorial titan triggerfish - if you can get past him you will be rewarded with a vibrant coral garden which sits at around 30m. The highlight of the Koh Haa archipelago is Koh Haa 1. It is teeming with fish; soft corals drip from its sheer walls and blanket its huge boulders, and the floor around them. A narrow chimney burrows up through the reef from around

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Vast shoal of glassfish The reef is swarming with fish

Massive gorgonian

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18m, opening out into a bowl at 5m that is usually packed full of cave sweepers.

The Bidas, as they are usually referred to, comprise of Bida Nok, Bida Nai and Hin Bida. A stone throw away from the Phi Phi Islands, they share the same impressive limestone façade as their larger neighbours. Bida Nok has a shallow sheltered bay. From the bay on the south west corner of the island, a finger reef gradually descends; covered in sea fans its western wall drops down to 27m. Large colonies of glassfish hug its face hoping for some protection from the many predators, and tremendous schools of snapper stretch along its length. Leopard sharks can be found on the sandy patches at the base of the wall and turtles often graze casually here. The eastern side of the island lacks the dramatic walls but there is a good chance of seeing blacktip reef sharks darting around in the shallows. Bida Nai is a pear-shaped island and has unfortunately suffered from fairly extensive damage to its once-impressive staghorn coral gardens. Still a great dive with plenty to see, it is usually just as fishy as Bida Nok. It also attracts leopard sharks, blacktip reef sharks and turtles. Magnificent anemones are prolific, especially on the east side of the island, and are home to clownfish and the very photogenic porcelain crabs. On the southern tip, large boulders create a series of swim-thoughs and in the shallows large pharaoh cuttlefish can be seen mating - or fighting, it is hard to tell which.

Hin Bida is a large undersea mount that barely breaks the surface. It lacks much coral growth but is popular with leopard sharks, which can be found resting at its sandy base, at 20m, in one of the many canyons and channels that cut thought the reef, or swimming close to the surface around its summit. Large Sunset beach walk

Ornate ghost pipefish

Turtle diving out of the sun

Zebra sharks

schools of snapper, cuttlefish and the occasional turtle add to the allure of this site.

To get to either Koh Haa or the Bidas takes about two hours in a big boat and about 30-40 minutes in a speedboat. The two sites offer some great diving - the Bidas are rampant with marine life, huge schools of fish, leopard sharks, turtles, cuttlefish, octopi and then more huge schools of fish, while the Koh Haa islands have some very interesting topography including caves, swim-thoughs, lush soft coral growth, ornate ghost pipefish, plenty of nudibranchs and a few large schools of fish of their own, plus much, much more.

Koh Lanta has it all, world-class diving at Hin Daeung and Hin Muang, the fantastic wreck of the King Cruiser and some excellent local diving at Koh Haa and Koh Bida. That, coupled with all you would expect from a Thai island above the water (minus the crowds and go go bars on every corner), makes Koh Lanta a paradise island not to be missed. n

“Magnificent anemones are prolific, especially on the east side of the island, and are home to clownfish and the very photogenic porcelain crabs” Scorpionfish

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S

ome diving and underwater photography trips go just perfectly, but occasionally the opposite happens when things don’t go according to plan. Instead of great weather and good health, I encountered poor weather, very difficult diving conditions and an illness in the form of a sinus infection. I want to stress from outset that my trip in no way reflects the people at Donsol and Ticao Island, who could do little more than do their best in the conditions that prevailed. Perhaps this feature shows that you can still get something rewarding and worthwhile from even the most-difficult of trips…

There aren’t many places in the world where whalesharks can be reliably encountered. The seasonal spectacles at Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia and parts of the Maldives are now firmly lodged in the diving consciousness and feature on many divers ‘must do’ lists. Thailand, Galapagos and Utila in the Caribbean are also well known, but what about the Philippines, an area of wide-ranging diving experiences and huge marine biodiversity?

Over recent years, a new whaleshark hotspot in the Philippines has started to make its presence known on the global diving map.

It’s centred around the town of Donsol in the Sorsogon region, in eastern Luzon. It was here, and the nearby Ticao Island, which is located across the Ticao Pass between Luzon and Masbate, that I would base myself for a week.

It’s a very long journey to reach Donsol and Ticao Island

Native outriggers are an unusual form of transport

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from the UK. My route was via Singapore to Manila, then an overnight stay in Manila followed by a punishing 4am start to catch the early morning flight to Legaspi, from where it’s an hour and a half by minibus to reach Donsol. The onward journey from Donsol to Ticao Island is another couple of hours by boat. My itinerary consisted of two whaleshark interaction trips at Donsol (which is snorkelling only) either side of a five-day dive trip to the Ticao Island Resort.

I’ve always been very aware that spending hours confined on planes with lots of people, along with the sleep deprivation and resulting jetlag, makes you more susceptible to picking up some unwanted affliction, but that’s the gauntlet that we all have to run. On the outward journey I found myself in the nightmare scenario of sitting next to a man who spent most of the flight wheezing, sneezing, coughing and spluttering, as I willed myself ‘not to catch what he’s caught’. Whether this individual was the source of my impending problem, I’ll never know, but I’ve a strong suspicion that he was. But anyway, back to the trip…

The regional hub of Legaspi lies beneath the smouldering menace of Mount Mayon, a classic volcano if ever there was one, but you couldn’t see much of it. Unlike Manila, which basked in hazy sunshine, the Sorsogon area was experiencing a period of poor weather and I wouldn’t get to see any sunshine for the entire week. It was windy, cool by Filipino standards, overcast and often raining (sometimes heavily).

I’d been particularly looking forward to this trip as it was a kind of ‘off the map’ type project that appealed to me; on one hand it was a ‘known’ area for its seasonal whaleshark gatherings between December

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In the big time,

Philippines-style Challenging weather conditions, lousy visibility and a sinus infection didn’t stop Jeremy Cuff from making the most of his trip to the Philippines PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEREMY CUFF / WWW.JA-UNIVERSE.COM

and May, but at the same time I’d seen very little written about it in the diving press. It most certainly hadn’t been ‘documented to death’.

The only feature I’d read prior to departure was a remarkable story from March 2009 about a baby whaleshark that was caught in the Donsol area, which provided strong evidence that this was not just a place for feeding, but a place for giving birth and perhaps even mating. The baby shark was a mere 15 inches long and looked like a tiny version of the giant fish that it might one day become. It was perhaps the smallest whaleshark on record, certainly in the Philippines, and possibly in the world!

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In recognition of Donsol’s importance to whalesharks, the WWF have been working in the area since 1998, assisting in the development of sustainable and responsible ecotourism and coastal management. Ongoing work includes working with the local government to prevent illegal fishing practices, creating guidelines for whaleshark interactions and implementing long-term monitoring studies such as satellite tagging and building photo-identification databases to establish whaleshark migratory routes, and to estimate the numbers that visit Donsol annually.

The local tourism posters show whalesharks (locally known as the ‘butanding’) swimming in clear sunlit waters, which are doubtless the conditions

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Guess where the

Idyllic beach scene

whalesharks are

!

leshark

Snorkelling with a wha

that most visitors would probably experience, but when I arrived in Donsol, the water was anything but clear and inviting. In fact, the visibility had been destroyed due to the water run off and the wind kicking up the sand. Instead of the classic turquoise, the water was green and turbid. Though the tropics often experience periods of poor weather, this was considered out of the ordinary for the time of year.

Within two hours of arriving on the plane from Manila, I was kitting up to head out into the bay to swim with the world’s biggest fish. The whaleshark sightings are indeed reliable, and quite an industry seems to have grown up around their appearances, with many boats trawling the bay looking out for these leviathans.

Within ten minutes we were onto a shark, not far from the shore, but if your boat spots a whaleshark, the chances are you won’t have it to yourself for long, as other boats magically descend on the area. It can be a bit of a scrum and be prepared for getting more than the occasional fin in your face! This isn’t ideal for anyone who is unfit as it will likely involve several breathtaking swims, and clambering on and off boats.

On the first interaction, the visibility was at its worst, possibly three metres maximum and probably less. This made it impossible to see the shark approach, and I wasn’t able to see anything until it was literally passing underneath me. You couldn’t see the whole animal.

It reminded me of being on a dive in the UK, at somewhere like Swanage Pier when the visibility is bad, where instead of suddenly finding yourself face to face with a pier leg or a diver that suddenly appeared out of the gloom, it’s a six-metre plus whaleshark!

