Tom Peyton

Travel Channel loves Kids Sea Camp

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Kids and scuba, best dive vacations, kids sea camp, travel channel

Travel Channel: Kids Sea Camp is one of the best adventures in the world.

Kids Sea Camp at Anse Chastanet in St. Lucia was named one of the “best family adventures” in 2015 by the Travel Channel. Kids Sea Camp is not only for divers. Our week is just a great family vacation.

The Travel Channel: Families from around the world who share a love for the ocean should head to St. Lucia for an unforgettable vacation at Kids Sea Camp. Family Dive Adventures offers this 6-day/7-night itinerary, hosted by the top-ranked resort Anse Chastanet, which provides the best accommodations, fine dining, and activities on the island.

“That’s as young as 10 years old can acquire certification to scuba dive. Even Four-year-olds can get in the water at Kids Sea Camp,” says Rainer Jenss, president and founder of the Family Travel Association.

“That’s great news for parents who thought they’d have to give up diving when the kids were born.” In between dives, guests can hike through an 18th-century ruin of an old sugar plantation or take a ride on a mountain bike through the rainforest.

Kids Sea Camp is Elite!

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Kids Sea Camp, Margo Peyton

. . .and so is Margo Peyton

Margo Peyton has been awarded a PADI Elite Instructor award for 2014. To receive the award, an instructor must have over 150 certifications during the calendar year. PADI’s award is in recognition of outstanding accomplishment in PADI Diver Training. The number of certifications attained by Margo during the Kids Sea Camp training weeks was 282 in 2014. Kids Sea Camp contributed 402 new certifications in 2014, bringing the running 14-year total to 5402. That’s a lot of new divers!

elite, kids and diving, Kids Sea Camp, Margo Peyton

“I’m honored that PADI is seeing all the wonderful work we are doing, getting children and their families diving together. It’s a personal joy of mine. I would love to get everyone I meet under the water and experience diving. I can honestly say I think everyone would be a happier and healthier person if they all learned to dive.

Margo Peyton is awarded her first PADI Elite Dive Instructor award.

I also want to thank PADI for all the support since the very beginning of Kids Sea Camp, some 15 years ago. They have also been there for me and my little company, helping us in any way they can.” 

Margo Peyton, founder and owner of Kids Sea Camp and Family Dive Adventures 

Kids Sea Camp in the Top 10!

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Sea turtles, kids sea camp

Kids Sea Camp in USA Today’s 10 best!

KSC is ranked number #2 in a recent USA Today poll of the most thrilling camps in the world! We are ranked among the best adventures for the tiniest travelers. From the offices of Kids Sea Camp, we would add that the biggest travelers also enjoy the camps.

Tiny kids, Family vacations, USA today, World's best, Top 10, Kids Sea CampBecause we’re all kids at a Kids Sea Camp week! The online article mentions Bonaire, Buddy Dive only — but we all know how many weeks and the islands we go to over the course of the year. All the weeks are great for the diving family on holiday.

Our families have always known KSC as the best-kept secret in the world, but no more. The public has voted! Kids Sea Camp is a perfect vacation you can take your family!

Kids Sea Camp was also named one of the “Top 10 in the world for families” by the Travel Channel in 2015.

See what NBC had to say about us! (See link)

Kids Sea Camp Dive Vacation tips

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Buddy Dive, Bonaire, Kids Sea Camp

Tips for a better dive vacation!

It’s time — you have been waiting all year for the summer dive vacation. You’re so excited, so pumped up to head to your tropical vacation that you forget the sunscreen or worse, the passport. We have had families forget: Dive computers, cameras, passport and yes even the dates they are traveling. But you may be a bit rusty here are some vacation tips for diving this summer.

So take your time and prepare for your dive vacation. Plan a day to pack and make a list of all the important items you need to bring to make your holiday easy and fun. Over the years, Margo and I have noticed there are a few things to remember for a better dive vacation. Some of the items are easy to remember — some are less obvious.

Get ready for the adventure of the Kids Sea Camp summer!

