Where to Go? How about the Caribbean or Bahamas?
Where to Go? How about the Caribbean or Bahamas?
Yes, where to go or where have I been. I guess I've bent your ear enough about the old days and my concentration on the Great Lakes where I gained a storehouse of diving knowledge by exploring a limited area by trial and error. Fortunately the errors were not bad enough to have me end up in dirt rather than water.
I thought I would spend some time covering the locations I've been since moving to Florida where my diving experience was expanded due to exposure to the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf diving that prepared me to lust after other locations around the world.
Now I'm not saying that my working life had expanded where my take home pay allowed me to become a globe trotter of the diving world but being in Florida did allow me to have easy and reasonable access to the Caribbean and Bahamas. Frequency of the following locations was not two to three times a year but as I used to tell my son Gary, "when you flush the money toilet to go somewhere, you have to wait until it fills up again before you plan another location". After retirement I shortly went to work part-time at Ace Hardware and then eventually was hired by the dive shop as a regulator repair person. I established a separate bank account for the funds I earned especially toward scheduling new locations to dive.
Sometimes I would go by myself and other times my son Gary would accompany me because he became a very good salesman for UPS and could afford to pay his own way.
Diving Check List
One of the things I learned early, especially in away diving, was to create a check list that will keep you from forgetting those items you will need for your trip. I can't emphasize too much how valuable this has been over the years and even with this aid, I still have failed to pack something but usually it's minor and did not kill the trip. Following is a starter list that you can add any of your personal items. Of course it may vary depending on your choice of a permanent location or a live aboard.
Bonaire
I think one of my first away trips was to the island of Bonaire. I had inquired where there was a location infrequently visited by hurricanes and provided good diving. Bonaire was brought up because it lies below the hurricane belt and is well protected from even rough seas due to it's having a perimeter of land surrounding the lagoon where most of the diving takes place.
Bonaire sounded like such a neat place that I convinced my non-diving wife Adrienne to accompany me. She will snorkel at times and this trip provided her the opportunity to expand on her skin diving skills.
We booked a room with one of the larger hotels that were well equipped with a number of dive boats to take you anywhere you wanted to go. There was a large blackboard that signified what locations each boat was to go the next day and you just put your name on one and showed up at the dock the next morning to go out.
Now Bonaire is not a big animal dive location but has numerous small species of fish as well as colorful coral and other sea creatures. They also have the Hilma Hooker which is a large freighter to be explored. When I would return around noon from a dive Adrienne and I would have lunch and then I would accompany her on a snorkel dive off the hotel docks where she would see a lot of the creatures I did while out on the boat. Bonaire offered real laid back diving that I would recommend for anyone that wants to experience calm clear water.
In addition to various dive operations on the island some divers opt to just book a motel, rent a car or small truck and drive around the island to dive off shore at a number of locations that provide a variety of things to see. Even the town docks are a popular place to night dive where you might see a Frog Fish of two hanging around.
After Bonaire, don't hesitate to also visit the other sister islands in the group of what they term the ABC islands which include Aruba and Curacao which also offer some great diving.
Grenada
While down South in the Caribbean we shouldn't overlook the island of Grenada just West of the ABC islands. This tiny island gained some notoriety back in 1983 when unrest within their government escalated to the extent that 19 soldiers and citizens were killed. The Organization of Eastern Caribbean States pleaded for outside help to help solve the situation. Ronald Regan, the US president at that time, sent 7,600 troops down on October 25 and four days later the situation was neutralized. Regan was not only concerned for the citizens but also the 600 US medical students that were there attending a medical college.
A number of our club members went down to Grenada in 2003 to dive from a live aboard with the Dancer Group and along with the diving we were treated to a land tour during which we learned that the date of the invasion is now a national holiday in Grenada.
I have mentioned in the past that I have found live aboard diving to suite my tastes more than staying at a resort and motoring out to the various sites from shore. Maybe it's just because as I get older I just don't want the hassle of climbing on and off a smaller boat each time you want to dive.
In addition the live aboard takes you to spots that the shore boats may not be able to reach, has all your meals served and most of the time parks right over the area to dive. More expensive than shore diving you say, make the comparison and don’t fail to include the cost of the land motel, meals and how much extra diving 4 to 5 times a day adds. If there are other attractions on the island that appeals to you this may be a game changer.
St. Marten
I titled this section St. Marten only because that is where we flew in to catch our live aboard in order to visit not only St. Marten but Anguilla, St. Barthelemy, Saba, St. Kitts and Nevis. Once again, how would you be able to stay on St. Marten and also dive these other six islands?
The live aboard of choice this time was the Explorer I part of the fleet owned by Explorer Ventures, who run a very fine fleet of dive boats. Just think of the ability to explore that many islands in a week long period of time.
Did I mention this is also the relaxed type of diving with coming up the ladder and having an attendant rinse you off with fresh water, assist you to your seat and give you a hot towel. Does your island diving do that? And of course there could be a snack waiting for you between dives. Finally, on night dives you may even get a toddy at the finish.
Out in the open ocean is where you not only see some wrecks but are greeted by some of the larger creatures that don't hang around the shallows.
Cayman Islands
On the Western side of the Caribbean we can't pass by the Cayman Islands. Made up of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. This is a very popular spot and you can either visit them by a live aboard or at land resorts. We visited Little Cayman on land due to a number of us bringing our wives along. It was in the dead of the summer and very hot and humid. The water was 85 degrees and because of this the larger animals headed for the deeper water, probably to cool off.
