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Showing posts from January, 2008

Diver Magazine features Stephen Weir story on ghost diving in Grenada

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Diver Magazine has just published my feature article on Ghost Diving in Grenada. Similiar to the story I wrote for the Toronto Sun -- they are both about the same underwater incident -- but this story is aimed at the certified diver. The Toronto Sun is very much a working man's paper and most of the readers probably do not dive, so every effort was made to make it a fun travel piece that was light on dive technical terms. The Diver story was edited by Peter Golding. Most of the pictures used in the article weren't taken by me and only have fleeting reference to the story - don't know the photographer at all, I gather Peter Golding bought them from a freelancer. If anyone would like a copy of the printed article, let me know, I will mail it to you. My address is on the splash page. Here is my original version of the Diver Magazine story. Live aboard stories from the Wind Dancer A ghost of a chance for unusual underwater sightings in warm Grenadian waters By Stephen Weir

10 best "new" boating products at the Toronto Boat Show

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In December I was part of a six-person panel which looked at all the "new" products that were going to be shown at the 50th anniversary Toronto International Boat Show. At boat shows the word "new" is used loosely. In North America most marine companies debut products at the Miami Boat Show, so, for trade fairs being held after Miami (The Toronto show runs in January 08) new becomes new-to-Toronto, or, first-showing-Canada. We choose the ten best products. I wrote a story and press release about our panel's picks. The story appeared in the showguide (cover at left) and I have seen it also in the January/February issue of Boating Business. I believe a coupla other magazines used varients of the story as well. Since the content of the story is only germane to the show, which ends Sunday, I haven't bothered to post the story. If you want to see it (can't imagine while) drop me a note and I will forward it to you.

2008 Ontario Marina Guide Features a Story on Lake Huron Written by Stephen Weir

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Every year for the past five years I have written travel stories for the annual 2008 Marinas and Destination Guide - Boating Ontario. Late last year I updated last year's story for the annual guide. That small format magazine came out in January and made its debut at the annual Toronto International Boat Show. HEAD: Lake Huron and Area DECK: Catch the sun on a sandy beach. Cruise and fish the open water. Lake Huron is ready to thrill with every visit. By Stephen Weir What was once called La Mer Douce (the fresh water sea) by early French explorers and later, Lac des Hurons (The Lake of the Huron Indians), by the First Nations people, is a vast on-water playground where excitement is king. The second largest Great Lake with a surface area spanning 23, 010 square miles, approximately the size of West Virgina, Lake Huron is considered the third largest lake in world (if the saline Caspian Sea is included) and boasts a shoreline spanning 6,157 kilometers. While the west coast of the

Boat Shows Turns 50 years of age - Boats and Motors uses my press release for 2-page feature in its January issue

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In September I wrote a couple press releases for Holmes Communication to be used as long-lead stories in boating magazines. Boats and Places, a magazine started by Ted Rankine and now owned by Brian Minton, used my piece as the basis of a two-page article in their January 2008 issue. What follows is the original piece that I wrote. 2008 -- Golden Anniversary for Canada’s biggest boating event Toronto International Boat Show launched 50 years ago This January 11th the Toronto International Boat Show will be celebrating its 50th anniversary by doing what it does best -- opening the hatches on the Direct Energy Centre and inviting the public to come on board and see the fleet of 2008. The nine-day Toronto International Boat Show is turning fifty; it is a major exhibition milestone but more importantly, it is a time for celebration for the show, the boating industry and the Canadian economy. The world’s biggest indoor harbour! Exciting wakeboard boats, rooftop aluminum fishing boats,

Underwater Grenada Ghost Story

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On the last Sunday of 2007, the Toronto Sun ran a feature that I wrote about diving aboard the Wind Dancer in the waters of Grenada. The story is about diving, but, it is about ghosts too. I have received a couple of emails about the cover photo that the Sun published. It shows asmall eel with tiny yellow cleaning fish perched on its head. Unfortunately, someone at the Sun thought the cleaning fish was actually the eel's mouth and as a result the photograph was run upside down. The Sun gets about a million readers on Sunday and so far only three people have noticed. I have reprinted the cover and the original photograph above. A Scuba Vacation Aboard The Wind Dancer A ghost of a chance for eerie underwater sightings in warm Grenadian waters By Stephen Weir June 19, 2007 Not counting mermaid sightings, underwater ghost encounters are hard to come by. On land, specters rattle chains, throw pottery and hide car keys (at least mine do), But underwater? Well, at least in Gre

Grenada live aboard and Tilley information

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Grenada Sidebar: Useful Information All Canadian citizens require a valid passport and return (or onward) ticket is required to enter any of the three islands of Grenada, (Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique). However, proof of citizenship bearing a photograph is acceptable from Canadian, British, and U.S. citizens, if accompanied with a copy of a birth certificate. Travellers are charged a $20 Cdn departure tax at its internatonal airport. The official currency of Grenada is Eastern Carribean Dollar Air Canada, SkyService and Zoom Airlines have weekly flights to Grenada from Toronto and Montreal. Caribean Airlines services Grenada from Toronto. MS Wind Dancer www.peterhughes.com 305-669-9391 Phone 800-932-6237 Toll Free Grenada Tourism www.grenadagrenadines.com 439 University Ave. Suite 920 Toronto, Ontario M5G 1Y8 Tel: (416) 595-1339 Fax: (416) 595-8278 Grenada Scuba Diving Association www.grenadascubadivingassociation.com/ president@grenadascubadivingassociation.com Tilley

Twirling Tilley Underwear at Dunning Weight Charges

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author Stephen Weir in his Tilley hat aboard the Wind Dancer CANADIAN OUTFITTER STOP AIRPORTS FROM CHARGING WEIGHT SURCHARGE By Stephen Weir The new realities of international travel have made carrying scuba gear difficult and sometimes expensive. Luckily travel clothing manufacturers have helped take the weight off flying with scuba equipment. Not only are airport authorities now red flagging dive equipment (dive regulators look “funny” on the X-ray screens) airlines are, seemingly in tandem, strictly enforcing weight restrictions. Flying to Barbados I was restricted to two pieces of checked luggage. Transferring to a small regional airplane to reach Grenada I met more onerous rules - the two bags couldn’t have a combined weight of more than 23 kilos. Trouble is – my scuba and camera gear weighs in at 22 kilos. If I take clothes, shaving kit, books and IPod my bags set the airline cash re