Sea Ventures/Pena Mar Ocean Club: "Two days of diving before Hurricane Maria", Sep, 2017,by Joanne Dunn, AR, US ( 2 reports with 2 Helpful votes). Report 9930 has 1 Helpful vote. |
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Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best): |
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Environmental Sensitivity | N/A |
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Shore Diving | N/A |
Snorkeling | N/A | ||
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Value for $$ | ![]() |
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Comments | This was our first trip to Puerto Rico. It was right after hurricane Irma. We were in frequent communication with the dive operator we used, Sea Ventures in Fajardo and with the owner of the beautiful ocean front condo in Pena Mar that we rented. Both were very informative and helpful. Unfortunately hurricane Maria came up quickly forming in the Atlantic as we were flying! We had no idea it even existed until we had arrived in San Juan and were picking up our rental vehicle (which was a beautiful brand new bright red Jeep,). We were informed by the rental agent that a hurricane was headed right towards Puerto Rico and was estimated to hit the following Wednesday. We arrived on the Saturday before Maria hit the island. We headed to Fajardo in our Jeep. We found our lovely ocean front condo. What a bargain! Three bedrooms, truly ocean front with all amenities needed for only $135 per night. We had two great days of diving on Sunday and Monday with Sea Ventures. The dive operator is located in the Marina Puerto Del Ray. The captain told us it is the largest marina in the Caribbean. The dive boat was large and had all we needed. The Padi dive center has a very efficient reservationist, Christine, with whom I spoke with several times before our trip. She was very helpful and gave great information and also recommendations on what to see and do in Fajardo. We traveled with our own dive equipment ( as we had planned to dive for at least 4-5days; not planning on a hurricane trumping our plans):however rental equipment was available. The Sea Ventures boat slip was right next to a very large sailboat that had been traveling to St Thomas daily after hurricane Irma to bring supplies to the island and bring back island residents on the return trip. In fact on Monday when we came back in after diving there were immigration officials processing a large number of people from St Thomas. The staff at Sea Ventures shared with us that they had taken their boat to St Thomas the previous Thursday on a supply run. Our captain was Jay. He was excellent! Sadly we only had two days with him due to the hurricane, but they were two great days of diving thanks to his dive experience and expertise. We found the reef to be in good condition and full of sea life. The dive staff was very proud of their efforts at coral farming which they used to replace any damage they saw to the reefs. Joel was also with us and is a marine biologist. We will most definitely return to Puerto Rico again when the damage from Maria is resolved most importantly their power grid updated. We heard from many of the lovely Puerto Rican’s that we met during this experience that out of everything bad there will come some good. They hope this devastating hurricane will once and for all repair and replace their archaic power grid. It is a beautiful island filled with great people. Please consider it as a diving destination in the future. | ||
Websites | Sea Ventures Pena Mar Ocean Club | ||
Reporter and Travel |
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Dive Experience | 101-250 dives | ||
Where else diving | Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Bonaire, Grenada, Belize, Puket | ||
Closest Airport | San Juan | Getting There | Rental car from San Juan airport |
Dive Conditions |
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Weather | sunny | Seas | calm |
Water Temp | 83-84°F / 28-29°C | Wetsuit Thickness | 2 |
Water Visibility | 20-40 Ft/ 6-12 M | ||
Dive Policy |
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Dive own profile | yes | ||
Enforced diving restrictions | [Unspecified] | ||
Liveaboard? | no | Nitrox Available? | N/A |
What I Saw |
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Sharks | None | Mantas | None |
Dolphins | None | Whale Sharks | None |
Turtles | > 2 | Whales | None |
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best): |
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Corals | ![]() |
Tropical Fish | ![]() |
Small Critters | ![]() |
Large Fish | N/A |
Large Pelagics | N/A | ||
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best): |
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Subject Matter | ![]() |
Boat Facilities | ![]() |
Overall rating for UWP's | N/A | Shore Facilities | ![]() |
UW Photo Comments | [None] |
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