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Giants Manta Wings Waving Goodbye – Great White Shark Teeth Grinning Hello! From Socorro to Guadalupe.

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010
Divemaster Dan here.  Writing from Vancouver, British Columbia where I left the warm water and wonderful pelagics behind for “doing time” in the office (it’s actually really easy – I just talk to  people all day about how cool it is to have a staring contest with a Great White Shark from only 4 feet away, or what it feels like to ‘dance’ with a Manta Ray)!
So I haven’t posted in a while and I thought I’d drop by with a little note to update everyone on some of the very exciting things happening on the Nautilus Explorer.
The Socorro season ended well.  The last trip combined diving the Revillagigedo Islands (Socorro) where all our favorite friends came out to say good bye – Dolphins, Hammerhead Sharks, Whale Sharks and of course the Giant Mantas (check out the pictures below) – and the Sea of Cortez, where we were reminded of just how much Baja, Mexico has to offer: Sea Lions were the most welcoming – maybe TOO welcoming (next time you see hostess Ashley, ask her about her new camera being a sea lion’s snack!), octopus, stingrays and the photographer’s favorite macro subjects: Nudibranchs and Seahorses!
So what now? Well as I type this, one of the largest crews we’ve ever had onboard (about 25 people) are all hard at work finishing up a huge overhaul on the boat in Ensenada.  You, our guests, have made your suggestions and comments over the years and we have listened.  The next time you see the Nautilus Explorer you will find a brand new head on the dive deck.  So no more how-fast-can-I-rip-my-wetsuit-off dances to get down to your cabin head in time! We have also done away with our dorms.  Instead we have converted one of our staterooms into a triple occupancy room with full air-conditioning and an en suite bathroom for more privacy and comfort.  If you already have a booking in the old dorm, no worries, you will be upgraded to the triple at no additional cost.
And the big change that is going to have everyone talking:  Two new luxury, high-end suites added to our hot tub deck.  The new Dofleini suite has all the comfort and space of the Nautilus and Rosario suites.  Then there is the brand new Emerald suite, our premium accommodation with “all the fixings”.  A very private bedroom with a queen size Simmons Beauty rest mattress with pocket coils for ultimate comfort.  Two plasma TVs; one in the bedroom and the other in the Emerald suite`s private lounge.  Also in the lounge is a futon providing additional sleeping space.  Sitting on this couch you can look out of the suites window and enjoy spectacular views of the ocean and islands.
We have also dropped our single occupancy rates as we know for some folks, having a little more space and privacy is very important.  Give us a call or send an email and we will be happy to tell you about out different rates.
If you are on our email list, keep an eye out for our latest newsletter, hot of the press.  It will have more details on the new layout and some great photos and diagrams too.  If you are not on the email list and want to be, go to our website www.nautilusexplorer.com and feel free to sign up.  Otherwise, just drop us an email or phone and we will be happy to add you to the list.
Also we are thrilled to announce that our Grand Prize draw for all 50/50 entrants has been made and the winners will all be announced in the upcoming Newsletter.  We have given away over 25 great prizes including a free trip to Guadalupe or Socorro, pay for one and your friend comes free and lots of free upgrades and free rentals and your bar-tab paid for etc…So be sure to check that out!
Thank you for all your support of our conservation efforts in Socorro and Guadalupe.  Together, we have raised over $140,000 dollars!  Find more details on that in the newsletter.
And after the refit is done?  We have a few Channel Islands trips and then it’s all about Guadalupe.  Here we go again! 102 different sharks and counting.  We are all looking forward to seeing some of our favorites like Stumpy, Bruce, Chica and Shredder.  And of course we hope to make a few new friends this season.  We have had a lot of bookings and the season is filling up fast.  However, its not too late to snag the Emerald suite or maybe get a last minute berth in the new triple stateroom.  Please send us an email, call us or check out the website for detailed information on availability and schedules.
Well that is it for me.  I better get back to work here!  Enjoy the photos (my favorite is the one of the crew making the end-of-season, celebratory leap off the back of the boat!)
Dan

Thanks to DM Peter Schalkwijk, Captain Gordon Kipp and Jacqueline Weideli for the photos.

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Posted in Animals, British Columbia, Captains Log, Channel Islands, Destinations, Ensenada, Giant Mantas, Great White Shark, Guadalupe Island, Hammerhead shark, Manta, Nautilus Explorer, Revillagigedos, Socorro, Socorro Island, Whalesharks, dolphin, mexico, nudibranch | No Comments »

From Socorro to the Sea of Cortez we saw it all :: from seahorses to mantas, sharks, sea lions and even nudibranchs — dive guide and first mate blog – June 9, 2010

Wednesday, June 9th, 2010

From South to North, Big and Small, We saw it all: Sea Horses, Mantas, Sharks, Sea Lions and Nudibranchs.

Let us remember back a few days to those spectacular dives at Socorro where we left you off with our last Dive-Master Log. Our cruise North into the Sea of Cortez, was very smooth until we got close to the southern Baja peninsula where different currents and winds meet. There, for a few hours, the going got rough but once we made it into the Gulf of California it smoothed back down, allowing us a good nights rest before our first dive in our new enviroment. Being only a couple of hundred miles north you would expect similar conditions, but that is absolutely not the case. The Sea of Cortez is colder and this time of year there is a lot of algae and plankton in the water making the visibility somewhat limited. But, with so much food in the water you also have a lot of life.

