Oh man, what a first day at Socorro! This has made the 4000 mile journey worth it. Black Giant Manta just cruising past having a good clean on the first dive. The other divers swore they saw a school of dolphins and a tiger shark, but that is the luck of the draw. Second dive was even better with more than 5 giant mantas circling around us, all more than comfortable to come close, almost brushing you.
The diving deck is really well organised; probably the best that I have experienced with all of the diving gear arranged such that each group is spread out so that their immediate neighbours are not hindering their getting ready. Obviously, it is great fun watching everyone faff around still, but all pretty calm and it hasn’t turned to violence yet. It is only day 1 though, so watch this space.
The staff are all really friendly and can’t do enough for you especially the galley girls (can I call them that?), force feeding us food and drink, in a good way. The diving guys really seem to know what they are doing.
Just off to have tacos on the top deck and then a good night’s rest as we are all rocked to sleep on the overnight journey to Roca Partida in preparation for the first dive at 07:00 after first brekkers. Night-night and speak to you tomorrow.
–Martin Augelet, UK
Great boat. Great staff. Dive operation really smoothly run. Mantas on every dive so far, schooling hammerheads, false killer whales and more. Great food. Snacks served at just the right times. Highly recommend this Nautilus trip to see big animals and be treated supremely well by staff.
–Monterey Bay Aquarium Volunteer Divers
📷 by Yves Lefevre
