Trip Report Fiji- May 14-30, 2022

[staggsSevin]

Thanks for all the great writeups so far and pictures! Sucks that the start of the trip started off a bit of a bummer but you got plenty of time to turn that around! I was at Paradise Taveuni a bit south of where your staying still at the end of April and into May and got in some great diving.

I agree Purple Wall is pretty amazing, and I was lucky enough to get in 3 dives to the Great White Wall as well, two of the three were perfect conditions! Its amazing how that dive is setup perfectly with the two swim through on both sides of the wall.

My wife and I were showing 84-86 degree temps while we were there on our shearwater Terics...our Atomic Colbalts always showed 1 degree higher than those.

I hope you enjoy the rest of your time there and see some more cool stuff! The dolphins and pilot whales on nearly every boat ride were always amazing...even got to see a Manta on top one day (was a bit early for them....but it's getting closer to time so you may luck out..along with the humpbacks).

 

[Trailboss123]

Glad you’ve recovered and in the water! Looks incredible. Curious about the dive procedures, environment and conditions. Are these group dives or can you explore independently (solo or buddy)? Negative entries? Are these dives drift, anchor or both? What have the typical (max) dive depths been running so far? Is there a time limit to be on surface? Anything else of note? Enjoy your newfound freedom!

Hey Eric,

Our dive group are the only ones here these two weeks. We are 14 divers. We put 7 divers on two boats each day. The boats have a captain, a deck hand and 2 dive guides. One dive guide leads the dive and the other brings up the rear. All dives are live boat drift dives. Some currents being stronger than others. Pretty much like Cozumel in that regard. Given the currents, we all stay pretty close together, but that being said, you are free to dive how you want to dive and meander about a bit. Occasionally, there are portions of dives where we scoot over to the back side of the reef and completely out of the current and everyone just explores to their heart's content. Any divers who are lower on air will ascend early with the dive guide bringing up the rear. The rest of us continue on with the lead guide and usually group up around 60-65 minutes in and ascend as a group for our safety stop. Currents here are based on daily incoming and outgoing tides (so, unlike Cozumel in that regard) and it really pays to have a great dive guide who knows the reefs and tides and what they are doing at any given time of day and can put you in the right spots at the right time. Dive depths run 100 feet up to the reef tops which are usually in the 20 foot range. As nI mentioned earlier, Fiji currently has no Chamber, so everyone in our group is keeping their profiles reasonable and conservative, but you are free to dive as you wish.

We do a 1 hour surface interval between dives 1 and 2. Either on the boat or at a nearby sheltered beach. After dive 2, we head back to the resort for lunch and have about 2 to 2.5 hours off-gassing during that time, before heading back out at 2pm for dive #3.

Typically, it is a 10-15 minute boat ride out to the dive sites and back. Everyone is diving 80cf aluminum 80's. There are a limited number of 100's available also. DIN and Yoke accommodated. Nitrox fills have been consistently 31-33%. Fills in the 3000 psi range regularly. We analyze tanks after breakfast.

 

[bcaderunr]

Me and the missus and my son were there in Fall, 2019 for 10 days and loved the place as well. A daily highlight of our stay was the sunset stroll around the "golf course" across the street and a short distance south of the property. Had it all to ourselves every evening. Enjoy!

 

[dflaher]

All dives are live boat drift dives. Some currents being stronger than others. Pretty much like Cozumel in that regard.

Thanks for the detailed logistics of the dives and the operation. I really enjoy hearing how it's done around the world. So does the DM launch a marker buoy at dive's end or does the boat follow your bubbles? Amazing how much I don't remember from being there ten years ago.

My wife and I were showing 84-86 degree temps while we were there on our shearwater Terics...our Atomic Colbalts always showed 1 degree higher than those.

Sold! Makes me wanna head there next April/May.

 

[Soloist]

Our dive group are the only ones here these two weeks. We are 14 divers. We put 7 divers on two boats each day. The boats have a captain, a deck hand and 2 dive guides. One dive guide leads the dive and the other brings up the rear. All dives are live boat drift dives. Some currents being stronger than others. Pretty much like Cozumel in that regard. Given the currents, we all stay pretty close together, but that being said, you are free to dive how you want to dive and meander about a bit. Occasionally, there are portions of dives where we scoot over to the back side of the reef and completely out of the current and everyone just explores to their heart's content. Any divers who are lower on air will ascend early with the dive guide bringing up the rear. The rest of us continue on with the lead guide and usually group up around 60-65 minutes in and ascend as a group for our safety stop. Currents here are based on daily incoming and outgoing tides (so, unlike Cozumel in that regard) and it really pays to have a great dive guide who knows the reefs and tides and what they are doing at any given time of day and can put you in the right spots at the right time. Dive depths run 100 feet up to the reef tops which are usually in the 20 foot range. As nI mentioned earlier, Fiji currently has no Chamber, so everyone in our group is keeping their profiles reasonable and conservative, but you are free to dive as you wish.

Thanks for the feedback! Hypothetically speaking, if a diver becomes preoccupied (obsessed) while taking video of a particular subject and becomes separated from the group, what’s the protocol? Does the individual continue with the dive as planed per the allotted time and deploy a DSMB from depth just prior to their safety stop? Or does the crew prefer you surface ASAP with the possibility of a redrop? Asking for a friend…

 

[Trailboss123]

Thanks for the feedback! Hypothetically speaking, if a diver becomes preoccupied (obsessed) while taking video of a particular subject and becomes separated from the group, what’s the protocol? Does the individual continue with the dive as planed per the allotted time and deploy a DSMB from depth just prior to their safety stop? Or does the crew prefer you surface ASAP with the possibility of a redrop? Asking for a friend…

Continue your dive in the general direction the group was heading and deploy your SMB and surface around 60 minutes into the dive.

 

[Trailboss123]

Lots of sharks the last couple of days. White tip and black tip. Mostly have video, so not going to post those. I have 1 pic of a white tip under a ledge (see below). Nice Banded Sea Krait today also. Going to try and insert a short video clip of that and see if it takes:

 

[Centrals]

Still no sign of bull or tiger?

 

[rmorgan]

Thanks for the helpful information, Trailboss. We're booked to Fiji in November, so your reports are perfect for spooling up anticipation. We had a similar COVID experience--we were returning from Ecuador; took proctored tests on a Friday afternoon for a redeye to Atlanta. Both negative. About three hours later, my wife felt the first signs of a sinus infection. We'd been in the jungle for five days and had just tested negative. What I thought were seasonal allergies hit me when I got back to springtime in Ohio, but a seemingly-unnecessary test on Tuesday was positive. Very easy course for both of us, but we infected several family members in the meantime--fortunately, all are fine. Will you have a recovery certificate for purposes of coming home?

 

[Trailboss123]

Still no sign of bull or tiger?

No-- They are not common in this part of Fiji.