Trip Report December 24-31, 2017 Palau Trip Report

[Dan]

If you do that bring a few buddies. When I went solo I got shuffled around quite a bit.
There is a smaller boutique shop which I can't recall their name that you might look for. I've heard good reviews of them.
I'd really love to hit Palau in the spring for reef shark mating season. I've read it's off the hook sharky then

Thanks for the tips. I’d bring dive buddy, whose wife doesn’t dive, but like to snorkel.

Sure like to be there during the reef shark mating season.

 

[Dan]

Saw this YouTube on the “action”

 

[scubaNYC16]

View attachment 442018

After that deep dive, I took it easy on the next 2 dives in German Wall and German Coral Garden (the 3rd and last night dive). Some of other fish and critters we saw then were anthias, crown of thorn, giant clam, batfish, nudibranch, bigeye, long-nose hawkfish, lizardfish, anemone shrimp, cowrie, cleaning shrimp, porcelain crab, back-saddle grouper, speckled-fin grouper, puffer, and splendid red-spooner crab.

Day 5
On the 5th day we did 4 dives in Siaes Corner, Siaes Tunnel, Ulong Channel and Sandy Paradise. Siaes Corner was supposed to be another hook-in dive, but the current was not there, nor seen any schooling fish. However, we saw some bumphead parrotfish, several sharks swimming in formation, and eagle ray.

View attachment 442019

Ulong channel has some beautiful hard corals and a couple of huge giant clam.

View attachment 442020

Some of other fish and critters we saw then were nudibranch, white-tip shark, gray reef shark, pyramid butterflyfish, turtle, disco clam, dartfish, puffer, garden eels, leaf scorpionfish, mantis shrimp and brown-marbled grouper.

View attachment 442021
View attachment 442022
View attachment 442023

Day 6
On the 6th (last) day we did 2 dives in Shark City and Chandelier Cave. Shark City is another popular dive site for seeing red snapper spawning. We started early around 6 am to be on the site when the current would be going out to the blue water so the fertilized snapper eggs would be carried away from the reef into the blue water. The snapper spawning happens in 3 days out of 28 day bio-cycle. That day turned out to be the perfect day to see the snapper spawning in action.

View attachment 442024

Since it was quite early in the morning, the limited lighting would not produce a good clear video. Fortunately, such video is available in YouTube, courtesy of SCRFA (Science and Conservation of Fish Aggregation) and nicely narrated by Alfredo Barroso of SCRFA.org, as shown below:


The last dive in Chandelier Cave was also quite interesting. There were 3 limestone chambers with stalactite formation, reminding me of cenote diving in Mexico. After seeing the cave, we continued on muck diving near the exit / entrance of the caves. We saw signal goby, mandarin fish and pijama cardinal fish. The mandarin fish there were smaller than what I have seen in Indonesia, but they were not shy. They were out there, mind their own business of feeding on the coral, unafraid of the divers, unlike those in Indonesia where they tend to hide during the day and only come out at dust.

View attachment 442025
View attachment 442026
View attachment 442027



Returning Home
On the 7th Day, we disembarked the boat after breakfast and took a land tour around Babeldaob. Later in the evening, we took 25-hour flight home from Koror to Houston through Guam, Honolulu and Los Angeles.

WOW. Thanks for a great report. Here's my video-

 

[scubaNYC16]

Thanks for the kind words.

I like Ulong Channel. It reminds me of Melissa’s Garden in Raja Ampat.

Ulong Channel
View attachment 442052

Melissa’s Garden
View attachment 442053
View attachment 442054

My favorite dive of the trip, wish we could have done it again,

 

[scubaNYC16]

Awesome, thanks for posting!

What's up brotha, check out the video I just posted. You gotta go, amazing!

 

[scubaNYC16]

Lucky you.

Although I made all 25 dives during that trip & awarded an Iron Diver medal (together with 9 other divers, LOL) I caught a flu bug at the end of the trip & got really sick during the flight home. During 5 out of 7 hour flight from Guam to Honolulu, I actually passed out & fell on the floor while waiting for my turn to go to the toilet. EMS took me to the emergency hospital in Honolulu. My body temperature was 103F (40C) & severely dehydrated. The nurse put me on IV fluid for hydration & Tamiflu. So I spent 2nd New Year eve celebration in the emergency hospital in Honolulu. After 6-hour rest & emptied a liter of IV fluid, my body function was back to normal & got a medical clearance to continue my journey home. However, by then there was pretty much no hotel room available to stay for the night for < $300. So, of to the airport I went to sleep for 2 hours on a bench before boarding on the next available flight home.

Ugh. Didn't realize it was so bad. Glad you made it home ok.

 

[Dan]

WOW. Thanks for a great report. Here's my video-

Cool video Gil! Good complement to the trip report since you show them from different angle, fish & critters that I posted above.

 

[billt4sf]

Nice trip report, Dan! (Crappy pics as usual though)

Wife and I want to go to Palau in Nov this year. Any suggestions, folks? I hear Sam's Tours mentioned a lot but it seems a kind of funny organization? Can you get to those good currenty / sharky sites from a resort? Is that the 45-min boat rides every day? We'll likely come in from Taiwan on China Airlines which only flies Wednesdays and Saturdays I think.

We want four-star accommodations with EASY ins and outs, I have back issues and prefer to back-roll not giant stride so I don't have to stand up with the gear on.

Thanks,

Bill & Emily

 

[outofofficebrb]

Great report. 5 dives a day? Now that is my kind of liveaboard and day spent diving...! So long as there is nitrox, that is.

Top 2 liveaboard, eh? Hm....Palau might have to be on my liveaboard list now!

 

[Dan]

Nice trip report, Dan! (Crappy pics as usual though)

Wife and I want to go to Palau in Nov this year. Any suggestions, folks? I hear Sam's Tours mentioned a lot but it seems a kind of funny organization? Can you get to those good currenty / sharky sites from a resort? Is that the 45-min boat rides every day? We'll likely come in from Taiwan on China Airlines which only flies Wednesdays and Saturdays I think.

We want four-star accommodations with EASY ins and outs, I have back issues and prefer to back-roll not giant stride so I don't have to stand up with the gear on.

Thanks,

Bill & Emily

If you have never been in Palau & liveaboard is not a problem, I highly recommend going with Palau Aggressor II. You’ll get the most bang for your bucks!