Nonetheless, on my first interaction we got four whalesharks and on the second visit (after my Ticao Island visit), we got two sharks.

For the second interaction, the visibility was improved, allowing snorkellers to just about see the whole animal, and we were able to remain with one massive specimen for quite a long period.

“It reminded me of being on a dive in the UK, at somewhere like Swanage Pier when the visibility is bad, where instead of suddenly finding yourself face to face with a pier leg or a diver that suddenly appeared out of the gloom, it’s a six-metre plus whaleshark!”

Dramatic waterfall into the sea

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Nudibranchs galore

The journey over to Ticao Island was in poor weather and I arrived amid heavy rain to a welcome of umbrellas and a mad dash for shelter. It wasn’t the conditions I’d hoped for as I inspected the near-zero visibility in front of the resort, and more worryingly, I noticed that I felt ‘woolly headed’. I convinced myself there was no immediate panic, as I could still clear my ears.

The Manta Bowl was my first Ticao Island diving experience and it turned out to be not for the faint-hearted thanks to the strong currents that can commonly be found there. It’s a sizeable area that’s regularly visited by pelagics, consisting of a raised reef in the middle of the Ticao Pass that’s around 13m at the shallowest point, then gradually slopes away to deeper water.

It was raining heavily when we arrived there, and you could see from a couple of marker buoys that the current was strong.

We’d been issued with reef hooks in anticipation of this, with currents on our three dives ranging from moderate to very strong, with the last dive being a real rip-snorter. This required a constant vigilance among the divers to ensure that we didn’t get separated from each other and swept away. We used reef hooks at intervals for respite and to look for mantas. I was also having trouble with my ears on the descents as the head cold I’d first noticed the previous day had worsened.

On the very first dive, we encountered a single manta, which was encouraging, but not on the following two dives. Other

Firing up a DSMB

Whitetip reef shark

sightings included a school of jacks, a cuttlefish and a couple of whitetip reef sharks. I was told that whalesharks are occasionally seen here (the best time is April and May) and that other sharks such as hammerheads and even threshers are not unknown, though certainly not reliable. It wasn’t easy diving, and certainly not one for the novices. Perhaps the conditions are sometimes easier out there.

On the second day, we visited an area known as San Miguel located at the northern tip of Ticao Island, more than an hour by boat from the resort. It’s characterised by rocky islands typical of the Philippines and other areas of the Far East.

There are several dive sites in this area, mostly offering slopes and walls adorned with impressive soft corals. The area is reputedly good for nudibranchs and other macro reef life, but I wasn’t able to complete the day. My cold had mutated quickly into a sinus infection, so after attempting two dives where I couldn’t descend more than a few metres, I decided not to punish my ears any more for fear of making things worse. My diving plans had come to premature end.

As a photographer and photojournalist, the trip was of course not what I’d hoped for. But despite that, I still returned with some images and experiences that I could report on. In fact, one of my ‘murky water’ whaleshark images even made it into my Diving Dreams calendar.

You might think that I’ll recommend fellow dive travellers to stay away based on my experience, but that definitely isn’t the case. This is an interesting area to explore, no doubt about it. By all means give it a go; you’d be very unlucky if so many things conspired against you as they did with me. Don’t forget that in 2004, Time magazine cited Donsol as the best animal encounter destination in Asia. n

“The Manta Bowl was my first Ticao Island diving experience and it turned out to be not for the faint-hearted thanks to the strong currents that can commonly be found there”

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SPEARFISHING TIPS & ADVICE 6 ACTIONABLE TIPS TO INCREASE YOUR BOTTOM TIME Isaac ‘Shrek’ Daly from NoobSpearo.com offers up some actionable tips to increase your bottom time. Don’t try to implement everything at once, focus on one or possibly two tips at a time - get each technique dialled in before moving on.

PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF NOOBSPEARO.COM

1. RELAX

Before you even get to your dive spot, do some full breathe-ups to stretch your lungs and prepare your body for diving. On the surface, close your eyes and concentrate on releasing all muscle tension. Hold your gun lightly in your hand and breathe slow, deep and even. If you can, go with the current and use the boat to put you on the right spot.

Plan your drops – if you are diving in current, then get dropped off just that little bit further up current so that you have more time to prepare and get relaxed. A good buddy on the surface who has got your back will also help you to relax more.

2. PRE-EQUALIZE

While you are taking your last three to four slow full breaths, pre-equalize. This will give you a chance to complete your duckdive without having to reach up and equalize immediately. And remember when equalizing, early and often is the golden rule and doing it like this will help you to be more relaxed when you hit bottom.

3. DUCKDIVE SUPER SMOOTH

Think hot knife through butter – be smooth. One way to make this actionable is to make it a specific focus for your next dive day.

Don’t try to improve everything at once, just nail your duck dive – it will make a huge difference.

4. STREAMLINING

Water is more viscous than air, so hydrodynamics play a huge part in increasing your bottom time. Make sure you get your head position right. Tuck your head in slightly towards your chest.

This will help to minimize drag and increase glide efficiency. This position also positions your airways for easy equalization.

Also, don’t look up on your way down, delay it until you are close to the bottom (especially when diving deeper). Freedive training in a swimming pool can help you to learn these techniques without the added distractions of open-ocean spearfishing.

Minimize your profile while equalizing. Wings in on the way down, lock your elbows into your body to minimize drag. Some divers have a blessed ‘hand’s-free’ equalizing ability which saves them this trouble, but if you’re like me then keeping those arms in as close as possible while you equalize is the best technique. Maintain early and often equalizing practices because big, forced equalization efforts are worse for clearance and oxygen consumption.

SPEARFISHING NEWS? Competition coming up? Recently taken part in an event?

New product you want to shout about? Spearfishing story or photograph you can’t wait to share? WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Email: mark@scubadivermag.com to be included in a forthcoming issue.

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5. GUN TUCK

Picture a soldier with a rifle beside their body – this is the way to maintain minimal profile in the water. Reduce your profile as much as possible, anything sticking out is energy, and therefore oxygen, wasted. Keep your knees straight when kicking, this will minimize your profile – it’s also the most-efficient finning technique.

6. ON THE BOTTOM

Use your eyes and reduce head movement - use your eyes to scan the surrounds and turn your head less. This not only saves oxygen but spooks less fish! Relax your body and make sure you are right on the bottom before you start hunting (hovering just off the bottom keeps fish wary).

Manoeuvre on the bottom using smaller muscles. Research the Aspettos spearfishing hunting technique and you will learn about spearos using smaller muscle groups to manoeuvre around on the bottom. This helps them to conserve energy and oxygen, which extends their bottom time! For application; once you are on the bottom use one hand to grasp a rock. From this position with one hand you can pull yourself forwards, or turn in place. Focus on minimizing movement and you will quickly see the benefits to your breath-hold.

Embrace meditation techniques. Turbo regularly warms up with the lotus position, scarlet dragon and other renown yoga positions, including his own custom pose, ‘the gas release’. He insists that this is what helps him to maintain 10-15 seconds on the bottom while in incredible depths of 6m. Epic Turbo, thanks for the tip... While I’m not sure about yoga, I do rate meditation highly. My reasoning for this is that your brain is a huge consumer of oxygen. Learning to maintain a ‘soft’ focus and how to stay in the moment can ensure you are making efficient use of your mental faculties. Surely this can help to give you some extra time on the bottom. While this is not strictly one of the tips to increase bottom time, meditation has lots of scientific evidence proving that it provides significant benefits.

SUMMARY

I hope these six tips to increase bottom time will help you to slowly extend your breath-hold. However, getting longer bottom time is not a simple magic bullet. There is no one thing, one time fix all solution. It’s slowly making small improvements over time and you will gradually begin to increase your time on the bottom. Remember, it’s not a race! Enjoy your spearfishing and slow down. n

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Dyneema wishbone, and the shaft release and line release is made out of stainless steel.

The ergonomic handle mimics the shape used on the tried-andtested Viper Pro and Cyrano Evo HF, and it is set up for a vertical spiro reel. It comes in 75, 90, 100 and 110 lengths. www.mares.com

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FREEDIVING EQUALISATION 10 TOP TIPS FOR EQUALISATION Freediving guru EMMA FARRELL (www.gofreediving.co.uk) offers a host of hints and advice aimed at easing equalisation – and some of them can benefit scuba divers too PHOTOGRAPHS BY PASH BAKER

W

hen I talk to people about freediving, one of the most-common questions is ‘how do you know when to come back up?’, as if the limiting factor for depth is breathhold ability. I reassure them that not only do we progress depth so gradually that each new personal best is a breeze, but that the issue that stops most freedivers in the first few metres is their inability to equalise fast enough and in a head-down position.

