Dive Review of Mike Ball in
Australia/Great Barrier Reef / Coral Sea

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Mike Ball, Apr, 2006, by Tracey, MD, USA . Report 2798.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	The reputation the Mike Ball's boat have did not match our experience. Not that it was bad, but I would say it was only OK. We were on a 4 day trip leaving from Carns, up the ribbon reefs, and out to Osprey Reef in the Coral Sea. Return by small plane from Lizard Island. The first evening, I went to retire in our room, and discovered the bed was soaking. The air conditioner was directly above the bed, and the condensation leaked onto the bed. The hostess got us clean bedding and said she would keep an eye on it. And also, that this happens quite often! We were moved to another cabin, and it's air conditioner also leaked, but not nearly so bad. The dive deck was a bit chaotic. They would call the dive briefing, my buddy and I would suit up. And then wait, and wait. We had to wait for a DM to check the reef, currents, etc. They also wanted to have a DM in the water before the rest of us got in, so we waited. My buddy & I were often the first in and the last out. The food was decent, but nothing to write home about. Sometimes it was way too spice for my taste. The staff was all very nice and the captain was a hoot. The diving was very good. The dives up the ribbon reefs are relatively shallow - 40 to 80 feet. Were were looking forward to diving Cod Hole - we were to have 2 afternoon dives and one evening dive there. When we started our first dive ferried by tender down the reef for a drift style dive back to the boat. During the dive, the tide came rushing in, changing our drift to a freeway. We were moving so fast that it was impossible to do anything except to hang on. All the divers grabbed the anchor line and hung on. After this experience, the DMs decided it was too dangerous to dive again, and we moved to another site for our night dive. The overnight trip out to Osprey Reef is rough, but the dives are worth it. The corals are incredible, almost magical. We were treated to a Shark Feed dive, where you sit in a coral amphitheater and watch the sharks, cods, remoras, and dozens of other fish feeding on the frozen tuna heads. A very interesting experience! It was over in about 20 minutes of air time, and we were allowed to finish our dive after the feeding.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	101-250 dives
Where else diving	Carribean, Cozumel, Australia
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	cloudy	Seas	choppy, currents
Water Temp	78-80°F / 26-27°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	50-100 Ft/ 15-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Mostly allowed to dive our computer, but sometimes had time restrictions due to boat schedules.
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Central table set up for UW photography. They have a computer available for you to use to review the photos, and can make CDs of your photos.

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Dive Review of Mike Ball in Australia/Great Barrier Reef / Coral Sea

Mike Ball, Apr, 2006,

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

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

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

Dive Review of Mike Ball in
Australia/Great Barrier Reef / Coral Sea