Comments |
The daily schedule was typical of a liveaboard. Breakfast, Site/Dive briefing, Dive #1, Snack, Dive #2, Lunch (boat moves to new site during lunch), Site/Dive briefing, Dive #3, Snack, Dive #4, Dinner, Night Dive. The boat would then move or move early in the morning. Some guests logged 25 dives on this charter.
There are no guarantees that this boat will make the crossing from Grand Cayman to Little Cayman. Rough seas will keep the boat around Grand Cayman. Captain Tom mentioned that winter time was the worst as northwestern fronts frequently come through. Our charter made the crossing although we did encounter some five to six foot seas while visiting Little Cayman and Cayman Brac. Was told that Summer weather usually brings about calmer seas and excellent visibility.
Visibility varied from the worst of approx. fifty feet on a couple of dives to over one hundred feet. Most dives had some sort of suspended sediment that was stirred up by some of the wind and rough seas that we encountered. Captain Tom did his best to put us on the best sites available, given the conditions and wind direction that were present at any given time.
Bloody Bay Wall at Little Cayman is certainly some of the best diving in the Caribbean. Spur and Groove formations scattered throughout the walls provide many swim thru tunnels, chimneys, and underwater (some are rather large) canyons that lead to the steep wall drop offs. Although I do not carry a camera, the healthy Coral combined with spectacular wall allow for some breathtaking wide angle photos. Most dive sites begin and end in the shallows so that multi-level diving is the norm (get a computer if you do not have one) and even your safety stops are enjoyably scenic.
Some of the larger species I saw included lots of Hawksbill Turtles, Spotted Eagle Rays, Gray Caribbean Reef Sharks, Tarpon, Barracuda, Nassau Groupers, and Southern Stingrays. Other typical fish included Parrotfish, Spade Fish, African Pompano, Trumpet Fish, Needle Fish, Sergeant Majors, Blue Chromis, Squid, and Spotted Drum to name a few. Little critters included Pederson Cleaning Shrimp, Red Banded Shrimp, Lettuce Leaf Slugs, and gobies. The health of the corals was good overall and no coral bleaching was noted. In a few places, storm damage was evident in the shallows which is typical of the hurricane belt.
Unlimited Nitrox available ($100US). Visa and MC accepted for any on-board purchases and crew gratuities. Hot tub on sun deck. Two Showers on dive deck. Limited dive gear available for rent should your gear not make it with you. Camera rental (including a digital camera) and video camera rental were available.
Guests who are sensitive to noise from the generators and engine room in general should avoid Cabin #9. Cabins 8 & 9 share a head. I was in cabin 8 and was never bothered by the noise (although you certainly noticed it), and the sharing of the head was not a problem. There are decent reading lamps over your pillow in the bunks.
Try to get a center dive locker and hang your scuba/swimwear over the center dive lockers as water from the hot tub on the deck above will spill over to the deck below.
Overall: Great Crew/Good Boat
|
Where else diving |
Belize. Cozumel, Bay Islands Honduras, Saba, St. Kitts, Statia, Bonaire, Los Roques, Fiji, PNG, Indonesia, Malaysia, Solomon Islands, Palau, and Hawaii. |