Our first dive in this area was on the southern tip of Cerralvo island, a site I don’t have the luxury of visiting very often due to it being a little to far to visit from La Paz where I have lived for the past ten years. This site is Spectacular!! It is a long shallow ridge that is covered in very healthy coral that makes a labyrinthine maze ideal habitat for all kinds of animals including a small colony of California Sea Lions and plenty of grunts, goatfish and barber-fish.  In the afternoon we did a couple of dives at La Reina reef, which like always, lived up to its name of Queen of reefs. There were Sea Lions on the Rock and all kinds of beautiful life in the water. Jessie (DM) had told everybody in the briefing that this was a good site to search for sea horses and true enough, a yellow and an orange sea horse were spotted.

The following day we did an early dive at the Salvatierra, an old ferry boat wreck that sunk in 1975 and is now nearly totally destroyed but still makes for an interesting dive. Midday we went on a quest to El Mogote to see if we could find a Whale Shark to snorkel with. Unfortunately after two hours of careful searching we came out empty handed, they just didn’t want to be found!  We Spent the afternoon at Suwani Reef diving with huge schools of spot tail grunts, barracudas, goat fish and scads, but my highlight of the day was a pair of Cortez stingrays that one of the guests spotted. The male stingray held on to the female so hard that when she swam away he just stayed stuck. We did a night dive here too which was calm and beautiful.

Yesterday we began the day diving at Fang Ming Wreck and then spent the rest of the day at Los Islotes, probably the most famous dive site in the area due to the permanent colony of California Sea Lions that lives there. Everybody spent most of the day enjoying the magnificent show that these animals always provide.  This Morning we did our two last dives of this magnificent trip again in La Reina with the Se Lions and the Sea Horses, before motoring back towards Cabo, where tomorrow morning this chapter of the adventures of the Nautilus Explorer will come to a happy end. I believe everybody will leave with a smile on their face and a warm heart because of the beauty and greatness of these waters!

Surface Conditions: Windy and cool in the morning developing into a very hot calm mid-day and cool breezy afternoon. A few small swells less than a foot in the morning with calm waters the rest of the time.

Underwater Conditions: The visibility was somewhat limited at between 60ft in the best dive site, and 25ft in the worst case. Temperature was quite cool between 71F and 73F. There was no current most of the time and when we did encounter one, it was very mild and totally negotiable.

DM Peter

Greetings,  Well here we are, at the end of another successful season of diving at the Revillagigedo (Socorro) islands and the Sea of Cortez. And what a season it has been! I’ve been on board since the middle of February, and it was intriguing to witness the dynamism of the environment evinced in my 10 trips this season.

During the winter months, we were graced with the presence of the seasonal visitors to the islands, the humpback whales. These beautiful animals provided a constant source of fascination from the surface, and an unending hope that maybe we might be one of the lucky ones to see them under water! Ah, but huge and majestic as they may be, they can be frustratingly coy. Still, although the chances may be hit and miss, we were blessed with a few magical encounters.

As the months rolled on, temperature and humidity rose, bringing with it more energy to the above water conditions, characterized by more rapidly changing wind and sea states. It also brought an end to the humpback whale season, but as we bade farewell to the whales, so we gave welcome to the sea lions and fish-filled reefs of the Sea of Cortez!

It’s always nice to shake up the routine a bit, and I very much enjoyed the chance to be onboard for our “combo” trips between Socorro and the calm, beautiful scenery of the waters surrounding La Paz, Mexico.  But amongst all that diversity, all the different experiences that touch our trips in one way or another, there was always one constant to look forward to: the eerie, strangely intelligent, curious, and stunningly beautiful giant manta rays.

Leaving the Socorro islands at the end of a season (and our more seasoned clients may attest to this as well) can feel like saying adieu to old friends, and although I may have been working in these islands for the better part of 4 years, I never fail to be touched by the chance to see the mantas.  I could go on – the scalloped hammerhead, silky, Galapagos, silvertip, white tip, and even whale sharks; the bottle nose dolphins, the false killer whales, and pilot whales; the turtles and moray eels; the schooling yellowfin tuna, wahoo, and jacks; and the abundant populations of reef fish. But to do it all justice would require more space than I have here. Suffice it to say I’ve found there’s something for everyone who is enamoured with the natural world.

Time to go now – there’s always work to be done!  Even on my birthday, which was celebrated in fine style by being serenaded by our recent group of German guests! Our chef Juan Carlos even fattened me up with a delicious birthday cake.  Until next season Socorro, vaya con Dios. Next up, Guadalupe and the great white sharks!

Sandy Curtis,   First Mate,   Nautilus Explorer

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Posted in Animals, California Sealions, Captains Log, Destinations, El Mogote, False killer whales, Galapagos Shark, Giant Mantas, Humpback Whale, Nautilus Explorer, Nudibranch, Revillagigedos, Salvatierra, Sea of Cortez, Silky Sharks, Socorro, Tuna, Whalesharks, sealions, shark, stingray, whitetip reef shark | No Comments »

We expected a lot from this trip and so far it even got much better!! After the first 5 days of diving we have seen more .. (* note from Captain Mike – this is the nature of big animal diving – some trips are super hot and the diving sizzles while other trips are quieter. Not every trip is going to be this fantastic… darnit *) Guest blog – June 4, 2010

