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Dive Review of Nautilus Dive Tech in
Mexico (Western)/Cabo San Lucas

Nautilus Dive Tech, Oct, 2012,

by Kelley McDaneld, CO, US (Reviewer Reviewer 4 reports with 1 Helpful vote). Report 6748.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations N/A Food N/A
Service and Attitude 2 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 1 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 1 stars
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 1 stars
Comments My husband and I decided to try a day of diving in Cabo San Lucas after diving both in La Paz and in Cabo Pulmo. We had low expectations because we had heard about the crowds and the Vegas type of development of the area, but we certainly did not expect it to be some of the worst diving we have ever done. Unfortunately the diving only ranked slightly above the checkout dives I did years ago in a lake in Arkansas. My husband had spoken extensively with Casey, the Nautilus Dive Tech shop owner, the day before about our diving experience and what we were interested in doing. When we got to the shop we filled out necessary paperwork and started loading up the truck to leave for the marina. It looked like it was just going to be the divemaster, Greg, and us. At the last minute they told us that another diver would be joining us. The diver that joined our group was a PADI-certified AOW diver who had been trained by an instructor at Nautilus Dive Tech. That instructor had recently been let go, and it soon became apparent why as the guy was unable to even set up his own equipment. It was unclear to us if he had actually paid for diving that day or if the shop was letting him come along to try to retrain him. We headed out to the bay for our first dive near Pelican Rock, but before we got there we had to stop and get gas, which took 20 minutes or more. Greg gave a good briefing and we got ready to enter. There were tons of boats in the area with snorkelers, partiers, you name it onboard. It was important that we surfaced together due to boat traffic, which according to Greg had recently proven lethal to a dive master in the area.

Only 10 minutes into the dive, the incompetent diver was out of air and had to use the divemaster's spare reg. The diver was unable to use his inflator hose and had no idea how to achieve neutral buoyancy. Our total dive time was cut to about 25 minutes and we came up with almost 2000 psi. There wasn’t a lot of fish life in the area and the sandfalls were a mere trickle. Just when we were getting around the rock to check out the other side, we were instructed to start our safety stops. Needless to say, I was upset that our dive had been cut so short due to the incompetence of a diver that the shop had "trained". The owner obviously knew how incompetent the diver was, and despite this he knowingly put the diver with us. This is very poor business practice, and seeing how poor this guy’s training was, we would never recommend Nautilus Dive Tech for any training.

The second dive was done a little further out in the bay at Los Moros. A short time into the dive, the divemaster had to ascend with the flailing diver and allowed us to stay down to finish our dives. In addition to our poor experience with this operation, there was not much to see underwater in the bay. The water was murky and there were hardly any fish. We would never return to this area--we would stick to sites outside of La Paz and sites in Cabo Pulmo. On a positive note, our divemaster Greg did his best to try to rectify the situation, and his briefings were very thorough. Greg is an ex-Navy diver with a lot of interesting experience and knowledge. It is too bad he is not working with a better dive operation—one that cares about all paying customers.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 101-250 dives
Where else diving [Unspecified]
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas calm, no currents
Water Temp 84-86°F / 29-30°C Wetsuit Thickness 5
Water Visibility 50-65 Ft/ 15-20 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile no
Enforced diving restrictions restricted by incompetent diver's air usage
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales None
Corals N/A Tropical Fish 1 stars
Small Critters 1 stars Large Fish 1 stars
Large Pelagics 1 stars

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

Subject Matter N/A Boat Facilities N/A
Overall rating for UWP's N/A 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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