peterjmaerz
Guest
Hi Divers,
Just back from 10 days on the Star Dancer, Kavieng Fathers - Witu Kimbe Bay and 4 at Walindi at Kimbe. Mind blowing trip, even though the very unusual weather patterns, according to Capt. Alan Raabe, kept us from diving some of the primo sites, especially around Kavieng. Ill go at this in kind of an outline form here to keep it as brief as possible (for me
PRELIMINARIES: Booked with Peter Hughes Diving in Miami. Michelle, absolutely first rate in making arrangements and answering many pre-trip questions. Jeff, a mellow expert at making tricky Air Niugini and Airways Hotel (Port Morseby layover) bookings.
PREPARATIONS: Brought double almost everything: computer, reg, booties, mask. Visited a travel clinic for inoculations and essential Malaria prophylaxis.
Prepared extensive medical kit. Brought LOTS of diversions for 30+ hours of air travel (crosswords, books, MP3s).
TRAVEL: Used Delta frequent flier miles to code-share with Continental. As such, was relegated to the scenic route: MIA-IAH; IAH-HNL; HNL-GUM; GUM-CNS.
Arrived Cairns, Austrailia 11:30pm local time (14 hours ahead of EDT). Stayed at Coral Tree Inn. Room looked like prison cell w/painted cinderblock walls, but clean, nice pool and good location, close to Esplanade. Spent one day touring lovely Kuranda in Queensland (a great way to spend a day): http://www.tropicwings.com.au/tours/fullday/full_kuranda.htm
Next day, flew Air Niugini CNS-POM (Port Moresby). Had exchanged $ for Kina (PNG currency) in Cairns and thus had the 100 needed for entry and exit. Immigration and customs a snap. Met just outside the door by Airways rep. Escorted by armed guard to van (the Raskols are a threat in POM) and whisked the three minutes to hotel. Beautiful facility, extremely friendly and helpful staff, very good food, great pool with a view.
Next day, flew POM to Kavieng, stayed at Malagan Beach Resort. A bit run down and mediocre food, but nice setting and very quiet. Boarded Star Dancer next afternoon.
Nothing but praise for Continental, which did a fantastic job in shuttling me and my baggage from flight to flight in mostly brand new planes with surprising legroom, headrests whose wings bent in at the corners for head support, video screens with 2 movie choices, TV dramas and sitcoms, computer games, cartoons, etc and hot meals on every leg. Only problem with my 4-inch oversize and 1-Kilo overweight duffel occurred on Air Niugini from Cairns to Port Moresby when the agent had be take a pair of shoes out and put them in a separate plastic bag.
Otherwise, Air Niugini was exemplary, horror stories on the web notwithstanding. Every flight on time, but one just 15 minutes late. Clean, modern Fokker F-28 jets and no problem with my very bulky backpack, Pelikan case and assorted bags in the overhead.
STAR DANCER, CABIN: Great liveaboard. Had Cabin 3a, in front. Firm, comfortable Queen bed, facing large picture window. Loads of storage space, including clever storage under bed pedestal (though would advise soft luggage), night stand with two drawers, closet with another large drawer, large bathroom with tub/shower. U.S-style, 110-volt outlet on wall with additional plugs on reading lights mounted over bed. Cabins on center deck with hallway leading aft to dive deck.
DIVE DECK: Sturdy aluminum benches with built-in tank holders. Typical for liveaboards: once gear set up, it stays on tank, filled immediately by whips after each dive. Webbed plastic bucket for booties, masks, lights, etc under each bench. Two large, solid rinse tanks for wetsuits and gear. One large tank for cameras only. Well-sheltered, large, two-tiered, carpeted camera table with pressurized air hose. Photogs kept cameras set up on table entire trip. Sheltered charging station: one tier for 220 volt, one for 110. Two, heavy-flowing, hot water showers on deck, towels fresh from the dryer after every dive. Gear thoroughly rinsed by crew at end of each day.
OTHER DECKS: Large indoor Salon/Dining Room, lined with windows, continuous booth with two-tops along one wall, three large booths along other with center island for food. Top, lounge deck, half canopied with two large net hammocks and chaise lounges.
DIVE SCHEDULE: 5:30-continental breakfast fixins available. 6:15-briefing. 6:30-1st Dive. 8:00-Hot breakfast. 9:15-Briefing. 9:30-2nd Dive. 11:15-Briefing. 11:30-3rd Dive. 1:00pm-Lunch. 3:45-Briefing. 3:30-4th Dive. 6:15-Briefing. 6:30-5th (night) dive. 8:00- Dinner.
