Category: Scuba & Snorkeling

Cook Islands 2025

After years of dreaming, Kim and I finally returned to Rarotonga, where we indulged in scuba diving and delicious local cuisine. Our adventure continued as we flew to Aitutaki, where the breathtaking lagoon and vibrant marine life left us in awe.

Snorkeling Rarotonga

A good chunk of the island of Rarotonga is surrounded by a shallow lagoon, protected from waves by the reef. This makes for some great snorkeling, with much of it easily accessible from the beach. Just from the beach we saw tons of colorful reef fish, eels, turtles, starfish, and more.

Snorkeling Aitutaki

We booked two full day private boat tours with T’s Tours Aitutaki. It was a bit of a splurge, but felt so worth it. We had an awesome time doing several extended snorkels, so time exploring the motus and islands. An absolute treat.

Rarotonga Scuba Diving

I had hoped to do a couple days of diving on Rarotonga and on Aitutaki, but for various reasons we only ended up doing one. Was a super fun day, with Hazel and I doing two dives in the morning, and then Kim joining us for one dive in the afternoon. Margot snorkeled with a […]

Whale Sharks

This was a literal bucket list item for me, to swim with whale sharks. I’ve been thinking about it for decades. It was incredible. Hard to capture the size of these sharks. These are juvenile, but whale sharks are the largest fish around. These were somewhere around 18-25 feet long. They can be even bigger […]

French Polynesia

After a great trip to Moorea a few years ago, we decided to head back and visit some of the other islands in the chain. IT was wonderful and included Hazel’s first scuba dives after certification, and Margot really getting into snorkeling. It’s always hard to decide between going back to a place we like […]

PADI Open Water Certification for Hazel

Congratulations to Hazel. She finished her PADI Open Water SCUBA course today and is now a certified diver. Millions of thanks to Michael Francisco for his skilled, patient and kind instruction. If anyone in SoCal wants to learn to dive, I can say he is an absolute top notch instructor. I’ve been diving for 30+ […]

Discover Diving

With our trip being extremely last minute, and Hawaii being busy, just about every activity I called about was booked solid. But I found a discover scuba for two people and signed Kim and Hazel up. When Hazel had gone to Catalina with me to do her open water class, she had trouble doing a […]

Mala Wharf Sea Turtles

When our planned trip to the Philippines fell apart and we needed a last minute pivot, I had promised Margot Sea turtles, and that was part of what guided us to Hawaii. This spot delivered for sure.

Catalina Weekend

A nice weekend at Catalina with Hazel. The goal was to get Hazel’s PADI dive certification. We didn’t do that, a combination of mostly fear and slightly rough conditions (to a lesser extent) meant Hazel didn’t get all of the dives necessary and skills done on her first try, but we will try again. She […]

Le Flamboyant

Perhaps the greatest AirBNB ever, but sadly no longer available. La Flamboyant was an old sailboat anchored in the harbor in Mo’orea, and we had a few days there. An easy swim to an incredible reef, sharks and rays swimming under the boat while we ate breakfast, it was pretty close to perfect.

Snorkeling in Cabo Pulmo

My favorite part of Cabo was spending time in the ocean. We did two days of snorkeling on our short trip. Didn’t see much at the Arch, but Cabo Pulmo the next day was really nice. It was Hazel’s first time using a snorkel and fins, and she took to it like a fish to […]

Rarotonga, Cook Islands 2010

A few months ago, I found some cheap fares to Rarotonga, in the Cook Islands. Kim and I decided to spend our thanksgiving there, and had a great time. Rarotonga feels to me much like Hawaii in terms of the ocean life and the geography and plant life, though it’s much smaller than most of […]

Islas Coronado Scuba Diving, Mexico

Ok, calling it Mexico makes it sound more exotic than it is, but I had a fun weekend diving. Headed to San Diego with my friend Mitzi. Kim was invited, but declined due to an aversion for cold water. Saturday we did three dives at the Islas Coronado on the dive boat, the Lois Ann. […]

Catalina Island Scuba Diving

I (Geoff)  did a one day dive trip out to Catalina yesterday. Warm water (for CA), decent visibility, and saw some cool stuff. 3 tanks in water from about 25 feet to about 65 feet deep. Nice bunch of people on the boat.

Guatemala And Belize

I took a trip, I was supposed to be working for a raft company as a safety kayaker, but it did not go well.

Belize

The other day we were at the Mayan ruins in Tikal in Guatemala, swatting away Mosquitos. At the last minute, we realized Belize was only a 6 hour bus ride away. Wanted to get out of the jungle heat. Belize has been great. we are on Caye Caulker, a little island off of Belize city. […]

Kim – Now I´m in Guatemala too!

Hi everyone! I had a good flight to Guatemala and landed yesterday morning. Geoff picked me from the airport and impressed me with the spanish he learned in one week of intensive spanish lessons (6 hours a day, for 5 days). So, he´s now our official navigator! We walked around this cute little old town […]

Guatemala, Getting better…….

I suppose, after my last post, it would be hard for Guatemala to get worse. If it did, I probably wouldn´t be posting! After arriving it Antigua, I spent a few days recovering my leg and exploring the city. I was hanging out with Babke, the dutch girl who I met in Lanquin and helped […]

Week one in Guatemala……….

Well, it’s Weds now. I’ve been in Guatemala for 8 days, sweating for the vast majority of that time. I’m writing this from the home of the owner of the raft company, with the sound of the Lanquin river just feet below me. The view is stunning, and the atmosphere is alive with the calls of exotic birds. I’ve settled into a rustic little house near El Retiro Lodge, a popular spot for young travelers.