Friday, June 4th, 2010

It is easy to get jaded about diving when you work on the Nautilus Explorer. For example, I went diving in Hawaii this past April and, although the dive was quite pretty, I couldn’t help but feel a little unfulfilled when the dive was over. No sharks, no mantas, no dolphins…. This afternoon I dived “The Boiler” at San Benedicto and Socorro  - if I had wings I would be soaring with sheer delight! Even though I’ve dived this site many times, and have played with the giant mantas many times, it still amazes me just how friendly and interactive they really are. As soon as I jumped off the back deck of Nautilus and started my decent to the rock, I was very pleased to see FOUR giant mantas waiting for me. I went down to about 17 metres and was very quickly surrounded by big, beautiful, black-and-white mantas. Above me, below me, beside me – eye to eye, finger tip to wing tip. Wow. I didn’t even have a chance to swim around The Boiler because the mantas stayed with me the entire dive! 40 minutes with some very friendly mantas. Can it get any better?
‘Till next time…     Hostess Ashley

We had four fantastic dives at Punta Tosco with lots of MANTAS, DOLPHINS, SHARKS!!! What else can a diver wish? We found everything we expected and even more!!! Lets wait for tomorrow.   Andrea from Austria

Faboulous Diving at Punta Tosca!!!  Not only MANTA rays, but also DOLPHINS, playing games with us on 3 of 4 dives!!! Nice reef with lot’s of fish, big big lobsters and stunning swarms. For me it was the first time diving with dolphins in more then 970 dives, so big, big smile and lot’s of fun. This trip is really great from both diving and crew how does everything to get us happy and smile… now that we had those, were snorkeling with sharks and already WHALESHARK and many other sharks at rocca partida, only the whales itself and seals are missing… Hello from a very happy diver :) Ruth/Germany

We had expected a lot from this trip – and so far it even got much better! After the first 5 days of diving we have seen more than in several dive holidays before – and most of the animals not just only seen but long time contact – interaction… the whaleshark we had circeling around us for more than half an hour at one dive, the dolphins kept ‘playing’ with us and the HUGE (!!!) mantas enjoy circeling and looping around in our bubbles. Even the first hammerhead shark we saw… and are looking forward to the next days of diving with this very professional – and all of them absolutely enthusiasticly – diving and helping crew. But now we will enjoy another fine dinner (my girlfriend already wants to marry the chef cook) being served by to really charming young ladies ;-)  Andreas Ritzenhofen/ Germany

We had a nice day today, my first interaction with a manta ray. Wow!!!… I think one of the best dives I ever had the last 10 years. I ll be sure we coming back. Service from the crew is unbelievable.( 24 hours eating, sleeping, diving.) Never seen this before like so professional.  Roman and Elvira/ Germany


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Posted in Destinations, Giant Mantas, Guest Blog, Hammerhead shark, Nautilus Explorer, Punta Tosca, Roca Partida, San Benedicto, Socorro, The Boiler, Whalesharks, dolphin, shark | No Comments »

Diving at Roca Partida has been GREAT!!!! We could see the bottom at 250 feet and a giant whale shark posed for us.. crew and guest blog – 02 June, 2010.

Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010

Dancing with a Whale Shark at Roca Partida

The past two days diving here at Roca Partida have been great. We have had some of the clearest water ever, we could even see the bottom at 250′. Yesterday, on our first dive we were slowly drifting along the back side of the rock when Peter (the other DM) started swimming and making the shark sign over his head. He was pointing into the depths as a large spotted image appeared. And enormous Whale Sharks swam right up between the group and continued on her way. Everyone was very excited. It was a first for many of the guests on board… Hurray!!!

The next dive, we all entered the water with high hopes of seeing our spotted friend again, but instead we swam amongst a huge school (+1000) Skip Jacks. As the school swirled and circled the rock, we noticed that groups of 5 or 6 would break off from the group and rush upwards and spawn. It looked like a ferris-wheel of spawning fishes. Visibility went down a little in that area. There were a few Silky sharks and Galapagos sharks following the school waiting for their chance to catch an unsuspecting Jack. When we went into the water for our third dive, we found the east side of the rock had a smoking current so we all let ourselves drift around to the lee side. Apparently,the Whale Shark had the same idea as we did… take shelter from the current. Appearing again from the depths, the Whale Shark swam right through the middle of our group and continued until she encountered the head current coming around the southern point of the island. There, she turned around and came through the group again, as if she was posing for the photographers in the group. Once again she turned around when she hit the current at the north point and continued the same pattern for the rest of our dive. It was as if she was just another one of the group. A photographer’s dream. Everyone got to spend a little time with her.

By the next dive, the current had slackened and we only got one glimpse of the Whale Shark and she said her goodbyes. With great viz and tones of schools of fish around, the last dive of the day was very peaceful. A few sharks we seen as the light levels slowly dropped. It was a great day of diving. Today was full of sharks. On the early dive today, we were met by over 100 Black Jacks. They are impressive on their own, but in a massive school, they are beautiful. We also had several really big Tuna swim over our heads a few times. In the depths, we saw a few sharky silhouettes. It was not till the second dive that the sharks came around. A couple of people came out of the dive exclaiming that they saw two Mantas, but after examining the video, we are not sure if they were Mantas or Mobulas. During the last two dives, we saw the graceful Silver-Tip Sharks swimming along with some big fat Galapagos Sharks. There were even a couple of Hammerhead Sharks spotted.

There were more and more sharks and more and more current. There were only a few of us who did the fourth dive, but we were rewarded with plenty of shark action.

Surface conditions: Partly Cloudy, clearing up in afternoon… beautiful sunset. Light breeze throughout the day. Air temperature warm (74-76F).

