Red sea liveaboard poll St John's or Northern Wrecks/Reefs [Archive]

View Full Version : Red sea liveaboard poll St John's or Northern Wrecks/Reefs

Rick

26-01-2006, 11:47

Was speaking to a mate down the club last night as I am trying to weigh up the options on which itinery to go to for a week in the red sea in Feb

Options are

1. St John's on Grand Sea Serpent £695 inc. free Nitrox
2. Northern Wrecks and Reefs on Typhoon £750 Nitrox extra

Leaving cost aside what can I expect from both at this time of year in terms of water temperature; air temperature and sea life?

Any recommendations of one over the other? I have already done the Northern wrecks but a bit worried that St John's might get a bit boring without a bit of rust to look at

Do you get any big stuff down south at this time of year? Any reports/links views gladly appreciated

Paul Watts

26-01-2006, 12:38

Odin

26-01-2006, 13:50

May be slightly warmer darn sarf.. but windier!
Cost difference = £100 ish when you've paid for the gas!
Marsa airport less hassle..

Rick

26-01-2006, 15:46

does anyone have an idea of air or sea temps at either location in mid feb?

Also what are the chances of seeing pelagics down south at that time of year dont mind the wind so much but it has to be more than clouds of anthias and the odd lion fish to drag me away from the wrecks even if I have seen them before

Paul Watts

26-01-2006, 15:54

Rough guide to the years weather forecastMonth
Water Temp
Air Temp in day
Air Temp at night
January21°C18°C15°CFebruary20°C20°C16°CMarch21°C23 °C19°CApril22°C27°C23°CMay24°C30°C26°CJune25°C36°C 30°CJuly26°C40°C32°CAugust28°C42°C33°CSeptember29° C35°C28°COctober27°C30°C24°CNovember25°C26°C21°CDe cember23°C20°C18

Rick

26-01-2006, 15:57

thats more chilly than i would have though - thanks for that; would have thought it would have been higher at least down south

Iain Paul

26-01-2006, 18:02

Can't comment about other time of year or in north, but in July (several times) in Fury Shoal/St Johns I've had minimum of 29/30 water temp down to around 30m. October was 27/28C. Air temperature - HOT - who cares about numbers!

Reefs and life excellent, and there are a few smaller wrecks around.

Iain

Paul Watts

26-01-2006, 18:08

Whoops, sorry about that... was meant to be in a chart...

Feb 20 deg air temp, 20 deg water temp, 16 deg air temp at night.

Don't forget these are average figures.... wind chill in winter will make it feel much cooler at sea when on deck.

South will be a couple of Deg warmer depending how far south you go, wind may be a little stronger.

Whichever you choose, Best of Luck and Enjoy !

Rick

27-01-2006, 12:00

looks like the North is the winner so far

Cant seem to find any info on what a St Johns itinery involves - will give Tony B a call...

Alison Boler

27-01-2006, 15:57

Last time we went, because we chartered the whole boat, we asked for a special itinerary that included The Brothers, Daedelus and the wrecks of Abu Nahas. It was an itinerary that everyone liked. The reefies liked the big walls and fantastic coral and fishlife at the Brothers and Daedelus, the wreckies liked the 2 wrecks on the Brothers and the 4 wrecks on Abu Nahas. Plus we got to dive Dolphin Reef with the wild dolphins etc etc. It meant one long night steam but the skipper didn't mind and we tipped the crew well and took them prezzies, so everyone was happy.
In Feb in the south you are likely to see more big stuff and sharks than in the summer. They are still there in the summer but they don't like warm water much so they stay deep. In the winter months, you can see sharks at a shallower depth. So there is benefit to your shivering!!! The water temp will be about 21/22 degrees and the air temp about the same during the day, colder at night. Take a fleece jacket and at least a 5mm suit. Or take a 3/4 mm suit and one of those neoprene undervests over vests to slip on if you start getting cold.
In the southern offshore islands/reefs it is unlikely you will be offered night dives because they are too difficult to control and I think also there are too many sharks about feeding (although they don't say that!). You certainly can't night dive at the Brothers or Daedelus.
The other thing about winter liveaboard holidays around there is that because of the night dive situation and the shorter days, in order to fit at least 3 dives in, the first dive is often very very early. Not unusual to be woken up at 530 for the first dive just after 6.!!!! Great opportunity to see your fellow branch members looking their absolute best!! :)

Have a great time

Allie

Rick

27-01-2006, 16:43

thanks Allie,

Trouble is the last space on Grand Sea Serpent has just gone!

So back to looking at the north or might look at some other companies doing the south or go somewhere else

johnabbott

28-01-2006, 09:03

at least a 5mm suit. Or take a 3/4 mm suit and one of those neoprene undervests over vests to slip on if you start getting cold.
Allie
Well I know I am a wuss and I don’t carry a lot of inbuilt insulation but I have never been uncomfortable in my drysuit at this time of year in the Red Sea. Three dives a day with only a moderate (18deg yesterday) air temperature and a nasty windchill (force 8-9 forecast today) gets you chilled to the bone over 5 days. I have seen many miss dives because they were only using a 5mm one piece and were frozen.

Cheers. John

Eugene Farrell

28-01-2006, 09:38

Hi

I would agree with Ali. I have dived North, South, and Sudan throughout the year.

