Palau Aggressor II, October 1996, Alexine M. Raineri, Winchester, NH. "Built approximately two years ago and will hold 16 passengers. Five dives a day including a night dive. Before we did any diving, the captain gave us an orientation. There were certain rules we had to follow. Don't dive below 110 ft. Sorry, but I accidentally did 113 ft. on my first dive. We had to keep a log of our dives. Don't do any decompression diving. If your computer gave you mandatory decompression stops, you couldn't do the next couple of dives. This was on the honor system because no one actually checked. Come back with air in our tanks, at least 70 psi. If you had a drink, you couldn't dive for the rest of the day. While on board, we could not sit in the entertainment area with wet clothes as it would stain the new furniture. . . . There was a rinse station and table for cameras only. We could dry cameras with the air hoses attached to the table. After every dive, we got a clean towel to dry off with; and there was food ready in the galley. I tried to convince them that we could use the same towels all day so that they could save on water and detergent, but they just said that it was no problem, and they enjoyed doing it. We were fed six times a day, before and after every dive. All buffet style; always a variety. Self­service dispenser with crushed ice, desalinized water, sugared drink, and sugar free drink to choose from. Beer and wine at no extra charge. . . . one small boat held the gear we were using for the week. Therefore, we all had our own spots. We'd step into the small boat, which was in a cradle and we would be lowered into the water. When we came back, they had to drive the boat back into the cradle and we would be lifted up. . . . Strong currents; and they would suddenly change and often separate the group. One day it was particularly strong when some of us (including me) got caught in an up current and then got pulled away from the wall. All of us had to carry reef hooks so that we could keep from being swept away. We also had to carry safety sausages and high powered whistles. Saw lion fish, clown fish, cuddle fish, lizard fish, blue star fish, bright yellow nudabranchs, giant clam at least three feet tall. Colorful crabs would eat the coral, embed themselves in the coral, and live in the hole that they created. Lots of sharks and turtles swimming with us, I swam through a school of barracuda. Dolphins guide the ship as we were moving to another location. Some broke away from the group and put on a show for us, jumping and dancing on their fins and probably enjoying it as much as we were."

Palau Aggressor II, November 1996, no name, Marina Del Ray, CA. "Palau was wonderful. Long flight from US. Have to overnight in Guam. Rock Islands beautiful. Boat is big and comfortable. Has fantastic salon/bar. Teak bar with indoor/outdoor seating. Cabins large with lower queen bed, upper twin. Private bathrooms with stall showers. Huge sun deck without canopy, now partly shaded. Diving sublime. Excellent tender. Easy backroll in. Boat provides Dive alert alarm and safety sausage, but never needed them. Quick pick-up. Current wicked. Some dives never saw others from boat except beginning and end. Recommended to keep dives to 60 min. bottom time. Excellent fish, mantas, loads of sharks, 3-4 mantas, cuttlefish, nautilus dive, nine were trapped, unique. Many species anemone fish, tropical fish, turtles. vis: 50-90 ft. water: 85 degrees. Bluecorner was as excellent as advertised. Crew worked hard to please all. Ike & Hecotor excellent divemasters and truly interested in showing off rare critters. Bad weather kept us from some outer channels and Pelielei, but the trip was overall excellent. Jellyfish Lake worth the hike. Food very good."

Palau Aggressor II, March 1997, Michael Fox, New York, NY. "Water 65 to 70 degrees, vis 40 and 100 feet. Great crew, boat in excellent shape, crew attentive, food delicious. Very cold upwellings (65 degrees). On some sites cold water limited the large pelagics. Coral Gardens a great dive, especially in the afternoon with many whitetips, a cuttlefish, large schools of tropicals, half dozen lionfish. Coral was spectacular."