Underwater conditions: Visibility +100′, Water temperature 73F, 100′ thermocline dropping to 71F, Currents strong on most dives, but there is always a lee side to every rock.

DM- Jessie “Sharkchick”

Our second trip with Nautilus Explorer.   We enjoyed the first trip so much, we had to do it again!  The crews are amazing in their care, concern, great personalities and knowledge of the area.   And of course the Socorro  diving is unique in so many ways.  - – - We will never forget the giant mantas in the Boiler at San Benedicto Island,  who played with us for at least a half hour.  Bob had the thrill of one coming down over him as he was adjusting his camera,  and “hugging” him with his cephalic fins.  - – - We look forward to diving with the playful sea lions which was a highlight of our previous trip, as well as snorkling with whale sharks in the Sea of Cortez.  Great trip! Do it!   Pat and Bob Watson

So I did a dive at Roca Partida today. I was hoping that the  whale shark from yesterday was still around. Alas, he had moved on. But there were some very neat happenings on my dive despite the absent whale shark. First I watched a group (of about 6) silkie sharks on the hunt. I love how stealthy and menacing they are when they’re looking for food. Then I spotted an octopus out in the open, which is rare around here. He was very beautifully colored and had his tentacles all spread out as if to display fully his beauty. Then, as I turned the corner I noticed it got very dark, very quickly. I looked up to see a school, in fact an entire city!, of skipjack tuna. There were thousands – they actually blocked out the light from the sun! The divemasters told me its their time for spawning right now, which would explain why they were chasing each other. It was really quite a sight to behold! Silvery fish darting every which way, only to run in to more silvery fish! I’ve seen large schools before, but never like the one I saw today.

Tonight for dinner we had the famous Nautilus burgers. It is always funny to me when the guests come in to the dining room for dinner and their eyes grow to the size of saucers when they see the feast laid before them – burgers of all types  - lamb, chicken, beef, veggie –  with all the fixin’s, including buns made from scratch that evening, sauteed mushrooms and onions, corn, french fries…. and as if that were not enough, crepes with ice cream and berries for dessert! Simply delicious! Tomorrow, diving at Socorro. Can’t wait to hear what adventures the diver’s will have there!
‘Till next time!

Hostess Ashley


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Posted in Animals, Captains Log, Destinations, Galapagos Shark, Guest Blog, Hammerhead shark, Manta, Nautilus Explorer, Octopus, Roca Partida, San Benedicto, Sea of Cortez, Silky Sharks, Socorro, The Boiler, Tuna, Whalesharks, shark, silvertip reef shark | No Comments »

We finished the day strong with an adrenalin inducing night snorkel with feisty silky sharks – Captain and crew blog – May 23, 2010

Sunday, May 23rd, 2010

The sea state was actually not too bad when I woke up this morning at 0530 for my turn on watch. A fairly long 6-10′ from the NW which we were riding over quite smoothly. I must have done something to upset the ocean G*ds though because around 20 minutes after I stepped onto the bridge the wind started blowing, leading to our present state, with a stiff 20-25 kts from the NW, turning the original long 6-10′ into a choppy 8-12′. Not what I was hoping for on this transit north, but certainly nothing that this ocean going vessel can’t handle, just a little lumpier than our guests were anticipating. After departing Roca Partida we have spent the last three days diving at Isla Socorro and Isla San Benedicto, and have had some superb dives. Pta Tosca on the west side of Socorro delivered a beautiful morning dive with 2 Giant Pacific Mantas spending nearly the entire dive sharing themselves between all of the divers in the water, circling around and overhead, and making eye contact as they cruised by only a few feet away. The afternoon at Pta Tosca was not so hot, with visibility diminishing and our manta pals moving on to other more important things apparently. However we did finish the day strong with an adrenaline inducing night snorkel with around 6-8 feisty silky sharks!

Up next was Cabo Pearce, where we stayed a full day and completed 4 great dives. The day began with an amazing dive featuring 30-50 schooling hammerheads AND 6 Giant Manta Rays, all of which circled closely giving all the divers in the water some great Manta lovin’. Visibility was great at around 80ft/24m and our 6 lovely Mantas stuck around for dives 2 and 3, with at least 4 of them being ‘players’, coming in very close and providing some great interaction. Also had a couple brief dolphin sightings, a couple solitary hammerheads, and a huge school of Bonito that swam by in the blue and seemed to go on and on forever. By dive 4 the current had increased to very strong and the big animals said their goodbyes. We rounded out the Socorro part of our itinerary with a day at San Benedicto. After a very brief and murky dive at the canyon we spent the rest of the day at the Boiler, having some more great Manta interaction, this time with one ‘player’ and one ‘dancer’, one interacting with divers while the other showed off its agility with moves that would have made a stealth bomber look bad. A couple of big Galapagos sharks cruised around on dive 4, eliciting some high fives for our divemasters after the dive!

Now on to the Sea of Cortez. ETA for our first divesite is 0800 tomorrow morning, and we’re all looking forward to the very small seas forecast for the next few days of diving on the east side of Baja California Sur. More to come from the Sea of Cortez.

Captain Gordon Kipp

Surface conditions: Wind moderate (avg 15 kts), sea state at Socorro small to moderate (5-7′ swell), air temp 75-80F, mostly sunny

Diving conditions: Visibility  poor at Canyon (10ft/3m), to excellent at the Boiler (80-100ft/24-30m) and everything in between, water temp 76f, current mild to very strong.

