Calling all divers interested in joining us to explore beautiful, spectacular Alaska and British Columbia! Wait a sec, non-divers are also very welcome and these trips are perfect for you as well! Just imagine the improbable fantasy of being able to scuba dive brilliant walls of coral high up in the Swiss Alps and you will get a feeling of what it is like in Alaska on the Nautilus Explorer. We promise you an adventure that you will never forget with scenery that simply defies description, amazing, beautiful and intensely colourful diving, nudibranchs galore, giant kelp forests, humpback whales, orcas, stellar sealions, sea otters, bald eagles, grizzly bears, calving glaciers, swimming among icebergs, zodiac kayaking (doesn't matter if you have ever kayaked or not before - we'll look after you!), shoreline tours, spawning salmon, incredible waterfalls, natural hot-springs tucked alongside roaring rivers, beach bonfires and more. It's hard to reign in our enthusiasm for these trips and even after many years of operating in this area, we still have a passion to return every summer for our annual "fix". And yes, the water is much warmer than you think at a balmy 46 - 49 degrees which is not much different than the northern California Channel Islands.

Alaska is one of the premier cold-water diving destinations in the world but it is not for everybody. It is suitable for all divers with good buoyancy skills and drysuit experience. Divers who are in good physical shape and experienced with cold water will find the diving exciting and enjoyable. Divers who are comfortable diving with a Divemaster and understand that not every dive site may be appropriate for their experience level will also have a terrific time.

These trips are very well suited to non-diving companions as there are a multitude of non-diving activities offered on each trip.
While not every site is suitable for all skill levels, there will be lots of other activities to keep everyone busy from bear, eagle and whale watching to kayaking,shore walks with one of our naturalists, hiking through the woods, relaxing in beautiful natural hot springs or just plain relaxing in a deck chair with a good book and the splendid scenery of Alaska.

Visibility: Variable. Some dive sites are virtually always free of plankton blooms and the visibility ranges from 8 - 25 metres. Plankton blooms may affect other sites in which case visibility may be low on the surface but very good underneath (10 - 25 metres) although quite dark. We recommend that you bring a very powerful dive light on all dives. If visibility is low, the captain will relocate the ship to a different dive site to find better vis. Water is emerald green in colour. The thing to remember is any low vis is because of massive upwellings of nutrients setting off a wild chain reaction and a profusion of life. That's one of the things that make the place so special. Low vis is finite in area and it's quite possible to steam 5 - 20 miles and find very good vis.

Current: Can be very strong but dives will only be staged during "slack" times. Current may still run at 1 - 2 knots around slack. All diving is done liveboat utilizing a jet (no props) powered skiff. Anyone who follows the briefing should not have any problems or difficulties during dives. A divemaster will always be on standby to dive with anybody interested in that wee bit of extra reassurance.

Water temperature: 8 - 9 degrees Celsius, sometimes warmer.

The Nautilus Explorer is a heavy 300 ton ocean going stabilized ship. Seas in this area are remarkably calm and days or even a week may go by without any motion on the ship whatsoever. We recommend the use of "the patch" (scopolomine) for anybody worried about seasickness.

Dives are planned around the current "slack" times, which usually limits us to 3 dives per day. On certain days - i.e., when we spend the day viewing calving glaciers thundering into the water and swimming and kayaking around icebergs - there may be no diving at all. Diving and itinerary is subject to the captain's discretion and he promises to do his absolute best to maximize your experience in every possible way subject to weather and vagaries of the animals. Safe to say that you will average 18 dives on a 10 night trip as well as a LOT of other activities.