Cayman Aggressor

[drrich2]

Not going, but hope to some day. While it's fresh on your mind, when you get back, I'd like to read your observations on diving Grand Cayman.

I ask this because when the subject of the Cayman Aggressor comes up, the following points tend to get made:

1.) If you make it to Little Cayman and dive Bloody Bay Wall, it's great diving, wonderful (by Caribbean standards), a great trip.

2.) If you don't make it, you're stuck diving Grand Cayman all week, and that's not as good.

I see you have a high dive count, so you're probably in a good position to give us a perspective on what you think of the Grand Cayman dives. And how they compare, if you get to do Bloody Ball Wall.

Richard.

 

[diver 85]

rich--if you're thinking of making a 'land trip' out of it, why not go on & get to LC or Brac.......Examples...:Last time when we went to Brac(~5 or 6 weeks ago) we landed @ GC @ 4 PM(on a direct non-stop flight out of Houston to GC)...BTW, we had to change airlines in GC but was on Cayman Airway's puddle jumper to Brac by 5:20 PM & @ CBBR(ie resort checking in @ front desk) NO LATER than 6 PM--thinking it took all of 1 hour extra to get to 'our' resort' on Brac vs a resort(that we would have been staying @) on GC..........

Time before that(in 2011) we took a direct jet flight straight from Miami to Brac(flight time of ?maybe 1.5 hours--if I remember correctly) & was @ CBBR, checking in, about 2 hours after wheels up @ Miami(didn't get any easier than that)...Reason we went thru GC this last trip(end of October) vs out of Miami was better air fare rates & we couldn't get into Miami early enuff to make it a 1 day trip(@ that time)...........NOW----for us, flying out of Houston---LC is a different story ie on making it in ONE day(would have had to overnite on GC---like we did in '07--& fly to LC early the next morning)...........

 

[drrich2]

Diver 85:

I'm reminded of the old airline bit about 'We know you have a choice when you fly, and we thank you for choosing us.' Replace flying with Caribbean (& Florida Keys) diving, and it brings a key issue into focus.

Why this destination? With live-aboard customers, the diving is the key concern (although trapped on a modest boat with a given crew you want both & the food to be fine, too). So the question is not 'Is Cayman good?' It's 'Is Cayman better, for me, than…Cozumel, Curacao, Belize, etc…?'

I haven't done a live-aboard yet. I'm booked for the Sun Dancer 2 (Belize) in May. AquaCat was booked up when I wanted to go, so for me, it was down to Cayman Aggressor, Turks & Caicos with Explorer Ventures or for Belize the Sun Dancer 2 (Aggressor I think was limited to groups that week). I wanted a live-aboard, & to do a lot of diving. T&C would be consistently deeper diving, which I can do & may yet be blessed to do someday. Actually a serious contender to the AquaCat I was considering for the future. Cayman Aggressor looked good; be nice to hit all 3 Cayman islands, and it'd be really neat if you could nail one of those few '10 days for price of 7' specials on it. But I've got a little family I don't want to be away from long, and if I missed diving Little Cayman due to weather, it'd bug me…I'd feel like I missed what, from what I read, is the best part of the Cayman Aggressor diving experience (Bloody Bay Wall). Little Cayman Beach Resort could mean fewer dives, & still pricey.

Which does raise the question; if you mostly want to dive Little Cayman, should you do Cayman Aggressor & take your chances for more dives total (but not all LC), or aim for LCBR, to make sure you dive LC?

Belize seemed like a fine destination, very popular, a place I'd wanted to hit someday, and Sun Dancer 2 gets consistently very good to excellent reviews, so I figured it'd be a good intro. to live-aboards.

Grand Cayman is also important because, in other threads, it's often put forth as an option for diving tourists bringing along non-divers, a something for everyone destination, where airfare can be good but overall an expensive destination, albeit with Cobalt Coast & Sunset House offering the dive resort & food package deal so you can basically stay there all week without having to get out, if I understand correctly. But people are quick to point out that in diving, Little Cayman is a little better than Cayman Brac, either is significantly better than Grand Cayman, and Bloody Bay Wall, per some, may be the best in Caribbean diving (doubtless not everyone would agree with that).

So, if you do the Cayman Aggressor & don't make that crossing, I gotta ask…how's your trip then?

