Prolog.
I almost decided NOT to post this report here, for the simple reason
that unlike Scuba-L and rec.scuba and rec.scuba.locations, Scuba-SE
is NOT groups.google.com retrievable whereas reports and discussions
(good OR bad) are easily retrivable for YEARS in those groups!
Those who abhor and/or slight the use of ARCHIVES are invariably (I
mean NO EXCEPTION) the ones who have the most shameful history of
posting who would rather never be found by anyone, or used as FACTUAL
evidence to show their inconsistency, hypocrisy, and all that is NOT
good for ANY poster in ANY forum of discussion.
Obfuscation is at its best WITHOUT an archival record, and WITH long
winded rhetoric, to fool some readers some of the time, some readers
all of the time, but there will ALWAYS be a few who can see (from a
LONG HISTORY of anyone's posting record) no matter how hard such an
obfuscator attempts to obfuscate and fool others.
End of Editorial resulting from a self-imposed 90-days of observation
of newsgroups and LISTS, having been absent from posting in Scuba-SE
and Scuba-L.
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Subtitle: A week of diving on the Sun Dancer II liveaboard in Palau.
T'was 10 days after the WTC incident. Uncertainty, over-reaction, and
speculations filled the air when we embarked on our 3rd liveaboard
trip to Palau in four years.
GETTING THERE.
The Undercurrent magazine, which specializes in trip reports to exotic
dive locations, popularized the phrase, "getting there is half the
fun" and this trip provided new meaning to the "fun" part.
We left home at 2:30 AM, allowing a bit extra time for the check-in
line, to open at 5 am, 130 miles away, for our 7:05 am flight to
Houston, then 3900 miles to Honolulu, followed by 3800 miles to Guam,
before the last leg to Koror (Palau), with less than an hour for
each change of flight.
The first 20 FEET of this journey at the ATL airport took 35 minutes,
AFTER our boarding passes had been issued. Our two checked bags were
the first in line but the inspector, making sure we were going to have
safe DIVING, inspected my fins, fin pockets, regulator hoses, masks,
and everything that has a volume of greater than 1 cu in in both of
our large suitcases, before putting them on the conveyor belt.
Meanwhile NONE of the checked bags of DOMESTIC-flight passengers was
manually inspected at all! Only those with a FINAL INTERNATIONAL
destination had the privilege of being thoroughly searched, manually.
It apparently didn't occur to the geniuses behind this safety-check
scheme that DOMESTIC travellers are just as capable of having bombs
in their checked luggage as we were, and all of us were on the SAME
plane, landing at the SAME destination, the Houston Intercontinental
Airport, also known as the George Bush airport, before going our
separate ways to different planes and different locations!
I am sorry to say that the 20+ hours in the air were uneventful --
I did not have the opportunity to use my lethal weapon (Miyagi's
bare hands) to over-power any terrorist, nor any good opportunity to
call them names! <G> I did call one of the airport luggage inspectors
an OSA (Obnoxious Smart Ass), but only to some of my friends in
cyberspace, for reasons not worth the bandwidth to recount. :-)
THE SUN DANCER II
Our plane arrived Palau at 7:30 pm local time, a day later (because
of the crossing of the International Date Line). After a good night's
sleep, we boarded the Sun Dancer II Sunday afternoon for the beginning
of the week's charter, ready for a week's serious diving, isolated
from the foibles and goings on in the world. We will be in that part
of the world where Japanese soldiers were known to have fought World
War II for years after the War had already ended because they didn't
know it ended. Peleliu was one of those islands on which the Sun Dancer
offered a land tour in lieu of one of the dives.
THE CREW. A complete turnover since I was on the boat in July 1999,
with most having been there less than a year. With the gruelling daily
regiment on the boat, few crew members last more than a few months
before burning out. A crew of 10, five of whom are diving instructors
and DMs, for a boat of capacity of 20 passengers (Only 8 this week; and
3 next week -- much less work (good), much less total tips (very bad)).
The WTC incident had a DEFINITE effect on the number of divers!
THE MANIFEST
Two of the expected 12 didn't make it. Two of the remaining 10
arrived late the week before because they were stranded in Guam, and
so they got to dive the first two days of this week's charter to
complete their week. After the first two days, there were only EIGHT
divers. Except for one passenger from Malaysia, the rest were all
from the USA, mostly from the West Coast.
THE WEATHER
I was somewhat apprehensive of the possible WIND which whipped up 12
to 14-foot waves at Blue Corner and other unsheltered sites rendering
them undivable my last trip here in July 1999. But this time, the
weather was near perfect. We did the Blue Corner THREE times -- the
only dive site repeated during the entire week; otherwise, if was a
different site on each dive -- something the Caribbean liveaboards
need to learn to mimic (many Caribbean liveaboards dive the same site
twice in the morning, and a 2nd site three times the rest of the day).
WATER TEMP: 85-89F !!! Sunny with occasional tropical showers that
never lasted long. Ideal diving conditions for the Warm Water Wimp!
In 1999, the water temp reached 91F which wiped out all the jellyfish
in the Jellyfish Lake in ONE WEEKEND. The Jellyfish is back to that
lake, and thriving, but at the present water temp, is obviously at
risk of survival again.
DIVING SCHEDULE. Up to 5 dives a day, on Tuesday and Thursday, when
night dives are offered. Otherwise, up to 4 dives, unless one of
the dive slots was taken up by a land excursion. There was opportunity
for 19 dives this week.
