Any opinions on any liveaboards out of Fort Lauderdale? I see Nekton has three different trips (wondering if there is a "best"?) and would like to stay with this caliber of operator.
Looking for a liveaboard out of Ft. Lauderdale
- Thread starter del_mo
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ScubaLuke
Guest
I'm a big fan of the Nekton boats. I've been on 7 trips with them so far and I'll be making trips 8 and 9 with them this year.del_mo:
The boats are nice but not as well appointed as a higher end live-aborad - say like an Aggressor. Both boats have plenty roomy and each cabin has a bathroom. And every trip I've been on with them, they've had a top notch crew.
My favorite route is the Belize route. I've done that one three times and I'll be doing it again this year. Of the routes out of Fort Lauderdale, I've done Cay Sal and the Northern Bahamas. The Northern Bahamas is a favorite with folks in our dive club but I liked Cay Sal too.
Hope that helps.
Luke
For the money, Blackbeards out of Miami is hard to beat - but it is about 1 1/2 steps above camping
Easy...MV Shearwater, does the most amazing trip out to the Bahamas, the goal is Tiger Sharks and Hammerheads, absolutely amazing if you want to come face to face with 14 feet of toothy monsters, that is my number one destination right now...
Check out some of the stuff on www.wetpixel.com in the galleries section about their recent trip there. SWEET!!!
Check out some of the stuff on www.wetpixel.com in the galleries section about their recent trip there. SWEET!!!
thebes11
Contributor
del_mo;
Haven't been on a liveaboard (yet) so can't comment on the subject, but had to say thank you for you signature as it brought back a song I hadn't thought about in a long time and made me smile.
We were sittin' in the back seat just shootin' the breeze
With her hair up in curlers and her pants to her knees.
Siiiiiiigned Just Married.
Haven't been on a liveaboard (yet) so can't comment on the subject, but had to say thank you for you signature as it brought back a song I hadn't thought about in a long time and made me smile.
We were sittin' in the back seat just shootin' the breeze
With her hair up in curlers and her pants to her knees.
Siiiiiiigned Just Married.
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Hi Luke,
My hubby and I are looking at the Nekton Northern Bahamas itinerary for August. We have done quite a few dives (350+) and have been to quite a few destinations. I have been on Blackbeard's about 6-times too....
I -know- the Nekton is quite a bit above Blackbeards
.... How did you like the diving? Sounds like it is 'easy' diving. Lots of small stuff as well as some big stuff?
Any 'tips' you can give me would be appreciated (such as cabin location, etc)!
Thanks - Doreen
My hubby and I are looking at the Nekton Northern Bahamas itinerary for August. We have done quite a few dives (350+) and have been to quite a few destinations. I have been on Blackbeard's about 6-times too....
I -know- the Nekton is quite a bit above Blackbeards
.... How did you like the diving? Sounds like it is 'easy' diving. Lots of small stuff as well as some big stuff?Any 'tips' you can give me would be appreciated (such as cabin location, etc)!
Thanks - Doreen
ScubaLuke
Guest
Hi Doreen,divebunnybabe:Hi Luke,
My hubby and I are looking at the Nekton Northern Bahamas itinerary for August. We have done quite a few dives (350+) and have been to quite a few destinations. I have been on Blackbeard's about 6-times too....
I -know- the Nekton is quite a bit above Blackbeards
Any 'tips' you can give me would be appreciated (such as cabin location, etc)!
Thanks - Doreen
It's fur shur easy diving. You set up your gear once and then take it down at the end of the week. I love that.
I did the Northern Bahamas route back in 2000 and I'm going to do it again in July. The Northern Bahamas itinerary has a lot of variety. There is one deep wreck, a couple of real nice shallow wrecks with a _lot_ of life on them, several good macro sites, and a chance to snorkel with dolphins. On the trip I was on the dolphins didn't show up so that's not a guarantee. I'm really hoping to see them this trip. I think they also do a shark dive on this itinerary.
One dive I especially liked was the Wreck of the Hesperus. It's an old concrete barge that broke up in a storm in 15 or 20 feet of water. It's covered with rays, turtles, and sharks. It was a really great dive.
I like to get a cabin on the bottom deck towards the back. That seems to be the quietest location to me. The disadvantage to that is I end up going up and down stairs a lot during the week to change batteries in my camera. The room right next to the salon is one to stay away from. The TV is right up against the wall of that room. Occasionally you get a late night movie watching crowd and that can keep you awake.
Since you've done live-aboards before I'll bet you know to take a several swim suits, a pair or two of shorts, a few t-shirts and not much else in the way of clothes. I usually take 4 or 5 swim suits 'cause I like a dry butt between dives.
A piece of line is handy for securing you gear on the sun deck for drying.
Unlike the Aggressor or Peter Hughes boats you have to bring your own soft drinks or liquor. But there's plenty of other stuff to drink on board (coffee, tea, crystal light punch, etc.) so I usually don't bother.
That's all I can think of. Have I missed anything?
Luke
scubadad
Registered
ScubaLuke:Hi Doreen,
It's fur shur easy diving. You set up your gear once and then take it down at the end of the week. I love that.
I did the Northern Bahamas route back in 2000 and I'm going to do it again in July. The Northern Bahamas itinerary has a lot of variety. There is one deep wreck, a couple of real nice shallow wrecks with a _lot_ of life on them, several good macro sites, and a chance to snorkel with dolphins. On the trip I was on the dolphins didn't show up so that's not a guarantee. I'm really hoping to see them this trip. I think they also do a shark dive on this itinerary.
