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Dive Review of Southern Sport in
Mexico (Western)/Reviilagigedos

Southern Sport: "Southern Sport", Jan, 2015,

by Richard Lowe, NY, US (Reviewer Reviewer 3 reports with 1 Helpful vote). Report 8480 has 1 Helpful vote.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 3 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 3 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 2 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 3 stars
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments I typically dive closer to home, but a dive operator who I greatly respect was running a trip to Socorro, and I joined. First, they swapped the boat on us; we were supposed to have a sister ship with an on-board hyperbaric chamber, but got the Southern Sport instead. Diving is done off of the two zodiacs on board. With 18 divers and three dive masters, this involved having one group wait on the boat while one of the zodiacs came back. What they didn't tell us was that one of the dive masters was actually being transported to the navy base to dive with some big shots. This resulted in nine divers, a DM, and the operator in each zodiac. When we were all geared up it made things crowded.

The weather wasn't the best, but we all take that risk. It also made the conditions rather silty at some of the dive sites. In fact, on one dive I lost the DM and the other 8 divers. I looked for a minute, and then saw some other divers. It turned out to be six divers from the other zodiac who had lost the DM and three divers from their group. We did a safety stop, surfaced, and waited for the others to surface. Afterwards, there were recriminations about tightening up the buddy procedure, as no one in my group knew that I was missing. The dive briefings were OK, but it seemed as if the lead DM was just going through the motions. One of every pair was issued one of the personal safety devices (Nautilus lifeline), but the crew was somewhat careless. On one of the dives we surfaced, and our zodiac was gone. We began calling, but got no response. Rather than get swept out to sea, we began to swim for it, stopping every once in a while to attempt a call. Finally, one of the zodiacs came back. It turns out the engine on the other zodiac had gone out, and needed to be towed back. The crew had left the radio in order to fix the zodiac. Not good.

The boat crew worked their asses off, and were very attentive. The dive side of the operation was...lacking. The boat was also down at the heels to an extent, and the boat could have used a refurbishment. When we got on board there was no safety briefing, and we were never told where the muster station and life vests were in the event of an emergency. The lady who was the cook was outstanding, and did a great job in keeping everyone well fed. Apparently, this was the boat captain's last trip before going elsewhere, and he just went through the motions.

The marine life wasn't what we expected. It was a little warmer than normal, so the sharks weren't there in great numbers. The mantas were, and they put on quite a show. The current and surge could be difficult, so make sure you are an advanced diver before going. When the weather was nice the conditions ran from calm and flat to rough when the weather kicked up. There was heavy current and some strong surge. Visibility ran from 5 feet to over 100, depending on the weather. While we did see whales, they were mostly in the distance. On one interval the DM took some people out for a snorkel, and they got kind of close to a whale. Lucky for them!

On the whole, if I were to go back I would use another operator. Basically, the divera all got along, the boat crew was good, but I would give this trip a C+.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving Australia, Mexico, Caribbean, US
Closest Airport Cabo San Lucas Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, rainy Seas calm, surge, currents
Water Temp 70-75°F / 21-24°C Wetsuit Thickness 7
Water Visibility 5-100 Ft/ 2-30 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile no
Enforced diving restrictions 100 feet, as everyone was on nitrox. Back on the boat with 500 PSI.
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks 1 or 2 Mantas Squadrons
Dolphins Schools Whale Sharks None
Turtles 1 or 2 Whales 1 or 2
Corals N/A Tropical Fish 2 stars
Small Critters N/A Large Fish N/A
Large Pelagics 3 stars

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 4 stars Boat Facilities 4 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments [None]
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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