ABOUT US

The Bluebound difference

We do the heavy lifting - planning, logistics, and vetting local partners - so you can simply show up and enjoy the experience. From the moment you arrive, our friendly, professional guides make you feel like you’ve traveled with us before, even if it’s your very first time. We create a welcoming, easygoing atmosphere without ever compromising on quality or safety. Unlike trips where you’re left to figure things out, our guides are with you throughout - not on vacation, but fully engaged and ready to help. They’re seasoned divers who assist with equipment issues, offer buoyancy and technique tips, and keep a close eye on dive safety. If needed, they’ll even steer local divemasters away from poor decisions, ensuring every dive is run to the highest standards. We also make it a point to partner with local businesses and operators that share our mission - delivering exceptional experiences while preserving the ecosystems and communities we visit. With BlueBound, you’re not just booking a trip. You’re joining a thoughtful, supportive dive community that values personal attention, conservation, and the joy of discovery.

Our Team

Samuel Bachar

Dive Tour Leader, Co-Founder BlueBound Travel, Co-owner of Colorado Scuba Diving Academy

With over 30 years of experience in the scuba diving and travel industry, Samuel has built a reputation for expertise, professionalism, and a passion for exploration. Since the early 2000s, he has been dedicated to training and guiding divers, ensuring they gain not only the skills but also the confidence to explore the underwater world safely. As the Co-owner of Colorado Scuba Diving Academy dive center, Samuel has trained countless divers, earning praise for his knowledge and hands-on approach, commitment to high-quality training, and personal attention. His ability to connect with students and provide top-tier education has helped build a strong and loyal diving community. Recognizing a growing demand for immersive dive travel, Samuel Co-Founded Bluebound Travel, a premier scuba travel company that curates unforgettable diving adventures to some of the world's most breathtaking destinations. With Bluebound Travel, he is expanding beyond training to offer handcrafted dive experiences where exploration meets seamless travel planning. With a deep understanding of the industry and a forward-thinking mindset, Samuel is focused on expanding Bluebound Travel’s reach. By blending decades of experience with modern technology, he continues to redefine what it means to travel where the ocean calls.

Man wearing a blue cap and black jacket smiling outdoors near the beach
Smiling bearded person in a black beanie and blue snorkel mask against a leafy background

Dave Book

Dive Tour Leader, Co-Founder BlueBound Travel

A builder, explorer, and connector - Dave finds home anywhere the ocean meets adventure.

Bluebound Travel began with a simple idea: that the best adventures are built on trust, craft, and a shared love for the water. For founder and PADI Divemaster Dave Book, that idea became a calling.

A lifelong builder and explorer, Dave sees parallels between constructing something lasting on land and creating experiences that stay with people long after they surface. He brings that same calm focus, patience, and teamwork to every Bluebound journey. Known for his steady leadership and ability to bring people together, Dave has a gift for turning groups of strangers into a crew. He believes travel should be effortless yet meaningful - an invitation to slow down, look deeper, and find connection in the wild corners of the world.

For him, Bluebound isn’t just a company. It’s a community - a living network of people bound by water, story, and the shared pull of the horizon.



Kent Rychel

Dive Tour Leader, Co-owner of Colorado Scuba Diving Academy

Kent Rychel grew up in Vail, Colorado, where he pursued alpine ski racing and competed internationally and in the NCAA, on track for the Olympics. While still in college, he discovered his passion for coaching and went on to build a 20-year career leading athletes across North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Chile. Many of his students went on to become National Champions and Olympians.


He spent two decades in Crested Butte, CO, serving as Head Coach of the Crested Butte Ski Club, Alpine Director of Crested Butte Academy, and a History Teacher. During that time, he also owned the Buckaroo Beanery coffee shop, wrote for the local paper, and worked as a wilderness outfitter and horse trainer under renowned horseman Buck Brannaman, featured in Robert Redford’s award-winning film Buck.



Kent’s love for the ocean began with his first dives in Hawaii in 1979, earning his PADI certification in 1982. After moving to Fort Collins, he rediscovered diving through instructors Matt Smyrl and Thomas Cain, who inspired him to make it a career. He became a Divemaster in 2006, an Open Water Instructor and Master Scuba Diver Trainer in 2007, and an Emergency First Response Instructor in 2010. Today, scuba diving has replaced skiing as his lifelong passion, and he teaches full-time as co-owner of Colorado Scuba Diving Academy with his business partner, Samuel Bachar.

