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Dive Review of Nautilus Swell in
The Continental USA/Alaska

Nautilus Swell, Aug, 2013,

by C Leroy Anderson, UT, US (Contributor Contributor 13 reports with 4 Helpful votes). Report 7107.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 3 stars Food 4 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity 5 stars
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 4 stars
Beginners 1 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments Alaska has to be now classified as one of the world's great dive areas, I feel this dive trip was the equal of trips I've taken to Komodo, Cocos, Galapagos, Raja Ampat, or PNG. The trip included breathtaking colorful walls full of the greatest variety of nudibranchs, anemones, and starfish I've ever seen. The invertebrate life is simply some of the best if not the best in the world. Giant pacific octopus, wolf eels, cabezon, and giant lingcods provided great examples of wide angle large animals. Tiny crabs, lumpsuckers, and varieties of sculpins provided excellent macro photography. Swimming with salmon in gorgeous otherworldly inlets, jellyfish on many of the safety stops amongst thick bull kelp, whale and dolphin watching, as well as scrambling on icebergs added variety to the trip. Natural hot tubs in small streams adjacent to raging rivers were really fun to experience. Watching glaciers fall into the sea was breathtaking. The topside wildlife and scenery otherwise was remarkable not only for beauty but for the absence of civilization and humanity with great swaths of pristine forest and mountainous areas, including many waterfalls coming down the cliffs into the sea. The entire crew did a great job not only with the diving but with the amenities of life on a ship for 11 days. Great food. This trip is highly recommended.
Websites Nautilus Swell   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience Over 1000 dives
Where else diving Indonesia, PNG, Galapagos, Cocos, Hawaii, Costa Rica, British Columbia, North Carolina, Mexico, Baja, Norway, California, all thru the Caribbean.
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, rainy, cloudy, dry Seas calm, surge, currents, no currents
Water Temp 35-50°F / 2-10°C Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility 20-50 Ft/ 6-15 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Sixty minute dive times.
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins Schools Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales > 2
Corals 5 stars Tropical Fish 5 stars
Small Critters 5 stars Large Fish 4 stars
Large Pelagics 4 stars

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

Subject Matter 5 stars Boat Facilities 3 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 5 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments They do have a charging and rinsing area for cameras. It is difficult on the skiff to find room for all the cameras.
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Subscriber's Comments

By report author: C Leroy Anderson in UT, US at Sep 01, 2013 11:02 EST  
I forgot to mention above, there were some really entertaining stellar sea lion dives as well. Hordes of sea lions, swimming around and with alot of physical contact with the divers. This was the most intense and entertaining marine mammal diving I've ever done. I did a video of the trip, it can be seen on youtube. Just go to "DrAdventurenut" channel or simply search for "Nautilus Swell Alaska Diving" and you will find it. Undercurrent does not allow me to provide the specific link here due to security restrictions in place for this site. Also, it is important to know you will need a drysuit of course and some good moderate to heavy weight drysuit underwear to do this trip. If you have ever wondered what the best cold water dive trip you could take would be, this is it as far as my experience goes. I hope to do this again someday.
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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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