Dan
Contributor
Current status of the loading deck in a calm morning of Banda Neira. Half of the deck is taken up by the flooded dinghy on stilts.
Real Time Blue Manta Review: Banda Sea 9 – 19 Sept 2019
- Thread starter billt4sf
- Start date
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Current status of the loading deck in a calm morning of Banda Neira. Half of the deck is taken up by the flooded dinghy on stilts.
OP
billt4sf
Contributor
Tat is a great picture of the loading deck in calm seas.
As Dan said in moderate seas the deck floods, you can be taking off your wetsuit in a foot of surge. One f the stools fell on my buddy and she bruised or broke a toe.
I have been told that the deck on the BM is .2m above water line, and that on the White Manta is .6m above the water line. So apparently someone got a clue!
Our DM said that they load off the back every place except Banda Sea, where the seas are just too rough. And really it's not that rough, but with a deck at the waterline there is little to no room for surge.
- Bill
Try the Arenui next time. Great boat & great crew when we went on it.
outofofficebrb
HARRO HUNNAYYY
I think @Dan is not going to take a traditional phinisi or any wooden boat across Banda ever again after what happened the first time he did it and given how rough the water can be. A steel hull is a better bet for something like that.
OP
billt4sf
Contributor
A BIG steel boat!
I should of been clearer, I meant for an Indonesian liveaboard in general, not a Banda sea trip.
Dan should correct me if I'm wrong but it seems unlikely that he'll be doing a Banda crossing trip again on any kind of boat.
Dan
Contributor
Right. Once is enough. If I want to see hammerheads in clear blue water, I’ll go back to Cocos, which I will in September 2020.
Schooling Sea Kraits are cool though.
The hammerheads I saw on Maui were in the clearest water I have ever seen.
Loving the live reports (both good and bad)
I’m wondering: when you dive “in the blue” for the hammerheads- is there anything else to see? Or if you don’t see them the dive is (more or less) “wasted”.
How many dives a day? And are most blue water dives or mixed with reefs/pinnacle as well?
I’m wondering: when you dive “in the blue” for the hammerheads- is there anything else to see? Or if you don’t see them the dive is (more or less) “wasted”.
How many dives a day? And are most blue water dives or mixed with reefs/pinnacle as well?
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