  • Check your equipment! Make sure you have it all! We’ve never had anyone forget all their equipment, but a mask, their fins, a dive computer or even their BC. It happens.
  •  Make your equipment yours: Mark your equipment with your name or symbol before you’re on the boat. It all sorts of looks the same once you’re on the boat, and it helps the dive shop to organize your equipment.
  • Don’t forget toothpaste for your mask.
  • Bring a spare dive computer: All the resorts have dive computers, but they may not match your equipment.  So if you have an extra computer — bring it. It is the number one issue we find with our equipment — most of the time it’s a failing battery. But the dive show may not service your brand equipment.
  • Defog: And just in case, get your defog before heading to the island. All the dive boats have some, but we always make sure to have the defog with us. A clear mask is a good choice for a dive mask.
  • Pack your Certification Card and logbook.
  • Bring your boat items, like sunglasses, rain gear, and comfortable boat shoes.
  • Dive insurance: Margo and I carry Dan dive insurance all year round. Diving is a very safe recreational sport — but sometimes you just never know. And when it comes to our kids in a foreign country, we want the DAN protection.
  • Bring your medical items
  • Passports (Duh — right?) Well, Margo and I once got in such a hurry that we forgot our passports.
  • Check your flights the day before. We have a couple of families who have forgotten their flight dates. The story to get them to the airport is worth a beer or two.
  • Credit cards: Call before you leave and tell the company that you will be in a foreign country.
  • Ziploc bags
  • Baggage limits: Most airlines have a 50-pound weight limit for coach and one bag per person. First class normally weighs 70 pounds and includes two bags per person. We’re divers, so bringing our equipment is important. Just double-check the weight; the surcharge can run into the hundreds of dollars.
  • Passports (in case you have forgotten already)
  • Pack your patience: Expect delays —traveling to any island really is a delay waiting to happen. So have fun, be patient, and enjoy your Kids Sea Camp summer.
  • Buy travel insurance: Kids Sea Camp buys DAN travel insurance on every one of our trips. Margo and I both know we have been lucky with great weather over the years —but we also know we don’t control it. Things happen; it’s just that simple. Be prepare. Please note: Some credit cards offer very good travel insurance as part of the card membership.

Toothpaste and new dive mask

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Bonaire, Diving with Kids, Tom Peyton

Preparing a new dive mask

The foggy mask: I had a client buy a new dive mask this week, and I told him to make sure to rub toothpaste on both sides of the mask lens before jumping into the water. It will help prevent the lens from fogging up.

He then asked a very simple question, “Why?”

I had no answer for him—I said it was tradition. He then asked, “But why is it the tradition?

I smiled and thought to myself how living with a Hall of Famer who really is a diving professor, Professor Margo of the department of Oceanic Adventures at Kids Sea Camp, makes me a little dumb at times. I have watched Margo put toothpaste in our new dive masks for years — she even puts it in the old ones at the beginning of the summer. And the dumb part  — I never once asked why. Not once did I ask why we are putting something I put on my teeth every day on an item that has no teeth? I just knew that when she didn’t use the toothpaste, my mask would fog up — very quickly — and I hate a foggy mask.

One good thing about myself is that once I realize just how stupid I’m acting or thinking, I tend correct my behavior, and I do this by gathering information. So here’s why my Oceanic Professor puts toothpaste on the lens of our mask almost every year, at the beginning of our diving season— new or not.

Toothpaste is a mild abrasive

Most newer masks, frames, skirts, and straps are made of silicone, which creates a film on the mask’s lens. The film on the lens blocks the defog from working properly. In fact, if the silicone residue is not removed, any amount of defogging work on the lens.

After the toothpaste

After you have cleaned off the toothpaste and you are heading to the boat, make sure to have some defog. There are many brands, and with the silicon residue removed, most of them will work. The fact of the matter is, all the dive boats have some form of defog, though most use a watered-down J&J baby shampoo.

Other forms of defogging

Spit: Real divers don’t use defog; they spend a lot of time draining their mouths, building up a large quantity of saliva, and projecting it into their masks. Many divers say this is the best form of defog, but the idea of my eyes breathing in all the wonderful germs from my mouth — just doesn’t work for me.

SeaDrops: Clean, quick, and easy to use — a few drops on the inside and the outside of the mask has gotten me close to a decade of “no fog” mask. Just remember to wash the drops out right before you jump off the boat. If you don’t clean the drops out of the mask properly, you could experience a severe burning sensation in your eyes — and the eye burn can really ruin a great dive. Why? Because all defog is a form of soap. That’s why most dive boats and shops use J&J Baby Shampoo  — it’s easier on the eyes.

