Hi Nautili,
Here is our March newsletter. If you you are finding you have a bit of extra time in self isolation we would really appreciate articles, photos, stories, news or other items for the next Newsletter. Please send in your contributions to editor@nautilus-scuba.net.
In November 2020, we will be visiting Santo Island, Vanuatu, home to one of the best-known wreck dive sites in the world: USS President Coolidge & Million Dollar Point.
The largest, and most accessible, and possibly the best wreck in the world, the SS President Coolidge was a luxury passenger liner converted to a troop carrier during WWII. While entering the Santo harbour she hit two friendly mines, providing divers with a remarkable underwater playground.
Almost completely intact, you can swim through the numerous holds and decks viewing the reminders of her glorious days as a cruise liner and the remnants of her days as a troop ship. There are guns, cannons, jeeps, helmets, trucks and personal supplies left by some of the soldiers, as well as the beautiful porcelain statue of “The Lady,” chandeliers and a mosaic tile fountain. The wreck is covered in coral and is the home to a plethora of marine life.
At the end of WWII, thousands of tons of US construction equipment was dumped into the sea. Named for its worth, there are a multitude of bulldozers, cranes, fork lifts and trucks piled upon one another in this unique dive site.
Those who do not wish to dive the wrecks multiple times or prefer to do reef dives instead can do so by paying a top-up fee of AUD 30 per dive locally for the boat dives.
Package Deal price: ~AUD 1700 + return flights ~AUD 1100
TOTAL PACKAGE (incl.flights) = Approx. AUD 2800
NB: prices fluctuate slightly based on currency exchange rate and date of booking)
For further pricing and booking details check the email sent to the club members list. The approximate price above for financial members only! If you have any questions or would be interested in joining the trip by joining the Club, please see contact details below.
Jim Murdoch Guest Overseas Trip Coordinator, Nautilus Scuba Club – Cairns overseastrips@nautilus-scuba.net
THERE IS ALWAYS A NEED FOR STORIES AND PHOTOS!
Please share your diving experiences with the club! Please send your stories and/or photos before deadline to editor@nautilus-scuba.net
Deadline: Our editor Phil will accept content for the next newsletter until the 11th of March 2020.
THERE IS ALWAYS A NEED FOR STORIES AND PHOTOS!
Please share your diving experiences with the club! Please send your stories and/or photos before deadline to editor@nautilus-scuba.net
Deadline: Our editor Phil will make the newsletter approx 1 week before the club meeting on the last Wednesday of the month.
Trip put together by Diversion Dive Travel especially for Nautilus Scuba Club Members
Dates:
Getting There:
As the trip is planned for September 2020 the following needs to be taken into consideration:
|
ALREADY SOLD OUT – Let us know if you’d like to be on the wait list We have chartered the whole boat: All Star MV Stella Maris liveaboard (21 pax), diving the spectacular marine nature reserve and UNESCO World Heritage site that is the Tubbataha Reef, Philippines in the middle of the Sulu Sea. Since Tubbataha was discovered in the late 1970s, it has become recognised as one of the most remarkable coral reefs on the planet and is ranked among the top ten dive sites in the world. Because of its isolated location, Tubbataha can only be visited on a liveaboard boat. Divers can experience the reefs’ dramatic underwater terrain, great biodiversity and regularly encounter large marine life such as sharks (hammerheads, whalesharks, grey reefs & white tips, and at times even tiger sharks!), dolphins, turtles and various rays, including mantas. Dates of travel will be WED 29 APRIL – THURS 7 MAY 2020 (8 nights in total: overnight in Manila on 29 April 2020, 6 night liveaboard, 19 dives from Thurs 30 April – Wed 6 May 2020, overnight flight from Manila to Cairns on 6 May 2020). This trip has been specially designed by Diversion Dive Travel/DivePlanit for the Nautilus Scuba Club. For details re: the trip, please read the brochure below developed by Diversion Dive Travel. Contact overseastrips@nautilus-scuba.net for more info and how to join the wait list.
|
Club Dives: How they work
This is a general explanation on how the Nautilus Club dives work, especially meant for new members.
We have a dive calendar to help you plan your dives with the club in advance – like a Diving Diary – add the events of interest to yours now!
See https://www.nautilus-scuba.net/calendar/.
We also advise at Monthly Member Meetings AND via email to all financial members (only) about upcoming dives a month in advance with a reminder a few weeks before the dive event.
We ask the dive operator to reserve a number of spots for our members, normally around 12 seats. We get a sizable discount for our members in exchange for supporting them – a win-win situation.
To go on a club dive, you call the dive operator direct (do not call any club members who work for the operator – they cannot help you!) once that Dive Event is opened and book your spot. You pay the dive operator directly and your place is confirmed on full payment. Be sure to bring your Current Financial Membership and Dive Cert cards with you on the dive as you will need them BOTH. Spots are kept available for the club up to a cut-off date, normally 48 hours prior to the dive date (this will depend on the operator). From that date on, the operator will fill the spots with non-Nautilus members so if you call late it is not guaranteed that you will get a seat. It is also possible that the spots we have reserved for Nautilus are already full. If the boat does fill then more seats will be opened to club members upon booking if they are available.
Club Dives
Currently, club dives are on either the second Sunday or Saturday of the month. At the moment (20198 – 20) we go once a quarter (every 3 months) out of Port Douglas and twice a quarter (the remaining 2 months) out of Cairns. The operators do vary based on availability and the offer they provide to club members. We are always looking for the best deals for members that present quality and value for money and support local operators where possible.
As club members, we get sizeable discounts on the standard prices that are only ever disclosed on emails to current financial members. This is CRITICAL to preserve the integrity of the operator’s pricing and an added benefit of membership to the club. Identify yourself as a current financial club member when booking and show your membership card on the day of diving.
Overseas Dive Trips
We organise approximately 2-3 overseas dive trips per year. Past destinations include: PNG [Walindi, Tufi, Lissenung Island, Liveaboard MV Chertan], Palau, Truk Lagoon, Solomon Islands, Indonesia, Philippines, Vanuatu, Fiji and others. As a club, we often manage to get great group deals and these trips are hugely popular.
Domestic Travel and Special Dive Events
We are now also exploring additional dives within Australia that offer great deals to members and extend your diving experience beyond the Great Barrier Reef and surrounds. In the past this has included regular visits to the Yongala (located near Ayr in QLD) and other wrecks nearby. Future trips may include these plus travelling further afield (including interstate) to sites that are of interest to members and/or are requested.
Our valued sponsors also send us special offers and discounts on dive trips from time to time. These are sent to members vial email and on occasion, posted on social media (but never the prices, they are strictly via email only!).
Keep a watch on what is happening with these Special Dive Events here:
https://www.nautilus-scuba.net/section/special-dives/
All members are informed via emails about the new and upcoming plans and dive opportunities. Please contact the divecoordinator@nautilus-scuba.net for FNQ, Special and Domestic based dives and the overseastrips@nautilus-scuba.net for trips outside of Australia.
Other Dive Opportunities
We are a dive club so diving is our key focus. As such, we are constantly looking for viable dive opportunities for the club. Suggestions are always welcomed and are discussed at the monthly committee meetings. If you have any ideas, please email: divecoordinator@nautilus-scuba.net for consideration. The club is for the members and the committee always values your input as it may lead to some exciting experiences for all.
