Exumas Islands, Bahamas (Aqua Cat)
| The Place: | Nassau, Bahamas |
| The Boat: | Aquacat, "a
large catamaran, 102' long and 35' (!) wide". Review their FAQ.
This Australian-made boat was almost new (built 2001), gleaming white. Big. Consensus
seemed to be that while it had some nice features, overall it was either "too
much", or "too little". Cabins were quite spacious, but
then the sundeck had little protected areas. Dining area was quite large,
yet seating for meals was cramped. All in all, I think one could do worse,
but based on my limited experience (with Aggressor and Peter Hughes boats)
— they could do better as well.
This boat had the "closest" staff of any I've been on. I mean that in a couple of ways: staff members paired up with their boyfriends; dining and drinking with us. Peter Hughes (in particular) maintains a much higher level of formality on their boats, down to table service and uniforms. It isn't that one way is better or worse than the other, necessarily — they're just markedly different. |
| Dates | August 31, 2002 - September 7, 2002 |
| In attendance: | Tom & Jane Bauch, Nancy & Charlie Stuart, Virginia Boylan, Marian Zinnante, Rick and Rob Willer, Narcsis and Talih Tinah, Scott & Kathy Blessley, Steve and Suzanne Gates. Let me know if I spelled anybody's name wrong. |
| New Groupworthy: | There were about a dozen new people, all pleasant, on the boat, we especially took a liking to Paul Tadlock, and Jaime (whose last name is not at hand). We especially hope to see them again. |
| The Diving: | Out of 17 dive sites, I'd say only three were really excellent. All the sites compared favorable to pretty much anything within the U.S., but pale in comparison to the Cayman Islands, Turks & Caicos Islands etc. The night dives (according to others' reports) were pretty munch unspectacular |
| Hightlights: |
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| Rise | Anybody know "Kumbayah"? | Marital Bliss | |
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| What reading PADI manuals can do to a person | Awwww. Paul & Gabbie | Your Webmaster & Lovely Misses | Tag Team? Drag Team. |
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| Awwwww II | "One Sick Puppy" | Barracuda, again? | Fall |
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| You look, mahvelous | Suzanne, unveiled | Would not make an attractive WalMart Greeter |