Much more chance of seeing shark in both areas at this time of year. The reefs in the South are better IMHO, however Brothers, Zabargad, Rocky, Elphinstone are fantastic.

You must remember that the weather can play a big part in early trips. The Red Sea can be very rough, so the passage between sites can be difficult in a monster sea. This also makes for some tricky diving conditions, which I would not recommend for inexperienced divers. You might encounter such conditions down in St Johns, and Brothers.

You could consider going to Sudan, the reefs are fantastic, the water is warmer, less divers and more sharks. Not sure what the airport is like now, it was a real hassle getting in and out, and they didn't allow booze:eek:

Alison Boler

28-01-2006, 10:41

Well I know I am a wuss and I don’t carry a lot of inbuilt insulation

Ah well, I knew there had to be some compensations for being rather more er - generously endowed - in the subcutaneous fat department!!!!

It's really difficult to recommend how thick a suit should be for this very reason! I have dived in the Red Sea this time of the year many times and I never wear anything thicker than a 3mm because I just don't get cold in the water. Yes - when I get out, the wind can make me really shiver. My husband dives in a 5mm in the Red Sea and he sometimes puts an overvest on in the winter. My daughters dive in 4mm suits and they are very slim. Some people particularly as the week wears on and they are getting a bit tired/more acclimatised start to feel the cold more. Personally, I find the benefits of being able to wear a thin suit which just feels so much more streamlined and comfortable outweigh the brief shiver factor on the ride back - but each individual has to make a bit of a judgement here knowing how much they feel the cold. To be honest, any thickness of wetsuit is going to have a shiver factor once out of the water - so the alternative is to take a drysuit but then you have all the extra weight etc etc - starts to get a bit like the UK for me!

Personally, I think most people would be comfortable in a 5mm suit but if you are someone who gets cold in the water, then obviously you need to wrap up a bit more!

Allie

Alison Boler

28-01-2006, 10:55

Yes, Rick. Eugene is very right about the seas once away from the coast. It can be extremely rough even in the north on passage between say the Thistlegorn side and the Abu Nahas side - I've seen many people be very seasick doing that. The exposed islands further south are also very weather prone which is why it certainly used to be the case that sites like the Brothers were only dived in the summer months. Now that the boats are more robust they are dived year round but the skippers watch the weather like hawks and depart for the mainland at the first hint of wind/cloud. Last time when we had to make a run back from the Brothers, and we hit bad weather and a wave smashed the windscreen of the boat, which was an interesting experience. :) Trust the advice of the skipper/divemaster in this. If they say it's going to be rough and to take to your cabin, they mean it's going to be ROUGH by any standards. Curtains will swing uncontrollably along the windows, hangers in the cupboards will too, everything will come off shelves and cupboard tops, you will need to wedge yourself into your bed!! Thankfully such passages are relatively short though.

However, the reefs offshore are just SO much better imo than the ones near the coast that it is well worth the trip. And you don't always encounter wind - I've been there many times and it's been like a millpond. Haven't dived as far south as St John but I've only heard great things about it.

Sudan is great diving but it is a major hassle to get there still and the taxes make it a far more expensive option - over £1000 per person.

I wouldn't worry too much about it. Pick the best boat you can. Take the divemaster a bottle of something and make sure they know what sort of diving you want to do. It is in their interest to make sure that everyone's happy and by and large there is enough variety in the Red Sea from a liveaboard to ensure that everyone has a great week. If you want to have a chance of seeing sharks, go south. If you want to dive a lot of wrecks go north.

All the best
Allie

Rick

14-02-2006, 14:09

finally decided, took the last place on Typhoon doing the North leaving this Sunday :)

Alison Boler

14-02-2006, 18:17

Have a great time - and of course pen us a report for the TC website when you come back!!! I am off to Sharm myself on Monday for a week, but sadly not on a liveaboard this time :(

Allie

jorawley

03-04-2006, 21:54

Hi there,
I dived off Typhoon in Oct last year with Karin & Jo and they were great, lovely boat too but that was for elphinstone & St Johns.
I've also dived off GSS this year on daedulus, rocky & zab and then did wrecks n reefs in the North on Diamond.

I personally felt the north was v v busy even on a livaboard, but there are the major attractions of the thistelgorm, carnatic etc whereas the shark and coral formations down south were far far better than the North.

Its 6 of one, half a dozen of the other. But I'm sure you'll have agreat time on either boats.
Jo

Nigel Hewitt

04-04-2006, 08:20

1. St John's on Grand Sea Serpent £695 inc. free Nitrox
2. Northern Wrecks and Reefs on Typhoon £750 Nitrox extraIt is rather a matter of taste but I've done the south.
I'm not interested in coral and there are only so many times you can look a a fish and be interested, even big ones.

Conversely I have always discovered something new delving in the wrecks of Abu Haas.

Rick

04-04-2006, 10:42

back for quite a while if I ever did the north again it would be a wrecks only itinery

Maria

23-04-2006, 21:46

Have dived North, Brothers, South and Sudan. The North is best for wrecks, but crowded; the Brothers has great wall dives and can be combined with North or South, but the long boat journeys can be uncomfoartable and reduce the amount of diving on a combined itinery; the South has excellent corals at both St Johns and Fury Shoal; whilst Sudan offers excellent reefs and the Umbria which is a world class wreck dive without the crowds of the North. My vote goes for Sudan, even with the hassle of indirect flights, though I would happily return to any of these locations.