DIVE PROCEDURE: C-cards and DAN card carefully scrutinized. No one looked at a log book. Once youve signed your life away in the release, youre expected to be able to make your own decisions and be responsible for your own profile. Absolutely no admonishments or baby sitting, other than a strong suggestion to do a five minute safety stop at the end of each dive. You can dive with the group, follow one of two excellent guide/instructors always in the water (and always finding the good stuff), and/or go off on your own. You must record your tank pressure, O2 percentage if on Nitrox, and depth on a clipboard. Excellent briefings, though pretty much carbon copy sites: seamounts or walls. Off the back dive deck (just inches above the water). Swim to front of boat, follow mooring line to reef.
DIVE EXPERIENCE: Wow! Incredible abundance, diversity and health of flora and fauna. Saw many things I never knew existed and got good photos of Mandarin fish, leaf scorpions, stonefish, banded pipefish, shrimp gobies, cuttlefish, crocodile fish and more nudis than a Diamond Dolls strip club: from pure white to electric, neon green with scarlet racing stripes and everything in between. Pygmy seahorses. Porcelain crabs. Free-swimming and attached feather star crinoids in every conceivable color scheme. And a blinding blizzard of reef fish with Moorish Idols and butterflies galore, brilliantly-colored regal, blue-saddled, and other angels and clouds of anthias. Huge expanses of completely undamaged corals of so many varieties, shapes and colors, I couldnt find them all in the reference books. 15-foot wide, unblemished sea fans a common occurrence. Sea whips with Razor fish. Sponges. Tunicates. Unbelievable!
Water averaged 86 degrees, dropping to 84 and climbing to 90 on one dive! (many divers, though, including myself, wore wetsuits as the repetition pulled down our core temps). Little to no current. Vis 30 feet at worst (rare), average 75 feet, 90 feet at best.
SURROUNDINGS: Breathtaking, dense, tropical rainforest island scenery, often relatively close to boat. Often, entire families of local folks silently sitting in outrigger dugout canoes as you emerge from your dive. Breathtaking sunrises/sets. Seas pretty flat except for our steam from Kavieng to Fathers. Then, very heavy seas. As the boat swung wildly up and down and side to side, I clung to my bed for 14 hours nonstop! Not common, says the Captain, but you should be prepared with motion sickness pills in the event.
CREW: Super. Friendly, fun, and very knowledgeable, home-grown and internationally-trained dive staff. Very sweet, demure, and thoughtful kitchen and housekeeping staff. Capt Raabe is worth the price of admission himself: a hilarious, energetic and very gregarious guy. Great raconteur. He lives up to the phrase swears like a sailor, but with such a keen wit and twinkle in his eye, its accepted by even the stodgiest passenger.
PASSENGERS: All very experienced divers. Well-educated, genteel, friendly easy-going folks. Only two jerks, arrogant Russians (could have been any nationality, of course) who became human torpedoes as they muscled divers out of the way to plant themselves for photo ops, which they hogged for 10 minutes at a time. Topside, they spent their time frowning at their laptops on a salon table they commandeered on day one and never relinquished. The rest of us just shook our heads and laughed it off.
FOOD: Not much available locally and so the meals suffered. For hot lunch and dinner, dense, dry meat or chicken, limp, oversteamed fish, smothered in gloppy sauces. Pasta salads. Rice. Wilted greens of various sorts. But great deserts and good fruits. Sodas, juices, water always readily available. Wine served with dinner. Beer available in a cooler. No one managed more than one or two drinks at dinner.
WALINDI RESORT: Beautiful, lush grounds in the midst of teeming rainforest in lovely Kimbe Bay. Large, very well-ventilated, meticulously-screened bungalows. Pretty good food. Great staff knows you by name from day one and, though unobtrusive, is ready at all times to attend to your needs. Outlets: 220 volt South Pacific plug configuration. Downside: sopping humidity with no AC can get to you. Generator shuts down around 11:00pm, killing the ceiling fan. Also, the constant Mozzie (mosquito) threat is a bit disconcerting, even though there are not many flying about. I tired of being oiled with sweat and Ultracon repellent. Small dive boats are swift, but rides to the reefs (same ones visited on last leg of Dancer trip) are 30-45 minutes long. Gear mounted on tanks and laid on side. Back roll or giant stride. Lunch after two dives on beautiful Restorf island. Very capable crew.
Be sure to visit the Hot River (a 40-minute, very bumpy but scenic ride through the oil palm plantation and rainforest), preferably on last day there. The volcanically-heated, rushing water feels great and the setting is lost-world paradise!
SUMMARY: Five stars, well worth the expense and time in planning and travel. I dreamed of this trip for years and was not disappointed.
