Blog

21Nov 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Rescue Diver Training

Rescue Diver Training

Diving, Salt Water
There’s no doubt about it, diving comes with a few inherent risks. And while it’s safety record is great, and it's standards are high, your safety is ultimately your own responsibility. And if you can extend that responsibility to also include others, amazing! With that in mind, I signed up to do a Rescue Diver course, which also includes an Emergency First Responder certification. As is the norm with PADI courses, the weeks preceding the course were spent going through online training, and writing short online exams. We then gathered at the dive shop on Friday evening to meet our dive buddies, do a short knowledge review, and collect our gear. And then the real fun began… Day 1 - The Skills Little Manly on a cloudy morning I arrived…
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31Oct 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
A Spooky Halloween Night Dive at Clifton Gardens

A Spooky Halloween Night Dive at Clifton Gardens

Diving
Having never done a night dive, Halloween seemed like a great excuse to get into the water under the cloak of darkness. I met the Frog Dive crew at Clifton Gardens where we enjoyed a few tasty treats and did a little pumpkin carving. It's an amazing group, and I'd highly recommend joining a few of their outings if you can. As the sun started to set we kitted up, had the dive briefing, and checked our torches. I was concerned the water was going to be chilly, but I was pleasantly surprised as it was a comfortable 20°C. We opted to do a walk in, in order to minimise any impact on the few fisherman out on the jetty. And then, as the sun slipped below the horizon, so…
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25Sep 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Kayak Fishing Cowan Creek (Bobbin Head)

Kayak Fishing Cowan Creek (Bobbin Head)

Fly Fishing, Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
After far too many weeks in lockdown I decided to take advantage of the fact that I was still allowed out on the kayak. Amazingly, I hadn’t used it since moving into our new house, so I was itching to get out there and explore my new local waterway. I loaded my kayak on the ute’s roof the night before, saving me the effort of doing so in the morning. I then set about kitting up my rods and locating all my fishing gear, some of which was still boxed up from the move. At 6am the next morning I headed for Bobbin Head Picnic Ground, making my way carefully through the Ku-ring-Gai Chase National Park. The roads were packed with cyclists, slowing my trip down to the boat ramp.…
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03Jul 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Two Days Fishing Moreton Bay

Two Days Fishing Moreton Bay

Bait, Salt Water
My family and I amazingly managed to escape the latest Sydney lockdown by flying into Brisbane, two weeks prior to a planned Keppel Island vacation. That said, it wasn't all plain sailing, and we were forced into 14 days of lockdown by the Queensland premier. Thankfully we were still allowed out to exercise, which happened to include fishing, and so this is exactly what we did. Over the course of our 14 day lockdown Nick and I took the boat our twice, both times in Moreton Bay, focusing in on the Peel Island area. We drifted bait over structure, picking up a handful of species including snapper, sweet lips, cod, tuskfish, and so many more. We also took the opportunity to tag some fish, giving back to the fishing community.…
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18Apr 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Diving the HMAS Adelaide – Finishing my Advanced Open Water

Diving the HMAS Adelaide – Finishing my Advanced Open Water

Diving
Just over a month after starting my Advanced Open Water course I climbed into my car to head to Terrigal to finally complete it. Previously, poor weather had resulted in the second day of the course being cancelled, and I was itching to get back into the water to complete the training. I'd collected my gear from Frog Dive on Saturday, which included testing and marking my nitrox tanks, for my Enriched Air Diver training. If I haven't said it before, I'd highly recommend Frog Dive in Willoughby! The staff are incredible, and there's a real sense of community in everything they do. The early morning drive to Terrigal was amazingly beautiful, and I was left wondering why I hadn't visited the area before. Sunrise over the bay was stunning,…
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03Apr 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Bonito on Fly in Middle Harbour

Bonito on Fly in Middle Harbour

Fly Fishing, Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
December Brisbane trip...cancelled due to Covid...April Brisbane trip...cancelled due to Covid... And so, on a beautiful April morning, I launched my kayak from the Tunks Park boat ramp, fly rod in hand. The plan for the day was to go after some pelagic species on fly, specifically the Sydney harbour kingfish. I wasn't sure what to expect, as Sydney had experienced mass flooding the prior week. And as a result, the water was murky brown, with a lot of suspended debris, as I paddled out towards the rising sun. Sunrise in Middle Harbour I opted to head towards the harbour mouth, hoping the water would be cleaner closer to the ocean. As it turned out, this proved to be a good strategy. The water colour quickly changed from muddy brown…
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13Mar 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Half of my Advanced Open Water

Half of my Advanced Open Water

Diving
Despite being new to diving, I was itching to get back into the water to do my Advanced Open Water certification. Why? Well, predominantly to open up a wide variety of exciting new dive sites, especially for our Great Keppel Island holiday in July (fingers crossed it doesn't get cancelled due to Covid). I spent the week preceding the course reading over the course material, and taking the required exam. This escalated the day before the course, when I made a last minute decision to tack on a nitrox certification, which required some additional reading and another exam. I was surprised by just how little additional information there was in the Advanced Open Water training. The course consisted of 2 required modules, Deep Diving and Underwater Navigation, as well as…
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06Feb 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Diving Fairlight

Diving Fairlight

Diving
After missing out on the dives in Port Stephens, Sharon was itching to get back under the water. So when we got back to Sydney, we jumped straight onto the Frog Dive website and signed up for one of their free shore dives. They were fully booked for all of January (thanks mainly to the reduced numbers due to Covid), and so we put our names down for the first free dive, which was at Fairlight in February. Fairlight is located in the Northern Harbour, and is a good site for beginners, with a maximum depth of around 8 meters. In 1949, the Dutch submarine K XII beached here, where it remained until January, 1951, when it was finally refloated and towed up the Parramatta River. On Friday evening we…
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