1999 Chapbook

St. Eustatius

An historically significant island with insignificant diving, St. Eustatius, which lies fifty miles south of St. Maarten, was the first to recognize the United States as a country. As a result, British Men o' War pounded the island to a pulp. Some artifacts from the barrage can still be found in the murky water of the bay, and low-profile reefs offshore provide some diving.... A hike up the Quill, an extinct volcano, is worth the effort. Golden Rock Dive Center/Talk of the Town Hotel, July 1997, Brian Robertson, Houston, TX. Have to state by lunch time if they require dinner at night-arriving at dusk meant we didn't have a meal, but found a simple Chinese restaurant. Hotel food expensive for the quality. Food at the Chinese restaurants, the French Restaurant and Ocean View were good to excellent. . . . Room by the pool very good, bed comfortable, Bathroom facilities good, air-conditioning. . . . Glenn Faires owns and runs the dive operation; excellent. Small inflatable and regular diesel dive boat; used according to number of divers and the sites. Glenn accompanies all dives; careful to anchor on sand. Hotel arranged transport to Dive Center and Dive Center took us back. Marine life disappointing; no big stuff but the small and macro life kept us interested; flying gurnard a first. Vis: 40-80 ft. Water: 83 degrees. . . . WinAir from St. Maarten to Statia accepted baggage without complaint, but when leaving insisted on charging excess. Dive Statia/King's Well, March 1998, Kyle Peterson, San Diego, CA. Statia is quiet and off the beaten track. Diving is solid, reefs pristine with a large amount of fish, wrecks similar to Fla. Panhandle. Flat bottom/sand with lots of juvenile fish and coral. Vis: 60-90 feet, water: 80-88 degrees. Dive Statia is a friendly operation. Divemaster Alex is a young Dutch kid who isn't trusting of computers but perhaps will change over time. Beach entry to boat is a drag when the wind switches and the surf picks up. One dive boat is a Zodiac so be prepared for bare bones diving. King's Well is clean, simple super friendly resort with nice owners. They go out of their way to get you anything and the cooking is first rate. (Ph: 011-599-382435, Fax: 011-599-382539) Previous Year's Chapbook Find in All of Undercurrent All Public Area (PA) Public: -- PA: Recent Issues -- PA: Recent Reader Reports -- PA: Issues -- PA: Reader Reports -- PA: Dive Destination Guides -- PA: Diving News All Members Area (MA) Members: -- MA: Recent Issues -- MA: Recent Reader Reports -- MA: Issues -- MA: Reader Reports -- MA: Dive Destination Guides   Advanced Search | Online Members Home | Public Home | My Account | Renew | | Travel Index | Reader Reports | Mini Chapbook | Latest Chapbook | Seasonal Planner | " target="_blank">Current Issue | Back Issues | Dive Gear Index | Health/Safety Index | Environment & Misc. Index | | Blogs | Books | News | RSS | FAQ | About Us | Contact Us | Links |  Copyright © 1999, 1998 by DSDL, Inc., publisher of Undercurrent. All rights reserved. No portions of this report may be reproduced in any way, including photocopying and electronic data storage, without prior written permission from the publisher. For more information, contact DSDL, Inc., P.O. Box 1658, Sausalito, CA 94966.