sdwho
Contributor
In the mid-1980s, long before we were married, my wife and I each discovered the Caymans. We've been going there together for the past 16 years about once a year. We found Divetech and Cobalt Coast in 2001 and last year took the plunge and invested in a share of a condo at Lighthouse Point. This year we were able to spend three weeks in August with our friends at Divetech and had possibly the best diving experiences we've ever had in Grand Cayman. To be sure, the state of the reef has declined over the years, particularly the hard corals. But the visibility is still great, the soft corals and sponges appear to be thriving and, despite the threat posed by the invasive lionfish, the marine life is doing well. Among the positives: we saw more Nassau Grouper this trip than in years past; turtles, which had diminished in the late 90s, are thriving. Its an unusual dive in Grand Cayman in August where you don't see at least one, and often several, turtles. Green Morays, which seemed to have declined for a while, are more in evidence as well. And as for the lionfish: in 2008, we first heard of lionfish being seen in GC. In 2009, we saw one or two. In 2010, we saw them on almost every dive. This year, while there were some dives where we saw several, there were many dives when we didn't see any, particularly shore dives where the hunting programs have been most aggressive. Other highlights from our 50 plus dives (we basically live in the water): saw my first post-larval smooth trunkfish (the "pea"); saw several morays free swimming in mid-day; saw orange ball anenomes, channel crabs, and slipper lobsters on night dives. And eagle rays. Historically, we've felt lucky to see one or two eagle rays on a dive and have had years where we've barely seen any. This year, we saw them literally by the dozens. One of the greatest dives I've ever had in GC (and anywhere) was at Eagle Ray pass, where we went as a second "shallow dive": the moment we swam out to the point, we saw three eagle rays go by at around 45 feet. Glancing around at that moment I saw a puffer, an ocean trigger, a turtle, and a school of hawkfish. My wide angle wasn't wide enough. Instead of exploring the rest of the dive site, we stayed on the point and, in a forty-five minute period, had over 40 eagle ray passings. The largest group had 14 or 15, we also had groups of 9 and 10. Obviously, some of these may have been the same rays cruising up and down the wall. But it was an incredible experience.
I could go on. For example, while I didn't get out to the wall in time to see it, our group had a Manta passing (yes, a Manta). We also experienced an octopus free swimming, not in its normal "torpedo" mode, but literally using its arms to stroke its way through the water. And we got to explore the Kittiwake for the first time. Its a beatiful wreck and we also dove the Doc Paulsen and it will be interesting to watch over the years to see how the Kittiwake evolves just as the DP has.
We had friends stay with us one week and the folks at Divetech made them feel a part of the family. And Arie and Dora at Cobalt Coast (our home away from our home away from) were as wonderful as always. We don't have a pool at Lighthouse Point, so we hang out in the one at Cobalt Coast. Its our favorite pool in the world.
We dined at home a fair amount, but when we ate out, as often as not it was at Cobalt Coast, where the food is excellent and the prices are reasonable (we do a lot of "sharing" so that helps with costs as well). We also had a reunion at the Wharf (where we spent new years 2000 with our visiting friends) and tried a place (name forgotten) over at Camana Bay.
It was, in a word, fabulous. Its sad to have to pack up and leave our old Divetech friends (Jay, Nancy, Greg, Susan, Jeni, Stevie, Christian, Emma, and Wojo, as well as our new friends Shelly, Cheno, Toni, and Nick and Nathan) as well as our four legged friends (Shadow, Ginger, Mojo, and Buster). But there's always next year.
I could go on. For example, while I didn't get out to the wall in time to see it, our group had a Manta passing (yes, a Manta). We also experienced an octopus free swimming, not in its normal "torpedo" mode, but literally using its arms to stroke its way through the water. And we got to explore the Kittiwake for the first time. Its a beatiful wreck and we also dove the Doc Paulsen and it will be interesting to watch over the years to see how the Kittiwake evolves just as the DP has.
We had friends stay with us one week and the folks at Divetech made them feel a part of the family. And Arie and Dora at Cobalt Coast (our home away from our home away from) were as wonderful as always. We don't have a pool at Lighthouse Point, so we hang out in the one at Cobalt Coast. Its our favorite pool in the world.
We dined at home a fair amount, but when we ate out, as often as not it was at Cobalt Coast, where the food is excellent and the prices are reasonable (we do a lot of "sharing" so that helps with costs as well). We also had a reunion at the Wharf (where we spent new years 2000 with our visiting friends) and tried a place (name forgotten) over at Camana Bay.
It was, in a word, fabulous. Its sad to have to pack up and leave our old Divetech friends (Jay, Nancy, Greg, Susan, Jeni, Stevie, Christian, Emma, and Wojo, as well as our new friends Shelly, Cheno, Toni, and Nick and Nathan) as well as our four legged friends (Shadow, Ginger, Mojo, and Buster). But there's always next year.
