1997 Chapbook
  Belize

 

Belize Aggressor II, July 1995, Robert J Dougherty, Wilkes-Barre, PA. "Excellent trip. Took my 14-yr-old daughter on her first live-aboard. 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 - she has over 100 ocean dives since 12 and is very competent. 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, very relaxing."

Belize Aggressor, July 1995, Dan Boyd, Roswell, NM. "Better than the Spoilsport in some respects. More dive flexibility, not so far between sites. Food the best. Good Vis: eagle rays, turtles, big groupers, hammerhead, queen angels, queen triggers. Good diving, excellent crew, excellent operation."

Belize Aggressor, August 1995, Charles Stearns, Lilburn, GA. "Personnel outstanding. Lot of dead reef. Fish and critters not as abundant as hoped. Blue Hole better than we hoped. Take an extra day for Belize zoo and Altun Ha Mayan ruins trips. Ramada Reef Hotel service desk arranged tours."

Belize Aggressor, January 1996, Roger Chan, New York, NY. "Fair amount of coral bleaching. Lots of small, colorful reef creatures and fish not found in other parts of the Caribbean: toadfish, juvenile misty grouper, schools of permits. Weather lousy: Blue Hole was more like a Black Hole. Good 12'­25' dives at the Aquarium: white sand, colorful fish and coral, especially juveniles. vis: 20­40 ft. water: 77°­82°. . . . Crew kept the hot tub hot, pouring hot water down our wetsuit after a dive and having plentiful snacks. The buffet-style food was good. Our boat was only half full, so shared bathrooms not a problem."

Belize Aggressor II, May 1996, Michael Tennenbaum, Los Angeles, CA. "Wind kept us from diving other than one side of Lighthouse Reef; therefore variety was limited. Jellyfish got your neck if you didn t wear a hood. vis: 50 ft.water: 80°­84°."

Belize Aggressor III, July 1996, John and Mary Slattery, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. "Third trip for this new boat and our twelfth live-aboard. Why Aggressor and Hughes fleets have their best boats in a mediocre dive location is beyond me. 100 foot plus oil platform supply/crew boat converted for diving. On lower deck, nine cabins each with twin lower and single upper berths and ensuite heads, sinks and showers for 18 divers. Individual temperature and fan controls that work, tiny port window and a TV/VCR combination (questionable use). Cabin storage: to two deep drawers and a large open space under the bottom bunk. Take only softside luggage. More hooks for hanging items would be a help. Lacking (in every live-aboard I've been on) are grab bars in the head and shower for safety when underway in rough seas. . . . Dive deck that will set the standards. Even with all 18 gearing up, you are never crowded. Each diver has own "station" that holds a single tank in a hole which makes it easy to get your BC on and off. Each had a storage bin you could climb into - watch that your fingers and hoses don't get pinched by the hinged lids. . . . remove your first stage after a dive and your tank is filled in place. Above each station is a rod with hangers for drying wet suits. Three tier camera table with two low pressure air hoses. The top level holds cameras in active use, the middle level is wired for battery charging and the lower level will hold spare cameras and equipment. Huge rinse tank for cameras. Separate tanks for gear. A head, darkroom and briefing board round out the dive deck. Front salon has four tables and a TV/VCR in a cabinet. Rear salon has one table that seats five, a corner couch and coffee table, a library, main entertainment center and an ice maker. . . . Between the two salons is the galley. All meals served buffet style. Food is excellent, always enough. Pasta can be served in many ways ( low in fat and provides the high carbos for four to five dives a day. Beef, chicken and fish, fresh baked breads, between dive snacks. . . . Shaded area and sun deck, hot tub (takes up too much of the shady area -whole deck could have been covered because another sun deck on top. Bar -hard stuff, beer and soft drinks and has a soda dispenser and ice machine. . . . PADI Nitrox course was available; easy to become certified. The way to go for five dives per day and will help those who don't have computers get more dive time. . . . The crew was outstanding."

Belize Aggressor, August 1996, Randall Preissig, San Antonio, TX. "Diving among best in Caribbean (turtles, eagle rays, sharks, octopi) but fixed buoys are the only dive sites on the agenda. Diver damage is obvious at the tie-up and drops off rapidly the farther away you explore. This limits damage, but traveling this far for Virgin Reefs aboard a live-aboard falls short of truth in advertising. . . . Aggressor in a class by itself. Crew very capable, but did not go out of their way to help, such as helping you find macro subjects on dives."

MV Hot Dive, April 1996, Rick Nelson, Andover, MN. "Meals were presented as if for a picture menu. Gear was washed after every dive by crew. vis: 100­200 ft. water: 75°­80°."

Wave Dancer, May 1995, Dean & Ginny Schulman, Columbus, OH. "Beautifully run and outfitted. Plenty of camera and charging space, even with all photographers. Excellent and varied food, attractively presented. Diving not as good as the boat. The Turks and Caicos is better and Little Cayman much better. Water 83­84 degrees. Virtually everyone was bitten up on any exposed surface by stinging plankton and hydroids called 'pica-pica'. Common problem this time of year. The Blue Hole a unique dive; resident shark and barracuda to keep you company at 150 feet."

Wave Dancer, September 1995, Sharon Cipolla, Thousand Oaks, CA. "Incredible. Blue Hole and frolicking with 'Honey' the dolphin on the same dive. 40 to 100 feet vis. . . . Staff fabulous; room service wake up coffee each morning, beautiful folded dinner napkins. . . . Steve able to find illusive underwater creatures. REEF fish id seminar by Laddie Akins and Elaine Morden. Interesting, fast-paced, educational; three-day presentation and underwater surveying."

Wave Dancer, September 1995, Mark Boyles, New York, NY. "Second trip. First time the diving was not too good; this time no better. Boat and crew one of best in 18 live-aboard."

Wave Dancer, October 1995, Robert Benowitz, Plymouth Meeting, PA. "Facilities and food excellent. Diving very good. Staff excellent. Well treated by a hardworking and hospitable crew! Holding tank dumped during last dive."

Wave Dancer, January 1996, Dirk Wood, MD, OH. "Sit down eating, open bar, private head and shower. Dive 5/day pm and night. vis: 80­120 ft. water: 80°­82°. Peter Hughes operation superlative compared to Aggressor. Crew friendly, accommodating, and safe. E-6 on board. Plush - no hassle diving."

Wave Dancer, March 1996, R. Thayer, MI. "Excellent operation. vis: 50­70 ft. water: 80°. Chop and surge gave beginners a problem. Honey the dolphin showed up 3 times not to play, but just to hang around. Staff professional. Gave a tour or left you alone. Vis down due to storms from the north. . . . First live-aboard; we missed the flavor of being abroad. We ate with Americans, dove with them, Live-aboard diving wondrous, but our next trip will be land-based."

Wave Dancer, May 1996, Marilyn Sorrel, NJ. "Service fantastic. Wind limited the number of sites and vis: 40­50 ft. water: 80°­82°. Next time, I will seek out a singles cruise, because this trip was mostly couples and they stick together."

Wave Dancer, May 1996, Warren & Gila Sprung, Houston, TX. "Peter has his act together! Treated like bare foot royalty for a wonderful week of diving. vis: 75­100 ft. water: 81°­82°."


Copyright 1997 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.