The Bilikiki presents diving in a way that minimizes the boats impact on the reefs as much as possible. They load all the gear and divers into two Tin skiffs they call "Tinnies" and take you to the dive site about 75% of the time. Once at the site you shoulder roll off the Tinnie and dive your own profile. Which means if you want to be first out or last out there is a Tinnie waiting for you when you surface. So it becomes a shu8ttle service at the end of the dive. The Crew is great at spotting bubbles and being there when you hit the surface.... I could always count on a big smiling face to help with me or my gear, some sure hands to take my camera, and a hand up the ladder. They were top notch on being on top of both safety and convenience, this serves both the diver and the reef. The Bilikiki does drop anchor in deep water and the impact is hard to access due to the depth. They try to pick a good sandy bottom which keeps the impact to a minimum and the other low impact method is they "Orbit" around the area while we dive a site. This has no impact on the local reef system. When they did moor there effort is to have as little impact as possible, but the mooring system needs up dating badly, and a newer system would have much less impact.
From the first day forward it seemed easy to slip into the routine provided by the boat. Breakfast started at 7:00 AM and offered both cold and hot entries such as eggs, ham, french toast, and Pancakes.... Then a dive briefing at 7:45 Am and your choice to dive now or later. Once back on board after the dive there was always fresh cookies and popcorn, add some hot coco and life was good.
We then would head to our next site or relax until the next dive close by. After the second dive a great lunch was always waiting for us along with cool stories and many smiles. The boat ran like a well oil machine and if you needed anything all you had to do was ask anytime of day or night. They worked hard to make sure you were happy and safe for the whole trip. The boat understands customer service and safety.
More to come....