May on the Great Barrier Reef 2013

Raise the Bar
By Captain Trevor Jackson

20 years ago as a newcomer to the live aboard scene, I remember being hungry for every piece of good advice I could get. Plenty of people were forthcoming although it must be said, while there was plenty of advice, not all of it was good. One piece did stick though. A wise old sage and I stood leaning on the back rail of a boat one day and he said “For a successful dive trip, you have to get two of the following three things right: The weather, the diving and the food…….and nine times out of ten, the food is the only one you’ll have any say in”. It would be redundant to mention that this fellow liked to eat and he liked to eat well, but the advice was solid and stuck with me ever since.

Of course, up here in the far north, we have the luxury of getting the other two things on his list pretty much spot on all the time. Just this month we’ve had up to 100 metres visibility on the walls out at Osprey Reef, the weather has been cloudless and there’s been just enough wind to hold us off the reef at our best dive sites.

Still, these things we can’t fully control. We can make adjustments to the itinerary and we have acute knowledge of what’s best when…..but it’s the food that is, and will remain, our real certainty. We can ensure the quality, we can ensure the service, and above all we can ensure that our onboard chef not only has the credentials but also has the desire to go that extra mile to make sure you are talking about your trip long after you’ve disembarked.

Lately however, we’ve been asking ourselves “Is it enough?” The standard is extremely high but if we don’t keep pushing, things can become stagnant. “Is it enough?” Well, quite frankly, No!

As a consequence, our onboard Master Chef Levi Blackwell is constantly under the pump to make things better ……constantly. The result? Well here’s a dessert from last week. Proof that no matter how good it gets, Levi is always prepared to raise the bar.

Rogues Gallery