Burn it off: Don’t do this at home unless you know a professional mask burner who has done it many times. You are basically burning off the thin film that protects the new lens. The danger, of course, is burning the entire soft silicone that makes your new mask so darn comfortable.

After the dive

Hit the dunk tank: Make sure you use freshwater to clean off all your dive equipment. Almost all our family of divers dunk their BCs in the sweetwater tub, but I have watched numerous divers forgo a quick rinse of their fins, mask, snorkel, and wetsuit. Remember, a clean mask doesn’t fog up as much, and clean gear lasts longer.

Tom Peyton, Vice President of Kids Sea Camp and Family Dive Adventures

Kids Sea Camp fuels Zebee Wakely’s love of photography

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Underwater photography, Kids Sea Camp

Photography: It started out as a faint dream, now it’s a full-blown passion

Article by Zebedee Wakely, Junior Master Scuba Diver, Age 13, and FDA approved.

FDA: Family Dive Adventures (not to be confused with the Food and Drug Administration)

I just don’t know where to begin with this. Kids Sea Camp is just too big and too great to even attempt to write about. But here you are now, attempting to read my jumbled mess of ideas and thoughts, so I’ll give it a go — no promises though.

I should probably start with the exciting stuff, like where I backward roll into a school of 50-plus sharks in Yap (the country, not the small annoying noise made by dogs) or when I’m charging at top speed through the current of Ulong Channel in Palau, but instead I’ll start at the beginning.

Kids Sea Camp at age five

Underwater photography, kids sea camp, margo peytonAt the age of five, I started Kids Sea Camping, and my parents signed me up in the group known as “SASY”. Little kids get to put on scuba gear, but substitute a Life Jacket for the BCD so we float on the surface while breathing through a regulator. This gave me my first experience with Scuba Diving.

Since I was already a water baby by six months and swimming by one, I thought Kids Sea Camp was created just for me. Quickly making my way through the dive ranks, I again returned for Seal Team. This was a landmark in my interest in Scuba Diving.

Seal Team is a program for eight- and nine-year-olds to learn to dive in a confined-water environment. However, with Kids Sea Camp, the Seal Team can dive in the ocean.

I just fell in love with diving

On my tenth birthday, my mom and dad chose Yap & Palau for our family adventure, and that’s where the real story begins. The experiences I had in Yap and Palau were likely some of the best I will ever have. Completing my PADI Jr. Open Water certification with manta rays overhead was surely one of the greatest moments of my life.

The feeling I had when I was diving with 15-foot mantas and some 50-plus reef sharks daily was phenomenal, too amazing to fully describe. Just the idea of going there and doing that again will excite me forever.

Learning photography

The encouragement I received from Kids Sea Camp was amazing. The families I met became, and still are, some of my best friends and assets to my life. In Yap, Manta Ray Bay was where I properly learned photography. The support from all of my friends and family is the reason I have stuck with it (unlike a lot of other things I’ve tried). I loved every aspect of Yap, from the diving to the staff and the local people. I can safely say that experience has significantly contributed to who I am today

Getting back home to Bermuda, I was so passionate about saving sharks (with Palau being a shark sanctuary) that I set up a small organization called “Save Our Sharks Bermuda”. I collected over 1000 signatures and met with the Minister for the Environment to discuss and plan how best to protect our sharks. Bermuda then signed the “International Agreement on the Conservation of Pelagic Species”. I was so totally delighted about this because I had made an impact on Bermuda and the conservation of the sea.

Diving from a young age is exceptional

Having the privilege to be diving from a young age is exceptional. Through diving with Kids Sea Camp over the years, I have advanced through the PADI ranks from SASY, Seal Team, Jr. Open Water, Advanced Open Water, Rescue, and Master Scuba Diver, with over 100 dives and 7 specialties.

This feels too good to describe. Having a place like Kids Sea Camp, to go through all the ranks, all the way to the top, is what I love the most. The experience has been fantastic. I couldn’t have done what I have without it.

I have made lifelong friends and have been encouraged by Margo in a way I could never repay. So thank you, Margo.

Margo deserves a whole part of my story for herself. Mrs. Peyton created the best organization that I have ever known. She has influenced me, trusted me, and helped me in every aspect of life. Margo has guided me through diving one step at a time, and with each step

I am even more grateful for her and my family finding her. She is very focused on safety and is an inspirational teacher who is helpful no matter what. She is the heart of Kids Sea Camp!

