Category: Scuba Diving

First PADI Yoga Diver Retreat & Course on Gili Air

Oceans 5 Dive Resort on Gili Air, Lombok, Indonesia, is hosting a first of its kind in January 2015! The PADI Yoga Diver Retreat and Course.

Being the fastest growing dive operation and IDC Centre in South East Asia, Oceans 5 Dive Resort keeps up with new trends and offers the ideal facilities and settings for this new adventure into connecting body, soul and water.

The PADI Yoga Diver Retreat is designed for certified divers to fine tune their diving skills through yoga. During the 4 or 6 day retreats, students learn breathing techniques using pranayama, meditation and yoga posture practice using the Dynamic Yoga Training Method. Those techniques are practiced on land and in various under water environments and help divers to become calmer and relaxed. Once relaxed, divers find they can improve hugely on their air consumption and therefore enjoy longer dives.

The benefits of the PADI Yoga Diver Retreat go way beyond finding peace and extending dive time. They also include better buoyancy and dive skills, enhanced feeling of well being, deeper connection with nature, being healthier and more energized.

The PADI Yoga Diver Retreat includes the PADI Yoga Diver certification and is designed for divers, with or without yoga experience. Our in-house Yoga and Diving Instructor, Giny Pinto has over 10 years experience in both diving and yoga. She will guide you expertly through the well-planned and fun programmed course which also gives you the opportunity to gain your PADI Advanced Open Water certification with just one extra day at the end of the retreat.

Be the first to experience the magic of this land-water fusion retreat and share your experiences. The first retreat is starting on the 6th January 2015, exclusively at Oceans 5 Dive Resort on the beautiful serene and tranquil island of Gili Air, Lombok, Indonesia. For more information on schedule, prices and dates please contact info@oceans5dive.com.

Useful links:

PADI Yoga Diver

PADI Yoga Diver on Facebook

About Oceans 5 Dive Resort

Scuba Diving for a good cause in Gili Trawangan

Is it possible to combine eco-tourism, volunteering in marine conservation, a PADI distinctive specialty diving course, and two weeks on a beautiful tropical island? With the Biorock(tm) specialty course offered by Trawangan Dive in cooperation with Gili Eco Trust, it is.

In April 2014, six participants (from Australia, Finland, France and Zimbabwe) came together on Gili Trawangan to learn about coral reef conservation and the Biorock(tm) process. Guided by Delphine Robbe of the Gili Eco Trust and Siân Williams of Trawangan Dive, they spent two weeks diving and studying topics such as:

The ecology and biology of coral reefs and their organisms

The importance of coral reefs

The threats facing coral reef ecosystems

Coral gardening: turning over pieces of coral that have been broken off and placing them where they have a better chance of survival, removing Drupella snails and other predators that threaten the corals, etc.

Charting coral health using the CoralWatch system

The Biorock(tm) technology, including how to build and maintain artificial Biorock(tm) reef structures.

During the course, the participants also built their very own Biorock™ structure, shaping it to look like the logo of the project sponsor, Samba Villas on Gili Trawangan. When finished, the structure was placed in the sea just outside Samba Villas, and pieces of broken coral was gathered from the area and attached to the structures.

After only two days, the structure was already starting to show a coating of limestone, helping the pieces of coral to attach and grow. This new Biorock™ is at a depth of around five meters, making it possible for both divers and snorkelers to enjoy, as well as protecting the shoreline from erosion, providing shelter for fish, and serving as a solid substrate for new coral growth.

The Biorock™ specialty course is currently offered four times a year. Meanwhile, the more than 100 Biorock™ structures around the Gilis are always open for visitors, both aquatic and terrestrial!

Text and photos by Sara Estlander

Gili Eco Trust

Biorock™ reef structures

Reef restoration programs at Trawangan Dive

Scuba Diving around Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno & Gili Air

Will Goodman has just broken the world record for deepest dive to 290m

Will Goodman breaks the world record for deepest dive to 290m

UK’s Will Goodman Breaks the Closed-Circuit Rebreather World Record for Depth

Lombok, Indonesia – On March 26th, 2014, following a year’s training and preparation, Will Goodman, a technical diving Instructor Trainer, and Guinness World Record holder for the longest scuba dive, descended to a recorded depth of 290m using an unmodified, JJ-CCR (closed-circuit rebreather). At this depth, all computers stopped registering further, but it is estimated the actual depth exceeded 300m.

Will surfaced after 9 hours and 57 minutes, asymptomatic of signs of decompression illness or dehydration, and was in high spirits. When asked of the experience at depth, he replied, ‘It was the toughest and most challenging environment I have ever been in. I reached the bottom after a 9 minute free fall in absolute darkness. All computers and depth gauges stuck at 290m, in 10 degree water and strong current. I had high narcosis due to the nitrogen levels in my breathing mix, and HPNS (whole body tremors) from the amount of helium in the mix, contributed to by the rapid descent rate. My hands started shaking and, on ascent, I wondered if I’d make it back, as I began to lose my motor function. I can’t thank the team enough for this amazing opportunity and all their hard work.’

Although not recognized as an official Guinness World Record, due to there being no category for this event, Will has been inundated with well wishes and congratulations from professionals in the diving community worldwide, confirming and accepting his claim that he has smashed the previous record of 283m set by Krzysztof Starnwski

The attempt was conducted through Blue Marlin Dive Gili Trawangan, Indonesia, which provided full logistical and team member support. In-water team members from around the world (pictured, left to right) included: Jeff Anastas, Theresia Gollner, Frank Cella, Jan Schmid, Will Goodman, Jeffrey Glenn and Simon Liddiard. Sponsors O’Three supplied exposure protection, and Liquivision provided dive computers.

Text by: GoodWillDiving’s and Blue Marlin Dive Gili Trawangan’s press release.

More about Will Goodman on his web page: www.goodwilldiving.com

More about Blue Marlin Dive Gili Trawangan: bluemarlindive.com

A nice blog post about the world record dive: The World in 3D