Gozo 2018!
We’re heading back to Gozo this summer for a week of awesome diving, warm (26 degrees) water glorious 30m+ vis, spending good times with friends, basking in the sun and whatever else people do on a Mediterranean Island.
What is it?
Gozo is an island of the Maltese archipelago. It is very small (takes around 20 minutes to drive from one side of the island to the other) and is much more rural than Malta. The dive sites are mostly reachable by jumping in straight off the shore, and are very varied. There are a lot of caves, tunnels, wall dives, plus some (quite deep) wrecks. The sites are dotted all around the island – if the wind is not favourable on one side of the island, we’ll just head over to the other side instead. There is also the opportunity to take a boat to Comino (the island in between Malta and Gozo) where we can dive a shallower wreck and also some of the cave system that is under the island. We will be aiming to do 2 dives a day, though there may be time for a third depending on what time we get up or go to bed.
We will be staying in some sort of farmhouse (there’s plenty of these available all over the island); last time we had a 12 person house which had a pool and barbecue facilities. To get around, we’ll be hiring Jeeps and driving ourselves to the sites.
Whilst not diving, we can relax on the beaches, visit the capital Victoria (or the capital of Malta, Valetta), eat and drink in Marsalforn Harbour at one of the many restaurants, visit the Salt Pans… Gozo also has one of the oldest man made temples that still stands.
When is it?
We’re looking to go at the beginning of September (currently the cheapest flights are from the 4th to 13th September). This gives you all summer to finish off Sports Diver (see below) and also earn some money…
What’s the cost?
Here’s the breakdown:
- Hiring cylinders and lead ~£90
- Flights from London ~£85 (not including baggage, add £30 for baggage). These will either be booked individually, although when I have numbers I will approach some travel agencies.
- Jeep hire and fuel ~ £50
- Accommodation ~£150
Plus food and kit hire if you need it (either from UBUC or from the dive centre). So a grand total of (estimated) ~£450 for a week!
Who can go?
In order to come on this trip, you must be at least a BSAC Sports Diver (SD) or PADI Advanced Open Water (this is Maltese law). We will be diving ‘unaccompanied’, which means that we will not have a guide – instead, we will have people on the trip who have dived the sites before. If you are not at least SD qualified yet, please come and chat with me at the pub and we can discuss whether we can get you qualified before the trip.
How many people can go?
As the jeeps can take 4 people plus gear each, we need multiples of 4 people. Last trips we’ve taken 12 people, however if there are more then we can push this number higher (we’ll probably end up renting multiple places to stay if this is the case).
What do you need to do now?
Pay a deposit of £50 here:
https://www.bristolsu.org.uk/
And pop your details (all of them please!) here:
https://docs.google.com/
And check out the Facebook Event here:
https://www.facebook.com/
0 Comments