DIVING RULES. Virtually none other than getting safely back to the
boat with an hour. The only apparent "rule" was DIVE AT YOUR OWN RISK.
NITROX FACTOIDS on the Sun Dancer II:
1999: Contrary to rumors on the internet (rec.scuba), nitrox was FREE
(included in the cost of the charter).
2001: Peter Hughes is making for lost time. It's now $150 for the
week, with no apparent option to pay by the tank. The Aggressors
charge $100 for a week of $10 per tank whichever is lower.
1999: The MOD (on SD II) for EAN32 is 130 fsw, the 1.6 PPO2 version.
2001: Most tanks are filled to EAN35 and 3400 psi. Log your own MOD. :-)
Many of the dives are deep and long. By Day 3, my air computer
was maxing out. The diver from Malaysia was newly certified,
was excellent on air consumption, but apparently never head of
tables, computers, or DCS. ;0) When I saw her crusing 20 fsw
below me, about 30 minutes into a dive, when I was at 75 fsw,
and MY air computer was already flashing "GO UP!" I knew she
was over-extending her stay at depth, and went down to point her
to ascend while pointing at my computer. Several other divers
noted her depth profile in subsequent dives and she was beginning
to report sub-clinical DCS symptoms! -- Excessive fatigue, aching
shoulders, some headache and nausea, etc. The DMs, apparently
stick to the "Dive at Your Own Risk" rule, seemed less concerned
at her dive profile as the rest of us passengers were! I think
we finally put enough fear into her that she voluntarily sat
out Day 5 except for the 20 fsw Mandarinfish Lake dive.
1999: All tanks are hot-filled on the tender. Once the BC is strapped
on, it remains with the tank the rest of the week. SAME in 2001.
DAILY SCHEDULE. Coffee ready at 5:30. Cold breakfast at 6:00. Hot
breakfast at 7:00. Snack served after first dive, briefing at 7:30.
Lunch starts some time between 12:00 and 14:00, depending when the 2nd
dive ends. Similarly, dinner served after the 2nd afternoon dive, at
variable times. In short, for this week, the Sun Dancer II schedule
revolved around DIVES, at irregular times, as were on my previous trips.
DAY 1. Dive 1. Buoy # 6 wreck. Dive 2. Short Dropoff. (Snorkel
in Jellyfish Lake.) Dive 3. Wonder Channel.
Picasso Triggerfish, Sweetlips, Crocodilefish, Mandarinfish,
Olive Eel, lobsters, Orange, Orange Fin, and Three-banded
anemonefishes, and assorted Butterflyfish, Wrasses, Moorish
Idols, and other colorful reef fish. All except the croc-fish
and the Manderinfish were seen everyday.
DAY 2. Dive 1. Siaes Tunnel. Dive 2. Ulong Channel. Dive 3. New
Dropoff. Dive 4. Turtle Cove. Dive 5. Ngemelis.
Mostly Reef Sharks; Napoleon Wrasses by the dozen, turtles.
Dragon Wrasses, assorted Anemonefishes, giant clams, Rain
Butterflyfish, and Dave Barry's "medium fish".
DAY 3. Dive 1. Peleliu Express. (3-hr Peleliu Land Excursion before
noon.) Dive 2. Peleliu Pocket. Dive 3. Ferns Wall. Everyone
chose to skip the night dive (4th).
Peleliu Express was a slow train this morning. We actually
swam (slightly against current: the DM misread the tide table
it seemed) from the Pacific Ocean across the plateau to the
Philippine Sea, seeing only one eagle ray and nothing much
else on the way, after the initial wall.
Sharks, large and small. Juvenile Harlequin Sweetlips, Zebra
shark, large turtles, pod of 30-40 dolphins (on surface on the
way to Peleliu Pocket, more anenmonefish, butterflyfish and
zillions of wrasses.
DAY 4. Dive 1. Blue Hole/Blue Corner. Dive 2. Big Dropoff. Dive
3. Blue Corner. Dive 4. German Channel. Dive 5. Ngemelis.
Reef sharks Blacktips. Napoleon Wrasse, Bumphead Parrotfish,
large schools of Barracudas and Trevalles, Eagle ray, several
large turtles. Manta Ray, Cuttlefish, Unicornfish, Orange fin
anemonefish, and gazillions of little and medium reef fish.
DAY 5. Dive 1. Blue Corner. (Rock Island Excursion/Sightseeing.)
Dive 2. Iro Weeck. Dive 3. Mandarinfish Lake.
Usual Blue Corner stuff. One shark had FOUR ramoras on it.
Lionfish. Moray eel. Clark's anemonefish, Longfin Spadefish,
Mandarinfish, and assorted reef fish.
DAY 6. Dive 1. Chuyo Wreck. Dive 2. Chandelier's Cave.
Anemonefish, Lionfish.
DAY 7. Left the Sun Dancer boat at 8 am, taken to the PPR day room
provided by PHD to do local sights while waiting to be taken
to the airport at 10 pm for the 1:45 am departure flight.
This is a particularly LONG DAY. We started in Palau at 1:45 am
of Oct 1. We arrived Honolulu 6:30 pm September 30. It was
7:00 am Oct 1 when we arrived Houston, and we finally got home
I'll not need to sleep off my jet-lag, because I'll have ONE
DAY on the East Coast, and will be back to Asia again, flight
cut-backs permitting. :-)
-- Bob.
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