Palau Aggressor II, June 1997, Marian Franta, Denver, CO. "Crew wouldn't say "hi" when they passed you on the boat. Only once did someone go out of their way. This includes asking for special foods. We were told day one that they preferred we keep our depth to 110 ft., however, we could go deeper if we initialed our times depth on the sign out sheet. Day 3, 8th dive we went to 110& 130 we were scolded underwater. When I apologized I was told it was late in the week and we could get the bends besides there is nothing to see that deep. vis: 10-75 ft. water: 80-84 degrees. Thought short surface intervals didn't matter (must keep to the schedule). And worst yet they let someone dive whose computer went into error from missing a stop. They practiced short, some time less they 3 minute safety stops. There is more to safe diving than depth. We are responsible divers, let us be!"

Palau Aggressor II, June 1997, Albert & Andrea Wilhelm, Fresno, CA. "Roomiest boat we have been on. Dive deck is up to Aggressor standards.! Crew was professional and did their jobs well, but not as friendly as the three other Aggressor crews we have dived with. Never had our diving on Aggressor boats as severely restricted as on the Palau boat. Some days we were only allowed 3 dives and all but a few dives were limited to 60 minutes (due to skiff diving). Photo processing was prompt and very well done. Very photo and video oriented crew. Diving itself was very good. vis: 15­100 ft. water: 82 degrees. Diving restrictions were depth limit requested max. 110. Almost every dive was limited to 60 minutes. No flexibility in dive times despite short surface interval or long. All dives had to be on schedule. Diving very good. Beautiful, colorful reefs with large amounts of small and medium sized life."

Ocean Hunter, May 1997, Larry Tucker, Redondo Beach, CA. "Great drift diving! Fantastic live­aboard (food, service, etc.). Blue Corner top notch dive spot in Palau. Accessibility is dependent on the weather. Did not get a chance to dive Pelieu due to the winds. Palau is excellent for video photography. Unfortunately this destination will be gone in 5 years due to overcrowding/Westernization. I'm sure there will be a McDonald's there in the not to distant future."

Sun Dancer, November 1996, Daniel P. Jensen, Maryknoll, NY. "For experienced divers. Strong currents. vis: 50­ 150 ft. water: 80 degrees. Sea life overwhelming. Accommodations near perfect: cabins, each with a picture window, were great. Boat lacks a salon, but there is an outside seating area. The dive tender was out of commission during the 10 day trip, but the Captain, John, hired another one which was just as good. This boat, about to be replaced by another, goes to PNG."

Sun Dancer, November 1996, Russ, Beeville, TX. "Dream come true! Detailed dive briefings. Divemasters great and in the water, but you did your own thing. vis: 50-80 ft. water: 80 degrees. No restrictions were enforced for diving."

Sun Dancer, December 1996, Jack Doll, APO. "The dive staff, especially Scottie, JB & Kara were outstanding. Coral and number and size of fish did not disappoint: outstanding. Vis: 35­75 ft. water: 78­83 degrees. The only dive restriction enforced was a request to limit dives to 60 minutes each. . . . Occasional up current swims means this is not a place for beginners. The boat and crew were wonderful. Great about fixing malfunctioning gear. I wish I knew: I traveled alone this trip. As expected, I shared a cabin on the boat. I wish they had told me that I would have to share a room at the Palau Pacific Hotel on the final night (part of the price). I found out at check­in Saturday afternoon. I had to pay full rack rate ($255) for my own room. I think they need to change this policy, or allow us to book a room at the rate he is charging for the rooms."

Sun Dancer II, February 1997, Pat Van Raden, Moorehead, MN. "Water 78 to 82; visibility 15-100 ft. So many people diving! Blue Corner, on one dive was a mass of Japanese (with camera equipment) hanging on the wall like Spiderman. Went to Jelly fish Lake; 17 boats ahead of us and we had to crawl over them to get to shore and wait our turn to go up the trail to the lake. Crew great;even had a wedding on the boat for a couple in the group. Helped us get fresh flowers an make a wedding cake. . . . At Blue Corner a divemaster was attacked by a Bumphead. It came at him and hit him in the chest. He hit it on the head and it came back again and again; the diver was not hurt only scared. Crew told us later that the captain of the Aggressor had been feeding the local Bumpheads hard boiled eggs. We had put golf balls on the dump valves cord in place of the small plastic ball provided by ScubaPro on our BC's. This looked like a hard boiled egg to the fish."

