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in the ocean rivals dinosaurs in size
and weight, reaching up to 50 feet
(15 meters) in length and weighing
up to 66,000 pounds (30,000 kilos).
Thi
ha
har th r t
r
seen while diving, swam slowly past
ar n
ry i r ith it i
Th n ith on ma
i o it
enormous tail, the giant was gone.
The next day at The Arch, the dive
it
t off ar in an at th
northernmost tip of the archipelago,
we were greeted by even more
hammerheads and more whale sharks.
Back on the Galapagos Sky each of
the divers pretended to be blasé
about our underwater luck but
none of us was very convincing.
The rush of those dives and the thrill
of 16 other outstanding underwater
a
nt r at ha a o n iff r nt
dive sites in the Galapagos over the
course of the week-long trip, was
made possible by a behind-thescenes crew of cooks, deck hands,
dive masters, dinghy drivers and a
boat captain who looked as if he
were barely of legal drinking age,
who delivered the unique services
and experiences that are the true
luxuries on an adventurous trip
like this.
The Luxury of Access
Live aboard dive boats often access
areas not visited by non-divers
and that’s certainly true in the
aa a o
ny
i a oar
dive boats and a handful of private
yachts go as far north as Darwin and
o
an
in th y ar off imit
for land visits and the area is just
too distant to attract travelers who
aren’t interested in diving.
ffi ia o th
a a a o ationa
Park regulate and restrict tourism
activity in the area to protect the
delicate environment, but there are
still about 100 boats licensed to
carry tourists in the Galapagos
Islands. Most of them stay clustered
much further south where it’s not
uncommon to be anchored next to
other boats.
However, the divers on the
Galapagos Sky had Darwin and
Wolf to ourselves. For 72 hours
we didn’t see another boat and our
only companions were the juvenile
red-footed boobies that made
themselves at home on every inch
of the Galapagos Sky. That kind of
private access was a luxury
appreciated by everyone on board.
The luxury of balancing
thrill and risk
All adventurous activities have
inherent risk but diving up to four
times a day at deep depths in cold
at r off a i a oar in a r mot
location where three ocean currents
converge, attracting top predators,
is really no joke. Many live aboards,
including the Galapagos Sky, will
only accept divers with a high level
of experience because the conditions
demand it. Still, people get hurt or
even die while SCUBA diving. It takes
experience, skill and special
equipment and procedures to
mitigate those risks so guests can
enjoy the luxury of concentrating on
the thrill of the adventure, not the
risk of the adventure.
Th i ma t r an i
taff
on the Galapagos Sky have decades
of experience under their belts and
every diver was issued a special
waterproof radio and location
beacon that could be activated on
the surface by anyone who became
separated from the group. I
nit y tho ht a o t my ra io
beacon, safely clipped and zipped
into a pocket of my BCD, during a
few hard swims through strong
current which could have easily
swept me away if I let my attention
or ffort a
On board gear checks, repairs and
replacements are another safetyr t
ry h n my r
ator
(that’s the part that goes into your
mouth and allows you to breath from
the tank) began disintegrating after
th
on i o th tri
taff
replaced the whole rig before it
was time for the next dive.
The luxury of chocolate fondue
Ask any diver and they’ll tell you
that one of the least enjoyable
things about diving is getting into
and out of a wet suit. While
Galapagos Sky crew haven’t yet
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