Best Regards,
Just back from 10 days on the Star Dancer, Kavieng Fathers - Witu Kimbe Bay and 4 at Walindi at Kimbe. Mind blowing trip, even though the very unusual weather patterns, according to Capt. Alan Raabe, kept us from diving some of the primo sites, especially around Kavieng. Ill go at this in kind of an outline form here to keep it as brief as possible (for me
PRELIMINARIES: Booked with Peter Hughes Diving in Miami. Michelle, absolutely first rate in making arrangements and answering many pre-trip questions. Jeff, a mellow expert at making tricky Air Niugini and Airways Hotel (Port Morseby layover) bookings.
PREPARATIONS: Brought double almost everything: computer, reg, booties, mask. Visited a travel clinic for inoculations and essential Malaria prophylaxis.
Prepared extensive medical kit. Brought LOTS of diversions for 30+ hours of air travel (crosswords, books, MP3s).
TRAVEL: Used Delta frequent flier miles to code-share with Continental. As such, was relegated to the scenic route: MIA-IAH; IAH-HNL; HNL-GUM; GUM-CNS.
Arrived Cairns, Austrailia 11:30pm local time (14 hours ahead of EDT). Stayed at Coral Tree Inn. Room looked like prison cell w/painted cinderblock walls, but clean, nice pool and good location, close to Esplanade. Spent one day touring lovely Kuranda in Queensland (a great way to spend a day): http://www.tropicwings.com.au/tours/fullday/full_kuranda.htm
Next day, flew Air Niugini CNS-POM (Port Moresby). Had exchanged $ for Kina (PNG currency) in Cairns and thus had the 100 needed for entry and exit. Immigration and customs a snap. Met just outside the door by Airways rep. Escorted by armed guard to van (the Raskols are a threat in POM) and whisked the three minutes to hotel. Beautiful facility, extremely friendly and helpful staff, very good food, great pool with a view.
Next day, flew POM to Kavieng, stayed at Malagan Beach Resort. A bit run down and mediocre food, but nice setting and very quiet. Boarded Star Dancer next afternoon.
Nothing but praise for Continental, which did a fantastic job in shuttling me and my baggage from flight to flight in mostly brand new planes with surprising legroom, headrests whose wings bent in at the corners for head support, video screens with 2 movie choices, TV dramas and sitcoms, computer games, cartoons, etc and hot meals on every leg. Only problem with my 4-inch oversize and 1-Kilo overweight duffel occurred on Air Niugini from Cairns to Port Moresby when the agent had be take a pair of shoes out and put them in a separate plastic bag.
Otherwise, Air Niugini was exemplary, horror stories on the web notwithstanding. Every flight on time, but one just 15 minutes late. Clean, modern Fokker F-28 jets and no problem with my very bulky backpack, Pelikan case and assorted bags in the overhead.
STAR DANCER, CABIN: Great liveaboard. Had Cabin 3a, in front. Firm, comfortable Queen bed, facing large picture window. Loads of storage space, including clever storage under bed pedestal (though would advise soft luggage), night stand with two drawers, closet with another large drawer, large bathroom with tub/shower. U.S-style, 110-volt outlet on wall with additional plugs on reading lights mounted over bed. Cabins on center deck with hallway leading aft to dive deck.
DIVE DECK: Sturdy aluminum benches with built-in tank holders. Typical for liveaboards: once gear set up, it stays on tank, filled immediately by whips after each dive. Webbed plastic bucket for booties, masks, lights, etc under each bench. Two large, solid rinse tanks for wetsuits and gear. One large tank for cameras only. Well-sheltered, large, two-tiered, carpeted camera table with pressurized air hose. Photogs kept cameras set up on table entire trip. Sheltered charging station: one tier for 220 volt, one for 110. Two, heavy-flowing, hot water showers on deck, towels fresh from the dryer after every dive. Gear thoroughly rinsed by crew at end of each day.
OTHER DECKS: Large indoor Salon/Dining Room, lined with windows, continuous booth with two-tops along one wall, three large booths along other with center island for food. Top, lounge deck, half canopied with two large net hammocks and chaise lounges.
DIVE SCHEDULE: 5:30-continental breakfast fixins available. 6:15-briefing. 6:30-1st Dive. 8:00-Hot breakfast. 9:15-Briefing. 9:30-2nd Dive. 11:15-Briefing. 11:30-3rd Dive. 1:00pm-Lunch. 3:45-Briefing. 3:30-4th Dive. 6:15-Briefing. 6:30-5th (night) dive. 8:00- Dinner.