Because Little Cayman is the furthest out of the three, it tends to have access to a lot of clear water along with great coral drop offs. You can dive to about 80 feet before you reach the slopes or drop offs that travel down to about 200 to 300 feet.
Utila
A very small island off the coast of Honduras, Utila is a location that, at the time, live aboard boats failed to have on their schedule. Our dive club thought they would see just what this island had to offer.
The dive operation we stayed at had a large training facility for certifying instructors all around the various islands as well as the mainland. Diving was varied with small animals being the main draw as well as a large wreck just outside the harbor where they were located.
Frog Fish Sea Horse
We not only had good accommodations but they engaged us in a snail race as part of the night time activity. Side trips to the town shops were also interesting.
Cancun
A little further up the coast of Mexico is the island of Cancun. My son Gary had never seen a Whale Shark so we learned that the Whale Sharks frequent an area off Cancun around the month of July where they feed on their main meal of plankton.
We arrived and checked in to the hotel and dive resort that were making trips out to the Whale Shark location. The first day they took us to a local reef due to being scheduled to go out the next day. Following a sort of a ho hum dive we anxiously awaited the next days dive. Finally we boarded a really fast boat to take us out to the area and as fast as the boat was it took almost a half hour to arrive.
Whale Shark
Upon our arrival there must have been over 30 boats in the area but also enough Whale Sharks so everyone got a chance to see. Each boat was not allowed to let more than two divers in the water at a time and with only mask, fins and snorkel. This method kept the viewing organized and without incident. My son was in his glory and just happened to snap the above photo.
The next day was our secondary reason for traveling to Cancun and that was to dive one of their large Cenotes or caverns. We have dived many of the springs in the Northern part of Florida but the ones in Mexico are huge compared to them. We were really impressed as the guide led us through all the underwater caverns for about a half an hour. It was a great trip for not only Gary but me too.
The Cenote
Cozumel
A favorite dive location for years, Cozumel has always been a great spot for beautiful reef diving. It's been some time since I was there with my wife for a photo contest. I met and dove with a number of people from other countries.
While there I learned first hand the importance of a safety sausage. I was diving the famous Palancar Gardens reef which is a fantastic site which goes from a depth of 30 feet down to almost 100 feet. A guide took two other divers from Mexico and me to the location and we swam the reef for about a half hour. When we surfaced the boat was not in sight. There was wave action of about two to three feet which would make it hard for a boater to see us on the surface. Both the other divers inflated their safety sausages and about ten minutes later the boat returned. The operator claimed he had to go back to the dock for something. Needless to say he forfeited his tip.
As I was saying a photo contest was the reason I was there and the first time I had entered one. There were prizes for standard, wide angle and close up lens photos. I didn't win any of the places but did manage to receive a honorable mention in the close up category for my shot of an angle fish.
Turks & Caicos
Moving up North, past Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, we enter the lower part of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos.
Once again they are a series of islands and the best way to explore them all is with another live aboard. We booked a reservation with Explorer Ventures on their new Explorer II.
A great improvement over the Explorer I and they had a chef that prepared some of the best meals imaginable. My son even claimed it was so good he ate things he never even tried before. Of course diving also works up an appetite. We enjoyed it so much we booked it about four years later and the same chef was on board.
Another benefit of getting out into the open ocean allows the diver to experience great visibility more often due to the depth and lack of surface wave action.
Exuma Cays
Going further North in the Bahamas are the Exuma Cays with the main island being the Eleutheras.
Once again we opted for another of my favorite live aboards, the Aqua Cat that docks in Nassau and travels down to this diversified island chain.
A very stable and spacious boat with a catamaran hull having double rooms where the beds are side by side rather than someone having to climb to a bunk bed. My son took a liking to this seeing he was usually the one in the top bunk.
The boat provided a map of just where the possible locations were that we could dive. Of course it was the captain's choice depending on the weather we might encounter. Fortunately we had no surprises on this trip.
Shark Feeding Airplane
We enjoyed a shark feeding as well as visiting a sea plane wreck that supposedly was previously owned by a drug runner. Another spot was the washing machine where at a certain time of day two currents merge to give a group of divers a rough and tumble experience until they are eventually spit out when the currents separate again. A real wild ride where all the divers were rewarded by another try later in the week.
Of course the meals and other accommodations were first class to make our week one of the best I have encountered. What also makes live aboard diving an ease is the way most fill your tanks. Once you are assigned a place on a bench you will use the same tank for the whole week. The crew refills your tank in between each dive from umbilical hoses right above your station. Miscellaneous equipment such as masks, fins etc. are stowed below your seat.
Breakfast Tank Filling
Land excursions took us to an island where there are wild pigs that we were able to feed and the cave spot where the James Bond movie Thunderball was filmed.
Pigs Thunderball
When we completed the trip each diver was presented with a complete listing of just where we dove during the week. Notice there were opportunities to dive 26 dives including four night dives. Usually the night dives were held at the same location as the last day dive so you were somewhat familiar with the area. Not everyone took advantage of all the dives but they were available for the taking.
Well that about covers the main locations I have visited in both the Caribbean as well as the Bahamas. Of course there are many more locations to dive and the live aboard fleet continuously improves their fleets and seeks out new locations. But don't shy away from those island resorts because of my stories, you might have more interests in seeing how the local people live as well as to take advantage of other attractions they have to offer such as off roading, zip lining, horseback riding, spice manufacturing, fish and turtle farming, etc. There are places you will like and others you will love but you have to get there to find out. Good Luck!
George