Live aboard diving

[Blair Mott]

Live aboard diving:
Some of the best dives I have ever experienced were off a live aboard dive boat. I sometime call it “comfort diving” because it truly can be the most comfortable diving experience. Just walk out of your cabin onto the dive deck, then into your gear and 1, 2 , 3 get wet and dive. I will be on the Force Fin SubForum of ScubaBoard.com this morning to answer any questions you might have about live aboard diving, Force Fins and spontaneous dive travel.
The reason for this is that Bob Evans and his family are hosting a Nekton Cruise to Belize for the holidays.
It has been 30 years since Bob Evans was last in Belize. It was British Honduras then. He was on a photographic assignment for "Dive Magazine". According to his recollection, the pilot was flicking his Cuban cigar ashes out the open window. Flying was a bit different then.....
He is off to Belize again. This time his wife, Susanne and son, Alex will be joining for a week long cruise on the Nekton Pilot, December 22 - December 29. Every year they try to coordinate a trip as a family for the holidays. Sometimes it is quite spontaneous. They only booked our flights 2 weeks ago for this trip.
So if you want to join them and have a Christmas that your family will never forget, contact Dennis at sales@nektoncruises.com to book your adventure.
For an idea of what you might expect ask me, but you might also post a question about diving with Bob Evans on the ScubaRadio.com forum. And Alex, he is really interesting too. He will have just returned from a stint coordinating his research at CalTech with the world famous coral lab at Hebrew University.
If you would like to talk about anything Force Fin or diving I will be here.

 

[reefexplorer]

My experience is that liveaboard diving is a great way to spend a week - it really is comfort diving, although some call it valet diving. Once the crew sets up the gear under your watchful eye, you really never have to do anything for the rest of the week except check out the set up before a dive, and dive, dive, dive.

What's the weather and seas generally like in Belize at the end of December?

 

[Blair Mott]

Belize in December is post Hurricane Season and beautiful. You can go to weather underground for more details.

I agree not only is it comfortable, but you can log so many dives with such little effort. Sometimes when I have been on a live aboard I often dive only a few hundred feet away from the boat itself and have great diving. You are right it truly is DIVE DIVE DIVE. Did anybody say NIGHT DIVE?

 

[reefexplorer]

I've been on the Nekton Pilot before and night diving is real easy - the deck deck and platform are very well lighted.

What interests me most about Xmas in Belize is Bob. I loved his Channel Islands pics. I'm an old diver - correction: I'm a diver with 30 years of diving experience - some younger ocean fanatics may not remember Bob's pics, but they were great. What also interests me about being confined to a boat with Bob Evans is really getting into his thought process in designing such an unusual looking fin.

Is he going to have some FF for a couple of trial dives? That may be a great way of trying before buying.

 

[Blair Mott]

Since all of Bob’s designs come from studying the creatures underwater it will be great to talk with him about designs then jump into the water and have a first hand look at what he is talking about. He will be bringing different Force Fin models with him so everyone will have a chance to try a pair if they like~

 

[reefexplorer]

Well, now you've really got me thinking about braving the airlines over Xmas!

 

[Doc]

Did anybody say NIGHT DIVE?

The Nekton is my favorite liveaboard, and I've been on them all in the Caribbean plus a bunch elsewhere.

The nightdive, most especially the return to the ship, is one of the most other worldly experiences you'll ever have. Mark my words- those who have not experienced this.

It is truly the "return to the mother ship" with E.T.

I think it's the best way to see Belize.

 

[Blair Mott]

I could not agree with you more. One of my most memorable dives was decompressing underneath our mother ship at night. All divers’ lights were off and just the flood lights from the mother ship shimmer down to us at depth. Small current running so we were in a horizontal position with a slow steady kick for about an hour with our rebreather on. So calming to the mind and body! I just hate going through DECO and that time I felt like I was in another and all in my world was right!

 

[Doc]

Small current running so we were in a horizontal position with a slow steady kick for about an hour with our rebreather on. So calming to the mind and body!

The Nekton's 15 fsw stainless steel hang bar is so heavily weighted that I just tag off to it with a 3' piece of nylon strap tied to my BC. It is entirely possible to doze off. The mechanical hum of the city above....

On one of my several trips, as the sun was low and setting, I spent 40 minutes tethered weightless and being bathed in pellagic Venus Sea Girdles. Aliens.

On another trip, San Sal it was, there was a well known resident 8 foot Baracuda. You could measure him as he completely spanned the nacelles that encased the props.

I did not doze off.

 

[Blair Mott]

Sounds very cool. I like the set up for Deco!