One dive I especially liked was the Wreck of the Hesperus. It's an old concrete barge that broke up in a storm in 15 or 20 feet of water. It's covered with rays, turtles, and sharks. It was a really great dive.
I like to get a cabin on the bottom deck towards the back. That seems to be the quietest location to me. The disadvantage to that is I end up going up and down stairs a lot during the week to change batteries in my camera. The room right next to the salon is one to stay away from. The TV is right up against the wall of that room. Occasionally you get a late night movie watching crowd and that can keep you awake.
Since you've done live-aboards before I'll bet you know to take a several swim suits, a pair or two of shorts, a few t-shirts and not much else in the way of clothes. I usually take 4 or 5 swim suits 'cause I like a dry butt between dives.
A piece of line is handy for securing you gear on the sun deck for drying.
Unlike the Aggressor or Peter Hughes boats you have to bring your own soft drinks or liquor. But there's plenty of other stuff to drink on board (coffee, tea, crystal light punch, etc.) so I usually don't bother.
That's all I can think of. Have I missed anything?
Luke
I have to second what ScubaLuke says above so will not repeat it. I have dove with Nekton three times, twice out of FLL and have enjoyed them. Great crew, great boat for diving and lots of fun. Don't forget your camera's battery charger!
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Luke,
Thanks so much for emailing about a month back. My hubby and I have decided on the Nekton Pilot, sailing on August 27th to the Northern Bahamas. Hopefully the hurricane's will stay away that week!
Thanks again for your help and advise.
Scuba Bunny
Thanks so much for emailing about a month back. My hubby and I have decided on the Nekton Pilot, sailing on August 27th to the Northern Bahamas. Hopefully the hurricane's will stay away that week!
Thanks again for your help and advise.
Scuba Bunny
ftldivecouple
New
Bunny,
My wife and I just came back (literally yesteday morning) from the Nekton Cay Sal itinerary on the Pilot. Overall, a great experience...a great crew! Unless the crew changes between boats, you'll probably have:
Ephy [pronounced Eeeefie] as your captain
Jeff as your "MC" and a dive master [great guy, really into it, knows his stuff and just plain enjoyable]
"Bubba" [aka Chris] a dive master
Troy - a dive master
John
Geoff
Walt - assisting Ephy with captaining
Arminda - Chef
Everyone shares just about every task on the boat. Most of the dive crew were very knowledgeable about the dive sites and made the diving very easy. Seems there's a bit of turnover in some crew positions, so some are a little less knowledgeable about the sites, but you'll see how hard all these guys/gals work (10 weeks straight of itineraries, less than a day turnover between dive trips, and crew only gets about an hour off in between)
Like Luke said, you gear up once the first dive day, and gear down the last night. They do a good variety of different kinds of diving from deep to relatively shallow, from macro to micro and mixes of each...saw some really great stuff.
The food was very good, but a bit "heavy" (prime rib, turkey, pastas, etc.). We ate, and ate a lot, but consider ourselves lighter eaters (i.e. more fish, salads, etc.).
Cabin was comfortable w/ private bathroom/shower which was nice. Cabins on the lower deck suffer from a condensation problem created by the A/C. The ceilings might drip a little, but was cured with a few towels strategically placed in the ceiling grid. Rooms were adequately cool, but the salon/dining area never seemed to cool down enough. Not a big deal, just when you're mentally thinking this as a cool area, it really doesn't get cool.
All in all it was a great time. Have a great time yourself! We've been on a Northern Bahamas itinerary with another live aboard, and there's some really great diving up there.
My wife and I just came back (literally yesteday morning) from the Nekton Cay Sal itinerary on the Pilot. Overall, a great experience...a great crew! Unless the crew changes between boats, you'll probably have:
Ephy [pronounced Eeeefie] as your captain
Jeff as your "MC" and a dive master [great guy, really into it, knows his stuff and just plain enjoyable]
"Bubba" [aka Chris] a dive master
Troy - a dive master
John
Geoff
Walt - assisting Ephy with captaining
Arminda - Chef
Everyone shares just about every task on the boat. Most of the dive crew were very knowledgeable about the dive sites and made the diving very easy. Seems there's a bit of turnover in some crew positions, so some are a little less knowledgeable about the sites, but you'll see how hard all these guys/gals work (10 weeks straight of itineraries, less than a day turnover between dive trips, and crew only gets about an hour off in between)
Like Luke said, you gear up once the first dive day, and gear down the last night. They do a good variety of different kinds of diving from deep to relatively shallow, from macro to micro and mixes of each...saw some really great stuff.
The food was very good, but a bit "heavy" (prime rib, turkey, pastas, etc.). We ate, and ate a lot, but consider ourselves lighter eaters (i.e. more fish, salads, etc.).
Cabin was comfortable w/ private bathroom/shower which was nice. Cabins on the lower deck suffer from a condensation problem created by the A/C. The ceilings might drip a little, but was cured with a few towels strategically placed in the ceiling grid. Rooms were adequately cool, but the salon/dining area never seemed to cool down enough. Not a big deal, just when you're mentally thinking this as a cool area, it really doesn't get cool.
All in all it was a great time. Have a great time yourself! We've been on a Northern Bahamas itinerary with another live aboard, and there's some really great diving up there.
divebunnybabe:Luke,
Thanks so much for emailing about a month back. My hubby and I have decided on the Nekton Pilot, sailing on August 27th to the Northern Bahamas. Hopefully the hurricane's will stay away that week!
Thanks again for your help and advise.
Scuba Bunny
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