Belize Aggressor, January, 1995. "I have found Aggressors to be consistent in providing a diver with his money's worth. Good food, good service, good attitude and no surprises. The Belize Aggressor is not up to par in vessel amenities and is in need of a refit. However, I understand it has been replaced with a new Belize Aggressor." Ben Tayne, Glen Cove, NY

Belize Aggressor, January 1995. "The underwater and above water scenery at both Glover and Lighthouse reefs were outstanding. Sparsity of pelagics was mildly disappointing, although I didn't expect an abundance. Aggressor II was not in service, so we were disappointed to dive from the old boat. An updated boat with improved accommodations would have increased some of my ratings to 5's. The Blue Hole is a must dive for the experience, but not interesting enough to do twice." John Prosser, W.Boylston, MA

Belize Aggressor II, March, 1995. "Class operation. Catered to special dietary needs. Captain Clay Wiseman is a rare combination of a superb photo pro and captain. The rest of the crew were locals but extremely competent and cheerful. . . . Reefs were beautiful with walls filled with gorgonies and black coral. Sea fans and tropicals were plentiful. Water filled with nutrients that decreased vis, but fed beautiful gorgonia. Schools of squid. Many lobsters, crabs. No big creatures, but the week was full. Highly recommended." Dr. Sherwin Isenberg, Los Angles, CA

Belize Aggressor, April, 1995. "If a person wanted to just 'dive, eat and sleep', the Aggressor did its job. I have been diving for more than 20 years and I did not feel like making five dives a day. I was able to compare our boat and the Wave Dancer and I would go on the Wave Dancer next time." Jim Cameos, Rochester, MN.

Belize Aggressor, April, 1995. "TACA always runs late (except on our return trip to New Orleans ­­ the Prime Minister of Belize was rumored to be on the flight). The Aggressor fleet is to diving what McDonald's is to food service. They are consistent in delivery of product and service. Clay Wiseman, our captain, was generous with photographic advice and information on marine critters. The food was plentiful and good. The ability of the crew to maintain an excellent level of service and keep a good attitude in a live-aboard environment always amazes me. It's like a 24-hour job six days a week, week after week. Where's the new boat for Belize? Skip the Blue Hole." Mike Smith, Mobile, AL

Belize Aggressor, May, 1995. "Wish we had known that Aggressor III would not be in service as originally promised - would have booked with Peter Hughes. Great crew. Food preferences not honored. Boat cramped and lacks storage in cabins." S. Jarrett, Chattanooga, TN

Belize Aggressor II, July, 1995. "Good: eat, sleep and dive, just like the ads. Bad: Not enough big guys (sharks). Accommodations were tight. Facilities were shared (no toilets in each cabin). When I booked, the Belize Aggressor III was due to be in the water (in fact, it was due six months before my trip). If I didn't call to find out that the new boat wasn't in the water, I would not have known. My first live­aboard, so there is nothing to compare it to. However, hands­down I would do it again in a New York minute." Mark Lieberman, New Rochelle, NY

Belize Aggressor II, July 1995. "An excellent trip. I took my 14 yr. old daughter on her first live­aboard and it met my expectations having already been on the Turks & Caicos Aggressor. The staff treated us and my daughter's diving ability with respect. Not once did anyone question her ability or treat her differently from the other divers on board. This was refreshing ­ she has over 100 ocean dives since she's been 12 and is very competent. On Belize, Peter Hughes' boat would not book us because she was 'not an adult.' I think Capt. Bobby and the Aggressor crew will agree ­­ it was their loss. Great crew, nice diving, relaxing." Robert J Dougherty, Wilkes­Barre, PA

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, February, 1995. "Crew was helpful, thorough and professional. We were on the Wave Dancer two years ago -boat is in better shape now. Cabins on the main deck are spacious and clean. The only rough water was on the long crossing to Lighthouse Reef. Roaches were visible on the first day out. They disappeared after day one. Some dives were outstanding -clear waters and great corals." Anon.

