Name: Halloween Weekend Dives & Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest
Start: 2024-10-25T20:00:00.000Z
End: 2024-10-28T05:00:00.000Z
Location: Lake Phoenix Scuba Park, Family Campgrounds & Paintball

We will be diving with our sponsor, Aquatic Adventures

Join for the annual charity treasure dive, which is always a fun filled day of meeting dive buddies new and old, a BBQ lunch, and of course diving for a token that cold snag you anything from a hat to a week long live-a-board trip in the Bahamas. Proceeds from the event will go to benefit [Camp Open Seas](https://www.facebook.com/groups/408647187037266), which provides a week long SCUBA camp for children with disabilities.

Cost is $55, ($25 for Students) which includes lunch, lake entry fee, and participation in the event! Dive for a token starting at Noon. Auction for unfound tokens will begin at 3:00 with prize awards following.

Please contact Aquatic Adventures to register and pay for this event. Don't forget to let them know that you are with the Washington Area Scuba Club (also, don't forget to let your fellow dive club buddies know you are going by RSVPing here)

The club will try to get one of the pavilions next to Aquatic Adventures so there is enough room for all. Look for our Banner when you get to the Aquatic Adventures pavilion, or ask for Ja-Mel.

If you plan to spend camp and spend more than one day at the Lake, you will have to arrange that yourself with Lake Phoenix

Aquatic Adventures: 703-619-1500

Register and pay at: https://www.aquaticadventuresva.com/en/events-and-fun-dives

scuba@learn2dive.net for more info.

There will be time to get a dive or two prior to the event. Link up with a dive buddy at the Quarry.

Washington Area Scuba Club: A DC/VA/MD Scuba Meetup Group

Rock

Megan Adelaide

Charity Treasure Dive @ Lake Phoenix with Aquatic Adventures

Lake Phoenix Scuba Park, Family Campgrounds & Paintball

**Note:** We have a spot for a single female to share with another female, and a spot for a male to share with another male.

When all spots are sold, a wait list will be created. Please sign up for the wait list. I will check to see if there are any additional cabins that we can add.

**Snapshot:**

* Diving begins Sunday morning & ends Friday around noon when the yachts returns to port.
* Average of up to 27 dives, including 4 daytime dives and one night dive on most days.
* Depth Range: 25 – 130 ft (8m – 40m)
* All dives are from the yacht.
* 3mm wetsuit recommended
* Water temperatures 78 - 82F.

A 15 ft. x 4 ft. tender can take guests for optional shore excursions during the week.

**Included:** All meals (excluding Friday Evening Dinner), snacks, non-alcoholic beverages, local beer, wine, all tanks, weights, weight belt, and air refills (excluding Nitrox, which is an add on of $100)

**Charter does not include:** insurance, equipment rentals, Nitrox fills, certification and/or specialty courses, hotel stays/day rooms, dinner on final evening, crew gratuity, port/park fees, taxes, or fuel surcharge (when applicable.

**Charter does not include air fare**, ***but I can purchase your air fare for you if you book by April 25. Details below under “Air Fare”***

**Note:** our cost for the cruise is $400 LESS than the advertised price on the Aggressor web site.

For more info, join an info session, catch me at a Deco Stop (Happy Hour), or contact me either at [RockTheDiver@gmail.com](mailto:RockTheDiver@gmail.com) or 703-801-3154.

Because we are booking so close to departure date, the full cost of the cruise is due at the time of reservation. (wait list will have to pay after we get you added to the cruise)

