Dive Review of Eco Explorer in
Micronesia

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Eco Explorer, May, 2008, by Ralph Baker, NV, USA ( Reviewer 6 reports). Report 4177.
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	The weather in Palau in May was horrible so my experience on the trip was impacted by that. If the diving is great, I will have a great time, regardless of the boat or crew. But, if the weather is bad, then a boat's crew can make or break the trip. The wind came up and forced all the dive boats back to Koror. When that happens it takes a really good crew to make the most of a bad situation. The Eco Explorer's crew didn't have the experience to meet that demand. The regular dive master was absent, and the crew that was left was inexperienced, and didn't know the dive sites. They couldn't time the tides, and we were almost always diving when the tide was coming out of the lagoon. This caused very bad visibility. When we had to go into Koror after only a few days of poor visibility, we dove the same two wrecks in even worse visibility for three days. We did four dives a day, but we alternated the same two wrecks for each dive. I stopped diving altogether the last day because I got tired of going to the same places with extremely poor visibilty. The dive masters really did try, but they were just were not familiar enough with the dive sites. When they couldn't find the electric clam at Blue Hole, it was clear they hadn't been to the dive site much. After all, clams usually don't move. Oh well, better weather next time. The boat was not clean. It was infested with roaches. Evidently, it is fumagated once a year when it goes back to the Philippines. This was the boat's last month before returning to the Philippines. Turn on the air conditioner and watch the little critters run! In the bathroom, there was a rinse cup that still had a toothpaste cap from the previous occupant floating in it. By the end of the week the water in that cup appeared to be evolving into a living thing. There was a sign stating that you should not drink the water from the tap. The highlights on the trip were Blue Corner and Blue Hole. I was told that Blue Corner is best when the moon is full. This is when we hit it, and the dive was fun. The sharks were about 5 ft long and plentiful. I also saw mantas, but they were about 30 feet above us. I also saw one leopard shark. Palau is worth the trip, but as in any dive location where there are weather challenges, you need an experienced crew to know where to go to still get some good diving. This crew wasn't experienced, and as a result, this was a bad trip.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Komodo, Solomons, Coco Isl., British Columbia, Australia, California, Caribbean
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	windy, rainy, cloudy	Seas	choppy, currents
Water Temp	84-0°F / 29--18°C	Wetsuit Thickness	2
Water Visibility	20-50 Ft/ 6-15 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	must have a buddy, must dive with the group
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	1 or 2
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 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	[None]

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Dive Review of Eco Explorer in Micronesia

Eco Explorer, May, 2008,

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 Eco Explorer in
Micronesia