Smiling person in a gray hoodie and blue cap sitting by turquoise water and cloudy sky
Smiling person in a black wetsuit on a boat, with turquoise water and shoreline in the background

Christine McCoy

Dive Tour Leader, Master Scuba Diver Trainer

Meet Christine McCoy, long-time friend and partner-in-crime at Colorado Scuba Diving Academy (CSDA). Christine first earned her Open Water certification in 2001, but it was a trip in 2018 that truly reignited her passion for diving. While searching online for a reactivation course and a scuba adventure, she connected with Kent and Samuel from CSDA - and before long, she was on a plane to Fiji.



That trip sparked lasting friendships, countless dives, and a new chapter in her life. Christine went on to complete advanced training, join multiple dive expeditions, and ultimately become a PADI Instructor with CSDA. She also serves her community as a member of the county’s Dive Rescue team.


Always up for a challenge, Christine is now training to become a certified Diveheart Adaptive Dive Buddy, helping bring inclusive diving opportunities to Northern Colorado. When she’s not underwater, you can find her teaching Bikram yoga and spreading her love of movement and mindfulness.

Kyle Farrell

Dive Tour Leader, Master Scuba Diver Trainer - Owner of Scuba Tahoe Diveshop

Kyle Farrell has always been drawn to two worlds: the deep blue of the ocean and the rugged backcountry of the Sierra and Rocky Mountains. While studying business in college, he discovered scuba diving and knew he wanted to turn that passion into something bigger, even if he didn’t yet know what form it would take.


After a few years in jobs that didn’t inspire him, Kyle followed his instincts west to Lake Tahoe, determined to combine his love for diving and winter sports into a life built around adventure. That leap eventually led to the creation of Scuba Tahoe Dive Shop (aka, Deep Abliss), where he shares his enthusiasm for underwater exploration with others.


Diving has since taken Kyle across the globe, fueling his curiosity and reminding him there’s always more to discover. Whether he’s teaching, traveling, or guiding trips with BlueBound, Kyle finds the same joy in helping others experience the calm and wonder of the underwater world.



Smiling man in a blue cap and black sleeveless shirt standing by a tropical beach
Smiling diver in a wetsuit with twin braids, standing by the sea under a blue sky.

Kira Hartwigsen

Dive Tour Leader, Master Scuba Dive Trainer, Bluebound Ambassador

Kira Hartwigsen began her diving journey in 2021 during her first-ever solo trip, where she earned her Open Water certification on the island of Curaçao. What started as a simple adventure quickly became a life-changing passion. Less than a year later, she became a scuba instructor, certified her first student, and began sharing her love for the ocean and the diving lifestyle on social media.


Since then, Kira has explored many of the world’s top dive destinations, including Roatan, Bonaire, Mexico, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aqaba, Palau, the Maldives, the Philippines, Bali, and Komodo. For her, diving is more than a sport—it’s a way of life that has connected her to a global community of ocean lovers and strengthened her commitment to marine conservation.


In 2023, Kira joined the SCUBAPRO Global Dive Team, an honor she still describes as surreal. Known for her favorite saying, “A trunkfish a day keeps the doctor away,” she proudly wears a trunkfish tattoo as a symbol of her joy and connection to the underwater world.



Becoming a diver and professional instructor has been the most rewarding and transformative experience of her life. Through every new dive and destination, Kira continues to inspire others to “just try it”—because it might change their lives too.


Sarah Travers

Dive Tour Leader, Master Scuba Dive Trainer

Sarah Travers is an experiential educator with a focus on nature immersion. Her passion is facilitating joyful experiences that build relationships with the world around us, allowing nature to impress us with beauty, resilience, and intricacies. She switched from research to education when she became a scuba diving instructor in 2014 and realized it is more important for her to help people feel a true connection to our world than to collect data. From marine to alpine ecosystems, she loves immersion experiences that embody how much we all rely on our environment, and how much our environment relies on us for protection. She loves exploring new places and revisiting old haunts, and sharing the beauty and joy of exploring with others. 


Smiling person in a gray flight suit standing in a desert landscape under a blue sky.
Serene blue lake with distant mountains, a small sailboat, and silhouetted trees in the foreground