Nautilus Undersea: "Some of the best diving of my life", Apr, 2021,by Mary McCombie, CT, US (![]() |
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Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best): |
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Accommodations | ![]() |
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Dive Operation | ![]() |
Shore Diving | N/A |
Snorkeling | N/A | ||
Overall Rating |
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Value for $$ | ![]() |
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Beginners | ![]() |
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Advanced | ![]() |
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Comments | As soon as I was fully vaccinated against Covid, I booked this trip. The boat was familiar to me, as it was the former Undersea Hunter that I'd taken to Cocos in 1995. It has been very extensively remodeled and is very comfortable; the dive deck and camera table are enormous; and there are two suites new to the boat, as well as a hot tub on the top deck. My cabin was on the top deck, a suite with two small sitting areas, a king bed with a super comfortable mattress, and a nice bathroom. The top deck has one downside, however: the apparent motion of the boat is magnified there, and during the nearly 80 hours of open ocean crossings, it could be very rough. My buddy booked a stateroom on the lower deck, and it was very well appointed, with bunk beds and ample storage. The dive operation is terrific: two DMs on this trip, Pascal and Juan, led each dive. Divers are in two groups, and we lucked out on this trip with only 9 divers total (the boat holds 19). You don your gear, step onto the panga, and off you go, backrolling into the water. And what water...we were fortunate indeed to see everything from whale sharks to whales, dolphins, schooling hammerheads, multitudes of Galapagos, silvertip, and whitetip sharks, huge Pacific mantas, and massive schools of bonito and tuna. The most astonishing dives were at Roca Partida, but there was action on virtually every other dive as well. The conditions can be challenging, with cold water on many dives (65-73F), lots of current, and often, low visibility. For the experienced diver, it's a wonderful trip, but know that you will have a lot of open ocean travel, and sometimes complex conditions. I just loved it--even better than my first trip to Socorro five years prior. Tip: I used my Thermalution heated shirt on many dives, and it was a godsend. | ||
Reporter and Travel |
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Dive Experience | Over 1000 dives | ||
Where else diving | all over the world | ||
Closest Airport | SJD | Getting There | Easy to get to Cabo San Lucas |
Dive Conditions |
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Weather | sunny, windy | Seas | choppy, surge, currents |
Water Temp | 65-74°F / 18-23°C | Wetsuit Thickness | 7 |
Water Visibility | 15-80 Ft/ 5-24 M | ||
Dive Policy |
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Dive own profile | no | ||
Enforced diving restrictions | No deeper than 110 feet | ||
Liveaboard? | no | Nitrox Available? | yes |
What I Saw |
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Sharks | Lots | Mantas | Squadrons |
Dolphins | Schools | Whale Sharks | > 2 |
Turtles | > 2 | Whales | 1 or 2 |
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best): |
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Corals | ![]() |
Tropical Fish | ![]() |
Small Critters | ![]() |
Large Fish | ![]() |
Large Pelagics | ![]() |
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Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best): |
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Subject Matter | N/A | Boat Facilities | ![]() |
Overall rating for UWP's | ![]() |
Shore Facilities | N/A |
UW Photo Comments | [None] |
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