DIVE PROCEDURE: C-cards and DAN card carefully scrutinized. No one looked at a log book. Once youve signed your life away in the release, youre expected to be able to make your own decisions and be responsible for your own profile. Absolutely no admonishments or baby sitting, other than a strong suggestion to do a five minute safety stop at the end of each dive. You can dive with the group, follow one of two excellent guide/instructors always in the water (and always finding the good stuff), and/or go off on your own. You must record your tank pressure, O2 percentage if on Nitrox, and depth on a clipboard. Excellent briefings, though pretty much carbon copy sites: seamounts or walls. Off the back dive deck (just inches above the water). Swim to front of boat, follow mooring line to reef.
DIVE EXPERIENCE: Wow! Incredible abundance, diversity and health of flora and fauna. Saw many things I never knew existed and got good photos of Mandarin fish, leaf scorpions, stonefish, banded pipefish, shrimp gobies, cuttlefish, crocodile fish and more nudis than a Diamond Dolls strip club: from pure white to electric, neon green with scarlet racing stripes and everything in between. Pygmy seahorses. Porcelain crabs. Free-swimming and attached feather star crinoids in every conceivable color scheme. And a blinding blizzard of reef fish with Moorish Idols and butterflies galore, brilliantly-colored regal, blue-saddled, and other angels and clouds of anthias. Huge expanses of completely undamaged corals of so many varieties, shapes and colors, I couldnt find them all in the reference books. 15-foot wide, unblemished sea fans a common occurrence. Sea whips with Razor fish. Sponges. Tunicates. Unbelievable!
Water averaged 86 degrees, dropping to 84 and climbing to 90 on one dive! (many divers, though, including myself, wore wetsuits as the repetition pulled down our core temps). Little to no current. Vis 30 feet at worst (rare), average 75 feet, 90 feet at best.
SURROUNDINGS: Breathtaking, dense, tropical rainforest island scenery, often relatively close to boat. Often, entire families of local folks silently sitting in outrigger dugout canoes as you emerge from your dive. Breathtaking sunrises/sets. Seas pretty flat except for our steam from Kavieng to Fathers. Then, very heavy seas. As the boat swung wildly up and down and side to side, I clung to my bed for 14 hours nonstop! Not common, says the Captain, but you should be prepared with motion sickness pills in the event.
CREW: Super. Friendly, fun, and very knowledgeable, home-grown and internationally-trained dive staff. Very sweet, demure, and thoughtful kitchen and housekeeping staff. Capt Raabe is worth the price of admission himself: a hilarious, energetic and very gregarious guy. Great raconteur. He lives up to the phrase swears like a sailor, but with such a keen wit and twinkle in his eye, its accepted by even the stodgiest passenger.
PASSENGERS: All very experienced divers. Well-educated, genteel, friendly easy-going folks. Only two jerks, arrogant Russians (could have been any nationality, of course) who became human torpedoes as they muscled divers out of the way to plant themselves for photo ops, which they hogged for 10 minutes at a time. Topside, they spent their time frowning at their laptops on a salon table they commandeered on day one and never relinquished. The rest of us just shook our heads and laughed it off.
FOOD: Not much available locally and so the meals suffered. For hot lunch and dinner, dense, dry meat or chicken, limp, oversteamed fish, smothered in gloppy sauces. Pasta salads. Rice. Wilted greens of various sorts. But great deserts and good fruits. Sodas, juices, water always readily available. Wine served with dinner. Beer available in a cooler. No one managed more than one or two drinks at dinner.
WALINDI RESORT: Beautiful, lush grounds in the midst of teeming rainforest in lovely Kimbe Bay. Large, very well-ventilated, meticulously-screened bungalows. Pretty good food. Great staff knows you by name from day one and, though unobtrusive, is ready at all times to attend to your needs. Outlets: 220 volt South Pacific plug configuration. Downside: sopping humidity with no AC can get to you. Generator shuts down around 11:00pm, killing the ceiling fan. Also, the constant Mozzie (mosquito) threat is a bit disconcerting, even though there are not many flying about. I tired of being oiled with sweat and Ultracon repellent. Small dive boats are swift, but rides to the reefs (same ones visited on last leg of Dancer trip) are 30-45 minutes long. Gear mounted on tanks and laid on side. Back roll or giant stride. Lunch after two dives on beautiful Restorf island. Very capable crew.
Be sure to visit the Hot River (a 40-minute, very bumpy but scenic ride through the oil palm plantation and rainforest), preferably on last day there. The volcanically-heated, rushing water feels great and the setting is lost-world paradise!
SUMMARY: Five stars, well worth the expense and time in planning and travel. I dreamed of this trip for years and was not disappointed.
Best Regards,
