News
Diving with… Brendal Stevens, Brendal’s Dive Center & Adventure Tours, Abaco, Bahamas
In this ongoing series, we speak to the people who run dive centres, resorts and liveaboards from around the world about their businesses and the diving they have to offer…
Brendal Stevens
What is the name of your business?
Brendal’s Dive Center & Adventure Tours
What is your role within the business?
Owner/Instructor/Capt/Guide
How long has the business operated for?
35 years – we are the oldest continually-owned dive operation in the Abacos-Bahamas
How long have you dived for, and what qualification are you?
I have been diving since I was a very young man, now over 45 years. I am a SSI Instructor, SSI ADV Specialty Instructor, ReAct Rite Instructor CPR/First Aid/AED….also taught prior with SDI & Universal Referral Programs for NAUI/SDI/IDEA/SSI/NASDS
What is your favourite type of diving?
I love the reefs & enjoy wrecks, night dives & seeing marine life like sharks, turtles, rays and macro life too.
If you could tell people one thing about your business (or maybe more!) to make them want to visit you what would it be?
We are a small, owner-operated family business with great dive staff & crew. We have invested in 4 tour vessels + 1 sailing vessel to accommodate both group & private charters. We are now doing 3 generations of families for certifications and guided tours.
About 85% of our guests are repeat clients & families we are able to share are underwater world and great Abaco-Bahamas wildlife with.
What is your favourite dive in your location and why?
The Coral Caverns are wonderful swim throughs with great coral formations and sun filtered lighting wonderful for photo work. Lots of sea life BIG and small. This area we have 4 dive sites we can offer all different but wonderful. Lots of bottom time and nice natural light.
What types of diving are available in your location?
Reef shallow – 70 feet (20m) great corals, grouper, tropicals, sharks, turtles & rays.
Wrecks – Historic San Jacinto 50-60 feet (18m) great fish and colors & Wreck Sail just recently put down 50-60 feet nice for photos & fish.
Great mini walls shallow to 55 feet (18m) with corals, sharks, grouper, fish, turtles & eagle rays.
Grouper Alley 50-60 feet (18m) with friendly grouper wonderful !
Deeper Ledge 70-85 feet (26m) with sponges, fish life, turtles & sharks
What do you find most rewarding about your current role?
A passion for diving and sharing the underwater world and I love to teach and guide.
What is your favourite underwater creature?
Love more than one! Groupers are GREAT – very smart and nice to interact with. Sharks …black tip, reef, nurse, bull and hammerheads.
Are there any exciting changes / developments coming up in the near future?
We are offering NEW all day dive tours to new locations with our new custom tour vessel. We are also offering NEW Wild Turtle Encounters for snorkelers, families and turtle lovers!
We are located off main island of Abaco on Green Turtle Cay so we offer:
Daily free pick up for our guests staying on main island Abaco with our vessel. Because of location we are closer to GREAT dive locations and can reach more locations from the dive base.
Is your centre involved in any environmental work?
Yes, we do wild turtle rescue and help. We started the 1st Lionfish Derby ever in 2009 here. It was developed to be copied and used anywhere in the world to help with lionfish and we just celebrated our 10th anniversary doing this event.
We are hoping to do more work with Wild Turtle foundation this next season. We are also wishing to start the coral re-growing program.
How do you see the SCUBA / Freediving / snorkelling industry overall? What changes would you make?
¾ of the Bahamas is underwater so we hope many people can SEE and experience this wonderful world young & old. We offer many snorkel tours/experiences here and feel it is important that snorkelers are given information for doing snorkeling since this segment has not been through a dedicated course as divers do when doing scuba classes.
We would like to see better education for use of divers down flags for all people doing snorkelling & free diving.
What would you say to our visitors to promote the diving you have to offer?
Come and experience our sea life & great wildlife above the water with the menu of tours we offer. The Bahamas turtles, sharks & tropical fish are protected here. The Groupers & Lobsters also have protected seasons.
We are located in a non-urban area with wildlife and natural beauty surrounding both in and out of the water. We offer great dive & activity packages and custom packages based on what is best for clients and their vacation dates. Both group & private are available.
Where can our visitors find out more about your business?
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BDCBM/
Bahamas Cacique Award Winner for Tourism Finest & Bahamas and National GEO Tourism Award
Gear News
Scubapro Free Octopus Promotion 2024
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
with every purchase of a regulator system!
Get a free S270 OCTOPUS with purchase of these combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with A700
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with S620Ti
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with D420
MK25 EVO Din mit S620Ti-X
Get a free R105 OCTOPUS with purchase of the following combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with G260
MK25 EVO or MK17 EVO with S600
SCUBAPRO offers a 30-year first owner warranty on all regulators, with a revision period of two years or 100 dives. All SCUBAPRO regulators are of course certified according to the new European test standard EN250-2014.
Available at participating SCUBAPRO dealers. Promotion may not be available in all regions. Find an authorized SCUBAPRO Dealer at scubapro.com.
More information available on www.scubapro.com.
Blogs
Northern Red Sea Reefs and Wrecks Trip Report, Part 3: The Mighty Thistlegorm
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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