I just don’t know how to end this. So thanks, Mom, Dad, and sister Holly, too. Our family of divers just can’t get enough. FIJI is the next Kids Sea Camp — to dive with the sharks of Beqa Lagoon.

KSC Turkey Bowl News

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Kids Sea Camp, Turkey Bowl, Thanksgiving vacations
Coach Lloyd Kaufman has agreed to terms with the Happy Campers for this year’s KSC Bowl

Former KSC Cowboys defensive coordinator Lloyd Kaufman will be leading the Happy Campers against the KSC Cowboys at this year’s Turkey Bowl in St. Lucia. The deal with the front office was agreed to in principle on Tuesday.

“I have long loved the tradition and importance of the KSC Turkey Bowl.” Coach Kaufman spoke on Wednesday at a press conference in Detroit,” It will be an honor to follow in the footsteps of legendary coach Travis. I will say we plan to run a combine on Monday. Hopefully, we will see what condition the team is in after the long offseason.”

Coach Peyton is happy about Kaufman’s coaching opportunity

Kaufman was excited about the new opportunity. “Well, after studying as defensive coordinator under coach Peyton for a year, I felt it was time to spread my wings. You know and see what I could do at the pro level. It certainly will not be easy going up against my former mentor this year.”

When asked about coaching against his old coach, Peyton, he said, “But I feel I have a good understanding of head coaching fundamentals, a good recruiting class, and most importantly, a copy of coach Peyton’s playbook.”

Major coaching change

“For the first time in its young existence, there has been a coaching change. Texas icon Will Travis has been leading the Happy Campers for the past two years. But due to contract disputes with the Campers’ front office, coach Travis will not be on the sidelines for the 2014 Kids Sea Camp Turkey Bowl.

“I got run out of town!” An angry and disappointed coach, Travis, responded. “Kaufman walked right past me. He’s up there right now signing the contract. This ain’t right. I mean, I won the game last year! What else is a coach supposed to do?”

“Kaufman should be a good test for the KSC Cowboys,” coach Peyton responded to the news. “He will be missed. Kaufman was a great coach for our defense over the years.”

“He got a new car!

It was clear from this reporter’s view that Kaufman was beaming with the ardent test of facing his old coach. He drove off into the sunset in a new, shiny 2015 Challenger. Rumors that the red-and-black-stripe Challenger was included as a signing bonus for Kaufman’s one-year contract. There is no doubt that he signed a must-win contract.

“He got a new car!” Coach Travis responded with disbelief, “Amazing. Simply amazing. I don’t know what to think. What a crazy front office. I wish him all the luck in the world.”

Kids Sea Camp: St. Lucia Poetry

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What an amazing night of poetry

The poetry night always held on the last night of the Kids Sea Camp week is normally a special night. But this week at St. Lucia seemed even more remarkable than normal. Maybe it was the gentle rain with the moon dancing in-between the clouds that brought our families prose and verve a little more to the surface. There was a little more energy and edge during the night.

As Dylan Thomas would say:
No one went quietly into that good night.
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night

This poetry contest live up to the Thomas’ poem. A memorable night — a special night — that Margo and I will remember forever. Thank you all for putting so much effort into the evening.

Let’s go chasing rainbows. In Anse Chastanet, during the Kids Sea Camp Thanksgiving week we saw five single rainbows and two double rainbows spreading across the caribbean sky.

First place: Teen Boat Dive Briefing, The Poem

By Tyler Jenss

Today our dive will go sixty feet deep,
And forty five minutes is the time to keep.
To get in the water, just do a big stride,
Then fill up your BC and wait for your guide.
When you get the Ok, you can start to go down,
And put in your regulator so that you don’t drown.
Watch for rocks and sand, because they can go fast,
And if you see an eel you may get harassed,
But if it starts coming towards you just give it a kick,
And keep an eye out for some slippery dick.
When you get two thumbs up, start to head to the surface,
But don’t go too fast ‘cause you’ll make Kenton nervous.
Swimming straight to the boat can lead to decapitation,
This would undoubtedly ruin your family vacation!
When you get to the ladder, go up one-at-a-time,
First take off your fins and then start to climb.
A bang from the boat means an issue atop,
So ascend at one-foot-per-second with no safety stop.
If you hear there’s a problem, don’t ask any questions,
Just go to the surface and then wait for directions.
Keep an eye on your air, and let it be known,
Seven hundred pounds is our caution zone.
If you run out of air, do not be upset,
And the number one rule is, try not to get wet!
 