I’m the newest deckhand on board the Nautilus Explorer. I began working here just under a month ago, and every day has been filled with wonderful experiences followed by beautiful sunsets. On my way here I was worried about fitting in with the crew as they are a very close group – almost like family. However, my fears were groundless. As soon as I arrived, they began showing me the ropes (ha!) and were very understanding during my learning curve.

In the past few weeks I have seen all sorts of interesting creatures, both from the surface and underwater. At San Benedito, I saw manta rays and whale sharks from the surface, and a moray eel underwater. At Roca Partida, I watched magnificent frigate birds stealing fish from masked boobies as I waited for the divers to surface. While we were en route to the Nautilus dolphins frolicked in my wake. At Socorro Island I again saw mantas but this time underwater – truly awe-inspiring. We also did a night snorkel with silky sharks, which was incredible. Film doesn’t quite pass on the atavistic shiver when you see a 6 foot shark swimming towards you out of dark sea. Upon leaving the Revillagigedo Archipelago we continued on toward the Sea of Cortez, where I swam with sea lions, and saw vultures and sea hawks circling.

Truly it is a privilege and a pleasure to work here regardless of  the long hours. It is more a way of life then a job.
Thanks for reading!
Tess Szostakiwskyj
Deckhand on the Nautilus Explorer April – June 2010

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Posted in Animals, Baja California, Cabo Pearce, Captains Log, Destinations, Galapagos Shark, Giant Mantas, Nautilus Explorer, Punta Tosca, Revillagigedos, Roca Partida, San Benedicto, Sea of Cortez, Silky Sharks, Socorro, Whalesharks, dolphin, hammerhead, sealions | No Comments »

Yellow-fin tuna hunting underwater and then becoming prey when false killer whales moved in on us – Captain, hostess and guest blog – May 22, 2010

Saturday, May 22nd, 2010

More great diving at the one of a kind Roca Partida today, despite the wind and choppy sea state. For those of you not familiar with Roca Partida, from the surface it is nothing more than a rock, roughly 200 ft long by 100 ft high, jutting up in mid-pacific, hundreds of miles from any mainland and 65 miles from the closest island, Isla Socorro. It is covered in booby-bird guano and of course the boobies themselves, giving it a whitish hue. Because of it’s small size and location it does not offer any protection for us from the weather, so when we anchor out here we are literally anchored in open ocean. Luckily in these days of communications we receive daily updates on weather from Captain Mike who studies and watches the computer weather models very closely.  that basically decide when we can come dive out here. It has made diving at Roca Partida a lot more comfortable than in times past. Today unfortunately we did have to deal with some less than ideal weather conditions, inevitable from time to time. A fresh breeze from the North West made the seas quite choppy and made getting into the dive tenders a little more of an adventure! But, as always, we prevailed and managed to get in 4 great dives. Again today not as sharky as Roca Partida can be, but instead our guests enjoyed a huge school of yellow-fin tuna, hundreds (or maybe thousands??) of them hunting the food-rich waters surrounding the rock. To see a yellow-fin tuna hunt underwater is quite impressive. Usually the first thing you see is a huge school of fish suddenly scattering, followed by a sound like thunder as the tuna rocket out of the blue into the school of panicked fish. As fast as these tuna can swim, they can also be food for some bigger animals like the false killer whales, which appear similar to pilot whales. With so many tuna around right now we were not surprised to see a big pod of these impressive animals as we made our way back in the tenders after one of our dives today. They seem to be attracted to the noise of the outboard engines, so as the pod of 30-50 converged on us, all onboard donned their snorkel gear and backrolled into the blue to be surrounded by the curious animals. To keep their attention I had all the snorkelers in a tight group and drove the zodiac in circles around them, exciting the false killer whales as they danced and whirled around us for around 10 minutes. A great show!

Tonight we depart for Isla Socorro, where we will spend the next two days diving in search of more Giant Pacific Manta Rays and…who know what else??

Talk soon,

Captain Gordon Kipp

Surface conditions: Wind 15-20 kts, seas 6-7′ chop, mostly clear skies, air temp 78-80F

Water conditions: Visibility good to excellent 20-30m (65-100ft), water temp 76F, current moderate to strong

I dove “The Boiler” yesterday. If you know Socorro Island, you know that “The Boiler” is famous for its intimate interaction with the giant mantas. Sadly, there were no “Friendly Giants” around for my dive. (Although the divers before me saw 3 mantas!) Everything else was perfect for diving today – the sun was bright and warm, so much so that I could feel its warmth at 80ft down!, there was virtually no current to speak of, visibility was over 120ft… – the site was brimming with lively activity. Since I did not have any mantas to play with, I took the opportunity to examine the small things on the rock that are always overshadowed by the giant mantas. I saw a flounder for the first time! I saw a type and color of starfish I’d never seen before! I saw white-tip sharks, moray eels, lobster, box fish, yellowfin tuna, moorish idols and butterfly fish! I saw my favourite fish, the porcupine fish! Being a girl from the Canadian Prairies, places like “The Boiler” are a far-cry from home – no wheat fields! So I always try to seize every underwater moment I can. Although I did not see mantas today, I did develop a renewed appreciation for all things under the sea, big AND small.  I’d say that’s a good dive! ‘Till next time…  Hostess Ashley