Equalisation issues occur in all divers, however with freediving you don’t have an almost unlimited supply of air to play with, nor plenty of time. Your tank is the air in your lungs and your dive time when starting out is usually less than a minute. This means that for freediving instructors, teaching someone how to equalise effectively is the biggest challenge.

After 18 years overcoming my own equalisation issues and those of my students, I have yet to find a student who cannot learn to equalise. It may take years in some cases, but with my tips and tricks below, hopefully you will soon be equalising like a dream.

1) EQUALISE FREQUENTLY AND PRE-EMPT EVERY EQUALISATION

This may sound obvious, but when you are on a dive there is so much to think about and so much to look at, we often forget to equalise until we feel pain in our ears. At this point we have left it too late and it can often be too difficult (especially for freedivers) when we have reached this point.

I and my instructors always tell students to pre-empt every equalisation - equalise before you need to. This means that your eardrums are not put under stress and you get into a good habit of frequent and gentle equalisations.

Another related tip, especially for freedivers, is to perform a ‘prequalisation’, a lovely term coined by Jorgen, one of my instructors, to describe equalising on the surface, just before the duck dive, so that the slight over-pressurisation of the ear drums compensates for the delay in the arrival of the second equalisation at the end of the duck dive, which can often be at 4-5m.

2) LEARN THE FRENZEL EQUALISATION TECHNIQUE AND TAKE A FREEDIVING COURSE

The frenzel is a very precise and efficient equalisation technique that uses the tongue to create pressure, not the diaphragm and lungs. It is gentler than the Valsalva and more efficient.

It is the primary equalisation technique we teach on freediving courses, and because a large part of learning to freedive is learning how to equalise quickly and effectively, it is amazing for scuba divers.

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3) DON’T FORCE EQUALISATIONS

If you force your equalisations, particularly when using the Valsalva, you can easily damage your ear drums and create inflammation around the eustachian tubes. This can lead to reverse block where, on your ascent, the tissues around the eustachian tubes have become so inflamed that the eustachian tubes cannot open to allow the expanding air in the middle ear to pass back to the throat. Be gentle with your equalisation!

4) BUY AND WEAR A PAIR OF DOC’S PRO PLUGS

I, and many of my instructors and students, swear by using Doc’s (vented) Pro-Plugs. These help prevent exostosis, also known as ‘surfer’s ear’, but I have found that they make equalisation easier in most people who use them. They come in different sizes to fit all ears, and I have a fitting kit so that I can sell the correct-sized Pro Plugs to my students. I find these invaluable and will wear them even in the warmest of waters.

5) GET AN OTOVENT AND PRACTICE WITH IT

An Otovent is a simple device that was developed to help children suffering from glue ear. It comprises a small plastic plug with a hole in it that you block up one nostril with, and on the other end is a balloon. You close off the other nostril and try and inflate the balloon using the plugged-up nostril. This opens up the eustachian tube and is brilliant equalisation practice that you can do on dry land.

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FREEDIVING EQUALISATION 6) BUY AND USE A NETI POT

A neti pot comes in all shapes and sizes. It can look like a small tea pot, or it can come in a more-western friendly design of a bottle for ‘sinus rinsing’ or similar. The idea is that you clean the front sinuses out with saline solution and this helps clear mucus and also prevents infection. It is another great way to help the sinuses remain clear and help deal with stuffiness or allergic reactions which can adversely affect equalisation.

7) STEAM INHALATIONS

If you do have a blocked nose, sticky mucus, or dried-out sinuses, get your head over a bowl of hot water with a towel over the top. The warmwater vapour is wonderful for clearing out your passages and soothing your mucus membranes.

If you have infection then you can also use essential oils, such as oregano, thyme, eucalyptus, pine, tea tree, or simply a couple of drops of olbas oil. For ‘on the dive’ nose clearing, one of my instructors also puts tiny bits of Vicks inside his nose before he puts his mask on.

8) HUMIDIFY YOUR ENVIRONMENT

If you’re travelling abroad to dive, the flight is the worst thing to start off your holiday. Overly dry, re-circulated air will dry out all the mucus membranes of your sinuses, dehydrate the body and often give you a lovely bug from one of your fellow passengers. A great trick to prevent this is to wear throughout the flight, a scarf over your entire nose and mouth so that you are breathing in humidified air.

At home in the winter with central heating, get a humidifier, or water traps that sit over the radiator to help humidify the air.

9) VISIT A CRANIAL OSTEOPATH

A cranial osteopath is someone who has done at least a four-year osteopathic training programme, followed by further specialist training in cranial osteopathy. I had a tenyear sinus issue that was cured by a few sessions of cranial osteopathy and the treatment has also cured sinus bleeding in one of my instructors and equalisation issues in countless students. If you have exhausted all other options, it is worth going for a consultation to see if it could help you.

To find a recommended cranial osteopath in your area, you can ring one of the world’s leading centres, Stillpoint, in Bath on 01225 460 106 and ask for the details of a practitioner near you.

10) CLEAN UP YOUR DIET

One of my students spent ten years learning how to equalise, and the thing that finally cracked it for him was giving up gluten, dairy and refined sugar. Every person will have subtly different dietary needs, but gluten and refined sugar cause inflammation in the body, which can affect equalisation, and dairy products can cause extra mucus production.

If you’ve tried everything else, then try 30 days without gluten, refined grains, processed foods, all sugars and dairy and see if it makes a difference.

I guarantee that your health will be improved in ways you won’t have thought possible - and it will most likely help your equalisation as well! n

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DISTRACTED

WHILE DIVING Each month, Divers Alert Network Asia-Pacific will examine a potential diving incident or situation and how it can be avoided, or best dealt with. DAN’s Peter Buzzacott, MPH, Ph.D discusses the hazards of not keeping track of your air supply PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARK EVANS

“A newly certified open water diver usually isn’t equipped with the experience and skills to complete the dive safely when they find themselves at 30m and nearly out of air” WWW.SCUBADIVERMAG.COM

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You can become fixated with getting the perfect shot

I

t can be easy to lose sight of depth, time and gas supply when you’re in search of the perfect image. Stay alert don’t compromise your safety for the sake of a photograph.

This message is relevant for all divers, but especially new divers who are yet to gain the skill and confidence to safely manage an in-water incident.

THE DIVER

The diver was a 48-year-old woman who was open-water certified 20 years ago but had not dived since then. She had recently taken a second open-water diving course. She was undertaking a seven-day liveaboard trip in Australia and required her certification.

THE INCIDENT

On the second day of diving, the diver reported ‘getting carried away while taking pictures’. She stopped looking at her gauges and realised at 29m that she had only 1,000 psi (70 bar) of breathing gas left. Her dive buddy was motioning for her to ascend, so she began to purposefully do so. She reported feeling worried and determined that she should not shoot to the surface. She began a steady ascent.

At 14m she looked around and initially was unable to locate her dive buddy. She watched her air supply dwindle. Finally, she reached 6m with about 300 psi (20 bar) of air left. She opted to make a safety stop, and watched her gauge intently the whole time. As soon as she finished she motioned for her buddy to ascend the mooring line. She ascended in a slow, controlled manner but stated that her mind was racing and that she felt relief as her depth gauge approached zero.

On the surface the diver inflated her BCD, looked at her gauge and saw that her tank was completely empty. She recalled: “It was a 29m dive, and I was very embarrassed. My dive buddy was holding it back, but I could tell he was upset with me. I never told him how close I came to running out of air, but I apologised profusely, telling him I would never do that again. I spoke with another diver, a former instructor, and told him what had happened.

He told me he had made the same mistake once - got carried away with what he was doing and forgot to watch his gauges. I was thinking: “Wow, and you’re a dive instructor!” I was shocked at how easily you can lose sight of your depth. I mentally vowed to stay with my buddy on future dives and to watch my gauges.

Snapping a monster grouper

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“This relative inexperience and the distraction a camera offers make for an unsafe combination underwater” ANALYSIS

This diver was lucky that she realised how low her tank pressure was when she did. Much longer at that depth and she would likely have run out of air before she made it back to the surface.

At DAN, we receive fatality reports every year about divers who weren’t so lucky. Running out of air doesn’t automatically lead to death, but when coupled with panic and a rapid ascent, which may be more common among inexperienced divers, the consequences can be grave.