 

First place

By Emma Svitil

When swimming around in the deep ocean blue,
I’ve found some thoughts that just come to you.
Granted some are silly, like my hot dog joke.
But others are profound and need to be written.
We’ve reached many epiphanies down there in the blue,
and now I’d like to share one of mine with you.
The first dive I went on I saw many a thing.
I saw corals, rocks and some long lost ring,
but the one thing I saw that really stood out…
Was none other than the trumpet fish with his long snout!
I remember him clearly as I swam through the arch.
He was silver and shiny and made my heart lurch!
Afterwards as I swam on, thinking on this,
I realized-with me, there was something amiss.
See I’ve always thought I was different and special,
much like this fish I was shiny and precious.
But I suddenly realized that no one else cared.
They didn’t remember that trumpet fish there.
No one on a dive boat says “Did you see that?”
About the poor trumpet fish and others like that.
All everyone cares about is rarity and size.
But they don’t believe unless they see it with their eyes.
I think some of us believe we are fish in the pack.
We’re trout’s and the guppies and the gold fish snacks.
We’re here for a while, we swim around, float.
Then we get eaten or kidnapped or both!
And we think no one cares, we think no one has noticed.
We see the divers swim on, and we see them demote us.
They turn us into another object, a thing.
A backdrop for all that they want to be seeing.
And maybe it’s true.  Maybe we are just some fish.
But that’s not important, what’s important is this:
I will never forget that one trumpet fish.
That fish was so special, he couldn’t be missed.
At least by me, see, that’s where it counts.
I can travel the world; I can make my rounds,
 But I won’t forget him and that’s where its true
That that is how somebody feels about you.
For most of the divers you may not be special.
They’ll swim on by, and then they’ll just board the vessel.
They they’ll leave and forget and move on to the next. But for one person, just maybe, they’ll stay and they’ll rest.
They’ll take all the pictures; they’ll put you in logs.
They’ll remember there depth and the exact time and all.
Or the things that happened the moment they saw you
That one special fish
The best of all
You.
 
 

Second place

60’s Diving Medley: (sung to the tunes of Nat King Cole’s “Love” and The Weavers “Lion Sleeps Tonight”)
By the Molkentin Family
S: is for the Sea that we explore.
C: keeps us Coming back for more and more
U: is the Underwater life galore
B:  The Bubbles
And A: we sure Adore. Kids Sea Camp.

Divin’ trips with kids sea camp are just the best
They fulfill our family’s diving quests.

Kids sea camp’s shown us  new spots on the map
Utila, Bonaire,  Palau
The Grenadines, St. Lucia and Yap
Come, along and join the family fun
Kids dive safe
Under Margo’s thumb

Grab your mask, your fins.
Strap on your BCD
See the peacock flounders, trumpet fish
And anemone

Dive KSC from dawn to dusk each day
Night Dive with the  needle fish that dot the bay

We  love the fringing coral
And the fish
That this trip would never end
Is our only wish…Because

we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh ooh, ooh, we came to dive

St. Lucia is a small sovereign island
in the East Car rib Be an Sea
Land of cultural history, gracious, smiling people
The Pitons and  Anse Chastanet

Anse Chastanet offers sanctuary, a safety haven
For turtles, fish and ray
St, Lucians protect and honor
their living treasures
So ecology will stay

we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh ooh, ooh, we came to dive

We saw glass eyed  snapper, and parrotfish
And yellow headed wrasse.
spiny lobster, big crusty crabs
And spotted eels in the grass.

Our kids’ favorite fish swam along the rocks
It was called the slippery dick
The green sea turtle and octopus
Were my own most  favorite picks!

we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh ooh, ooh,  we came to dive

The ca- ta- Marran took us all on a voyage
To see the sun set and bats fly
A little champagne, appetizers and dancing
We wish we could have stayed all night
 
We learned herbal healing
rode bikes through the Jungle
Sampled chocolate and played in the sand
Dining right next to the beach was cool
As was listening to the steel drum band

we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
we came to dive.    we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh ooh, ooh,  we came to dive

Thanks Kids Sea Camp
Thanks Scuba St. Lucia
This Thanksgiving week was really cool
Anse Chastanet is a special place
A real Caribbean jewel.

we came to dive. we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
we came to dive.    we came to dive.  we came to dive.  we came to dive
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh ooh, ooh… we came to dive

