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Dive Review of Fish 'n Fins Ocean Hunter III in
Micronesia/Palau

Fish 'n Fins Ocean Hunter III, Aug, 2013,

by Steven Rosenfeld, CA, US ( 2 reports with 1 Helpful vote). Report 7101 has 1 Helpful vote.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 4 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation N/A Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments This was my second trip to Palau. I was there 20 years ago and took the day boats out. Being 20 years older I decided to go by liveaboard.

The Oceanhunter III is a 96 foot vessel that is in excellent condition. The boat holds up to 16 divers in 8 cabins. There are 6 standard and deluxe cabins and 2 master cabins. Each cabin has its own restroom. I found the standard and deluxe cabins to be clean and comfortable. The cabins are some what small with a lower and smaller upper bunk. The boat was not full so I had my own cabin. If I had to share a cabin with someone I did not known I think it would have been difficult.

The food on board the boat was excellent. Each night was food from a different land, (ex. Mexican, Italian, American). The crew was also excellent and was always there to help. There is a beautiful lounge area with a television and reading area. On the sun deck there are plenty of chairs and lounge area.

All of the diving is done from the chase boat. The mother boat would move to a area we would dive that day and anchor. The trips to dive spots were 5-15 minutes. The chase boat was very comfortable. It was similar to the day boats that make the long runs. It had bench seating with a storage area for your gear. There were tank racks so all your gear remained on the chase boat during the week. The tanks were filled in place. A back roll got you into the water and a ladder got you out. The boat has a full sun cover.

The diving was varied during the week. We dove world war II wrecks. On other days we dove walls and reefs. The hard and soft coral is amazing. On the walls there is not a inch of space that is not alive. We also dove jellyfish lake, blue corner and the other well known spots.

It is a long trip from Los Angeles, Calif, 3 flights, but well worth it.
Websites Fish 'n Fins Ocean Hunter III   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience Over 1000 dives
Where else diving Cocos Island, Galapagos, Mexico, Bahamas
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, rainy, cloudy Seas calm, choppy
Water Temp 82-85°F / 28-29°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 25-150 Ft/ 8-46 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Limit of 1 hour dive, depth limit of nitrox
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks Lots Mantas 1 or 2
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 5 stars Tropical Fish 5 stars
Small Critters 4 stars Large Fish N/A
Large Pelagics 3 stars

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 5 stars Boat Facilities 4 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments The boat had a large table for cameras. There was also a large fresh water tank for cameras
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Report currently has 1 Helpful vote

Subscriber's Comments

By Graham McGregor in Kilmacolm, GB at Sep 03, 2013 07:08 EST  
Steven I'm going to Palau in 5 weeks, on sister ship Ocean Hunter 1. I expect we'll dive a very similar itinerary to you, with Blue Corner etc. Did you dive any unexpectedly good sites that you would particularly recommend? Were the sites crowded or quiet with other dive boats? Small point - did your mobile phone work?
By report author: Steven Rosenfeld in CA, US at Sep 03, 2013 21:41 EST  
Hello Graham. We dove Blue corner 3 times. There were up to 7 boats there at one time. The secret is being on a live aboard and being the first boat there. We also dove some blue holes which were beautiful. I'm sure you will dive jellyfish lake, make it the first dive of the day and beat the crowds. Much of our diving during the week was dependent on the weather and the currents. Mobile phone did not work. Have a great time, Steve
By Charles Rubin in WA, US at Nov 09, 2013 23:45 EST  
Hi Steven. My wife and I live in Singapore, so we have easy access to many great dive sites. We are considering the same LOB. What the experience level for the divers on your trip? Do you think the your experience at Blue Corner with second other boats affected your underwater experience? How crowded are the other sites? Or should we venture to the Solomon Islands that have less people pressure? Thanks, Charlie
By report author: Steven Rosenfeld in CA, US at Nov 10, 2013 14:43 EST  
Hi Charles. As I said we were on a live aboard so we could be the first on any site we liked. Blue corner is the most popular site. The conditions were very different on each dive. The more current the more fish life. There are plenty of other site to dive and the boats work around each other. Our boat had different levels of experience. Most of the dives were easy. The dives are done in a group with a dive guide in the lead and a dive guide in the rear. Hope this information helps.
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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