Sun Dancer II, March 1997, John Plander, San Diego, CA. "Sets the standard for live-aboards. Service friendly, excellent and geared to what our group desired. Food was great. Cabins had incredible view windows and allowed me to appreciate the beauty of Palau from my air conditioned cabin. vis: 50­120 ft. water: 73­80 degrees. No dive restrictions enforced."

Sun Dancer II, March 1997, Evelyn D. Russell, Greensboro, NC. "Wonderful trip! Crew still learning sites. Safety sausages and dive alert horns used every dive. Easiest diving I've ever done. Roll off side of "safe boat", get picked up wherever you surface. vis: 40-60 ft. water: 76-82 degrees. Dive restriction enforced was 130 ft. depth maximum. Good dive briefings. When currents changed, you did too! At Blue Corner, we used reef hooks to hang out and watch. Incredible! All gear stayed in chase boats. E-6 processing on boat. Did not get to Pelilieii, do not know why. Last night Captain Lenny anchored in main harbor. Diving was not good. Divers went to Captain and complained. The next morning, we headed out of the harbor for our 2 final dives - very good. American Express Co. associated with Peter Hughes: One screw-up after another. Remember, the K-B Bridge is still out. Make sure your return arrangements are solid and have hotel with plenty of time margin. Sensational trip."

Sun Dancer II, March 1997, D. Hosley, Tampa, FL. "Unexpected, "surprise" itinerary took us 370 miles south of Palau to Merir, Sonsoral and Helen's Atoll. Not worth the long ride! But Peter Hughes offered me a discount on future trips when I complained (fair enough). Crew and vessel excellent! Bad vis: and cold water were unexpected. vis: 40­60 ft. water: 70­78 degrees."

Sun Dancer II, April 1997, Wayne & Lyn LeCompte, Redondo Beach, CA. "South Island Tour from Koror to Helen's Atoll. Best diving I've ever done from the service accommodations and reef health to the kind and numbers of fish to the weather. One day of storms, the rest beautiful. Drift diving: no kicking required unless you wanted to go back (good luck and strong legs) and take a picture. Not a normal place for divers, so reefs were undamaged and the fish unafraid. Blue Corner; lots of sharks, jacks, barracuda and Napoleon Wrasses. Manta in German Channel, lionfish everywhere. Not for inexperienced; some currents 4 knots +."

Sun Danser II, June 1997, no name, Marina Del Ray, CA. "Very nice boat. Hard working crew. Second trip to Palau in 6 months. Had best surface interval, first large pod 7200 spinner dolphins play and ride (Safeboat) wake. Saw the dolphins underwater 3-4. Large pod of false killer whales. . . . Sylvia excellent chef. Had to make do without oven for week, never knew there was a problem until end of trip. Booked as solo diver. Had single cabin to my self and also singe accommodation at Palau Pacific on last night. Nice to get off boat on last day but this meant packing wet dive gear. Crew makes transfer to hotel at 2p.m.. Later in day would be easier for guests. Took Nitrox course on first day and had free Nitrox fills for remainder of week. First dive 7 a.m. then 10:30, 2:30 p.m., 5:30 p.m. Night dive (optional) after dinner at 9:00-9:30, but not well attended due to the late hour. Serve coffee to cabin, have a nice bathrobe, overall nicely pampering you. Some navigation problems and timing problems with currents. Good trip."

