Google "SA SCUBA Diving Site" website

I've just commenced a Google website (SA SCUBA Diving Site) at http://sites.google.com/site/sascubadivingsite/. I hope to be able to promote scuba diving in South Australia through this site. Please bear with me though, as I learn the ropes and build the site up.

Big cray caught off NZ

This is an 8kg crayfish caught off the coast of New Plymouth, NZ . It took 2 divers to bring it up. The cray is sitting on a full size dive tank! The cray below it is of a legal size.

AIR FILLS ON SOUTHERN FLEURIEU PENINSULA

To the best of my knowledge, air fills are no longer available on the southern Fleurieu Peninsula. This means that multiple dive cylinders will be needed for multiple dives in the area if a compressor is not available. Divers can no longer get cylinders filled at either Victor Harbor or Normanville, or any where in between. The closest dive shops offering air fills are at either Port Noarlunga or Christies Beach.

DIVE SAFETY SEMINAR IN MELBOURNE

(Presented by DAN & The Alfred, Sunday 21st February)
In conjunction with The Alfred, DAN Asia-Pacific is holding a Dive Safety Seminar. This event provides a unique opportunity for divers to hear from experts in diving health and safety. Speakers include: -- Dan Orr, President, DAN America - Professor Alessandro Marroni, President, DAN Europe - Frans Cronje, President, DAN Southern Africa - John Lippmann, Executive Director, DAN Asia-Pacific - Dr Ian Millar, Director, Hyperbaric Medicine, Alfred Hospital - Dr Andrew Fock, Hyperbaric Consultant, Alfred Hospital - Dr Lisa Gershwin, Jellyfish Expert - Dr David Wilkinson, Co-ordinator Divers Emergency Service
Numbers are limited so register early. All attendees will receive a show bag and there will be a great range of prizes given out on the day. The Dive Safety Seminar is being held on Sunday 21st February, 9.00am – 6.00pm, at the Alfred Hospital, Prahran, Victoria. Cost: DAN Members: $30, Non-DAN Members: $40 (Inclusive of morning & afternoon tea). To reserve your place, call 03-9886 9166 or email to communications@danasiapacific.org with your Name, Member Number, Phone Number, and Credit Card Details. Payment is required to confirm booking.

A LADDER NOW AT SECOND VALLEY JETTY

A ladder has now been installed on the Second Valley jetty. It is a good one, quite reasonable for use by divers exiting (& entering?) the water. Photos of the new ladder have been posted at http://picasaweb.google.com.au/stevereynolds600/NewLadderNowAtSecondValleyJetty. (My apologies for those above water shots with water still on the lens.) Other options at this stage, apart from using the ladder, are entry (& exit) from the beach, rocks, or walking to the second bay to the left of the jetty. The District Council of Yankalilla is working towards the building of replacement steps for the jetty. They will report the works to be undertaken on the jetty to replace the steps in the new year. The jetty & causeway are a State Heritage listed Council Asset. As such, they require DEH, DTEI & development approval. Council staffs have been “working with these departments, proposing improvements that adhere to heritage principles & meet the requirements of the community & their recreational needs”.

RESTRICTED ACCESS AT SA JETTIES

Second Valley jetty B4 the collapsed steps were removed

There may not currently be any step access at Point Turton jetty. Al Chandler, Secretary of the Underwater Explorers Club of SA, recently reported the removal of the steps on the jetty. He witnessed their removal by workmen in November. The SDF acted by sending an email message off to the District Council of Yorke Peninsula, asking them if they could act to provide suitable jetty steps for divers. Other SA jetties known to have restricted access at the time of writing include Second Valley, The Bluff, Screwpile and Edithburgh jetties. The collapsed steps at Second Valley jetty were removed recently. There is no ladder (or steps) at The Bluff jetty at Victor Harbor. The steps at the Screwpile Jetty at Victor are out of the water at low tide. There are problems with one of the sets of steps at the start of the jetty at Edithburgh.

Removal of the steps on the Point Turton jetty

There may not currently be any step access at Point Turton jetty. Al Chandler, Secretary of the Underwater Explorers Club of SA, recently reported the removal of the steps on the jetty. He witnessed their removal by workmen in November. “The steps were cut into several pieces using a chainsaw, dropped into the water and then towed by boat around to the boat ramp where a bobcat has placed them at the top of the boat ramp pending their removal. The steps had fallen into a state of deterioration over the past 2 years and despite lobbying by the UEC, Point Turton Caravan Park management and locals for the steps to be repaired, the local council decided the cheapest option was to remove them and replace them with a metal ladder. Access and egress for diving is now via the existing ladders at the outer end of the jetty, via the new ladder when fitted, via the outer rockface of the boat ramp groin or via beach entry just south of the boat ramp. The final option will mean crossing the "mouth" of the boat ramp and swimming around the outside of the boat ramp to access the jetty. The two ladders at the outer end of the jetty are awkward to use as the bottom of each ladder is closer to the jetty than the top, causing the ladders to lean outwards away from the jetty.” The SDF acted by sending an email message off to the District Council of Yorke Peninsula, asking them if they could act to provide suitable jetty steps for divers as discussed in Al Chandler’s report to us.