Dive Review of Catalina Diver Supply in
The Continental USA/Catalina Island, CA

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Catalina Diver Supply: "The Casino Point Marine Dive Park Delivers!", Jul, 2024, by Michael Good, CT, US ( 2 reports). Report 13010.
Photos Submitted with this Report Click on an image to see an enlarged version and captions
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations	N/A	Food	N/A
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	During a weeks long visit to Southern California I decided to take the ferry to Catalina Island to finish the last three dives of my Advanced Open Water Certification. I came a day before my course with my sister who had just finished a reactivate course after a 18 year hiatus from diving. A quick call to Catalina Diver Supply easily set up the arrangements. They have a variety of dive options including an “Intentionally private dive” option that was perfect for my sister’s first dive in 2 decades. If you are a single diver you can also join a group dive, they also have a boat to take divers to sites around the island. Suzi Degazo was to be our instructor/guide and she quickly outfitted my sister’s rental gear (I had brought my own), reviewed the dive plan and then led us 75 yards down the sidewalk to the steps that allowed us to easily enter the waters of the dive park. What a treat awaited us! After an easy decent down a buoy line we soon found ourselves swimming through an enchanting kelp forest, with clear waters (60ft visibility) and bountiful schools of a variety of fish. Within minutes we encountered a group of Giant Sea Bass, the largest male estimated to weigh over 500 lbs and the females and juveniles over 300 lbs. What a thrill! Suzi snapped portraits of the two of us communing with these huge behemoths and then guided us through the park, pointing out many of the creatures we might have missed- from a spiny lobster peering out of a rocky lair to a large sea slug tucked in to the back of an overhang. She discovered a green moray eel for us to admire and helped us feed an abalone some kelp. We did two dives that first day and then I continued for another two days with my AOW certification dives. The first day I was a solo student and did an open water naturalist dive followed by a fish identification dive. The second day I was joined by one other student for a deep dive where we both used Nitrox 32. The deep dive was accomplished at the same entry as our shallower 40-50 ft dives the day before. Suzy spent time going over the essential points of deep diving and reviewed the dive plan. She then lead us into the water and after a descent to 40 feet led us down slope to 90 feet where we performed the deep dive exercises required by PADI. The surface temperature was 69degrees, shallower depths were 66, at 70’ we went through a thermocline and the temp dropped to 55 degrees. After spending around 10 minutes at 90 feet we traveled up the slope and then did a safety stop at 45 feet and spent the rest of the dive at 30-40 feet enjoying ourselves at less depth and better light. After the second day of diving, Suzi finished the paperwork with PADI and within a day I had my AOW certification! Catalina Diver Supply couldn’t have been more helpful, from combining a day of recreational diving with referral dives for my AOW certification course, switching from privately guided dives to joining a class, all was done smoothly and with a smile. Suzi’s love of diving was infectious, our dives were filled with underwater high fives with each new discovery and accomplished exercise. The dive shop is just steps from the dive entry point and is well stocked with all the gear and accessories one might need. The dive park has an incredibly rich underwater environment. In my Fish ID dive I photographed over 20 species of fish and invertebrates, other divers at the park say it is the best diving destination on the Southern California coast. I highly recommend both the dive park and the Catalina Diver Supply dive shop.
Websites	Catalina Diver Supply
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	51-100 dives
Where else diving	Catalina and San Clamente Islands, Isla Mujeres, Tahiti, Red Sea, Bermuda, Turkey, Akumal Mexico
Closest Airport		Getting There	Catalina Express Ferry from Long Beach or San Pedro
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm, surge, no currents
Water Temp	69-55°F / 21-13°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	35-60 Ft/ 11-18 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	[Unspecified]
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	None	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals	N/A	Tropical Fish	N/A
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Catalina Diver Supply in The Continental USA/Catalina Island, CA

Catalina Diver Supply: "The Casino Point Marine Dive Park Delivers!", Jul, 2024,

Photos Submitted with this Report

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Catalina Diver Supply in
The Continental USA/Catalina Island, CA