Hai,Hai,Hai

wir haben heute einen Schnellkurs in “maentisch” bekommen und hatten tolle Interaktionen mit Mantas – unglaublich aber wahr. Es hat geblasen ohne Ende, die Sicht war maessig – aber trotzdem sehr, sehr geile Tauchgaenge ! Am Morgen hatten wir noch als Zugabe eine Hammerhaischule mit mind. 30 Tieren und der “Maennertauchgang” am Nachmittag war einer Feldstudie der pazifischen Leopardenflunder (Bothus Leopardinus) vorbehalten. Wir brechen jetzt auf in die unendlichen Weiten des Pazifics nach San Benedicto und harren der Dinge, die dort auf uns warten. LG Wir (Daniela und Martin aus Mannheim, Michael aus Idar-Oberstein, Joerg und Steffi aus Ludwigshafen)From Germany

Today we had three dives with Mantas (black and chevron) eye in eye at Cabo Pearce (Socorro Island) interacting with us, swimming up to us, hovering directly over us and enjoying the bubbles, crossing from diver to diver. At the end of the dive they were following us to the surface and seeming sad, that we were leaving them alone, but greeting us happily when we were returning for the next dive. All we had to do was waiting calmly in the water and sooner or later a manta would come up to us and trying to look in our eyes or taking a bubble bath. We saw some dolphins but they weren’t interested in us and the hammerhead we saw was circling in the blue. In the afternoon the current was getting stronger and we felt like a flag hanging on the rope of the anchor. With greetings from a wonderful trip (and it’s going on!) Bettina & Roland from Egelsbach, Germany


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Posted in Cabo Pearce, Captains Log, Destinations, Giant Mantas, Guest Blog, Moray Eel, Roca Partida, Socorro, Socorro Island, The Boiler, Tuna, dolphin, hammerhead, whales, whitetip reef shark | No Comments »

Baby whale shark at Roca partida but diving is otherwise a bit slower than normal – dive guide, crew and guest log – 18 MAY 2010

Wednesday, May 19th, 2010

We started of with our first day in San Benedicto after a smooth ride down from cabo San Lucas. canyon did not get so much so we moved over to the Boiler and had both better vizibility and one big black manta that got interest of us , but went off after an 10 min. It was a female and we recognice her from  before.

As weather is staying calm we moved over night to Roca partida and got into the water and had a baby whale shark!  We did not get as much shark as usual , but a bit better then last trip. Last trip we had tousands of yellowfin Tunas houndreds of Wahoos and the false Orcas.  This time so far the whale shark, and as well a group of dolphins that came by spinning around us and then left us.  There are still a good number of wahoos around. We wispered in a couple of silver tips and Galapagos sharks. We spotted hammerheads , but very deep at ca 160-180 ft. The animals are there just did not get in real close to day. We are staying one more day tomorrow so let us see how it goes then.

Surface conditions: 15 knot wind, wind waves , but very shalloow swell/surge. Mostly cloudy. 26 C
Underwater conditions: Weak to medium current, not much of surge 24 C ca 75F Good viz ca 30 m , 100Ft No real termaclime.

Dive guide Sten

Hostess Blog
The first day of a new trip is always exciting for me. A brand new group of divers from different backgrounds with different stories to tell. 25 smiling faces walk through the door – 25 new names to remember! Everyone buzzing with anticipation of the adventure that awaits them at the Socorro Islands. Everyone is excited to see and interact with our “Friendly Giants”, the mantas. One woman has already told me that she is most excited to see the sharks. This is great news because we have 6 different species of sharks here at Socorro, including hammerheads which you can often see in large schools. In fact, just last week I was enjoying a dive at ‘The Canyon’ when I came upon a school of hammerhead sharks that was easily 40-50 strong!! I love watching them move through the water – stealthy and effortless – even though their head seems to be so awkwardly shaped! haha! Oops! Time to go bake today’s snack – cherry crumble!  ’Till next time.

Hostess Ashley

Before I started working on the Nautilus Explorer the last dive I made was 15 yrs ago in Campbell River, BC. Last week I made my first dive since then, at Roca Partida, Mexico. I saw lots of white-tip reef sharks, my first sharks ever seen underwater! I also a 10′ Galapagos shark! That got my adrenaline going. We saw big schools of wahoo, and a lot of other fish I’ve never seen before. I’ve been working here almost 2 months now and have enjoyed all aspects of the job immensely. The crew (especially Captain Gordon <–inserted by Captain Gordon), have been great to work with and I’m learning about a whole new work experience. A little different from the tow boats back in BC. Chief  Engineer Larry

This is Gabriele from Germany:

This is my first trip to Socorro and my first trip with the Nautilus Explorer. Within 2 days I had everything You could wish for: Starting with the Marine Life: 2 Baby Whalesharks, 1 Giant Manta, lots of sharks (tiger, grey, white tips, silver tips, longimanus), lots of swarm fish, makrels, tuna, You name it. But: This would not be possible without the help of this perfect ship: There is hardly a vessel that can match with the Nautilus Explorer: the expirience of the staff is excellent, the service is extraordinary. You always feel welcome and looked after, the courtesy and friendliness of the staff is unmatched, I enjoy every minute on board (and I only checked in two days ago….;-)))) ) Thank you very much.

