November 2011
Wow! I’m in my 60’s, never snorkelled before and was very nervous at putting my face under the water, but I was amazed at how easy it was. Stuart watched me like a hawk and stayed close by my side until I got the hang of it, then I was away with the most amazing tropical fish and coral. Never seen anything like it. Then he got me comfortable with the scooter which allowed me to swim with the fish. I can honestly say it’s been a long time since I enjoyed anything new so much. Thank you Aruba Bob!
August 2011
Upon my arrival in the evening to Aruba I had the pleasure of meeting Kent and him cooking for me some fresh fish and lobster at ClubArias. I had never met him yet he treated me with great respect and thoughtfulness. The seafood was the best and I felt completely at ease and contented.
I come for the Epic kite boarding that's located near ClubArias at the quiet end of the island ... Boca Grandi
However, I quickly was engaged by the idea of some Snorkeling.
It was with great fortune that I had Kent and Stuart Finch to guide me and we proceeded to do a day and then a night dive.
We speared a bounty of fish and I could not of asked for more attentive and experienced local guides!
The underwater propulsion machines all worked flawlessly and are state of the art.
I'd Like to thank Kent Gerber, Stuart Finch, Arias, Ryan, Pascal, and his wife ( forgive me for forgetting your name ). Miss you guys- Strat
Oops! I Just remembered, Stuart and Kent went to great lengths to take many photos of our trip. They came out really cool and with lots of game fish too...I have come to learn how important these pictures are to remember the adventure of a lifetime. I'm glad that they were patient with me. Had they not of encouraged me I would be bait-less, missing the lures that I shall be using to temp my friends for my next trip. - Strat
August 2011
We went snorkeling with Kent this morning and it was amazing. He took 5 of us out and once he felt that we were comfortable in the water and using the scooters, he took us on a fantastic tour of Mangel Halto and its reefs for an hour and a half. This reef has some of the clearest water I have seen in Aruba and great coral formations. The only other people there were a few divers with Aqua Windies, so a very different experience from the snorkel boats we have previously taken. We finished with Kent around 11am and he emailed us the underwater pictures he took of us at 3pm. I totally agree with Jpsphr that this was just a great snorkeling experience...and Kent is just a really nice person to meet and spend some time with.
Wow! What a great time I had! I had never been snorkeling before but really wanted to try it so I made reservations with Stuart before I got to Aruba. My husband didn't think I would be able to do it, so the day before my scheduled snorkel trip, I went to the hotel equipment center and signed out a mask and snorkel and headed into the water. DH showed me how to put the mask and snorkel on. At first it was a little scarey not being able to breath normally, but I caught on real fast and made my mind up that I was going to keep my 'date' with Stuart. Stuart picked us up at the hotel (Occidental) and we were on our way to be fitted with the gear and then on our way to Mangel Halto for snorkeling. I must say that during the reservation phase, we were asked what I consider very important questions, such as how well can you swim, have you ever snorkeled, etc. And he also recommended that we wear a t-shirt while snorkeling due to the sun.
We got to the beach, put on our gear and headed in to the water! Unfortunately, DH couldn't continue on...he has lung disease and the rough water made it to difficult for him to breath through the snorkel. Stuart took him back to the beach and back to the car and made sure that he was alright to leave there (he was fine, just knew he couldn't do the swim). Stuart told me to make sure that I stay where I could always touch bottom until he got back. Once he got back we headed out. I was amazed. I felt bad that I had to keep stopping to take a breath and breath through my nose. He told me not to worry about that, he wanted me to be comfortable. We were in the water for more than an hour and he did have to 'save' me once when I couldn't get away from the area of the coral. He left it up to me if I wanted to continue on. I chose not to go any further because, being my first time out, I didn't want him to have to 'swim' me back in on his back! He took us back to the hotel, and the next day brought me over a disc with pictures he took of us snorkeling, and the fish we saw.
I think this was the highlight of my trip and when I return to Aruba I will definately book Stuart again. I will be perfecting my snorkeling before the next trip! And hopefully DH will drop a few pounds, which will make his breathing easier, and will be able to join us, if not he will take the pictures!
On a scale of 1 to 10 I give this event a 10. Thanks for the great time and memories, Stuart.
- Brenda and Lance
You will have a great time with Kent snorkeling. My husband and I went snorkeling with Kent this August. We are not very experienced either. Kent was very patient and calm with us. My husband Charlie was a little apprehensive at first, and then he had a blast. This trip was the highlight of our vacation. We plan to make this a yearly event with Kent. If you need more infomation you can pm me.
- Patti & Charlie
July 2011
We went snorkeling with Kent this morning and it was amazing. He took 5 of us out and once he felt that we were comfortable in the water and using the scooters, he took us on a fantastic tour of Mangel Halto and its reefs for an hour and a half. This reef has some of the clearest water I have seen in Aruba and great coral formations. The only other people there were a few divers with Aqua Windies, so a very different experience from the snorkel boats we have previously taken. We finished with Kent around 11am and he emailed us the underwater pictures he took of us at 3pm. I totally agree with Jpsphr that this was just a great snorkeling experience...and Kent is just a really nice person to meet and spend some time with. |
