Wonders of Belize

The first live aboard dive boat I worked on was Peter Hughes Sun Dancer in Belize, Central America. When I arrived by plane the country was celebrating their Independence Day so Customs was closed and the equipment I had shipped was not available. Since I was not able to do any work, Captain Lewis arranged for a girl on the boat and me to borrow a jeep and go to see some Mayan ruins.

Tiger Shark in German Lagoon

The Palau Aggressor live aboard dive boat is a 110" catamaran. I had shipped equipment to install a low pressure drive low pressure compressed air system to drive the Nitrox SCUBA tank filling system but no one told me the hatches to the generator rooms are only 24" square. The air receiver tank would not fit so we had to place it on the transom and get hoses to connect it. One day we were anchored in German Lagoon (a body of water miles across and about 10 feet deep with a white sand bottom) and the Captain, Engineer and I were installing the hose under the hull of the ship when the dive skiff returned and we all stopped for lunch.

Diving with Sharks in Palau

On my first trip to Palau I was installing a low pressure compressed air system to drive the Nitrox SCUBA tank filling system on the Palau Aggressor live aboard dive boat. One morning I listened to Captain Buck Beasley give the dive briefing for Blue Corner; one of the most famous dive spots in the world. Buck was telling the divers that they would hook off on a ledge and "fly" in the current and those who wanted close up pictures of sharks should breathe slowly because the sharks do not like bubbles. Everyone left in the dive skiff and I was alone on the live aboard ready to install the electric power in the starboard generator room with live power because the port generator had a problem.