El viaje ha sido espectacular. Estamos en el segundo dia y ya hemos visto tiburon ballena juvenil, mantarayas, tiburon martillo, miles de tiburones puntas blancas, tuna, makarelas. La vida marina de las islas del archipielago es impresionante, aun es posible ver predadores tope algo que es dificil encontrar en lugares costeros. El staff es muy atento y te ayudan en cualquier problema (van mas alla de lo necesario para hacerte sentir bien, GRACIAS!!); el barco es bastante comodo y es mas amplio de lo que se pudiera pensar. Uff, pensar que aun faltan 10 dias mas en este paradisiaco archipielago y barco!!!  Laura Escobosa

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Posted in Animals, Cabo San Lucas, Captains Log, Destinations, Galapagos Shark, Giant Mantas, Guest Blog, Hammerhead shark, Nautilus Explorer, Orca, Roca Partida, San Benedicto, Socorro, The Canyon, Tiger Shark, Tuna, Wahoo, Whalesharks, dolphin, mexico, shark | No Comments »

50 trips to Socorro Island and I still find new experiences above and below the water to take my breath away – First Mate Log – May 17, 2010

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

Good evening! This is first mate Sandy writing, from the beautiful Sea of Cortez near La Paz, Mexico. We have anchored in a small bay on the island of Espiritu Santo for the night, before heading back to the local California sea lion colony, Los Islotes, for some adrenaline-filled diving with some gregarious marine mammals tomorrow morning.  It’s been more than 3 years since I’ve been on a trip to the Sea of Cortez, and there certainly is something magical about it. Some may say that her day is past – that the crowds of pleasure boats and luxury yachts have encroached upon the serenity of the islands, or that the inevitable byproducts of a dramatically increased human presence in Baja California has lead to a negative impact on the local ecosystem – but for anyone whose curiosity may have been piqued by Steinbeck’s classic will still find much to marvel at in the calm, turquoise waters or the stark desert coastline.

It has been my pleasure to work aboard the Nautilus Explorer for more than 4 years now, and although I may be fast approaching 50 completed voyages to the Islas Revillagigedo, Socorro and the Sea of Cortez (in addition to Alaska, the Channel Islands, British Columbia, Clipperton Island, and Isla Guadalupe – phew this boat gets around!), I still find new experiences above and below the water to take my breath away. Diving with giant manta rays, schooling hammerhead sharks, great white sharks, sea lions, dolphins, and humpback whales for many would be more than enough to hold the appeal of a unique job like this for many years, but in addition to all the wonderful natural splendour that we are exposed to in this work, I am also honoured and humbled to have had the opportunity, and the pleasure, of meeting many wonderful and fascinating people, crewmembers and guests alike, from all over the world. To be caught up in a swirl of languages, social backgrounds, political viewpoints (now now, let’s keep it controversy free!!), cultural differences, and unique perspectives, all from the shared common base of a love of the natural world, can be a heady experience and lead to very interesting discoveries about one’s self and the world around us.

Having only recently assumed the role of first mate onboard the Nautilus Explorer, I am enjoying the fresh challenges and learning experiences presented to me in my new capacity, even if I may sometimes complain about having less time in the water! Being involved in the management and planning side to keep an operation like this on an even keel can be quite an interesting adventure. For instance, it wasn’t until recently that I found out that this boat isn’t run on diesel fuel at all. In fact, it’s actually run by a combination of paper, emails, coffee, and checklists. Oh, so many checklists. So many checklists, that we’ve found ourselves having to make checklists for our checklists! Now I wouldn’t go so far as to describe it as Kafka-esque, although sometimes if I’m a little behind, it can certainly feel that way. But hey, that’s why I attended nautical school – to learn how to use a laminator!

The sheer distances and vast differences in cultural regions that we operate in can lead to their own interesting experiences. Around here, just to deal with our day to day work, we all need to speak English, Spanish, Spanglish, Espanglais, Franglish, French, Espancais, Englespanol, and simple pointing and grunting. Hand gestures take on a life of their own. The skill of screaming at people can sometimes be elevated to the status of art.

Boat driving, fixing things that are broken, ordering parts, dealing with bureaucratic paperwork and yelling at contractors can certainly take up a large slice of the workday pie, but whenever we can we all like to find the time to remind ourselves why we do all this in the first place. For me, I usually encounter at least one hour of every trip that brings it home to me why I do what I do. It may be underwater, eye to eye with a giant, beautiful, eerie manta ray. Or it may be on the top deck, on a quiet moonlit night in a secluded anchorage, gazing up at a limitless panoply of stars. Or perhaps it’s that moment of tranquility that occurs just as the last of 24 divers have just jumped off my skiff and dove beneath the surface, leaving only their bubbles breaking the still, dappled surface of a calm day at Cabo Pearce.

It is everyone’s right to complain about their jobs. And I believe that human nature is such that no matter how perfect things can be, someone will find something to complain about, even if they have to make it up. But the moments of magic that occur above and below the surface on every single trip I’ve ever been on are what keep me here, and keep me proud to be involved in such a unique operation such as this. It’s an experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything, and one that will stay with me for the rest of my life. If you don’t believe me, come on board and see for yourself. You won’t regret it.

Sandy Curtis, First Mate, Nautilus Explorer

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Posted in Alaska, Animals, Baja California, British Columbia, Cabo Pearce, California Sealions, Captains Log, Channel Islands, Clipperton Island, Destinations, Giant Mantas, Great White Shark, Guadalupe Island, Hammerhead shark, Humpback Whale, Los Islotes, Nautilus Explorer, Revillagigedos, Sea of Cortez, Socorro, dolphin, mexico | No Comments »

Captain’s log – Duncan the stowaway on our Socorro Island trip. He is a wee bit smaller than a manta. May 16, 2010.

