Diver UK – July 2019

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HOLIDAY NEWS

BIG ANIMALSSPECIAL

“One fast, floating palace” is how the

operator describes the Socorro Vortex,

a repurposed Canadian Coast Guard

vessel. The new liveaboard has been

sailing to eastern Pacific big-animal

hotspot Revillagigedo, akathe Socorro

archipelago, since April.

Pelagic Fleet and Peter Hughes

claim to have “redefined luxury diving

in remote locations” with what they

say is now the fastest and most

exclusive liveaboard for accessing

Socorro and Guadalupe.

A complimentary premium bar,

helipad, free high-speed wi-fi, Jacuzzi

and a 22sq m master suite says it all,

say the operators, who are catering for

just 14 guests on a 43m boat.

They have also launched the Self

Propelled Ocean Cage or SPOC

(above), previously used only for

scientific purposes, for hourly charter

when diving with great white sharks

in Guadalupe.

Pelagic Fleet is based in Cabo San

Lucas, Mexico. Nine-day trips to

Socorro start from US $6000pp (two

sharing) and a five-day great white trip

to Guadalupe from $4500pp.

pelagicfleet.com

R WILPERNIG

blue o two is offering two divers the
chance to spend seven days getting
among the sharks and other big
animals of the Bahamas for the
modest investment of £10, albeit your
participation isn’t guaranteed!
The trip aboard the Bahamas Master
liveaboard is the £6500-valued prize
in a lottery designed to raise funds for
the tour operator’s charity partner
Bite-Back Shark & Marine
Conservation. The numbers of tickets
sold is being limited to 1500 to make
the odds more attractive.
Each £10 ticket buys a chance to
win two return flights, full-board
liveaboard accommodation for two on
the week-long Dolphin & Shark
Combo itinerary, departing 3 August,
2020, up to four dives a day – and
“guaranteed shark encounters”.
“This lottery is a win/win for divers
and shark conservation,” says blue o
two MD Alyson Tyler. “Everyone who
buys a ticket is in with a chance of
winning this amazing prize and, at the

same time... helping to fund Bite-

Back’s important campaigns to end

the trade and consumption of shark

products.”

“Two people are going to

experience a holiday of a lifetime for

the price of a pub lunch,” promises

Bite-Back Campaign Director Graham

Buckingham. The winner will be

picked at random on 26 October on

the blue o two stand at DIVE 2019, the

dive show at the NEC.

Tickets can be purchased only at

the charity’s website:

bite-back.com/shop

BAHAMAS SHARK TRIP – FOR A TENNER?

Into the Vortex: faster to Socorro

...and a

great white

masterclass

from Amos

Another way to encounter the great

white sharks of Guadalupe, Mexico, is

in the company of ace big-animals

specialist Amos Nachoum (you didn’t

think we could leave him out, did you?).

He has been diving with whites for

nearly 30 years and says that crystalline

water clarity in temperatures of 20-22°C

provides “the perfect environment for

my guests and a beautiful backdrop for

photos and films”.

The next available trips on the

Islanderliveaboard are from 1 and 16

December this year, which he reckons is

the best time to go, as most other boats

have departed. The expeditions cater

for up to 12 guests, in three double and

six single cabins for five days. That

means three days of shark-diving and

photo-workshopping.

Prices are US $4500pp (two sharing)

or $6500 for a single cabin, which is

quite a premium for privacy!

biganimals.com