After a first book on the picturesque spots of Bouches-du-Rhône, prefaced by Nardo Vicente, head of the Paul Ricard Oceanographic Institute, Éric Vastine returns with a second guide Diving from the Shore, this time referencing 55 diving spots in the Var. The preface, signed by Théo Mavrostomos, the world’s deepest diver, heralds the unique breath of adventure and freedom that emanates from the book.
For 25 years, Éric Vastine has been exploring the coastal trails with a dive tank on his back and a notebook in hand to record his impressions. The result is a 160-page book listing 55 shore-accessible diving sites, divided into three major areas: Provence from Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer to Six-Fours-Les-Plages, the Maures massif from La Seyne-Sur-Mer to Carqueiranne, and the Estérel from Hyères to Saint-Raphaël. Each spot is rated with stars based on its interest, accessibility, and environment.
Since many of these dives have never been recorded, Éric proceeded like a private detective. As a result, this guide provides useful information and precise plans to prepare your dives, a clear briefing, and a route with bathymetric indications to optimize your dive time so that you only have to perform the safety stop at 3 meters. A meticulous work that allows you to travel to extraordinary places, discovering anecdotes about the locations visited between Saint-Cyr-Sur-Mer and Saint-Raphaël. Throughout its pages, the Diving from the Shore book offers a wide range of dives to discover wrecks, caves, legendary statues, ancient amphorae, Gallo-Roman archaeological sites, islands, reefs, arches, pinnacles, and drop-offs, for diving with a tank or snorkeling. Sometimes unusual places in the Var department accessible to the whole family, where you can swim and picnic after getting out of the water.
Like a return to roots, Éric takes you to discover the sites where the famous Mousquemer – Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Philippe Tailliez, and Frédéric Dumas – made their first dives with autonomous diving equipment.
Between each city presented, the chronicles « On the Life of My Sea » invites you to delve deeper into the discovery of marine life. Scientifically validated explanations illustrated by marine biologists Rémy Simide and Dorian Guillemain who share these underwater explorations.
Diving from the shore is a cost-effective and very practical solution when you don’t have a boat. A way to dive differently. For Éric, it has become a way of life that he shares in this compilation. This guide is an invitation to dive whenever you want, at the time that suits you, day or night, and in any season.
Diving from the shore 55 diving spots in the Var, published by Bateau Cigale editions. 160 pages. €21.
Available in the online store of the website plongerdubord.com