Panama, Misool, Caye Caulker, Rapa Nui

Periodically, I pick out reader reports that have information we all should know about, not only to help you pick your next dive vacation but also to hear about safety issues or unusual experiences to enhance your diving life. You wouldn't think that two people would get bent on the same dive trip, or that divemasters are not paid a salary so that they are in your face about tips, but here are the stories.

Few people drive the six hours out of Panama City to dive Coiba Island, a former penal colony now a UNESCO World Heritage site, but those who do always sing its praises. Christiana Perry (Annapolis, MD), who's made 1000 dives, did so in January, bedding at Ark Divers all-inclusive dive resort, an eco-lodge on the mainland close to Coiba and the surrounding islands in the Pacific Ocean.

"It's situated on a hillside above the town of Pixvae, which has no electricity or cell towers. The inspiring hosts, Mike and Audrey Ritter, created the place from the ground up; it is run on solar power and fresh spring and rain water. Toucans called every morning and afternoon, and perched in the trees above our cabin; howler monkeys fed outside the kitchen window. The resort is simple, elegant, and unforgettable. With only eight guests, the experience is intimate. Our food was beautiful, healthy, and delicious. The diving was bountiful. We dove three times a day. We saw schools of hundreds of fish, including barracuda, many kinds of jacks, and many white-tipped reef sharks and moray eels. During our surface intervals, we were treated to healthy snacks and/or lunch on one of the many deserted beaches nearby. It is unlike any place we have been." This is Pacific diving, and temperatures are cooler, 72-78°F. www.thearkdivers.com

It's rare to be on a dive trip when a diver has DCS symptoms, but two divers? Catherine Mary (Barroe, ON) saw two incidents, however minor, in February aboard the Caribbean Explorer II as they dived off St. Kitts and Saba.

"Our first dive on Diamond Rock was excellent. However, after the second dive, one diver was not feeling well and presented skin bends. The boat went to the Saba port, and they were taken to the island chamber for a single treatment. This curtailed diving for the day. Two days later, another diver had skin bends, and we returned to the harbor again. This diver had two treatments. It's difficult to speculate what led to the problems. The first diver was on air and diving above the group. The second diver was on nitrox. Each was on high blood pressure medication. Both only did three dives a day. We dived a fairly square profile as there was little opportunity for multi-level diving. The average depths I recorded were 55-60 feet for 60 minutes. The crew mentioned that both divers had had rapid ascents. The company offered a discount on a future trip due to the number of dives we missed." The divers seemed to have recovered, but their diving was over for the week. www.explorerventures.com

American divers rarely visit Rapa Nui, once called Easter Island, a good reason being it's a five-and-a-half-hour flight from Santiago, Chile. However, Undercurrent member Ken Kurtis (Reef Seekers, Beverly Hills) took two groups there in March, his third tour since 2011.

"There are a couple of dozen dive sites within a 20-minute run in fast skiffs. We did 2-3 dives a day. Our divemaster was Christian Saavedra, who led us in 2011 and 2019. The reef structure is massive, the hard corals extensive, providing very interesting topography: vertical walls, big flat areas, and areas resembling amphitheaters. There are no sea fans or soft corals. Visibility was 80-100 feet. Coral bleaching is a bit troubling. The coral here usually lives in waters 70-75°F, but the water temperature was a good five degrees higher than the usual max.

"There are roughly 140 species of fish, 25 percent endemic, and common fish, like forceps butterflies, soldierfish, and an amazing number of trumpetfish. But then there is the triangle fish, unlike anything I've seen. (It's a type of morwong.) The Easter Island butterfly and the Eastern Island damselfish, which look familiar but are only found here. There aren't a LOT of fish. Sometimes, you just have to work a little harder at it.

"Motu Kao Kao is an enormous pinnacle jutting out of the ocean; the bottom at 200 feet, we could easily see from 50 feet. Thousands of soldierfish and bigeyes were in the cracks and crevices, and plenty of Easter Island damselfish and the dwarf angelfish and orange-headed angelfish. Small, skittish, and hard to shoot. There were triangle fish, forceps butterflies, various eels, colorful sunset wrasses, trumpetfish, and a school of barracuda. At the Anchors -- home to two large abandoned ship anchors -- is a realistic-looking moai [monolithic human figure] left over from a 1996 movie shoot and now serves as an underwater photo op."

To read his full trip report and learn more about accommodations, food, and visiting Rapa Nui, visit Ken's full report at www.reefseekers.com

With a name like Scubaspa Zen, a liveaboard had better live up to its name, and Daniel M. Isard (Sedona, AZ) aboard in Raja Ampat in January says it sure did.

"Luxury and diving reign supreme. Misool diving is the premier diving anywhere. Lush corals, hard and soft, great critters big and small, mainly drift diving with light current: sharks, mantas, and everything in between. Macro lovers would also be delighted with all the pigmy critters. Onboard luxury with comfortable and well-appointed staterooms. Fabulous food, with cheeses and truffles. The dive team is well prepared. You dive from an 80-foot second boat, a dhoni, where all gear stays, so entry and exit are easy. We had a crew of 26 for about 16 passengers -- about 3 or 5 to a dive group. This boat is not cheap, but also a good value." Rates start at about $5200/person, double occupancy. www.scubaspa-indonesia.com

Just two months later, David Marchese (Hummelstown, PA) was aboard the Pindito and reported, "We have been to Misool twice before. What was once pristine and colorful was dull and highly stressed. The coral wasn't dead, nor was there widespread bleaching, but it was just highly stressed and brown. Fortunately, the fish density was still pretty good . . . On to Fakfak, where we saw fields of hard corals literally covering acres of the sea bed. It was like football fields of staghorn next to football fields of plate corals, next to football fields of brain corals, and bubble corals, on and on. However, everything was white! I was thinking of Neil Young's "Sugar Mountain" as I drifted over the endless white mounds of coral. Fortunately, the corals were still intact and could potentially recover. However, in such a condition, they could easily go the other way pretty quickly. www.pindito.com

Why such a dramatic difference in two months? See the adjacent sidebar for what may be the answer.