An Australian study followed 1,000 recreational scuba dives and determined that, compared with divers who surfaced with plenty of air remaining, divers who surfaced low on air were more than 20 times more likely to be surprised by how little air they had left. In other words, like the diver involved in this incident, they were simply not paying attention to their gauges.

Recently I took up underwater photography again after a long break. In the past few years I’d been diving plenty, but without a camera. The first thing I rediscovered was how utterly distracting a camera can be when you find something you want to photograph. It is very easy to forget to keep an eye on your depth or air, and this is one reason why DAN resolutely suggests recreational divers dive with a buddy. In this incident, a buddy signalled the diver before she ran out of air and accompanied her to the surface, able to render assistance if needed.

This diver had a close call, learned a valuable lesson and lived to dive another day. Staying calm during her ascent, staying near her buddy and inflating her BCD at the surface were all essential elements in her incident being harmless.

Another aspect of this case is particularly relevant to modern divers. In the earlier days of underwater photography, when divers used rolls of film, waterproof cameras were quite an investment, and it was far more common then for divers to be very experi-

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enced before buying their first camera. Today, however, as this diver showed, even newly certified divers pick up the now relatively inexpensive hobby of underwater photography - before they have developed keen situational awareness through many dives. This relative inexperience and the distraction a camera offers make for an unsafe combination underwater. Therefore, newer divers who want to take their cameras underwater are advised to discuss the dive plan with their buddies before entering the water and to carefully consider the added risk of distraction.

And separate to the issue of distraction is the fact that the diver, who was newly open-water certified after having not dived for 20 years, found herself at nearly 30m on her second day of diving. This easily could have led to panic and a rapid ascent.

Open water divers are recommended to not exceed a depth of 18m and this is simply because an open-water certificate equips a diver with a basic knowledge of skills, equipment and theory. A newly certified open water diver usually isn’t equipped with the experience and skills to complete the dive safely when they find themselves at 30m and nearly out of air.

Be conscious of your surroundings, and if you are a new diver, or diving with a new diver, try to avoid as many distractions as you can. n

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Q: It is safe to say that you can be classed as a living legend in the British diving industry. What do you think is the secret of your success, as you have seemingly risen from the ashes more times than the phoenix?

A: You are far too kind, ‘they say you are what you eat, and I don’t remember eating a legend’. I don’t really have a secret, I guess my love and passion for this sport, and all the people who participate in it, is a major part of it. It has never wavered, in fact it’s always just got stronger. I still love teaching, exploring, writing and travelling. I refuse to ever give in, and ‘perseverance’ is essential. At the end of the day, I’m just a diver. I swear, with hard work and perseverance, anyone can do what I have done.

Q: You are known for being a highly experienced technical diver, but do you still get that same rush from going on a recreational dive?

A: Absolutely! I don’t wear all the rebreathers and cylinders because I like the ‘bling’(well maybe, sometimes, ha ha), I use them because they allow me to do my dream dives. If I could get into a wreck at 100m and spend 20 minutes having fun down there, on a single tank, I would be doing it. I like to wear gear appropriate to the dive. If I’m doing a recreational no-deco dive, you’ll find me in a single tank, that’s for sure.

I also teach a lot of new recreational Instructor Trainers, and I always wear the same equipment as my students, so single tank it is. I do use a wing and backplate with a long hose regulator set-up, however.

Q: There are many dive training agencies out there. After holding high-level positions within both PADI and SSI, what do you think makes RAID stand out from the crowd, and how will this new acquisition by Kalkomey/Inverness Graham Investments shape the future of the company?

A: There are many agencies out there, and I guess most people wonder if there is space for another one. Here is my take on it – there are seven billion people on this planet and between all the agencies, we issue around one-and-a-half million certifications per year. That’s not new diver certifications, but total certifications across the board. So, what about the other six billion something people that don’t dive.

I believe we all have a huge opportunity.

PAUL TOOMER

www.narkedat90.com

Paul Toomer is a true icon of the British dive industry, and after stints with both PADI and SSI, he became co-owner of his very own diving agency, RAID. We talked to Toomer about how he got into diving, what drives his interests, and where he sees himself in the future PHOTOGRAPHS BY DANNY BARBER, LISA TOOMER, OLIVIER VAN OVERBEEK, ROBIN ADAMS, ROZ LUNN AND VOLKER KONIETZKO RAID is unique in that it is current. By this I mean - we are environmentally friendly, totally digital; we have never produced or shipped a single book; we are technologically advanced, being born from recreational rebreather means we had to merge recreational and technical from day one, and this still echoes through all our programmes; we protect our divers, instructors, trainers and centres through a dynamic quality assurance system. Our divers know, to the minutest detail, exactly what they need to achieve, and they have to sign off on it. One missing confirmation and the certification cannot be issued; we are totally paper free, even our medical and liability releases are online. This also means our student record files can never be lost, and our dive centres never have the responsibility to keep them; and we are a truly ‘neutrally buoyant while in trim’ agency.

Our divers emulate our logo. Let’s face it, RAID is cool!

Regarding the amazing merger with Kalkomey, we are simply thrilled.

They are an online sports certification company and their knowledge of tech is amazing. They are perfect partners for us, they bring new ideas, new products and a massive new marketing drive.

With Kalkomey, RAID can achieve all the goals that we dreamed of when we started this. RAID Kalkomey is the future, mark my words, ha ha.

Paul demonstrating some nifty cylinder handling skills

supporting divers

supporting manufacturers

Q: Having been in the industry for a very long time, who has been instrumental in guiding your development as a dive instructor?

A: This answer is going to be looooooong! I have been tremendously lucky and the industry as a whole has nurtured me. It’s been very kind to me and I’ve managed to work with some incredible people.

I learned to dive with Steve Axtell and Phil Short - that must give you an indication of how my career ‘jump’ started. Both of them were, and still are, extremely influential in how I dive and the decisions I make.

I have worked with incredible technical instructors and friends, like Jill Heinerth, Steve Lewis, Tom Mount, Randy Thornton, Simon Mitchell, Pete Mesley, Kevin Gurr, Dave Thompson… Man, there are so many amazing people in my life that to mention them all would probably fill your whole magazine. I am a lucky little b*****d, as my wife says.

Chilling on the surface after a dive Paul loves his CCRs

Q: You are a massive proponent of closed-circuit rebreathers, and through RAID you can qualify on one at an early level.

What makes you think these advanced pieces of equipment are suited to freshly certified divers?

A: Let’s get this perfectly straight, I don’t like rebreathers, I love them. I have a deep meaningful relationship with my rebreathers. Rebreathers have come on a long way in recent times. You can’t go to a dive site or get on a boat without seeing at least one. Aside from slightly more complex training and their initial cost, there are huge benefits to diving a rebreather. You are warmer, you mouth is not dry, you can make longer no-decompression dives and the best of all, since rebreathers make no bubbles, the fish smother you, they don’t swim off when you exhale.

With the advent of advanced electronics and some of the safety features available on most rebreathers, we feel it is safe to allow someone to climb onto a recreational rebreather really early in their diving career. Kevin Gurr, my friend and rebreather designer, once told me, ‘when you start rebreather diving, you have to unlearn how you dive’. With that in mind, if a diver is capable and wants to dive a rebreather, why should we make them do 1,000 open circuit courses before they can realise their dreams.

This is, after all, 2018 and not 1978.

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Just in case we didn’t notice what light he was using...

The Toomer grin

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Q: Having dived all over the world for many, many years, can you name your top five locations to dive, and explain why they hold such a special place in your heart?

A: This is a difficult question as there are so many amazing places out there. I’ll give it a go.

In no particular order: Malin Head – 6,000 wrecks in one bay, and when you are done diving, you have the most-hospitable, funny people on the planet looking after you.

Bikini Atoll – The wrecks here are like nothing you have ever seen or experienced. Super warm water, incredible wrecks and nuclear sharks. It’s not cheap to go. Sell a kidney, it’s worth it.

Galapagos – I call it Benidorm for fish. All the world’s fish go here on holiday. I have never seen anything like it. Thousands of hammerhead sharks, turtles, whalesharks, Galapagos sharks, whitetips, sea lions, dolphins. Honestly, no ‘fish’ dive will ever be the same after Galapagos.

Scapa Flow – I have been super lucky to have been invited to be part of an incredible expedition team up in Scapa. What an amazing place. If you have not dived here and you come from the UK, you need to have a word with yourself. It’s incredible.