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, March, 1995. "Boat layout was well planned. Two hot showers on dive deck; fin rack and fill station right at entry/exit point. Wet suit hangers convenient. Plenty of rinse tanks segregated from abundant camera-only rinse tanks. Commodious camera table supplied with compressed air line. Hot towels and snacks provided after dives. Ample space for charging batteries. . . . Excellent food and service. Private head with shower in each cabin. Cabins small (as expected on live-aboard) but comfortable. Reading light at each bunk. . . . Diving quite good, mostly walls with canyons and cuts. Night dive every night. Do not recommend Blue Hole -­ little life or color, though it's nice to say you've done it. But time would have been better spent on the reefs and walls. Highly recommend this live-aboard, especially for those not having live-aboard experience." George Lock, Newark, DE

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, April, 1995. "Another well-run Peter Hughes' operation. A friendly, courteous, helpful and knowledgeable crew who go out of their way to make sure your trip is a good one. The boat is large, well laid-out and comfortable. The cabins are larger and more comfortable than the Sea Dancer, with more storage areas. The dive deck is efficiently set up with plenty of room for storage and suiting up for dives; I appreciated the huge, two shelf camera table with lots of room to work and store cameras and equipment. . . . Since everyone on board was diving with computers, the crew, after a thorough and informative briefing, let us dive our own dive plans. There was not always a dive-master in the water, but if you wanted or needed a helpful guide, they were always willing and able to point out the good stuff. When the wind came up, the Captain gave us options of staying and diving a great wall a second time or moving to a calmer area. And there are some really great walls and marvelous coral head and sand patch areas with lots of crevices and swim-throughs to explore. The famous Blue Hole is an interesting dive and on that dive there were three crew members in the water with the divers. The rigid hang bar is a great innovation. It stays right at 15 feet. There's room for several divers, and when the boat is swinging on the mooring line, you can really get a ride. Water: 82 degrees." J. Warren Mayes, Sacramento, CA

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, May, 1995. "Boat, crew, food and diving outstanding. No regrets or misinformation about cruise." Richard W. Trepeta, Paradise Valley, AZ

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, July, 1995. "Crew was superb, could not do enough to make you comfortable. Visibility overall was not too great. Caused many back scatter problems when taking photos - except extreme close-ups. The crew thought poor visibility was due to rain storms as it was their rainy season. There is an interesting rigid hang bar on Wave Dancer. But I rarely used it because of the currents and boat oscillation. Some divers were holding on for dear life. Much easier to hang in a particular area and wait for the boat and hang bar to oscillate back. Most enjoyable trip. Belize City is bad news." Jeff Falk, Bayside, NY

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, August, 1995. "Noisy generator (to be muffled this year). Otherwise, the boat is well designed for the 20 divers. It could use a canopy for shade on the upper deck since it's the only place to relax without a table in front of you. . . . Captain Demi is accommodating to your wishes, and the crew is helpful and friendly. The diving is good for beginners and photographers. For experienced divers the diving is nonchallenging, tame, and lacking large schools of fish and pelagics. If you want easy dives (4-5 a day), it is satisfying. Night dives were disappointing. The best experience is snorkeling with Honey the dolphin. The most beautiful coral and fish were seen snorkeling on the reef around Blue Hole (much better than the dive)." Karen Sopkin, Stamford, CT

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, August, 1995. "Accommodations on are great on the Main Deck. The 'Dolphin Deck' (lower level) is Spartan. For the extra $100­$200, it is worth it to be on the Main Deck. Good things: the boat and crew. Hats off to the captain, Demi, who got us to the best sites, but also knew when safety warranted trying another day. Hot towels after dives. Water 85 degrees. Unlimited diving (few restrictions). Good variety of coral and tropical fish. Bad stuff: regulating air­ conditioning in cabins (some got too cold). Lack of current caused cloudy water: 40­65 foot vis." John Karns, Chicago, IL

Peter Hughes' Wave Dancer, September, 1995. "One of the more popular live­aboards, the Wave Dancer did not live up to its reputation. I did not care for the layout: the lounge is on a different level than the dive deck, guests must pass through the dive deck between their rooms and the lounge (an inconvenience when you're cleaned up after the night dive), and the sun and shade areas are on different levels (as on the Wind Dancer, from which I dived a week earlier). The food was excellent, but the service was almost unbearably slow. . . . The diving was excellent. We sometimes had incredible visibility (150+ feet), and always saw healthy coral, abundant and varied fish-life, and plenty of critters (although fewer critters than in the Bay Islands). We were also visited by Honey, the Dolphin, and we saw several other pelagics. . . . All-in-all, a great week, but the soon-to-come Belize Aggressor III (with private heads and showers) will give the Wave Dancer a run for its money." David A. Stoll, New York, NY

Copyright 1996 by DSDL, Inc., publishers of Undercurrent. All rights reserved. No portions of this report may be reproduced in any way, including photocopying and electronic data storage, without prior written permission from the publisher. For more information, contact DSDL, Inc., P.O. Box 1658, Sausalito, CA 94966.