The Bubbles Below Team
Linda Marsh
Aloha! Thank
you for looking at Bubbles Below Scuba Charters web pages.
Ken and I started Bubbles Below in
1983, and we worked at providing divers with a different type of dive.
As I am a perpetual student, I wanted the charters to be educational,
with a flare in adventure. Drift
diving is one of my favorite ways to dive, as you can quietly change your
environment without necessarily intruding upon it.
Through observation, a diver can learn the way species interact with each
other as well as depend on each
other for balance in the overall ecological system.
I find that many divers like an anchor line to ascend up at
the end of the dive. Seeing the
damage of Hurricane Iwa in 1982 and then Hurricane Iniki
in 1992, I started a moorings project for
Kauai
as a legacy to the children who would dive here.
But moorings are still restrictive on where divers can go,
so over the years we developed a way to call for the boat, and anchor
from the bottom up! I think this is
grand, as we can drift dive and still place the anchor gently on the bottom,
thus not breaking any coral. Being
environmentally conscious is not just lip service, it’s a way of living and
diving!
I started diving as a child and have been diving ever
since. My degree in education came
from the
University
of
Michigan
and I still use that education to inform divers about the marine environment. A
NAUI/PADI instructor since 1976 and holding a 100 ton Captains rating, I have been
cruising Kauai’s waters since 1980 looking for dive sites that are unique
habitats and fun to dive.
Formally Linda Bail, now use my
maiden name of Marsh. I invite you
to come and dive with Bubbles Below Scuba Charters, meet our conscientious crew,
fabulous fishes, and incredible invertebrates of
Kauai
Hawaii
!
Byron Vance
A PADI Instructor for Bubbles Below, is a Canadian by
heart, humor, and origin. He
started diving in Lake Mead Nevada in 1985, and fell in love with the sport.
In
Southern California
he met up with nudibranchs and flatworms whose colors dazzled him and
led him to
Kauai
’s diving doorstep by 1986. Tho
he loves movies and hiking Kauai’s trails he
is a great critter finder and would much rather be seeking an illusive
frogfish than be doing just about anything else.
The cost of living in paradise catalyzed him to become an EMT
in 1992 and as strong as he is, became a real asset to the community of
Kauai
. Big Byron, also known as “Tiny,
” picked up an engine block the other day so we could get better traction with
the truck. Next time, I think he
should just pick up the truck!
He became a
Captain in 1991, but its difficult to get him out of the ocean as he is so at
home in this environment.
Byron is a
great communicator with some good jokes, who really enjoys sharing the
underwater world with other divers. Divers
speak a common language, and Byron speaks it proficiently.
He is the kind of divemaster who will help the young, inexperienced, or
intimidated, and will rock with the hardcore divers all on the same dive with a
gentle hand, an encouraging smile, and a hardy belly laugh.
Come and enjoy the dive with “Gentle Byron”.
Peter Ricciardi
Peter Ricciardi (Captain/Divemaster) grew up on
Kauai
after transplanting from the mainland with his parents at the age of 4. His
father started the second dive shop on the island in 1976 named Aquatics Kauai
and was a major player in the dive industry here for 15 years. Of course, young
Peter was exposed to the business at an early age. He was swimming , snorkeling,
surfing and eventually scuba certified at 12 years old. You might say Peter was
born to be in the scuba trade. Peter
happens to be an ACE for following diver’s bubbles!
He also rarely is incorrect when making a judgment call on the current.
His intuition about the ocean is keen and accurate.
Besides piloting boats and diving, his other interests are also active
outdoor activities to include golf, basketball, hiking, beach volleyball and
sports in general. Peter still calls
Kauai
home after all these years because "from the mountains to the ocean, there
is such a wide selection of activities to choose from here. The people of
Kauai
also have a generally honest and friendly approach to life." One of his
favorite web sites is http://www.golf.com
Gary Case
Gary Case (Captain/Divemaster) is born and raised in
Hawaii
with a lifelong bond with the ocean. With a father who captained many a vessels
in the State as he grew up,
Gary
naturally took to the water. He is an avid diver, kayaker, surfer, fisherman
and boater with a collection of some 25 different ocean crafts to include
hand/surfboards, windsurfers, skis, kayaks and boats. Scuba certification came
in 1977 followed by a Divemaster and USCG Captain rating in 1988. Besides
Hawaii
,
Gary
has explored the waters of
Costa Rica
,
Bali
, and
Canada
but
Kauai
is definitely home. In his words- "I've always lived by the sea and love
just hanging out by the ocean. I'm not looking for a big fortune, just some
peace of mind away from the crowds." Few people can claim to have as many
hours in and around Hawaiian waters as
Gary
.
Anthony Kuntz
Anthony Kuntz, (PADI Instructor/Divemaster) grew up in
Michigan
, and began diving in
San Diego
in 1992. Diving the shores of
La Jolla
and the
island
of
Catalina
became his weekend home. During
the summers he would make his annual pilgrimages to the shores of
Hawaii
to expand his growing knowledge and love for the sport.
His serious passion led him to become a dynamite PADI instructor in 1999
with Laura Scott in
Maui
. Teaching people to dive
comfortably and safely while sharing his love for diving became paramount in his
priorities. Anthony’s diving
career began with Extended Horizons over in
Maui
where he became one of their
divemasters for
Lanai
,
Molokai
, and
West Maui
. Leading night dives at
Maui
’s Black Rock was one of his favorite dives.
His passion for adventure diving kept bringing him back to Bubbles Below
for Niihau charters year after year and finally led to his moving over to become
part of Bubbles Below Scuba Charters’ staff.
He offers shore dives ranging from guiding service, refreshers,
introductory dives to rescue courses. He
is also offering a photo/video service on the boat, when he is not divemastering
off of Kaimanu. You can be sure
that his growing passion for the underwater world will rub off on you!
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