Malta – My home from home. The wrecks of Malta are now world-renowned, it’s like the Truk Lagoon of the Mediterranean. I am also extremely lucky to be involved with an amazing expedition team in Malta as well. I love Malta, not just for the wrecks, but the people, the atmosphere, the fun.

Paul in action...

...and young Sebastian following suit

Q: You have been involved in several high-profile expeditions and projects. Which ones will stay with you the most?

A: Now this is difficult to answer, but I think the Phoenician wreck and the HMS Olympus in Malta, and, of course, the Hampshire in Scapa Flow. You have no idea how honoured I am to have been involved in these amazing expeditions. Watch this space…

Q: Your son Sebastian is growing up fast. Will he be following in your footsteps as a diver, and what are your views on children getting into diving?

A: He’s an amazing boy. He’s nuts about the water and desperate to dive. I’m teaching his cousin, who is 11 at the moment, and because Sebastian is only six, he cannot learn yet. He is not amused.

I think learning at ten years old is wonderful. Our children are our future. As long as we keep our little ones safe, then I am all good with them diving. I think the industry has done a great job of involving them, while protecting them at the same time.

I have little doubt that my Sebastian will follow in my footsteps.

I have no doubt that he will eclipse everything I have done. He’s twice as crazy as I am, so get ready.

Demonstrating skills

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Paul loves his adrenaline sports

Expedition time

Q: What is your most-memorable moment while diving?

A: Seeing the Hampshire appear underneath me. I was at 50m and I could see the enormous props illuminated by these huge lights the 3D guys were using. I think a little bit of wee came out of me.

Q: On the flipside, what is your worst moment while diving?

A: I’d rather not make this sad, as I have been involved in some awful rescues, as have many of my peers.

I guess my worst moment is when someone gives me the worst signal any diver can give to another. No, not the ‘bird’, but the thumbs up. How come on the surface the thumbs-up signal means all is cool, but in the water, it means I have to ascend and get out. I hate that signal. n

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What’s New

DRYTIDE BACKPACK

The DryTide backpack is made from heavy-duty and 100 percent waterproof material, with high-frequency welded seams, and no stitches in all vital areas. It has a 50-litre waterproof main compartment, with an internal removable laptop pocket with mesh pocket for small items, a big back pocket with rainproof zipper, and two side mesh pockets for water bottles.

The comfortable shoulder straps and back are both padded with non-water-absorbing foam, and there is also a bottom loop for drying the backpack.

It measures 60cm x 34cm x 25cm, so is suitable for your carry on backpack if you are traveling by plane – and it has been designed so that it floats on water. www.drytidegear.com

MARES SMART AIR

The Mares Smart Air is a well-specced nitrox dive computer with two-gas capability, upgradeable firmware and a user-replaceable battery, as well as the added feature of hoseless air integration.

It has all of the usual watch functions – stopwatch, wake-up alarm, second time zone, date, etc – as well as a logbook capacity in excess of 20 hours of dive profile at five-second sampling rate.

It is depth-rated to 150m, and has a bottom timer with resettable average depth and stopwatch, as well as a decompression dive planner, with additional surface interval function. www.mares.com

FOURTH ELEMENT OCEANPOSITIVE ‘PIONEER’ SWIMWEAR COLLECTION

KUBI STAINLESS STEEL CARD

As well as being a seriously nifty piece of industrial-looking design, this stainess steel card has a genuine use – it is perfect to assist in removing O-rings using the long, flat sides. A handy little accessory for the active diver. www.kubistore.com 54

Fourth Element’s new swimwear collection is inspired by some of diving’s most-inspirational waterwomen, including ‘Her Deepness’ Sylvia Earle, record-holding freediver and environmentalist Hanli Prinsloo, and one of the first female scuba divers, Zale Parry. Using ECONYL® - recycled Nylon from Ghost Fishing Nets and other post-consumer waste, the swimwear is also packaged without single-use plastic as part of fourth element’s MISSION 2020. Available in stores and online at life.fourthelement.com from early May. Prices range from £44.90-£84.90 for bikinis and swimsuits. Men’s swimshorts from £24.95. www.fourthelement.com WWW.SCUBADIVERMAG.COM

GoPro HERO GoPro, Inc has added a new Hero action camera to the family.

On sale now, HERO is a £199.99, go-anywhere, capture-anything camera that makes it easy to share experiences that would be difficult to capture with a phone.

The HERO features a two-inch touch display, has voice control, shoots high-definition video, is waterproof to 10m and is extremely durable, making it the perfect GoPro for kids, adventurous social sharers and travel lovers.

Sharing cool experiences with HERO is simple. It offloads your photos and videos to the GoPro App, which creates fun, shareable videos for you – automatically. No more fumbling with your SD card or plugging your camera into a computer. HERO makes it simple. HERO is available today at retailers around the world and on GoPro.com www.gopro.com

MARES EOS RZ TORCHES

SZANTO VINTAGE DIVE WATCH RANGE Want to show you are a diver but want a bit of traditional flair? Then check out the Szanto range of ‘vintage’ dive watches, which combine high-quality workmanship with classic styling and heritage-inspired designs.

The watches feature a 43mm 316L brushed strainless steel case, unidirectional 120-click rotating bezel, screwdown locking crown, screw-case back, thick Swiss Superluminova Lume on the hands and dial numbers for long-lasting visibility, Japan Quartz three-hand and date movement, hardened mineral crystal and are water-resistant to 200m.

Available with both a black or a blue face in a stainless-steel case (various platings including antique bronze or antique silver can be selected), and then tan, brown or black waterproof (treated for use in water) leather strap. www.szantotime.com

OMS IQ LITE CB SIGNATURE PACKAGE

Mares has got all of your underwater lighting needs covered with the anodised aluminium EOS RZ range.

The EOS 20RZ boasts 2,300 lumens, a 105 minute burntime at max power, in-house rechargeable battery, an LED charge indicator and a magnetic adjustable focus.

The EOS 15RZ has 1,504 lumens and a burntime at max power of 125 minutes, while the EOS 10RZ has 1,010 lumens and a burntime of 135 minutes at full power. Both have the same LED charger indicator, etc, as their big brother.

On a more-compact scale, the EOS 5RZ has 503 lumens and a burntime of 105 minutes at max power, and the EOS 3RZ has 320 lumens and a full-power burntime of 55 minutes. www.mares.com

The IQ Lite Cummerbund can be paired with the Performance Mono Wing (27lbs or 32lbs) in a wide choice of colours - Black, Red, Red/Black, Pink/Black and Grey/Black.

The IQ Lite paired with the Performance Mono Wing is super-lightweight - perfect for the travelling diver, with a no-fuss setup. The wing and harness are already paired together and is easily adjustable to fit each individual diver. From the built-in tank stabiliser bars to the weight-release system, this thoughtful design is the perfect go-anywhere BCD. The ready-to-use package includes IQ Backpack Cummerbund, Perfomance Mono Wing, cambands and Vertical Weight System. www.omsdive.com * = check pricing with local suppliers/centres in your area

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Gear Guide

THIS ISSUE: HIGH-END REGULATORS

Each month, the SCUBA DIVER test team assembles to rate and review a selection of dive equipment from a range of manufacturers. Products are split into price categories and are then evaluated for performance, comfort, ease of use, build quality, looks and value for money. The Test Team comprises Editor in Chief Mark Evans and a squad of volunteers, whose dive experience ranges from a couple of hundred dives to well over 6,000.

HIGH-END REGULATORS This issue, we round out our three-price-band review of regulators by looking at the top-of-the-range units from a selection of manufacturers. It was great to see some new regs in the group test, like the OMS Evoque, Halycon Halo and Apeks MTX-R, as well as old stalwarts like the Atomic Aquatics Z3, Aqualung Legend LX Supreme and Mares Fusion.

The waters at Vivian Dive Centre in Llanberis were still a chilly 6 degrees C, the perfect conditions in which to test the regs, which we rated for comfort, looks, performance - especially when pushed to their limit. If they can handle what we do with them, they can cope with normal UK diving.