Third place

(sung to the tune of theme song for the Spiderman cartoon)

By Peter Hays
Kids Sea Camp
Kids Sea Camp
Loves to get their divers damp
Aquatic life of every size
Swimming by before their eyes
Look out- here comes Kids Sea Camp!
Can they dive?
Take it from me,
They’ve been diving in every sea
Can they swim through the waves?
Dude, these divers are really brave!
Look there- there goes Kids Sea Camp!
In the darkness of night
Their dive lights will shine
With the beams of their lights,
The reef life they will find.
Kids Sea Camp
Kids Sea Camp
International Kids Sea Camp
Everywhere they explore
Every diver comes back for more
Let’s go- diving with Kids Sea Camp!
With Margo and Tom and their crew
Kids Sea Camp explores the deep blue
With each dive there’s something new
If you want to get wet,
Your very best bet,
Is to dive with Kids Sea Camp!

 

Fifth place

The Non-Divers Experience
By Jessica Hart, Bailey Lavinsky and Susan Hultgren
We’re so lazy,
We don’t want to go.
We’re on vacation,
Leave us a-alone.
We’re so lazy,
Can’t you see we’re slow?
We heard it’s fun, we still don’t want to go.
Don’t go chasing waterfalls,
Stick to the oceans and beaches that you’re used to.
We know you’re gonna hike it yourself or nothing at all,
But we got two babies to haul.
Bike, bike baby
Jungle bike, bike baby
Jungle bike, bike baby
Jungle bike, bike baby
Jungle!
Can’t climb this!
Look man we can’t climb this.
These killer steps up and back down, No!
We can’t climb this!
Ring the shuttle. Bring it down.
It’s breakfast time!
We sleep in late, got nothing in our day.
That’s what divers say hmm-mmm,
That’s what divers say hmm-mmm,
We went to a mud bath,
But couldn’t find no mud- uh-uh! Uh-uh!
At least that’s what divers say (hmm)
That’s what divers say (hmm) 

Sixth place

By Emma Przybylo and Audrey Sarin
Now we’re all here, the whole family, all 8
Although 1 of us was a little bit late
She was detained by the wind and snow
But finally was allowed to go
We’ve all been doing our own special thing
For Raman that meant playing the guitar so Tom could sing
The kids were playing volleyball, paddle boarding and such
And Nani was relaxing, not doing too much
Sunita’s favorite part was the chocolate tasting
Tina talked about saving the ocean and not wasting
Phil’s gotten better, so now he’s around
So now all 8 are here laughing, one happy sound
Thank you Kids Sea Camp,
We’ve had so much fun
Nani, we’re ready for another one!!
 
 
By Rainer Jenss 
Thanksgiving was upon us,
To give our spirits a lift.
There really is np question,
Kids Sea Camp is a gift.
 
A friend is many people
Throughout our given life.
Some always seem to top the list,
And that’s Rob and his wife.
 
But there are many others,
The ones we met right here.
Maybe if we’re lucky.
We’ll meet up with them next year.
 
Thanksgiving this year was special,
It gave me time to think;
How special Kids Sea Camp really is,
Even though it went by in a blink!
 
 
By Zachary Nathanson
I love octopi
They are really great
They are super smart
And they can open jars
This poem is ending
So remember this!
 

 

By Gahan Family

The velvet ocean, the emerald peak
Kid Sea Camp arrives, but Margo can’t speak!
We carried on, thanks to Tom
And learned a lot- we didn’t stop!
Ear infections won’t get us down
We will equalize, before we leave this town
Under the sea, fish will be
Fish will be, right next to me
Eels around, I swim around
No sharks in sight, all is good tonight.
Biking the mountain above the sea,
Oh no! I fell down- blood I see!
And now the week is gone-
Just when we learned how to put our wetsuits on.
Goodbye for now, we will meet again,
The sun is down, I’m leaving this town.
 
 
By Montgomery,  Thorsten and Remington Hart
I am a coral in the deep blue sea,
Everyone wants to come see me!
I am big, white and awesome,
Come see me so we can have some fun!
I am an octopus swimming in the sea,
Divers are always looking for me!
There is no place I’d rather be,
But hiding in a reed instead of a tree!
I am the waves crashing in,
Everybody wants to hop in!
Carrying shells and sand, with every crash,
High tide, low tide, it won’t be my last!
Diving vacations go so fast!
 
