Tuesday 17 February 2004

Traveller's Insights

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Hello ^fname^,


This is Nucha Aquino from Thailand/Philippines.  
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This is the first time I have heard of "Grand Turk". I 
thought it was somewhere in Turkey.... like I used to think
the West Indies were in India... LOL...

"Grand Turk" is actually an island in the Atlantic... south 
of Florida... in a group of islands called the Turks and
Caicos.

Your Banner or 8-line ad here for $10. Order here.

 

Fluffy Cat Dives Grand Turk

by Robert Keeney
Copyright (c) January 2004

 

      

 

Meow......! I am a very fluffy kitty. My master is a dive
instructor. I was his first certification. All those fish to
chase...yummm... We have many underwater adventures. He
brought me along to Grand Turk in 1999. He wanted to...

* Research accommodations suitable for our clients'
preferences,
* Research Dive Operators who best match our clients'
experience levels and preferences,
* Research Dive Sites in Grand Turk waters,
* Become familiar with Grand Turk's offerings -- food,
sights, environment.
* [I wanted to check out the fish and birds!]

We flew American Miami to Provo and then flew Turks and
Caicos Airways to Grand Turk. Because they were filled and
could only take one human, they endorsed us both over to Sky
King Airlines. We stayed four nights at the Arawak Inn, and
dived with Oasis Divers. Then we flew back to Provo on T&C
(10 pax) to change to American back to Miami.

Grand Turk had less than its usual pristine dive conditions
due to cold fronts coming from the US -- lower visibility,
wind, waves, cold. Air temp ranged in the lower 80degF. and
the water temp ranged around 78degF. Depending upon the site
as well as depth, visibility ranged 40-90 feet. We did 6
dives with Oasis Divers. We plan to return to dive the sites
we missed.


Arawak Inn

We lodged at the Arawak Inn and Beach Club situated on a
beautiful beach with easy-entry shore diving to the wall --
about 200 yards out. We had a second floor 1-br with 2 beds
and a cot; the living room area had a couch with pull-out
bed.


Explore the Land and Restaurants

Our first adventure involved renting a car upon landing. The
one with airport presence was closed because of lack of
cars. The other one was 3-block walk. The few cars left all
had 3 good tires and one almost bald which was quietly
hissing at me. Their merchant account provided an imprinter
instead of electronic. Since phoning for authorization is
very expensive, we had to agree to pay cash.

Freedom of a car meant we were not at the mercy of a dearth
of cabs, all with various means of computing fares! This car
was necessary for us in order that we do site inspections
and dine at various resorts/restaurants.

The nicest dinner we had was at The Turks Head Hotel -- so
excellent that we had breakfast there on our last day. I
scored some great fish tidbits. Dinners at Salt Raker and
Waterside were also very well prepared.


Oasis Divers

Captain Everette Freites, a former Aggressor captain, and
wife Dale Barker, own and operate Oasis Divers. A
first-class operation providing extras such as dry towels
after every dive. I liked that...cats stay a little wetter,
longer than humans. Entries are backward roll and exits via
ladder near outboard, after removing all equipment. I was
able to scramble up the anchor rope. Surface intervals are
spent on shore. All sights just a short ride from shore. On
calm days, they pick up via boat in front of the Arawak.
Very safe and excellent support by all personnel.

One of the most in-tune dive masters we have ever discovered
is Austin, offering just the right amount of support to each
diver's level of experience. Of particular note was his
short little prayer just prior to each dive. We feel this is
quite in keeping with the modern trend of diving in-tune
with Nature rather than against Nature. One does not have to
be "religious" in order to appreciate a little wish for
positiveness!


The Dive Log -- Oasis Divers

*** Dive 1-12/2 -- Tiki Hut -- 100fsw for 50min. Reef and
Wall. Usual assortment of colorful fish, coral and sponges.
I stalked a large Spider crab. Nassau Grouper. Very
diver-friendly hawksbill turtle! I wasn't too sure about the
bill and kept my distance.

A word about turtles and other sea critters. In general the
diver must never be the aggressor. If the creature is
interested in the diver, and I know that opinion is divided
here, it is sometimes OK to make contact. E.g. most lobster
love to explore with their antennae and it is kind of nice
to have a gentle contact with them. Some of my best
underwater conversations have been between my whiskers and
their antennae. But the creature must always take the lead
in this encounter with a member of another species. Some
contact is dangerous to the sea critter -- sea horses, e.g.
And, some contact is dangerous to our species -- nurse
sharks, very large grouper and dog fish, e.g. If it seems
appropriate to make contact, use your best intuition,
buoyancy control, motor skills and common sense, and respect
the critter's territory.

*** Dive 2-12/2 -- Cables -- 83fsw for 58min. Reef and Wall.
Good assortment of colorful fish, coral and sponges,
stingrays, large green moray eel who was very interested in
me...I hid behind my master...