ON TEST THIS MONTH: • APEKS MTX-R • AQUA LUNG LEGEND LX SUPREME • ATOMIC AQUATICS Z3 • HALCYON H-75P/HALO • MARES FUSION 52X • OMS AIRSTREAM EVOQUE 56

• SCUBAPRO MK25EVO/ S620TI • SHERWOOD SCUBA SR2 • ZEAGLE Location: Tested at Vivian Dive Centre, Llanberis www.viviandivecentre.com WWW.SCUBADIVERMAG.COM

APEKS MTX-R The Apeks MTX-R is the ‘civvie’ version of the military-spec MTX (it was developed in accordance with the United States Navy Experimental Dive Unit’s extreme cold-water test), and this regulator - which can perform in almost-freezing waters at a depth of over 60m - looks super-smooth in its classy iPhone white and matt-silver with engraved stencilling.

A first-of-its-kind over-moulded first stage end cap and environmental diaphragm prevent ice build-up, and the forged body, which has five low-pressure ports (on a swivel) and two high-pressure ports, gives maximum thermal performance. The second stage has no dive adjustment controls, has a patented heated exchanger surrounding the valve mechanism, and is equipped with a double-swivel braided hose.

At this price point, you’d quite rightly expect all the regulators on test to perform well, but the MTX-R managed to shine brightly even in this thoroughbred field. All of the Test Team were very complimentary about the construction and looks of both the first and second stages, and positive comments were made about the lack of controls - it just works well out of the box, there is nothing to fiddle with - and the comfort of the ComfoBite mouthpiece. It breathes well in all positions. www.apeksdiving.com

CHOICE

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 1.25kg | HOSE: Braided | VENTURI: No VERDICT: Good-looking, very well-made cold-water regulator that stands out from the crowd and gives a silky smooth breathe in all positions.

SCORE

••••••••••

AQUA LUNG LEGEND LX SUPREME The Aqua Lung Legend LX Supreme is an eye-catching cold-water-approved regulator that features some nifty styling and performance points.

The chunky but compact environmentally sealed, over-balanced diaphragm first stage has two high-pressure and four low-pressure ports, and is equipped with Aqualung’s Auto Closure Device (ACD), which keeps any corrosive water out of the first stage inlet by automatically closing as it is removed from the cylinder valve.

The pneumatically balanced second stage has a heat exchanger to help dissipate the cold, Comfo-Bite mouthpiece and Aqualung’s Master Breathing System (MBS), which sees both the cracking resistance level and venturi positioning controlled with one knob.

The Legend LX Supreme scored highly with all the Test Team members, who were impressed by its smooth, dry breathe, comfortable mouthpiece, efficient purge and slick good looks. The single control knob, which simultaneously adjusts the cracking resistance and the position of the venturi, was easy to use even with thick gloves on, though the effects on the performance were not that noticeable - it just breathed well all the time. Well-priced, well-built regulator with a proven history. www.aqualung.com

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 1.01kg | HOSE: Braided | VENTURI: No VERDICT: Attractive set-up benefitting from some neat design features, comfy mouthpiece, smooth performance and solid build quality.

SCORE

••••••••••

* = check pricing with local suppliers/centres in your area

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ATOMIC AQUATICS Z3 Atomic Aquatics are renowned for producing high-end, high-performance regs, but with the Z3, they have managed to bring all this workmanship and technology into a well-priced package.

The Zirconium - that’s what the ‘Z’ stands for - delivers corrosion-resistance apparently three to four times that of conventional chrome plating, and the second stage lever, orifice and spring are titanium, as with the higher-spec (and price) models. It is equipped with a factory sealed first stage, huge purge button, comfort swivel, and no less than seven low-pressure ports and two high-pressure ports. As with all Atomic products, the reg benefits from a limited lifetime warranty - not contingent on proof of service and boasts a two-year/300 dive service interval.

The Z3 scored very highly with the Test Team and is a keenly priced way to get on the ‘Atomic’ ladder. It looks good with the chrome second stage surround, is extremely well made, boasts a silky smooth breathe and has some neat features like the Automatic Flow Control (AFC), which does away with a manual venturi lever, and a black PVD-coated comfort swivel on the hose. www.atomicaquatics.com

CHOICE

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 999g | HOSE: Rubber | VENTURI: AFC VERDICT: The Z3 performs extremely well, has eye-catching looks and is backed up by that tremendous twoyear/300 dive service interval.

SCORE

••••••••••

HALCYON H-75P/HALO As we saw in last month’s Group Test, Halcyon Dive Systems are back in the market with their regulators. As with last issue’s Aura, looking at the H-75P and Halo combo, it is not hard to see the similarity with certain Scubapro regs, but as I said before, fair play - if you are going to launch regs, why not use time-proven technology and work with a well-respected brand.

The first and second stages are sold separately so you can mix and match, but we paired the H-75P first stage with the Halo second stage.

The H-75P is based on the MK25, and so you get a compact air-balanced flowthrough piston design featuring two high-pressure ports and five low-pressure ports on a swivel. The balanced downstream Halo is reminiscent of the G250/ G260 and has a cracking resistance control and a venturi lever.

The retro-looking Halo certainly harks back to a golden age of diving, and while it looks simply massive compared with the others here, there is no doubting the smooth breathe it provides.

The venturi and cracking resistance control are easy to operate, though a little fiddly with thick gloves on, but they do make a difference to the performance. Phenomenally good value for money. www.halcyon.net

BEST VALUE

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 1.08kg | HOSE: Rubber | VENTURI: Yes VERDICT: Retro-looking second stage and time-proven first stage combine to make a supremely efficient package, which is extremely well priced.

SCORE

••••••••••

* = check pricing with local suppliers/centres in your area

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MARES FUSION 52X The Fusion 52x is a good-looking regulator that has some notable design features.

The first stage is solid but compact, equipped with two high-pressure ports and four low-pressure ports, and thanks to ACT (Advanced Coating Technology) has massively increased durability.

The all-metal second stage has a unique pivoting purge valve, lightweight braided Superflex hose, and a neat ‘twist’ control to boost the flow rate from natural breathing to power breathing.

Mares have always turned out great regulators, which previously were just set up to breathe well out of the box and didn’t have any diver-adjustable controls.

That all changes with the Fusion, which boasts a neat ‘twist action’ over the hose to set the delivery rate of the gas - it is not hard to see that the designer was maybe influenced by motorcycles! To be honest, we didn’t notice a huge difference with this control, as the reg breathes so efficiently anyway, but everyone liked the huge purge, which pivots rather than presses fully inwards and worked very well. Smooth breathe in all positions, and surprisingly lightweight for an all-metal reg. And at this price, it represents astonishing value for money. www.mares.com

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 995g | HOSE: Braided | VENTURI: Yes VERDICT: The unique design of the Fusion combined with its great performance and excellent price-point makes it a seriously good package.

SCORE

••••••••••

OMS AIRSTREAM EVOQUE OMS have long been kicking around the technical-diving world, and are well-known for their robustly built backplate-andwings, etc, but now they are making a push into other areas, including more-recreational equipment, and regulators.

The Airstream Evoque is certainly a reg that stands out among its rivals, thanks to a neat balanced second stage that incorporates bold red and black colours with a slick chrome surround and insert (and large cracking resistance control and venturi lever), and an innovative over-balanced, environmentally protected diaphragm first stage, with four low-pressure ports and two high-pressure ports, which has been designed with hose routing first and foremost.

OMS are not a name you think of when it comes to regulators, but that is all set to change with the Airstream Evoque. It is nice to see a manufacturer doing something different, and the first stage is certainly that - the steeply angled ports seek to send the gauges closer to the diver’s hips at 45 degrees, and the reg, drysuit and BCD hoses over or under the shoulders at 30 degrees. It makes for a streamlined set-up. It breathes well in all positions, and the large controls are easy to use with thick gloves.

This is a well-priced package that will put OMS on the reg map. www.omsdive.com

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TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 1.10kg | HOSE: Braided | VENTURI: Yes VERDICT: Lightweight, well-priced, innovatively designed regulator which performs well and has several eye-catching features, including a funky coloured Miflex hose.

SCORE

••••••••••

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SCUBAPRO MK25EVO/S620 TI The S600 was always one of Scubapro’s best-performing second stages, and recently it was reborn as the S620 Ti, which boasts an improved work of breathing in a smaller and lighter package. The second stage also has a corrosion-free titanium barrel inside the tough technopolymer case, and venturi and cracking resistance controls that have high-grip rubber co-molded into them.

For this test it was paired with the proven MK25EVO flow-through piston first stage, which is fully insulated from the environment by the XTIS (Extended Thermal Insulating System) and has numerous innovative design features to aid cold-water performance.