\*\*The Yacht: The Belize Aggressor III is 110 ft long with a 22 ft beam. It has 9 staterooms & staff of 6.
**Diving:** @ Turneffe and Lighthouse Reefs. Sheer walls like Painted Wall, Half Moon Caye Wall and Quebrada are adorned with huge crimson gorgonians and wandering, lilac rope sponges. Weather permitting; divers explore the mystical Blue Hole, a collapsed freshwater cave system.
Opportunity for five dives per day (2 on the last day) including night dives. All diving should be within the limits and standards of your certification. No decompression dives.
**Itinerary:** Diving begins Sunday morning and ends Friday before lunch when the yachts return to port. Saturday morning at 8:00 am, guests are transferred to the Belize Airport or a local hotel. Throughout the week there will be opportunities to go ashore for swimming, snorkeling and beach combing.
**Diving Amenities:** Diving amenities include individual dive lockers, camera table with low-pressure air hoses, and two hot, freshwater showers.
**Diving Conditions:** Summer Water Temp averages 82°F. A 1-3mm wetsuit or shorty is recommended.
**RENTAL DIVE EQUIPMENT** A full line of Aqualung rental gear is available onboard including regulators, BCs, dive computers, and lights. If any of your dive equipment fails while onboard, the staff will loan you equipment free of charge.
**Cabins:** Most cabins have a double bed lower and a twin bed upper. The Master has a Double Bed, and Cabin #1 has 2 twin beds. All cabins have a window except Cabin #1. All cabins have a private bathroom. All pricing is for 2 people to a cabin. Traveling solo, the club will try to pair you with someone, unless you prefer to pay the single supplement to Aggressor.
**Link to Yacht:** https://www.aggressor.com/destination/Belize
**Getting There:** Fly into Belize City. The Aggressor will pick us up from the airport & take us to the ship. Couldn’t be easier.
**Aire Fare:** I can book air fare on American Airlines for up to 8 people. If you choose this option, you will need to pay for the flight before I make the booking on or about April 25. The benefits:

1. ***up to 3 bags free***
2. ***Priority Group 1 Boarding***, y
3. ***Free Upgraded seats***
**Passport & other requirements:** Passport that is valid until January 3, 2025. Not a Passport Card, or a Real ID Driver’s license. A full book Passport, and it must have w blank pages. No visa is required.
**C-Card:** Bring your certification cards. Only have electronic ones? Download them to your phone.
**Insurance:** While we are not expecting any issues, it is good to have a membership with the Diver’s Alert Network (DAN) membership & accident insurance. Since we are traveling during Hurricane Season, it may be prudent to have DAN Trip Insurance also. You can sign up for any of that through these links below. Feel free to email me directly or catch me at a Deco Stop/Happy Hour if you want to talk more about these.
DAN Membership and Accident Insurance: [https://apps.dan.org/join-dan/?rc=3183259](https://apps.dan.org/join-dan/?rc=3183259)
DAN Trip Insurance: [https://dan.org/partner/3183259/trip](https://dan.org/partner/3183259/trip)

James Walsh

Donna Kulisch

Belize Aggressor III (Liveaboard Dive Trip aka a Dive Cruise)

Fort George Hotel & Spa

Shore Dives, Boat Dives, and Diving the Wild Side, we will do it all.

With as many as 60 officially listed dive sites on Bonaire, most of them easily accessible from shore, the island is known as the Shore Diving Capital of the World! Bonaire’s sea abounds with beautiful marine life and a fascinating variety of multi-colored tropical fish, there is lots to see while diving on Bonaire. The sea is remarkably calm and conditions are superb Beginner through Expert divers. Bonaire’s waters offer something special for every diver. Novice divers will appreciate the calm waters, and minimal currents while diving on Bonaire. More advanced divers will appreciate the deeper sites and wrecks.

On average, visibility exceeds 100 feet & average water temperature is 80 degrees F. The fringing reef begins close to the shore.

**Diving the Wild Side:** I try to offer something different than the standard dive-shop trips. On this trip, one of those things is diving the wild side of the island, which is where the sharks, mantas, & other Pelagic usually hang out. A boat dives the Windward side. The plan is for a 2 tank morning dive, which is an extra $150. Those that do not come can either do a shore dive themselves, or can go on the Buddy Dive boat, and meet up with us for the afternoon dive.

**Diving Certifications and Levels:** While every level of diver can dive Bonaire, keep in mind that the shore dives will not include a dive master. In order to dive this trip, you should be able to set up your own gear; should be able to dive safely without professional supervision; and be confident in the water. Open Water Certification Required. To get the most out of this trip, you should have Advanced Open Water (AOW) and Nitrox Certification. If you already have those, you may decide to get your Deep Diver Specialty. Let me know if you want to advance your certs either before the trip or on the trip and I can help guide you through the process and to reliable shops / instructors.
For any level of diver, if you have not been in the water in a while, I would recommend either joining us at Lake Phoenix prior to the trip, and/or take a refresher course prior to departing.
Please reach out to me if you have questions.