Sun Dancer II, June 1997, John G. Taylor, Monrovia, CA. "Diving magnificent and truly diverse (wild, strong current, pelagic action, wonderful blue, soft corals and unbelievable fish and critter diversity). vis: 20­100 ft. water: 81­83 degrees. Sundancer II finest of 10 live-aboards I've been on. Sets the standard for all others. Nitrox!! Super dive staff: fine, covered chase boats (at sites within 10 min.) Helluva boat. . . . Airline travel time consuming and expensive (strongly recommend overnight in Guam on trip in / 5 night 4 day dive package at Manta Ray Bay Hotel in Yap on way out) Maybe hotel in Guam on way out (9­11 hr. layover). Between dive snacks not up to high standards. Best dive trip for all around diving; should be advanced diver."

Truk

Thorfinn, October 1996, Jerry Ripp, Kihei, Maui, HI. "Recently underwent a major refurb. Great boat. The most important reason I chose Thorfinn was Capt. Lance Higgs Reef/Wreck Conservation Program. His dive tender boats tie­off the anchor's buoys over each wreck. No more than six divers on the wreck made for great photos. The Truk Aggressor ties off to the wreck itself causing severe damage and then dumps 14­16 divers on that wreck. Another major plus for Thorfinn was the speed from which the crew got you from airport to onboard. We arrived Turk at 10:30 a.m. and were aboard by 11:15 a.m. Had lunch and were on our first dive at 2:00 p.m. The Aggressor had their people sitting on the beach with their equipment till 5:00 p.m. Some of the best wreck diving in the world!! vis: 40­100 ft. water: 83­85 degrees. Mandatory safety stops. I'm 56 years old and have been diving for 24 years. This was my first trip to Truk."

Thorfinn, October 1996, Steve R. Weinman, New Paltz, NY. "Second trip on the Thorfinn even better than the first. Felt sorry for people on the relatively tiny Aggressor ­­ they only dived a limited number of wrecks. We could dive three times the number of large wrecks as well as smaller planes and ships. Thorfinn is 170 feet long and sports an outdoor Jacuzzi and refurbished interior and cabins. Chase boats are larger and more comfortable now, and time to most wrecks was 5-10 minutes. Only feature that is not 5 star is the food ­­ only fair. You can vary the number of days on board, arrive and depart at your schedule's convenience.

Thorfinn, November 1996, Daniel P. Jensen, Maryknoll, NY."Water: 82 degrees, Vis: 50-75 Feet. "Captain gave a 2-hour briefing which indicated how little he thought of the Islander (Trukese) and most everyone else in the world. . . . Soft corals on the wrecks were great. 3-4 days would have been enough for me. After that the dives all grew very similar. I counted the days until we ere able to depart."

Thorfinn, February 1997, Luiz T. Salazar Queiroz, S.J. Campos-SP, Brazil. "Airport/dock/airport transfers in a dirty old bus. Moen, capital of Truk (locals prefer Chuuk), ugly, unpaved roads, looks dirty and poor. 3 nights at SS Thorfinn, 2 days of diving. Only 9 guests onboard (7 Germans, 1 American and me), plenty of room for everybody (I stayed in a cabin alone), but cabins for 2 persons are tight. Captain Lance Higgs very polite and helpful, as all the crew. Nice food, plenty of beverages, snacks between dives. Good selection of videos. Most staterooms with private bath and plenty of hot water. Very clean ship, but if completely full (22 guests) not very comfortable. Dive (all guided) from chasing boats, sometimes in rough seas. Tanks usually 3200+ psi. Crew helpful, put on your mask and take a backroll. Always a tank hanging at 15 ft. I did 8 dives: Fumizuki (a destroyer), Shinkoku, Heian, Betty Bomber, San Francisco, Kansho and Emily. During 2 hour surface interval did a interesting visit to a tiny village: we watched a little of the very modest way of life of those Pacific islanders and went back in time, as we visited old WW II Japanese bunkers and huge anti-aircraft cannons. Lack of big fish; visibility only 50-70 ft. But coral life is spectacular and penetrations were fantastic: swimming inside those ships, full of war artifacts, exhilarating. Shinkoku wonderful; completely covered with all kinds of soft corals. San Francisco a deep dive (180 ft) but makes up the long deco stops, as you see a cargo hold full of marine mines, two armored tanks, two trucks and several cannon shells. Water 83 degrees. Wreck diving paradise, difficult to beat."

