SNUBA IN ARUBA

I’ve always fantasized about discovering dramatic undersea
curiosities like famed scuba diver Jacques Cousteau, but I never
wanted to go through a tedious scuba diving certification program or
wear heavy diving gear. When I heard about a new sport cleverly
called SNUBA that combines the ease of snorkeling with the
flexibility of scuba diving, I knew I had to try it.

I discovered a SNUBA cruise in Aruba at de Palm Watersports
Tours, one of the companies that operates a dock located along the
island1s tony Palm Beach, offering a buffet of water fantasies.
The cruise I joined was typical for this upscale island, with three
snorkel stops, a hot catered lunch and an open bar aboard a sleek
and sporty catamarin called Fun Factory. Out of three scheduled
snorkeling stops, one SNUBA dive was included in the price. A
cheerful crew provided brief yet detailed instruction for both types of
swimming adventures, and emphasized the importance of not
touching the precious coral.

I got to SNUBA on Dive #2, which was lucky for me because I was
able to watch what the first group did. My dive location, Aruba’s own
rendition of the Titanic, is undoubtedly one of the island’s best. The
Antillea is a German freighter that was scuttled during World War 2,
erstwhile creating an endlessly fascinating underwater spectacle.
I was outfitted with traditional mask and fins and wore a light
harness that held the regulator that I bit onto so I could breathe
through my mouth. My regulator was attached to one of two long
hoses that are fed by a large tank of air, encased in a small rubber
raft that is light enough to follow you around. It’s possible to get
down as deep as twenty feet this way.

Attached to the other hose on my raft was my husband Bob, a
certified scuba diver and my “buddy” for this dive. Our guide, an
experienced diver, clamped a few pounds of weights onto my
harness to make sure I could get down as deep as I wanted to go.
He hovered nearby to lead us in the direction of the best sightings
amongst the myriad of colorful fish and curious looking sea
creatures that abound at the site of the sunken wreck.

With a panorama as grand and mysterious as the Antillea looming
just beyond my mask, I could just as well have been hundreds of
feet deep, or anywhere in my imagination. As it is, the shipwreck is
fairly close to shore, adequately illuminated by sunlight alone. It
seems the fish are as curious as I am, with schools of them in every
size and color poking around the wreck as a bonus kaleidoscopic
eyeful for me!

I needed to squeeze on my nose and blow hard to equalize my ears
from time to time, but I soon got the hang of SNUBA and was
thoroughly amazed that I could hover ten or fifteen feet under without
the benefit of at least a resort dive course.

With SNUBA, snorkel enthusiasts like me can revel in the freedom
to “scratch beneath the surface,” while scuba divers like Bob can
relax without the burden of cumbersome equipment. You can be a
complete chicken and still partake of the same banquet enjoyed by
a certified diver!

With so many of Aruba’s dynamic underwater landscapes lying in
fairly shallow waters, SNUBA is the ultimate way to enjoy the view.
And possibly even feel just like Jacques Cousteau!

August 26, 2003   Posted in: Caribbean