*** Outing-12/2 -- Gibbs Cay -- Absolute must! After second
dive, there was just enough time to climb aboard a larger
"skiff" and head out across open water to a desert island.
We stopped midway in about 15fsw and free-dived for conch. I
didn't see any, but upon returning to the boat, there was
already a small pile of conch there. Oh!...that's what they
look like in their environment! Not like the ones you see
displayed in stores ;-) My master's second attempt was
rewarded with a nice sized conch and I would have helped him
spot more had we not had enough collected for our salad.

My master was caught up in the image of his ancestral
hunter-oriented society. We guys went hunting for conch
while the ladies stayed on board. I had become a
saber-toothed dive kitty. Then the fact we were using an
outboard motor and fins, face mask, snorkel brought us back
to reality.

Upon arrival at Gibbs Cay, the sting rays began showing up
-- in 3-6 inches of water, cruising in the gentle surge
across the sandy beach. They could be fed and petted. I am
small enough that I was able to ride the backs of several
after they told me to climb aboard. They have tails too!
Just don't step on them -- a very easy mistake. Same with us
saber-toothed dive kitties. And beware when feeding they
don't get too aggressive. This close encounter had rays and
their tails! slip-sliding around my master's ankles.
And...these tails were not the kind that I like to play
with.

We all helped put up a tent for shade and shelter. I helped
by digging holes for the stakes. The barbecue was started.
There was such an overabundance of burgers, that some became
"hockey pucks" and my master managed to get 3 skips from one
across the water. Hot dogs. Salad. Soft drinks. AND rum
punch! Then, before leaving, a beautiful conch salad
prepared by master-conch-salad-maker, Backom, made from our
catch of the day. That fresh conch was wonderful...I wish we
had caught more. A great way to enjoy a surface interval!

*** Dive 3-12/3 -- Tiki Hut North -- 92fsw for 53min. Reef
and Wall. Peacock flounder...they don't look like
birds...but probably taste just as good. Large grouper. 2
large Lizard fish who wouldn't play with me, large spider
crab.

*** Dive 4-12/3 -- Windmills -- 66fsw for 54min. Reef and
Wall. Great variety of color, critters and schools which
liked to tease me..I almost got one...don't mess with this
saber-toothed dive kitty.

*** Dive 5-12/4 -- Chief Minister -- 96fsw for 36min. Reef
and Wall. Purposely went deep in order to have more depth
opportunity in second dive. Lot's of schooling but, as
usual, most of the life is in 45fsw and higher. Did look in
holes for some of the deeper inhabitants worth stalking.

*** Dive 6-12/4 -- Tunnels -- 79fsw for 44min. Reef and
Wall. There were 2 tunnels (swim-throughs), one opening at
50fsw and one opening at 80fsw -- our earlier deep dive kept
our dive plan deep-not-so-deep allowed us to enjoy the
deeper tunnel, which was narrower and more interesting.
Standard colorful critters and schools. My night vision
kicked in and I really saw more than the humans did, in
spite of their bright dive lights which made my potential
prey scurry for cover.

On both the above dives, Austin's brother, Paul, was
divemaster, and his care and attention to every diver
according to their skill/experience level was outstanding.
Instead of unceremoniously dumping me into the water...he
gently placed me in...after checking my air.

Note: Because of a cold front, waves and low visibility, we
dived sites to the south. Must return someday to do the
sites midway and to the north! I still want to meet a tiger
shark...maybe I'll find one up there...


Grand Turk's Diving and Tourism

Diving is pristine. The wall runs very close to shore,
making shore diving very easy. This is a very quiet
environment! It is more difficult to get to. We flew out to
make our Provo connection on a 10-seat airplane (one of
those seats was where the co-pilot usually sits). Car rental
is difficult. You usually have to go outside normal channels
to make things happen. It's much easier to arrange a car
ahead of time. Oasis Divers will pick you up in order to
avoid the variable prices from the few cabbies there. Once
out of the "normal" system there, the resorts take very good
care of you. It would seem that the dive operators and
resorts want the tourism, but many inhabitants don't care
one way or another. Resorts tend to be small, but very
elegant.

There is a stable adjoining the Arawak property. Wish I'd
had more time there -- my master likes to ride sometimes and
often flushes out field mice and birds for me. Upon
returning the car, we discovered they have a brilliant use
for an 80cu.ft. dive tank -- attach a hose to it with a
gauge to add air to tires. Not only at the car rental/gas
station, but also if there's a flat out in the dingles.
Well, owner Duchie turned out to be Everette's uncle, so
there would seem to be a symbiosis between gas stations, car
rentals and diving ;-)



---------------

Robert Keeney, a PADI Instructor and Dive Adventure 
Specialist, has arranged dive adventures since 1993. 
His Soft Scuba arranges - accommodations, 
discounted airfare and diving. Learn more - 
( http://www.SoftScuba.com )...and receive your 
Free eReport - 
"How To Enhance Your Dive Adventures" 

 

 

 

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Nucha Aquino

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