Bonaire is a favorite for Caribbean diving; it's easy diving with plenty to see, but it's all quite similar, so to add a little excitement, cross the island to dive with Bonaire East Coast Diving, as Morgan Lyons (Arlington, TX) did in March. "You're on the windy side, so the boat ride is a bit sporty compared to the west side, but this was so worth it. Eagle rays, a nurse shark; abundant usual reef fish, barracudas, southern stingrays, and green turtles galore, more than three dozen, and one hawksbill . . . The operator books up, so book ahead. They have one day set aside for Buddy Dive customers. They run two custom Zodiac RIBs with 10 passengers each. I could not suggest this for a new diver. One note: plan plenty of time to drive there. Go early. Also, don't plan to use the bathroom facilities at the dock. I'll leave it at that." www.bonaireeastcoastdiving.com

What is it with tips and diving? Go on a cruise, take a week-long hiking or river rafting trip, or go fishing with a guide ... you'll never be hammered for tips as you will at some diving venues.

Undercurrent member Kelley Price (Kirkland, WA) was at CoCo View Resort in Honduras in March and said, "The worst part was the last couple of days when you are constantly barraged with what you are expected to tip. Oh, it needs to be in U.S. cash, and the bills must be in good shape. I needed to know that before I left home. I do not normally travel with a thousand dollars in new bills (especially to an "all-inclusive"). We were told that the divemaster should get $150-$200 from each of us, the same for the boat captain and the same for the resort staff. Considering the cost of living in Honduras, we felt that a $400 tip for each divemaster and the boat captain seemed excessive. Unless the resort isn't paying them at all and they live on tips. It just felt really excessive, and they were constantly badgering you about it." www.cocoviewresort.com

We published a positive review of Coco View Resort last July, so we asked the author what he thought about that. He told me, "I agree that the boat crews there are blatant about soliciting tips and getting worse. The problem there is that at least two of the dive masters, the most popular ones and the ones that work the hardest, are not salaried at all by the resort. They more or less just show up on the boats, do an excellent job, and live off the tips they receive. They work right alongside another divemaster, who is provided a living wage salary and could make more money without even receiving any tips. It is difficult for the casual tourist to know who is who."

Senior Editor John Bantin says, "That might be the reason for the 'over-manning' seen in many developing countries."

Seems like a tawdry system to me, one that management should end. Pay people properly, and let reasonable tipping be voluntary, without pushing to extract an egregious tip from their guests. While some Americans may tolerate it, many find it distasteful, and it's not the way to encourage Europeans to return.

Belize's Caye Caulker doesn't get much diving press, probably because it's small, undeveloped, and lies in the shadow of overdeveloped Ambergris Caye, though it's got better diving. It's still a throwback in time, though maybe not for long. Carolyn Snider (Toronto, ON) goes there frequently and loves it for the diving and the culture.

"Most dives are between 60 - 80 feet and 45 minutes. Lots of Caribbean reef sharks, nurse sharks, spotted eagle rays, stingrays, moray eels, green and loggerhead turtles, groupers, and octopuses on night dives. and many small critters. We love Blue Wave Divers dive team -- kind and funny, and worked hard to make sure you had a good experience. Caye Caulker is known as the "Go Slow" island. You can walk or bike everywhere. The food is amazing: beachside barbecues, taco spots, great restaurants, and a few ice cream spots. Live music is amazing at many restaurants . . . We rent the same apartment. However, there is a range of accommodations, from budget backpackers to hotels like Iguana Reef and Blue Zen (on the North Island). We prefer staying on the South Island -- the North Island is being quickly developed -- but it takes some arranging and effort to get to the South Island. Find a place with a pool and air conditioning, as midday can be hot in high season. Flights from the international airport are plentiful, and there are fast ferries from town. I feel safer on Caye Caulker and in many parts of Belize City than at home. The people on the island are very trustworthy. I never feel like I'm being swindled. Everyone is super kind." www.bluewavedivers.bz

It wasn't so long ago -- in 2011 -- that Anderson Cooper dived Cuba's Gardens of the Queens and extolled their beauty on 60 Minutes. Divers by the numbers followed. Because of Cuba's lack of development, the pristine reefs were unparalleled in the Caribbean. But there is no escaping global warming, and these days, the beauty of Las Jardines de la Reina is but a memory. But, for now, it's just about as fishy as ever, as Debora McAteer (Ottawa, ON) discovered in January.

"The hard coral was about 90 percent dead, similar to the rest of the Caribbean. The dives were fishier than most spots in the Caribbean. We saw schools of grunts, jacks, tarpon and snappers, plenty of groupers, and lots of jawfish. Some angelfish, butterflyfish, hogfish, and porkfish. We saw a few turtles and some large stingrays. What made the diving fun was the mellow reef and silky sharks that hung around for many dives. I brought my 7mm hooded shorty to wear over my 3mm pants and jacket. Regardless, I suffered like everyone else, especially on the skiff rides back to the boat in wet gear. The Jardines Aggressor II was dated, in need of TLC, and the guest rooms are small. The door to our room was difficult to open and close due to the bed mattress being in its way. The in-room safe didn't lock electronically because of dead batteries. The bathroom had an odor of sewer gas, so we had the fan on continuously, but it didn't help much."

And that's it for this month. Keep your trip reports coming. They're a great help for your fellow divers, and for me too.

-- Ben Davison
Publisher, Editor