Danie is the co-owner (with his wife Esme) of the Diving World PADI Dive Centre in Benoni and has been scuba diving since 1976.
Dive safety has always been a passion in his life.
Danie is also a PADI Master Scuba Dive Instructor and also a qualified EFR Instructor.
Danie has been doing underwater photography since 1977 and is currently concentrating on Underwater Videography.
He has a Ocean Yacht Skippers ticket as well as a DOL skippers ticket for ski and dive boats.
He is a DMAC/EDTC grade IIa Diving medicine physician and registered with the Department of Labour (DOL #293)
At the Healthy Eye Clinic he is an Eye Specialist (HPCSA #MP 0182311) doing mainly cataract & refractive surgery :- "Glasses and contact lenses don't go well with watersports".
Membership of dive medical societies:
Committee member of South African Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Association (SAUHMA)
Committee member of DAN South Africa.
South Pacific Underwater Medicine Society (SPUMS)
European Underwater & Baromedical Society (EUBS)
Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS)
A rundown of his other diving related interests:
Instructor Certificate of the South African Life Saving Society.
Silver Cross Certificate of the South African Life Saving Society.
South African Underwater Union (CIMAS) 3rd Class Scuba Diver Certificate 1976.
Did a BASM course in Sports Medicine in Glasgow Scotland.
Member of the British Association of Sport and Medicine.
Member of the Federation Internationale de Medicine Sportive.
Has Skippers Certificates for Ski Boats and Ocean Yachts.
Course in Sports Medicine at the University of Bath, England 1993 -1995
He has a Turbine Helicopter Pilot license.
We took a taxi today. You don’t want to drive yourself in Bali. The traffic is horrendous. Taxis are very inexpensive. Most of the drivers speak good English and tend to be excellent guides as well.
The best deal is to rent a taxi for a whole day.
Tirta Gangga palace in Bali near Karangase and Mount Abang, is a magnificent water palace, owned by the Karangasem Royal family.
The Taman Ujung water Palace is in the village of Seraya.
It is a beautiful combination of European and Balanese architecture.
We attended the 43rd annual scientific meeting of SPUMS at the Alila resort in Bali.
It was a great meeting, excellent papers, good diving and great company.
Diving the wrecks, jetty and manta point was great .Much better than expected. I was pleasantly surprised.
We have dived with the Mokarran team at Rocktail Bay a couple of times in the past.
Lion Fish
Our recent dive there, in January, was great. The water temp was 28 degrees C and the visibility 20 meters.
They usually do a 2 tank morning dive, with a brunch on shore between the 2 dives. Their skippers, dive-masters and instructors are very competent and considerate. This excellent operation is owned and run by Darryl, Clive and Michelle. Their website is www. mokarrandivecharters.com
Mokarran is the only dive operation in the area and therefore there aren’t any other boats racing around above you. They are not rushed and operate in a very relaxed atmosphere. They are about one hour’s drive north of Sodwana Bay and is the most northern dive area in South Africa, not far from Kosi Bay, Tembe Elephant Park and the Mozambique border. As tropical as you can get in South Africa, Rocktail Bay Beach Camp is not on beach, but, within close walking distance.
What also makes this area so special, is that you are close to all the Game Parks in the iSimangaliso wetland world heritage area. The variation of sea life in this area, is difficult to beat anywhere in the world. You may see whales, dolphins, various kinds of sharks, huge potato bass and all the normal coral fish in abundance. There are very few types of fish that we have not seen here in the past.
Esmé
We have dived in may place in the past and in our opinion it is a better dive site than southern Mozambique.
The turtles and sharks are seasonal, but scuba diving is excellent all year round. It is also one of the few dive sites in South Africa where you can snorkel, but, of course it is weather dependent like any other dive site.
Clam
If you haven’t yet dived with Mokarran, you should definitely put it on your to do list. Rocktail Bay Beach Camp is also an excellent lodge to stay.