Thorfinn, April 1997, Stephen Carmichael & Susan Stoddard, Rochester, MN. "Excellent experience; important to appreciate the different styles at Truk Lagoon. Three options. Shore-based operation is the most economical. This involves a long boat ride (the lagoon is about 40 miles in diameter) and limited dive sites (typically 2/day). . . . Truk Aggressor moves frequently, anchoring close to wrecks. Divers go in at same time on same wreck. . . . Thorfinn moves a few times (4 the week we were on board). Divers assigned to runabouts, no more than 6/boat. The four boats go at different times and to different wrecks, 5-10 minutes from the Thorfinn. Up to 5 dives/day, including a night dive. Briefing material is available for reading. On most dives, my wife and I cleared our dive plan (for example, go to the front of the wreck up the port side, return to the stern on the starboard side) with our guide (Kent, who was excellent). Seemed as though we had the wreck to ourselves. If my wife opted out, I would go with Kent, usually on a penetration dive, often to the engine room. Two dives happened at the same location as the Aggressor; traffic and silt were a problem. vis: 40-60 ft. water: 80 degrees. Decompression precautions strongly encouraged. Fine ship. Our only problem is that we value cultural diversity and respect the lifestyles of other people, but some Caucasian staff seemed quite narrow-minded in this regard. But the diving was great, the food was good, and the service more than adequate."

Thorfinn, April 1997, Sharon & Curtis Bok, Santa Monica, CA. "It's always something" on the S.S. Thorfinn with Capt. Lance Higgs & his partner David Atchison. On our first stay in Jan., 1996, the story was: "We just came back from a retrofit in Australia and it did not go well." At that time on the boat we had no shower water, the plumbing was broken and a/c was fritzy. This stay in April 1997, revealed a whole series of problems that engaged management and much of the crew all day: Compressor problems, electrical issues, a litany of problems that the management was eager to share with clients. Unfortunately, these issues seemed to be top priority over diver schedules. One day our dive boat was sent "to the Aggressor to borrow an electrician" and it returned nearly an hour after our scheduled dive time. As a result we were shorted one dive that day. Instead of an apology, we were reprimanded for being upset! (Couldn't we understand how difficult it is to keep a big boat like the Thorfinn operational?) Well, we did not pay to continually hear about crew and boat problems. . . . The wrecks are fantastic and the diving itself is marvelous and our local Trukese guide Bettawin was very good. Vis: 40­70 ft. water: 83 degrees. Dive restrictions enforced were "deco­like" safety stops recommended because of relatively deep dives: 2 min. 60 ft., 3 min. 30 ft., 10 min. 15 ft. . . . Women note: there are no "women" on the Thorfinn, only "girls". Expect to be treated accordingly."

Truk Aggressor II, June 1997, Albert & Andrea Wilhelm, Fresno, CA. "The crew was exceptional! During first dives they quietly assessed the skills of divers and then planned what wrecks we would be diving. All divers were skilled or responsible enough to know which dives they were not up to diving. No dives were appropriate for a beginning diver. All sites were intermediate and above. The diving was five star! vis: 20­60 ft. water: 82 degrees. Dive restrictions enforced were that you were asked to stay within the 130' recreational limit (exception San Francisco Maru­ 160­170'). . . . Diving in Truk Lagoon gives one a real sense about the destructive forces of war. Like diving in a virtual history book, at times emotionally overwhelming. Crew on the Truk Aggressor II is so enthusiastic about diving and everyone having a good time that they put in well over the 100% effort. Always offered to show you the special sites on the wrecks that we would have had time to find on our own. The boat offered plenty of personal space and the typical huge dive deck that is always on an Aggressor boat. Food was very good and plentiful. A backup computer is a must with this diving."

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