Fiona and Jason loved every minute of Oxygene Croatia!
Here at Scuba Travel HQ we love to hear how you get on so a huge thanks to Fiona, Jason and the rest of their group that told us about their adventures in Croatia this September. In their words….
After a worryingly easy two hour flight from Heathrow to Zagreb we were met by Boris (the skipper), Rik (the diver) and Lara (the boss!). The drive from the airport to the hotel was interesting as it gave us the chance to chat and find out a bit about the country, the history and the dive centre owners we would be diving with.
The next day, after a much needed lay-in, we headed down to the dive centre to a very relaxed atmosphere and plenty of time and space to get the kit ready. A two minute stroll to the sea front and we were at the boat, then it’s off to dive in the Adriatic.
Fiona: As a diver who doesn’t like cold water I tagged along as an observer and I very quickly regretted deciding not to pack my kit. I get sea sick in a bath tub, but the water was incredibly flat and crystal clear. At the wreck site the mast was visible from the surface and we could even see the white tanks of the divers as they buzzed around the deck at 19 metres. We stopped off on the Island of Krk for a leisurely lunch and there was never any rush to get back to the boat. Rik and Boris are very interesting to chat to and they have a great sense of humour. On the last full day of the holiday there was no diving so we decided to go to the National Park, about 2 hours away, to have a look at the water falls and lakes. Lara organised a mini bus and guide for us and I would strongly recommend this trip for anyone who has a spare day. It’s a very pretty place and the colour of the lakes is quite something! There is even the chance to stop on the way home to sample some local liqueurs, honey and cheeses.
Diver descending for a reef dive
Sunday – The Peltastis (Wreck) and Rt. Druzinin (Reef)
The Peltastis was a Greek ship carrying timber and cement; she sank in 1968 when sheltering from a storm. The wreck is 60 m long and still intact; the top of the mast is at 7 m and can be seen from the surface. There is a lot to see, the propeller is at 32 m, you can enter the holds and the wheelhouse.
The second dive was a pretty little reef where we saw soft corals, Nudibranchs, Squat Lobsters and Scorpion Fish.
Monday – Reef Tenki and Sv. Marak.
The first dive began with a tunnel through the reef that takes you from 5 m down to about 10 m, we continued down the wall to 40 m where there were beautiful purple gorgonian sea fans.
We had an excellent lunch at Vrbnik on the Island of Krk, Boris and Rik were good hosts and very knowledgeable about all things Croatian.
The second dive took us along a wall to a small cave; we spotted many more nudibranchs and some large cigar worms.
Bright nudis are everywhere!
Tuesday – Glavina and Vrbnik Cave
Glavina is a deep wall dive, the visibility was excellent, and you could see the sea bed tens of metres below. We saw more corals, nudibranchs and an octopus. Back on the surface we saw a huge Griffon Vulture by its nest up on the cliff. The Vrbnik Cave is at the entrance to Vrbnik Harbour, it is about 25 m long. Rik found us a large crayfish up near the roof.
Wednesday – Peltastis and Vanjsko Silo
Another chance to have a good poke around the wreck now that we were familiar with its layout. I found a forest of Christmas tree worms in the cabin below the wheelhouse.
We had lunch at a quay side restaurant in Klimno Bay on Krk. Boris and Rik arranged a seafood taster starter and patiently described everything on the menu for us.
The second dive was on a small reef where we spotted the two resident John Dories, we also came across some curious worms that extend almost 1 m across the sea bed, when touched they retract in to their holes like a tape measure.
Crayfish hide in the overhangs
Thursday – Kamenjak and Punta Sila
The top of the reef breaks the surface to form a small islet, the sea was absolutely flat calm, barely a ripple, we descended and circled the island, the underwater topography had many valleys and swim throughs and was great to explore. We spotted more scorpion fish, nudibranchs and octopi.
The second dive was a large reef with several huge scorpion fish hiding in the overhangs, more octopi and more troughs and valleys to explore!
It was a pleasure diving with Boris and Rik, they are very professional, scrupulous with their paperwork and checking of Nitrox mixes and very knowledgeable but they are also very good fun to be around and their English is excellent.
Fiona & Jason
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