 
By Lilly Blakey
Climb aboard the Lucky T and come explore the ocean with me
60 foot below you’ll see Stuart is lower than he should be
Jim’s at the surface with no air
Asa’s flailing with no care
Trey’s fast asleep on the boat
Jim’s barely got enough air to float
Susan is as cold as can be
And they all wish they could dive like me
 
 

Tips for a happy Kids Sea Camp

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Kids and scuba, Kids Sea Camp

It’s Christmas in May at Kids Sea Camp!

It’s May, but we are less than 30 days from the launch of the first Kids Sea Camp week. We are busy finalizing our family packs, forms, and payments for the start of our summer vacation season. You should be receiving the Family Dive boxes full of goodies for the trip. But here are a few things to do or think about before you enjoy your summer vacation with Kids Sea Camp.

Top 10 tips for a happy KSC summer

  1. Gear up: Either get your gear serviced ASAP. Having faulty gear ain’t no fun in the middle of the South Pacific. And even worse, unsafe. If you have older gear, take a look at our online store. We have numerous ways to “gear you up” and still save cash.
  2. Passports: Make sure they are up-to-date. You can get “rushed” service, but on this date, you’ll be cutting it close.
  3. Docs: Print out your documents and have them in place. That will remind you how close you are to the KSC summer. Expect us to email or call you if you are missing any of our FDA/KSC forms.
  4. Calendar: Mark on your Google calendar your travel dates, and then have alerts on your phone. Just in case you get too busy to remember, you’re going on vacation. It happens even to some of the smartest people we know. (See KSC Calendar)
  5. Questions: Call us at 803-419-2556 for any questions about the resorts and the diving your family will be experiencing. We will field any questions, and if we don’t know the answer, we will find it.
  6. Get a tan: I know. I know what you’re thinking. Doesn’t Tom think the sun causes skin cancer? Yes, I’m not telling you to get a burn. In fact, I recommend a little time in the sun before you’re on the island so you don’t burn. Sunscreen is great. But a little layer of gentle, healthy color sure can go a long way on the island.
  7. Practice island time: Before you go… get lazy. Do nothing for a day. Imagine not worrying about work. On average, it takes three days for a vacation to start easing stress and pressure. What does that mean? It means that the benefits of vacation don’t kick in until it’s half over. But if you practice being on island time before you’re on the island, maybe you can gain a day or two. Make your vacation dollars work for you. Relax now!
  8. Exercise: Our trips are adventure trips. You are out in the sun and the ocean all day on our trips. Now that being said, we don’t run a Kids Sea Camp Ironman contest, but the better shape you’re in, the more you will enjoy the week. You have 30 days until Utila, and then the Galapagos. Get busy, Kids Sea Campers, we want everyone happy and healthy on our trips.
  9. Educate: Get online, read about the resort, the island, or learn about the critters and animals you will see.
  10. Visualize: Imagine this year’s KSC vacation better than any before. Imagine great tropical weather, happy faces, young and old, amazing diving, and safe, secure travel. Margo and I always prepare for the best and pray for even better. And right now, Margo is probably daydreaming that this year’s Utila trip is as good as last year’s.

Galapagos Turtles are everywhere at Kids Sea Camp

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Galapagos, Turtle, Kids Sea Camp

Seems like a turtle on every dive

Turtles were everywhere; on every dive in the Galapagos, it seemed like we had sea turtles. Note, I said sea turtles; normally, there were at least two or three per dive. I also want to note that there were almost zero jellyfish on the dives. So were the waters too cold for the jellyfish, or were the sea turtles spending their days in the Galapagos eating jelly, I don’t know.

Here are some amazing sea turtle images Margo took, believe it or not, on a snorkel trip, at Vincent Roca Point on Isabela Island in the Galapagos. On the same snorkel trip, I saw the biggest sea turtles of my dive career resting on a sandy bottom in ten feet of water. There had to be around twenty just sleeping in the shallow, cold, and green-tinted water.

Come join us in 2027 and 2028 (See link): Kids Sea Camp has created a family-friendly dive vacation aboard the liveaboard The Tiburon Explorer in the Galapagos Islands. This unique, one-of-a-kind family dive adventure is custom-designed for divers of all levels. We have planned a milder, more family-friendly diving schedule and itinerary suited to recreational divers.

You can also see more images on our website gallery