Sunday, May 16th, 2010

Hello,

Much time has passed and great distances sailed this week; From our outbound Cabo San Lucas departure to Socorro Island, we have visited the three islands in the Revillagigedos Group in Latitude 18North, then all the way up to 24North in the Sea of Cortez. An 850 Nautical Mile journey to see everything from our usuals: Manta and Hammerhead sharks to some unusuals: False Killer Whale, California Sealions, Wahoo  -  and a Brown Headed Cowbird.

This Cowbird, which I named ‘Duncan’ (from the celtic for ‘brown headed’) made his presence aboard known on our first day of the Southbound Transit when he flew into the wheelhouse from the deck.

I don’t mind saying that I love birds,  they are my wildlife interests in these voyages. We have great birds in Mexico not seen in Canada, like the Magnificent Frigatebird who has the longest wingspan to body length ratio of any bird and is a near constant companion soaring for hours at our masthead with a momentum matching the ship. And the comical ‘Booby’, one of the only seabirds with forward sited eyes, rather like a human. A bit of a feather brains, these birds populate our foredeck when at anchor and then stare lamely up at the sky without the vaguest clue how to achieve it. Pre-departure, I go forward and gamely pick them up to toss overboard; I once saw one trying to squeeze his seagull sized frame through an aperture in the deck not larger than his body, all the while flapping its wings to reach the sea and sky before him.. and after 10 minutes of trying he made it through.. didn’t think to just fly up?
Cowbird was our mascot. For six days the bird was’ imprisoned’ in the confines of the ship, freedom to wander about but being a landbird, not able to return from sea. Its not uncommon for us to inadvertantly transplant finches and the like from Cabo to Socorro; I find them on the Sundeck under a lounger looking doleful at the cheerless prospect of never seeing land again. The first scent of the islands on the horizon and they break away for them. Not Duncan. He stayed day in and day out and my hopes were in returning him somehow to his home in the Baja. He took our offerings of water and bisquit as he took to our programme of diving; every divetime he would watch the deck activities with interest from his perch above, then with increasing absorbtion he would skitter across the dive deck between the feet of our guests chasing the tiny larval crabs that are washed up on deck.

Duncan was a favorite, by day three he was eating out of our hands and posing for photos with the guests. Unfortunately, we’ll never know how he fared for by the morning of our Northbound transit Duncan was not in his usual places nor did he appear again. A moderate breeze out of the Northwest was giving us gusts to 20 knots and seas to 8 feet.  The only lively seas in our whole voyage. I don’t think a Brown Headed Cowbird can make Baja from over a hundred seamiles out, and athough he was astute enough not to strand himself at the Revillagigedos, I hope he did turn back to Isla San Benedicto to await our return. He was a most welcomed stowaway and I do wish him well.

Captain Marco

Photos supplied by Sten Johannson and Victor Silva – thank you.

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Posted in Animals, Cabo San Lucas, California Sealions, Captains Log, Destinations, Hammerhead shark, Revillagigedos, San Benedicto, Socorro Island, mexico | No Comments »

Return to the Sea of Cortez for some really nice diving brings back memories – dive guide log – 14 MAY 2010

Saturday, May 15th, 2010

So after finishing up last day diving in San Benedicto and Socorro Island with A LOT of hammerhead sharks at the Canyon and actually no big animals at the Boiler we decided to run north to the Sea of Cortez for a couple of days of scuba diving. . We met som decent waves on our way up north that made the activity on board was a litle less then normal. Coming in to Sea of Cortez we met flat sea and started of with a whale shark search bby the mogote, we had 3 whalesharks , but not for so long. So we went up to Swanne reef and did an hour and a half dive on the shallow reef. Playing with a group of california sealions and watching various small neat cleaning stations. Coming from Revillagigedos all the time scanning the blue water for big animals , Sea of Cortez makes a nice change to dig our heads in to the sand and rocks looking at fish beahviour and nudibranchs, kind of contemplation.. well until the sealions comes to bug us!

Ah ! We also watched the bird Cormorant fishing under water. It reminds me of some kind of stressfull cartoon caracter speeding around the rocks after fish.

We ended the first day in the sea of Cortez with a night dive at los Islotes. Great spot to see a lot of stuff coming out at night you would never see at day here. Like the seaslug the sea hare , up to a foot long and having a strange behaviour to stick its head in the but of an other sea hare…The biggest sea hare can get are up to 14 kg!! Even if ours here had just gets up to a kg. The arch gets full of yellow cup corals that blooms and make the walls golden.

Our second day we did two dives at Los islotes, we let our Rebreather divers have the possibilities here to make 3 hour dive if they wanted. It is a good place to do so, as it is easier to  have control watching over the divesite.

Sealions and fish, big groupers in shallow waters. Viz was not the best though.
As a lat dive we steamed down to La Reina and had a bunch of sealions playing around. A lot of  male youngsters now days in the spring that have been chased away from Los Islotes  by the the bigger bulls. A little surprice was to see a orange seahorse hanging hard on a barnacle in a sweeping current.

A nice dive to end the trip with. Actually we had some of our guests that said that the best dive of the trip was the first dive and the last dive.

Surface conditions: Sunny , flat water. 30 C

Underwater conditions: all from 21-25 C 72-76F Calm water except La Reina that was a bit “windy”

Dive guide Sten

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Posted in Animals, Captains Log, Destinations, Hammerhead shark, Los Islotes, Revillagigedos, San Benedicto, Sea of Cortez, Socorro Island, Whalesharks, sealions | No Comments »

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