Dive Review of Dive North - Bay of Islands Ltd./N/A in
New Zealand/Bay of Islands, North Island

Other New Zealand reports
Subscriber Content Preview
Active subscribers go here

Dive North - Bay of Islands Ltd./N/A, Apr, 2002, by Jose Kirchner, CA, USA . Report 199.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	April is very early fall here, as warm as the water will get all year. This east side of North Island is sheltered from winds normally. Bay of Islands is very picturesque, diving has lots of swimthroughs, caverns and interesting topography, and very fishy- schools of small to medium fishes, pelagics on occasion. A fun dive is "Hole in the Rock", fabulously fishy- but keep your depth, as huge tourist jet boats speed through here too. Bay of Islands is a great place for critter diving and photoggers / videographers. Also accessible is the wreck of the famed (Greenpeace) Rainbow Warrior, sunk by French agents at dock in Auckland and re-sunk here for divers. Dive boat is 23 ft Lady Gail partial cover catamaran w/ head, speedy and fairly comfortable for up to seven divers. Dive operator is a young eager couple, small waterside shop- much of their business is from a nearby tourist kiosk. Though they are pleasant and helpful, to the point of serving hot soup during the surface interval, we were told the Warrior was not accessible due to high seas. The truth is others dove it that day, and we suspect they didn't want to go out there due to the small number of divers OR to because there was no dive ladder this trip, necessitating entry using the outboard motor fin (forgotten?), tricky with swell. The operation is small, and mixes divers of all experience levels and snorkelers. Dive guides provided, but we were allowed to do our own thing on our own timelines, with decent briefings for the sites. Price about US$50 two tank dive (tanks and weights), air only, 10% discount if booked directly. Can charter boat for 7 for two tank dive for just under US$400. Dive trips depart Paihia central wharf about 7:30, return about 2:00 PM. Trips to the Rainbow Warrior just over an hour each way, second dive is on a reef. Other dive areas 30 minutes. Dive North Bay of Islands Ltd. [bay-of-islands.co.nz link] P.O. Box 361, Paihia, Bay of Islands New Zealand Phone: +64 9 402 7079; Fax: +64 9 402 5969 Email: divenorth@xtra.co.nz Alternative dive operator would be Pahia Dive [divenz.com link] P.O. Box 210 Paihia, Bay of Islands New Zealand Phone +64 02 7551,Fax +64 02 7110 divepaihia@xtra.co.nz
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	0-25 dives
Where else diving	Worldwide diving 46 years, New Zealand previously.
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	64-68°F / 18-20°C	Wetsuit Thickness	5
Water Visibility	30-60 Ft/ 9-18 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Fairly cooperative about diving your desires and plans, according to your experience and weather limitations.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	None	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	Rinse facilities on shore, not much aboard. Dive operation helpful, but no special facilities for photographers. Good topography, fish and invert photography, varied kelp thickets.

Leave a comment (Subscribers only -- 200 words max)
Subscribers can comment here

Subscribers can post comments, ask the reviewer questions, as well as getting immediate and complete access to ALL 12 dive reviews of New Zealand and all other dive destinations. Complete access to all issues and Chapbooks is also included.

All New Zealand Dive Reviews and Reports
Diving Guide to New Zealand
Diving Reviews for All Dive Destinations

Want to assemble your own collection of New Zealand reports in one place?
Use the Mini Chapbook Facility to create your personalized collection.

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.

Undercurrent Home

Page computed and displayed in 0.08 seconds

Get more dive info like these and other important scuba updates sent monthly to your email. And a FREE Recent Issue of Undercurrent
Get a free monthly email and a sample issue!

Dive Review of Dive North - Bay of Islands Ltd./N/A in New Zealand/Bay of Islands, North Island

Dive North - Bay of Islands Ltd./N/A, Apr, 2002,

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

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

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

Dive Review of Dive North - Bay of Islands Ltd./N/A in
New Zealand/Bay of Islands, North Island