I still remember my first visit to the President Coolidge – in less time than it takes to swim to the Yung Penn the massive structure of this luxury liner cum troop carrier appears below you. At 199m in length she lies in 20-70m of water just out of Luganville, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu. Built in 1931 the […]
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Lady Divers!
If we think of women divers in the media we think of the Bond girls or Jessica Alba from ‘Into the Blue’ but this is not the reality – especially here in Wellington. I started diving in 1997 and never saw another woman dive – it was very much an all male affair. When I […]
Coromandel Dive Trip
Dive HQ hit the Coromandel. 3 days diving in the glorious waters of the Coromandel. 1 instructor, 4 Divemasters/ instructors in training. Deep dives, night dives, navigation dives, training dives. After the long haul from Wellington we arrived in Whitianga late on Monday evening to a very welcome meal cooked by our early arriving diver, […]
Some Privacy Please
There are a few times in life when I want to be a boy! They normally involve a full bladder & a lack of toilets. As a diver in Wellington only 2 sites have facilities & while most have bushes they may not offer the most privacy. I have forgotten how often I have moved […]
Ice Diving Weekend
On my diving hit list for years I joined Dive HQ Christchurch for their annual ice diving excursion. Heading south I caught up with my family before meeting up with the dive group at 6am on Friday morning. 14 divers packing 2 vans & trailers took some time but we headed south to start our […]
Kiwi Culture Observed Underwater
There was a great turn out at Te Papa last night to listen to Dr Ingrid Visser discuss her research on NZ Orca. This event was hosted by the Wellington City Council as part of our Year of the Coast. Ingrid has been studying Orca in NZ and around the world for 20 years. There […]
See our oceans in a whole new light!
You will be amazed at the changes that occur underwater as the sun sets. There is a definite changing of the guard as diurnal species head off to sleep and nocturnal species awaken and start their shift. Is it scary diving in the dark? The short answer is No – if you know what you […]
Great White Sharks
Da-Dum…Da-Dum…Da-Dum…Da-Dum-Da-Dum-Da-Dum The soundtrack from the 1975 film Jaws instilled fear in a generation and continues to do so today. How many people have asked you about seeing sharks in the water? Peter Benchley who wrote Jaws in 1973 never imagined the impact his book would have on the world pysche. In a National Gepgraphic article (2000) he states “considering […]
Happy Birthday Dive & Ski HQ
It’s hard to believe we have been based here in Wellington for 6 years already! Tomo and Claire returned from Cairns to start up Dive & Ski HQ in 2005. It was great meeting so many regular club divers, training new divers and sharing the great diving Wellington has to offer with everyone. There are […]