On Fri, 7 May 2004 08:20:50 +1000, David Strike
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>On Thursday, May 06, 2004 9:38 PM, Reef Fish wrote:
>
>(snip)
>> >But talking about OZTeK - the W/end of March 12-13th 2005 - provides an
>> >ideal opportunity to organise a liveaboard trip closer to (my) home! :-
))
>
>> >Anyone up for a liveaboard trip out to the Far Northern Reefs of
>> >the Great Barrier Reef

You forgot to include the rest of your said :-)):

RF> before I cross over to the dark side of old age?

But I have already crossed over to the dark side, though it was
worth $100 USD on any Aggressor to be on the dark side!  :-)))


Having seen the upheld hands of definites, maybees, and definite
possibles, not to mention the dozens of wannabees yet to be heard <BG>,
as well as the number of "follow-up" or "extended" locations
mentioned, my original remark (ignoring the frigid waters part <G>)

RF>  I'd rather have a NEDfest at Strike's Reef!  :-))

is sounding more and more like my cup of tea!


Let me elaborate on my idea of a Senior <pun intended> NEDfest
PROPOSAL (at Strike's Reef), to CONSIST of participants of
possibly half a dozen of Junior <subset> NEDfests to different
parts of the locations mentioned thus far, not to mention other
unmentioned ideas such as a CRUISE (with diving) combined (or
not combined) with one of the locations in MY "must see before
I die" category of dive locations.  :-)

A version of this idea had already been mentioned by Crusty:

CR> Now we're talkin!  I like the way you think...a week at the
CR> "reef", a week north, and then ...?

And Crusty was worried about HOW he could spend weeks and weeks
out there.  :-)   A 10-day cruise from Sydney to Auckland or
a round trip one could fill quite such a gap.  :-))  For TWO,
Sue and I would be definites for it, some time, even without
any NEDfest.   :-)))   So far, there are 6 cruises (3 taken,
3 booked) and only one liveaboard (to go tomorrow) for us.  :-)
One of those will have a port of call at Easter Island, but
I don't think there are any dive shops there.   :-))


The ADVANTAGE (of course there are disadvantages also) of MY
suggested arrangement should be obvious, to break up an army of
divers into platoons starting (or ending) at the Headquarter
(Sydney) while branching away ELSEWHERE, thus fulfilling the SE
(Sydney and Elsewehre) in Scuba-SE!

The Sydney (Strike Reef) part could be short, and dry (except
those who consider beer "wet", and getting wet in Shelly
Beach "diving" Hahahahaha), followed (or preceded by) much
smaller contingents to locations of REAL diving <BWG>, e.g.,
BNG (Big Nassau Grouper) says of PNG with a BWG!  :-)


Some such possibilities (permutations and combinations) will
shirley make Huw change from a "possible maybe" to a "Jeff
definAte".  :-)


Of a few locations mentioned, I already heard:

DS> Since a week is a bit short for a long flight like that,
DS> whaddabout some suggestions for extensions for furriners?
DS>
DE> Bali, Flores, Sangalaki, ... (?)

Mika>  PNG?  :-)

>I figure that together with some of the OZTeK speakers and folks from
>the list we should have enough numbers to fill a boat

In your original plan, the folks from the list alone could SINK
the boat!

Of course the planning of my proposed alternate plan is a tad more
complicated, which may require Bjorn and Mika's expertise in the
use of their company's programs in solving the Travelling Salesman's
Problem, Linear, Nonlinear, and Dynamic Programming techniques of
optimization, etc.  :-))   But on the Bali boat, Bjorn and Mika
had already confessed to their knowledge in such math optimization
techniques without breathing hard.   :-))))


It has not escaped my notice of Strike's mention, with obvious
reference to the "brown water" of 20 feet viz in parts of the
sites we dived:

> It's the area of the Reef north of Cooktown and heading up to
> the tip of the Cape York Peninsula.  Because there's such a
> small population up in those parts there's been little to
> impact on the corals in terms of run-off from the land.  :-)

Yeah, but with YOUR Senior NEDfest plan of one-size-fit-all,
the pee from the NEDfesters (for their thermal supplement <G>)
alone could impact the Northern GBR for years to come!


>(I reckon it'd be fun!)  :-))
>
>Strike

Indubitably.  :-))  I reckon my proposed idea of Junior plans
would be MORE fun!

Moreover, the Junior plans are more likely to be more "definite",
and less likely to fizzle out (on the part of the possibles,
maybes, and wannabees) as in the case of OZ2000NEDfest.

                  Two hands go up for:

Original Senior Plan:  Possibly possible and maybe.    :-)

Some version of Junior Plan:  Definitely definate, or definately
definite!   :-))   For some Plan, it may even be definitely definite!

ElPezNeuvo.