Customer Reviews

Boating and Diving Catalina Island

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

"Boating and Diving Catalina Island" This book is a must have. If you are going to visit the Island by boat or land it has usefull information for all. For boaters their are helpfull gps coordinates and tips for comming into the harbors and picking up a mooring. Skin and Scuba Divers will love the authors dive sites around the Island. Descriptions for all sites are in detail including photos from the air. The book includes history of the Island and a list of shipwrecks. The book convienently has a fold out map on the back page and a section on how to prepare seafood. For the money this is the best book . This is a great book and you can tell the author has been to each of the sites he so well describes.

Wicklund's book is most helpful to the boater or diver who wishes to locate the best diving spots and/or identify appropriate anchorages around the island of Catalina. This is a book of facts. While there is some information of historical interest, the reader who will benefit most is the one who wants to know what the bottom is like (which anchor should I use?) and where to go for what kind of fish, where to look for lobster, etc. Very helpful for those of us who do those type of things. This is not a general book about Catalina for 'hotel stayers' and the average tourist.

I bought this book and Catalina Island, All You Need To Know and it was a no-brainer which one offers me more value. All you need to know is much more informative and packed with color pictures. It covers everything Boating and Diving does, but also includes history, topside tourism for non-divers and boaters and hotels and restaurants. Since they are about the same price, I recommend the color packed and at least five times more information Catalina Island All You Need To Know. No need to buy both.

... Many of the sites get just 6 to 10 words of descritption, NONE of the sites have "detailed" descriptions. There is no dive info in this book thats not included in the symbols on my boater's map. There are no GPS coordinates for the shipwrecks listed, and I've found some of the other coordinates are way off. ... (fish cooking and cleaning info was helpful to me)

I was planning a dive trip to Catalina and bought this book and then another one by Joe Belanger, called Catalina Island, All You Need To Know. All you need to know is way better and more informative, and has color pictures of the marine life. Save your money and just get All you need to know on a website. There is way too much hype on the Boating Catalina Book.

Book lists info and approx location for 35 shipwrecks, but only gives GPS coordinates for 2 (TWO) of them!!! Of the 9 dive spots I've entered in my computer map (Magellan Mapsend), 4 were off by over a quarter mile (Lava Wall Beach, Seal Point, etc). One dive spot is 600 yards inland. I mean, if the book was free, that would be one thing. But I paid good money for it and now I realize there is no reason to enter any of the coordinates, because there is no way to tell which ones are even close. I just now stopped entering in my GPS program and went to Amazon to write this review. The author should be embarrassed.

A terrific book for Catalina Island. It shows a photograph looking toward the shore area that is being described.An ariel view sketch with anchoring, kelp beds, prevailing current, mooring information, dive sites with depths and what may be seen. A short section on marine life, diving services and yacht clubs that are on the island is helpful.

I bought this book based on the review of others who purchased it and am I sorry. This book has nothing that you cannot find online. It lacks real information that a series diver would like to research before traveling to Santa Catalina to dive. Sure the book does give the reader a thumb-nail sketch of a lot of dive sites on the island, but there is no meat. For a guy who writes detailed articles for a California diving newspaper I expected much much more. This book will not help you make decisions about your dive trip. Save your money.

This book is a must have for anyone planning to enjoy the pristine waters of Catalina Island. As a harbor patrolman I'm sure he's heard and seen it all. He has all the essential information for a dive or boating trip without bogging you down with opinions on restaurants and hotels that I won't be using. If you want a guide for clubbing and eating this is the wrong book for you. If you want to get insider knowledge on where to go for a great time in the water than this is the right book.

THIS GUIDE, WICKLUND'S SECOND EDITION, IS AN ABSOLUTE MUST FOR CATALINA DIVERS. WE USE THE BOOK TO FIND DIVE SITES, AS THEY ARE NOT MARKED IN THESE WATERS. ( NO MOORINGS HERE YET!) WE DIVE AT LEAST TWICE A WEEK AND WE LIVE ON CATALINA ISLAND! WHAT BETTER FEEDBACK THAN FROM DIVERS WHO DIVE THESE SITES ON A REGULAR BASIS. OTHER REVIEWS SEEM TO COMPARE PAGE BY PAGE TO OTHER "GUIDES" DEALING WITH RESTAURANTS AND HOTELS. THIS BOOK IS ABOUT DIVING, NOT RESTAURANTS! THIS BOOK IS WRITTEN BY A DIVER, A PROFESSIONAL IN THE INDUSTRY WHO LIVES AND DIVES ON CATALINA ISLAND. THERE IS NO OTHER PUBLICATION LIKE THIS ONE! THE DIVERS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, AND SPECIFICALLY CATALINA ISLAND, HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK!