Dive Review of In Depth Watersports/Three Palms (private house rental) in
Cayman Islands/Cayman Brac & Little Cayman

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In Depth Watersports/Three Palms (private house rental), Mar, 2009, by Jonathan A. Scott, NH, USA ( Reviewer 3 reports with 1 Helpful vote). Report 4777.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food	N/A
Service and Attitude	N/A	Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	This was our first trip following hurricanes Gustav and Paloma (Nov 2008) which devastated the Brac, topside. Stayed a week for 5 days of diving, plus some snorkeling. In-Depth Watersports was the only operator in service (Reef Divers closed, pending repair/restoration of Brac Reef resort). Cost more than Reef Divers but you also get more, and well worth it: for the high speed boat, willingness to visit requested sites, do drift dives and all-around approach to diving adventure not possible with a larger operation. We lucked into the first calm week following literally months of wind and waves. Reefs were surprisingly unaffected by Paloma, perhaps due in part to depth of the wall crest at Cayman Brac. A 2-tank trip to Little Cayman's Bloody Bay showed marked contrast in terms of obvious diver impact (at Bloody Bay wall) vs reefs and walls that had been virtually undived since November 2008(Cayman Brac). Particularly enjoyed Tibbets wreck as both day and night dive (including a rare sighting of mating slipper lobsters)on the same day. Lots of great barracuda. Saw first lionfish, on two different dives, without really looking. Only a couple of nurse sharks and no larger pelagics despite some diligent looking out into the blue on most dives. Quite a few turtles and stingrays, but no eagle rays were seen on this trip. Storms and waves appear to have displaced some fish and brought in new ones (saw several rainbow reef runners in shallow). Enjoyed some great snorkeling off the beach at our rental house on the south side (including the shallow-water wreck of the Prince Frederick). Corals and sponges were healthy and thriving. Got up close and personal with "Ben & Jerry," resident semi-tame Nassau Groupers at Marilyn's Cut site (Bloody Bay). Some very fishy sites with great clouds of grunts, parrot fish and angels, and impressive tarpon hanging out where they were supposed to be (on Tarpon Reef). In Depth's boat deserves special mention: a semi-inflatable high-speed comfortable powerhouse that can go 40 knots. This allows for huge flexibility; only 20 minutes to Little Cayman and to/from any site on the Brac in about 20 minutes or less. There is no head but the quickness means requests for trips to on-shore facilities are easily accommodated.The boat has complete safety equipment, entry by giant stride from stern and easy return via comfortable stern ladder. Crew will set up and assist with gear or you can do it yourself. Consistently good fills. Captain Craig and his crew know all the moored sites and regularly visit new locations not accessed by Reef Divers. DMs are in the water and lead a guided tour for those interested but divers may dive own profiles and extended bottom times were the norm. Being able to do several dives as drifts was a huge plus. Owner/Captain Craig also did yeoman's duty one evening assisting with a delicate electronics repair for a broken strobe. Diving the Brac has never been this good. Even though the island is still recovering, if you can get there, go now, while you can have the entire place to yourself. The local residents are busy with rebuilding but remain friendly and will welcome your presence and your business. 2 restaurants are the best: the bar at Brac Reef (they have their reconstruction priorities straight, although that may explain why it's taking so long with the rest of the repairs)and Barry Morgan's Golden Jerk stand (near the airport) which has amazing chicken and pork and should not be missed.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	51-100 dives
Where else diving	Hawaii & Florida & lakes/ponds in New England
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas	calm
Water Temp	70-80°F / 21-27°C	Wetsuit Thickness	1
Water Visibility	60-120 Ft/ 18-37 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	No rinse buckets but freshwater rinse avail on boat. shaded dry storage for equip but no dedicated photo equip table. crew careful and accommodating and good at finding subjects if asked.

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Dive Review of In Depth Watersports/Three Palms (private house rental) in Cayman Islands/Cayman Brac & Little Cayman

In Depth Watersports/Three Palms (private house rental), Mar, 2009,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of In Depth Watersports/Three Palms (private house rental) in
Cayman Islands/Cayman Brac & Little Cayman