Scubapro regulators have always faired well when put into group tests, and the S620 Ti/ MK25EVO combo does not disappoint. The exclusive new mouthpiece is very comfortable, and the breathe is smooth and dry in all positions. The venturi control didn’t seem to make a huge difference, but dial the cracking resistance control right down and you can almost stop the air flow. The purge, set into the chrome facia and with a chrome logo embedded within, is efficient. Good-looking but built to withstand diver abuse, a solid cold-water regulator. www.scubapro.com

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 965g | HOSE: Rubber | VENTURI: Yes VERDICT: Well-built, good-looking regulator, with efficient controls (especially that cracking resistance), dry breathe and several neat design features.

SCORE

••••••••••

sSHERWOOD SCUBA SR2 Sherwood Scuba has been in the diving market for many years, but they have been sadly absent from the UK for a while due to distribution issues. This has now been rectified, with them joining the ranks at Fathom Diving, and it is good to see the SR2 back in the mix on Group Test.

Sherwood regs have traditionally been solid workhorses but their design left something to be desired. That all changed with the SR1, and the SR2 continues on from where its predecessor left off.

The SR2 reminds me of an Atomic Aquatics regulator, and the second stage has a single control for the cracking resistance and venturi, and a large purge, while the environmentally sealed balanced flow-through piston first stage has five low-pressure ports on a swivel, and two high-pressure ports The SR2 is light years away from the rest of the Sherwood reg range, and it is compact and lightweight. The soft purge works well, as does the single control knob, and it breathes nice and smooth in all positons. The only slight negative is the small mouthpiece, which seemed to sit quite forward in your mouth and requires you to grip it with your teeth.

Overall, decent bit of kit that places Sherwood in the upper echelon. www.sherwoodscuba.com

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 950g | HOSE: rubber | VENTURI: No VERDICT: Compact, efficient regulator with a smooth breath, innovative single control knob, just let down by a very small mouthpiece.

SCORE

••••••••••

* = check pricing with local suppliers/centres in your area

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ZEAGLE F8 Zeagle have worked with Atomic Aquatics to produce a solidly constructed regulator.

The F8 has an environmentally sealed balanced diaphragm first stage made from durable brass, and featuring a precision-machined neoflon seat.

The second stage has a tough nylon case and has a seat-saving orifice, zirconium-plated inlet tube and heat sink for superior corrosion resistance, and a new inhalation diaphragm. The redesigned front cover and cracking resistance control use co-molded components that provide high levels of grip.

Zeagle have long been producing top-quality BCDs and wings, and now they are making a strong push into the world of regulators after teaming up with Atomic Aquatics. The first stage of the F8 is a small but well-made unit, but the second stage, to be honest, doesn’t match up to its price point and the cheaper sibling, the Onyx II (which nabbed the Choice award last month), is more eye-catching with its chrome surround. No doubting the performance, though - the breathe was nice and smooth in all positions, the cracking resistance control is large and easy to use, as is the venturi lever, and the mouthpiece is comfortable. www.zeagle.com

TECH SPECS & VERDICT WEIGHT: 1.05kg | HOSE: Rubber | VENTURI: Yes VERDICT: Overall a decent regulator, with a smooth breathe, comfortable mouthpiece and efficient, easy-to-operate controls.

SCORE

••••••••••

* = check pricing with local suppliers/centres in your area

VERDICT

The high-end reg test is always interesting. When you get to this price point, you know that the units are going to perform well, and so it gets increasingly difficult to pick a Choice and Best Value winner.

The Best Value was the most straight-forward. Last year’s winner, the Mares Fusion 52x, was in the mix again, but this time it had strong competition from the Halcyon H-75P/Halo and the OMS Airstream Evoque. All three performed very well, and each had some neat design features, but in the end, the Halcyon took the title. While it won’t be to everyone’s tastes, we liked its retro-looks, and at this price, this represents exceptional value for money.

The Choice award was a different matter. All the above had a shot at the title, but in the end it came down to a battle royale between the Apeks MTX-R, Aqua Lung Legend LX Supreme, Atomic Aquatics Z3 and the Scubapro MK25EVO/S620Ti. It was extremely difficult to pinpoint a winner, and eventually we opted to give two regs a joint title - the MTX-R and the Z3 - as they just edged ahead of their rivals. Safe to say, though, all of these regs put in a sterling performance.

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SCHOLARSHIP DIARY

The Our World-Underwater Scholarship Society is a non-profit, educational organisation whose mission is to promote educational activities associated with the underwater world. It has offered scholarships for over 35 years. owuscholarship.org

THE BULLS OF BEQA PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF OLIVIA JOHNSON

N

ew York April 2018 is where I met my fellow Scholar brothers, Èric and Yann the European and North American 2018 Rolex Scholars respectively. It was one of the most-overwhelming and eye-opening weeks of my life, being welcomed into this brilliant family that is the Our-World Underwater Scholarship Society (OWUSS). From meeting all the members and incredible volunteers that are the OWUSS, to being inaugurated into the Explorer’s Club, as well as watching the inspiring 2017 Rolex Scholars years, we were announced as the 2018 Rolex Scholars at the New York Yacht Club. It was a tremendous honour and I met some remarkable people to say the least.

After handing in my thesis, I headed to Pacific Harbour in Fiji to start my first underwater experience. The wonderful team at Beqa Adventure Divers (BAD) invited myself and my co-ordinator Jayne Jenkins to dive one of the best shark dive sites in the world, the Shark Reef Marine Reserve, also known as SRMR. This is a marine sanctuary that the team at BAD has worked closely alongside with the Government of Fiji and the traditional owners of shark reef to protect up to eight species of shark, since 2004.

The dive team, joined alongside by leading marine biologists, record the size and sex of sharks they observe on every dive, as well as take biopsy samples regularly to understand more about the sharks we are observing, their feeding and behaviours.

Once at SRMR we headed down to 30m to watch the extremely experienced team hand-feed three and four metre bull sharks! We were surrounded by up to 40 bull sharks – I’ve never seen anything like it, it was truly incredible! After our bottom time was up, we headed up to the 10m mark and watched the dive team feed the

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whitetip reef sharks, and then further to 4m to watch them handfeed the blacktip reef sharks. I have never seen so many sharks in one dive and it is such a credit to this team, the locals and Fijian Government, who have worked so hard to protect something so important to the marine ecosystem.

Additionally, we spent the afternoons exploring some of the magical coral reefs around Pacific Harbour, including Seven Sisters, Golden Arch, Scissors Reef and Bird Island. Fiji has some of the most-beautiful soft coral and gorgonian reefs I have ever seen.

Fish fill these reefs, from sharks to tiny damselfish, as well as all the tiny creatures everyone loves (especially me), such as nudibranchs. There is so much coral still thriving in Fiji, although the effects of our changing climate can be observed on some of the reefs, with some corals completely bleached. This experience was truly once in a lifetime and if I ever get the opportunity to come back to Pacific Harbour and dive with the BAD crew, and learn more about their fascinating research, I would not hesitate.

Next, I am jumping on board the National Geographic Lindblad ship, the Orion, heading on an expedition from Fiji to Tahiti, passing through some of the Pacific’s famous islands such as the Cook Islands, Samoa, Wallis and Futuna Islands. I am beyond excited for this opportunity, as well as the chance to learn from some of National Geographic Lindblad leading experts. n

Olivia Johnson

Long Term Test MARES QUAD AIR

APEKS RK3

Mark Evans: The Quad Air NEW ARRIVAL has a monster display with jumbo-size digits, and features hoseless tank data integration for up to three transmitters.

The three-row layout comprises all relevant data, including tank pressure, and there are two customisable fields for ancillary information.

The four buttons provide an intuitive user interface, it is multi-gas capable, and there is a decompression dive planner with user-adjustable surface INFORMATION interval. It features a long Arrival date: May 2018 battery life, and when it Suggested retail price: * does run out, it is user-reNumber of dives: 0 placeable.

Time in water: 0 hrs 0 mins www.mares.com

SHEARWATER RESEARCH NERD 2 Mark Evans: The Shearwater Research NERD 2 is a very compact dive computer - as it needs to be, being mounted on your regulator and sitting right in front of your mask. However, despite being relatively dinky, navigating around the intuitive menus by operating the two buttons which are much the same as on the wrist-mounted Perdix AI - is very easy, even wearing drygloves or thick neoprene gloves. www.shearwater.com 64

INFORMATION Arrival date: December 2017 Suggested retail price: * Number of dives: 8 Time in water: 7 hrs 15 mins

Mark Evans: Well, in some excellent news for Apeks Marine Equipment - but lousy news for me - I am having to wait until the end of May to get hold of my orange RK3s! They have proved so immensely popular that the first two deliveries have already sold out! I presumed that the orange and yellow versions in particular would go down a storm with instructors wanting to stand out for their students when the vis gets a little iffy, but it appears that INFORMATION the general diving public Arrival date: April 2018 have also been drawn to Suggested retail price: * these bright editions. Orange Number of dives: 0 - it’s the new black!

