Underwater Treasure Hunt tomorrow

AQUASMITH Spearfishing general manager Morito Asai and store manager Eunice O. Kikku show the prizes for tomorrow’s Underwater Treasure Hunt. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO )

AQUASMITH Spearfishing and Islands Keepers CNMI will host its first ever Underwater Treasure Hunt tomorrow at Pau Pau Beach in San Roque.

The underwater adventure is open to both adults and children and will be a scavenger hunt for real vintage coins, according to AQUASMITH Spearfishing general manager Morito Asai.

Organizers have specially ordered 100 silver coins and 15 gold coins for participants of the treasure hunt to search for. Participants can only use masks, snorkels, and dive socks to search for the vintage coins. Participants are also encouraged to wear rashguards, long-sleeved shirts, or dab sunscreen on exposed parts of their body for protection from the scorching sun.

The 15 gold coins are 1973-1980 uncirculated Egyptian coins, while the 100 silver coins are Buffalo nickels circa 1913-1938, according to Asai.

“Our aim for this event is to encourage the younger generation to engage in ocean activities by giving them a safe and fun experience,” he said.

While participants don’t get to keep the vintage coins they’ve salvaged, top treasure hunters get to take home prizes including gift certificates from sponsors for hobie cat cruising, kayak/SUP board rentals, snorkeling lessons, food tickets, flashlights, cooler bags, portable fish scales, masks and snorkel sets, and more. 

So far, Asai said 42 have registered for the Underwater Treasure Hunt out of the 100 slots available for the event.

The event starts at 1pm with registration followed by a briefing at 1:30pm. The Underwater Treasure Hunt officially gets underway at 2pm and ends at 3pm. 

Asai also asked participants to practice water safety at all times during the event.

“Join at your own risk because we will have safety divers around but it does not mean we can guarantee 100% safety,” he said.

Organizers will also prepare drinking water in a cooler jug so participants should bring their own bottles (no glass bottles are allowed by Parks & Recreation), as AQUASMITH and Islands Keepers try to minimize the use of plastic or any trash. 

“We really want to encourage the younger generation to engage in ocean activities, so they can be interested in any kind of fishing and marine activities, or marine life, environment, etc. We want to do this annually and see the results every decade,” he said.

Asai would like to thank the following sponsors of the first-ever Underwater Treasure Hunt and they are the following: Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, Tasi to Table, Fishing Tackle, Saltys Saipan, FishGuyz Scuba & Charter, Oleai Beach Bar & Grill, Dayoff, Seawind Marine Sports, Zen Corp., Aqua Connections, Marianas Apnea Spearfishing Club, Division of Coastal Resources Management, and Division of Parks and Recreation. 

For more information about the Underwater Treasure Hunt, call (670) 233-5055 or email aquasmith111@gmail.com. To register, copy and paste the link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfKDDiIADC6k0Ud2QN9I5h3FbdUwvaqXbnjo4tkXVMd7sAnNw/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1AD2Bkv0rq7t0B5kVvVpJZbd_JyHp-S8NFFIaxUCztFu6TfcLnMd-B7m4.