Dive Review of Nimrod Explorer in
Australia/Great Barrier Reef

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Nimrod Explorer, Apr, 2003, by Barry Zigas, DC, United States ( Sr. Reviewer 7 reports with 2 Helpful votes). Report 1082.
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	Nimrod Explorer may have had something of a checkered past, judging by other readers' past reports, but my trip was first rate all the way and I would recommend it without hesitation. This was my first live-aboard experience, but it set a high standard for any to follow, in no small part because of the staff of 5 who were friendly, unobtrusive, and serivce-oriented. No tips solicited, but a tip jar was there, and most of us contributed. Two dive staff, a cabin hostess, cook, engineer and skipper. All got in the water at some point. Food was varied, fresh, wonderfully prepared, and plentiful. Cold breakfast before the first dive, followed by hot breakfast, usually a hot lunch, midday snack, and dinner. Soft drinks, coffee, tea and biscuits available all day; beer and wine for sale. Staff did a nice birthday celebration for one diver, and accommodated special diet request from another. Good library of fish, coral and creature ID books. Cabins were straightened up every morning while we were on the first dive. Bath and dive towels provided, changed mid-trip. Quad cabins a little crowded; I was upgraded to a double that was comfortable. All cabins have own heads. Shower on dive deck for rinsing, hot water in cabin showers always availble. Rental gear was in good shape, everything available, including computers. Fills all 3200+ psi. Tanks filled on dive deck with gear attached. Refills completed within one hr. of each dive return. Between 4 and 6 dives daily, depending on weather and conditions. Exit and entry from dive deck. All divers checked in and out, required to sign before leaving dive deck on return. Dive briefings comprehensive, with good charts beforehand. Strong safety briefing first night. Hands-off approach by dive staff, but ready to help if asked. Buddies left to dive own plans/profiles. Steady 25-30 knot winds the whole week forced cancellation of our planned Osprey Reef leg in the Coral Sea. The boat handled the weather okay, but the ride back to Cairns against the wind was a punishing 10 hour Nantucket sleighride, done overnight. The weather caused some discomfort for some divers, but everyone was able to dive each day. Some sites not accessible because of surge or currents. Cod Hole feeding was a little hokey, but exciting nonethless. Abundant fish life on most dives; Steve's Bommie, Pixie's Pinnacle and Lighthouse Bommie were standouts. One night dive on Challenger Bay was full of fish, including snappers and jacks feeding under the boat's lights, but another at Tak's II was disappointing. Plenty of cruising white tip sharks; one diver logged 15 sightings in 21 dives. Turtles, big Maori Wrasses, Potato Cods, Sweetlips, Giant Clams, cuttlefish, rays. Loads of smaller Anemone Fish, Chromis, Batfish, Butterfly Fish, Moorish Idols and others. Hard and soft corals in great shape. Staff highlighted Flame File Shell in hole with sparking bacteria on its edge. Also spotted a large sea snake. A memorable trip that sold me on liveaboards.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Mexico, Turkey, California, New Zealand, Florida, Hawaii, Grand Cayman, Curacao, Turks and Caicos
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	19-22°C / 66-72°F	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	15-25 M / 49-82 Ft
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Back on board with 750psi, no decompression dives. Recommended depths on each dive, but computer divers allowed to follow own profiles
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	1 or 2
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	Rinse tanks on dive deck, film processing and camera rentals available. All photographers on board used digitals. No digital transfer facility availble per se, but DVD and VCR available, and computers could be powered off boat's outlets.

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Dive Review of Nimrod Explorer in Australia/Great Barrier Reef

Nimrod Explorer, Apr, 2003,

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 Nimrod Explorer in
Australia/Great Barrier Reef