Time in water: 0 hrs 0 mins www.apeksdiving.com

AQUASKETCH MINNO 1 Mark Evans: I have always found carting a slate around a bit of a pain in the rear. Fair enough, in a drysuit, you can stash it down the back of a thigh pocket, so it is out of the way but there if you need it.

However, when you are in a wetsuit, it isn’t so easy to store one when it is not being used, and I don’t like stuff dangling.

With its thick, chunky strap, the Minno 1 comfortably mounts on your forearm and is there when you need it. www.aquasketch.com

INFORMATION Arrival date: February 2018 Suggested retail price: * Number of dives: 4 Time in water: 3 hrs 20 mins WWW.SCUBADIVERMAG.COM

SANTI DIVING FLEX 360 Mark Evans: We have been in the midst of our group regulator testing, and so the Santi Diving Flex 360 has really been put through its paces. It is warm, comfortable - I often don it for the hour-and-ahalf drive to the dive site, it is so comfy - and lightweight.

The panels built into the chest areas are one of the nifty design features that help retain body heat - when you are in a nice trim position, these mesh inserts help keep a barrier of warm, insulating air across the front of your chest. www.santidiving.com

INFORMATION Arrival date: January 2018 Suggested retail price: * Number of dives: 15 Time in water: 14 hrs 40 mins

AQUA LUNG OUTLAW Mark Evans: The Outlaw has been clocking up some more UK diving in the past few weeks, and I am still pleasantly surprised at how well such a small, compact back-inflate BCD handles cold-water diving and all the paraphenalia that comes with it.

It is in its element in warm waters, for sure but it is more than capable of putting in a good INFORMATION show when teamed up with Arrival date: February 2017 a drysuit - and the additional Suggested retail price: * weight requirements that Number of dives: 23 come with that.

Time in water: 22 hrs 20 mins www.aqualung.com

SUUNTO EON CORE Mark Evans: One of the better changes in the world of dive computers recently has been user-changeable batteries - there was nothing worse than having to send off your computer for a battery change and be waiting for it to come back.

However, as well as user-changeable, more and more computers are now being rechargable, and the EON Core falls into this category. Charging it is an absolute doddle, too - you simply pop the charging unit near the back of the computer and a strong INFORMATION magnet holds it in place on the charging points, while the Arrival date: March 2018 Suggested retail price: * other end is a standard USB Number of dives: 6 connector.

Time in water: 5 hrs 55 mins www.suunto.com

FOURTH ELEMENT X-CORE Mark Evans: The X-Core could not END OF TERM have come into the Long Term Test stable at a better time - while it has been going through its six-month run, we have had sub-zero temperatures, snow, ice, hail and freezing rain. It has proved to be very adaptable, being used not only for diving but also a spot of winter mountain biking and out on my RIB when the wind chill was decidedly vicious.

It is amazing how much additional warmth this vest provides - it is not bulky, I only had to add a couple more pounds to my INFORMATION weights to compensate, and Arrival date: November 2017 yet my thermal comfort was Suggested retail price: * very noticeable, especially Number of dives: 19 during long test dives.

Time in water: 18 hrs 15 mins www.fourthelement.com * = check pricing with local suppliers/centres in your area

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THE ZEN DIVER

Tom Peyton, Vice President of Kids Sea Camp and Family Dive Adventures, is called ‘the Zen Diver’ by his wife, and here he offers some hints on how to use diving to create the ultimate ‘chill-out zone’ www.familydivers.com

ZEN DIVE BUDDY PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF KIDS SEA CAMP/FAMILY DIVERS

Z

en as a practice is about finding awareness of the self, and with this awareness comes acceptance of the self.

From this acceptance comes peace of the self and maybe, from this peace, you may experience enlightenment — an even deeper awareness of the self.

One benefit of self-awareness is that by understanding oneself, you can understand and accept others. With this awareness, one can then become a better partner.

As a diver, you need to be aware of who you are as a diver to be a good Zen dive buddy. Your own self-awareness as a diver can make or break your Zen partnership underwater. A well-matched dive buddy team is important in enjoying and being safe underwater.

WHAT KIND OF DIVER ARE YOU?

Air-hog: Are you always using a 100 to do a 50-minute dive? You might want to tell your dive buddy and also learn some better breathing techniques. You need to know your air consumption and tell your Zen dive buddy the truth. Mismatching only happens when the other diver is unaware of the other’s abilities as a diver.

Mermaid or Merman: If you are never really using air and diving with a 60 — you might not want to be matched with an air-hog.

The reality is most recreational divers are mismatched, women tend to be much better on air, and most men are air-hogs.

Dive-hard: Are you always ready to go diving and basically need a tank on your back the moment you roll out of bed? Dive-hards, please be aware you will need to quickly accept you are going to be going through a lot of dive buddies. If you do find another Divehard, only travel with him or her. And please stop telling the rest of the world that they are crazy for not being in the water all the time!

Green Flasher: Are you a beer drinker dressed as a diver? Is the main point of the day to dress like a diver and act like a diver but really, you are just waiting for the green-flash sunset as you pound down your fifth cocktail?

Fair Weather Diver: You’re a diver and you are just not sure about diving yet. You sort of like it but if there’s a shopping trip in town, you might just not tell the dive boat and leave your dive buddy at the dock. But then the next day, you can’t wait to go diving and even do the night-dive.

King of the Ocean: Are you obsessed with killing lionfish? Do you bring your own spear? Do you always have a 100 just in case you find some lionfish at 30m? Are you almost always on the verge of deco because you are cleaning the reef?

Shutter-fish: Do you love shooting photos more than knowing the location of your dive buddy? Photographers are wonderful

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people, but the truth is they make terrible dive buddies. If your dive buddy is a photographer, always know they are never watching where you are or what you are doing.

Zen Dive Buddy: You love diving but are not defined but it. You’re good on air, flexible, confident and just love being in the water.

You tend to get at least two dives in a day and will at the very least do a shore dive and a night dive during a dive week. And you always know where and who your dive buddy is.

The reality is some days we are lionfish killers and the next week we can be fair-weather divers — most divers are a little of everyone listed. Please note Shutter-fish are always Shutter-fish, most cannot dive without a camera in their hands. If the Shutter-fish does do a dive without a camera, you can be guaranteed it’s the one dive they will see something they have always wanted to shoot.

Most married couples are good Zen Dive Buddies, not because they are the exactly the same kind of diver, but because they know where each other is as a diver. The acceptance is what brings a peaceful Zen diving partnership. n

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SMART AIR

*LED Tanks Module sold separately

CENTRE OF INTELLIGENCE. EDGE OF PERFORMANCE. • Hoseless tank data integration for up to three transmitters • Graphic and numeric display of tank pressure • Three-row layout comprises all relevant data including tank pressure • Multigas, bottom timer and apnea modes • Option to view dive time including seconds • Two customisable fields for additional information • Logbook capacity in excess of 95 hours of dive profile at 5-second sampling rate (scuba) • Decompression dive planner with additional surface interval function Be intelligent. Take the edge of performance

mares.com

Pelagian, Wakatobi’s luxury dive yacht Discover the best of Wakatobi with a combination resort stay and liveaboard cruise. Carrying just ten guests, the luxury dive yacht Pelagian ventures farther afield in the Wakatobi archipelago and Buton Island, visiting sites from openwater seamounts and dramatic coral reef formations to muck environments where cryptic creatures lurk.

“An exceptional package on Pelagian with fantastic and varied diving and snorkelling. Our guide, Yono, and every crew member on this yacht were outstanding. The quality of the boat, the surroundings, the diving and the service is second to none. We’ll be back!” ~ Angus, Tania, Jesse & Holly McNaughton

Spacious en-suite staterooms create ample private space; a dedicated chef provides fine dining; and a one-to-one staff-to-guest ratio ensures the utmost in attentive personal service.

Contact a Wakatobi representative today email: office@wakatobi.com.

www.wakatobi.com