**The Resort:** Buddy Dive is one of the best dive resorts in the world. They have a great set up with the 2 tank stations, great boats, a great dive shop, camera support. Rental vehicles are included in the cost of the room. The vehicle is either a single or double cab pick-up truck with tank racks in the back. There are 2 pools on site, one with a swim-up bar with bar stools in the water. Each of the rooms has a bathroom for every bedroom.
1 of the tank stations is located at the dock for diving the house reef, and the other is a drive-through station by the road.

**The Plan:** If we fly American, we should arrive early enough on Sat to catch the last orientation and get our first dive in on the House reef. We have an option of flying out on Sunday with United, which would give us one extra day. We will discussion this option.
6 boat dives are included. We can do as many or as few shore dives as we want. We just pick up a tank 24/7 and go diving. Each morning, I will meet people at breakfast and we will discuss the day’s diving. If we are shore diving, we will discuss what sites we will go to for that day. If people don’t want to the sites we chose as a group, they can break off and do their own diving. The beauty of the Bonaire, is that it is all flexible. If you want do 6 dives a day, we can do that. If you want to dive 2 dives a day and the rest of the day at the pool, that’s ok too. If you want to do night dives, dawn dives, etc, we can do that. I’m up for just about anything.

**Air Fare:** I can book air fare on American Airlines for the group for up to 8 people. If you choose this option, you will need to pay for the flight before I make the booking by early May. The benefits:
1) up to 3 bags free
2) Priority Group 1 Boarding
3) Upgraded seats at no additional cost

**Passport & other requirements:** Passport that is good for 6 months until January 3, 2025. Not a Passport Card, or a Real ID Driver’s license. This has to be a full book Passport, and it must have w blank pages. No visa is required.

**Cost**: **$1,343.60. (based on double occupancy in a bedroom of a 2 or 3 bedroom unit). Costs for singles in a bedroom will cost more an are dependent on availability. Email me. Wild Side is + $150**
When you sign up, you will be asked for a deposit of $500. Payment of your deposit and only payment of your deposit will reserve you space on the trip. You will also be asked for your phone number and email address so that I can get in touch with you. This information will only be viewable to the trip leader to be used to get in touch with you. I will be setting up a Whattsapp group for the confirmed divers so everyone can chat.
The balance of the trip will be **$843.60 + $150 for Wild Side will be due August 1**.

JaMel Mr City

Bonaire - Dive Trip

Buddy Dive Resort

Details for 2024 coming soon, but should be the same as 2023. I plan to camp out from Friday evening until Sunday. I'll have details out how to register for the camping and for the Pumpkin Carving as we have to do the Carving through Aquatic Adventures. Its their event, after all, and we thank them for doing this.

Get in the Halloween spirit by testing out your underwater pumpkin carving skills!

Join the dive club and Aquatic Adventures, for a fun weekend of diving, pumpkin carving, and camping, if you dare

If you plan to enter the Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest, please plan to bring a hollowed out pumpkin. There will be prizes for the best pumpkins. You will also need to sign up directly on the Aquatic Adventures Web Site for the Pumpkin Carving contest. Cost for the Pumpkin Carving is $45 and includes Entry to Lake Phoenix for Saturday day only, Lunch, and participation on the Pumpkin Carving Contest. You must be on their roster to participate in the contest.

Not included in the $45 cost is entry for Friday and/or Sunday, camping, any breakfast, any dinner, and lunch on either Friday or Sunday. Also not included is the cost of your pumpkin.

If you need rental gear, Aquatic Adventures will have special rates, so give them a call.

Not interested in carving a pumpkin? Come on down for some fun dives, test out new equipment, or just to hone your photo/video skills or your buoyancy. You need not participate in any of the organized events to attend.

https://www.aquaticadventuresva.com/en/events-and-fun-dives

Remember, if this is your first time this year diving Lake Phoenix, you will have to watch the video on their web site and sign their wavers.

Costs for everything not included in the $45 paid to Aqauatic Adventures:

This will be a day trip on Saturday. I have also added the link to sign up and pay Aquatic Adventures. Please do that ahead of time as you probably can't do that at the event. (they have to get enough food for lunch and turn in a roster to Lake Phoenix.)

**Admission to park Friday or Sunday:**
$54.50 per person per day for unlimited Air
$80 per person per day for unlimited Nitrox

**Camping Friday night and Saturday Night:**
$15.22 per night plus admission, or
$44 ffor one night, including two days of camping.

I'll work out group food costs later. I'll probably cook a leg of lamb, steaks, or something like that with fettucini alfredo and some vegetables.

Halloween Weekend Dives & Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest

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