'Cause I read such good things about CA and I'd like to go someday. Less money & weeks off than scuba destinations, you know...

Richard.

 

[diver 85]

After diving CG about 10 times in the latter 80's thru 1993(probably/possibly? in better shape than today??), I'd have to give LC & Brac the bigger nod(as stated before those being dove much later in '07 & later--?not in as good a shape than the '80's?)......I'm not much into live-aboards, mainly cuz the wife can't stand them...so, I have to go the 'other' route---ie land based....We finalized dates for our next trip 4 days ago---May 10th thru the 19th, '15-- Rangiroa, staying @ Hotel Kia Ora-over the water--(again, WIFE's decision--I have to go with her & 'keep' her happy lol)....Hoping to 'shoot the Passes' daily & plan on visiting Pink Sand Beach & the Blue Lagoon for a couple afternoon excursions....If you're not familiar with Rangi, look it up-----one of my last 2 bucket list trips will be scratched off......Maldives hopefully will be 'taken care of' the following year, Good Lord willin'........

EDIT:.......look @ some of my Brac UW pics(below link)--end of this last October...Finished with days 1 thru 4 & about 30% of the way thru day 5/of 6 diving days....So far have uploaded about 500 of them-----that place just kept me clicking---about every 15 seconds (UW).....lol.....

All have 'Cayman Brac 2014' in their album names(all on top 1 or 2 rows)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/80825593@N08/sets

EDIT 2..:......Was thinking of something just now--------in 12 dives on Brac in Oct '14, I'm gunna 'come up' with something well over 600 pics(ie good ones for me)...On 15 dives @ Bonaire summer of '13, I 'came up' with almost 200.(notice a difference??)....

 

[Curt76]

I like your Little Cayman & Brac pictures. Would also like to mention something about Rangiroa. Definitely on my bucket list. The videos I have seen are just awesome! For now though I am just anxious for the Cayman trip. Which is why I started this thread. Hope the weather does allow me to make it to LC & Brac. If not it is still Cayman diving and that will beat any diving I do where I am from. Appreciate the pics as well as your response for this thread. Dive on, Curt.

 

[drrich2]

Diver 85:

You got some nice photos; I looked at some of the Brac album shots. Some real nice color on reef shots, and your camera brought out some fine detail & sharpness in some of those shots. Very nice.

Curt76:

Your profile indicates you've dove all 3 Cayman islands before, so all the more reason you'll be able to discriminate between them. Hope you have a great trip. Would have loved to be on it.

Richard.

 

[diver 85]

I like your Little Cayman & Brac pictures. Would also like to mention something about Rangiroa. Definitely on my bucket list. The videos I have seen are just awesome! For now though I am just anxious for the Cayman trip. Which is why I started this thread. Hope the weather does allow me to make it to LC & Brac. If not it is still Cayman diving and that will beat any diving I do where I am from. Appreciate the pics as well as your response for this thread. Dive on, Curt.

Odds(%'s) are you'll be fine-----could be ruff going the ~80 miles over(?& back) but that's one reason garbage bags were made...............Hope you have a good, safe trip..........Report back & tell us about it----& take a lot of pretty pics & post them on this thread..:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/cayman-islands/430395-cayman-picture-day-165.html

 

[AggieDiver]

Rich,

I have not been diving on GC, so can't answer your question about how that portion of the CA diving would be. However, one of the things I always consider the real "upside" to liveaboard diving (in addition to the nearly unlimited dive schedule) is the ability to go dive places that can't be easily reached from shore based locations. In that regard, the CA does not go anywhere that can't be reached from a shore based location. So all you really gain by being on the CA is the ability to dive multiple islands in a trip that would require flying from place to place to do on shore, without the guarantee that you will actually make it to 2 of the 3 islands. It isn't like the Bahamas or T&C where the liveaboard is going places you would not otherwise get to see.

 

[Doctorfish]

I agree with Aggie. Why go on a liveabord when you can get to all of the same sites land based. ( not in the same trip )

The Aggressor does some very good sites on GC including Babylon, which are not easy to get to by boat unless you are diving with an East End operator.

On Brac and LC, I assume they dive exactly the same sites as the land based ops.
One possible advantage however would be number of dives. Hard to do 5 a day land based.


Belize is a different issue and the itinerary for live aboard would take you to places that are difficult to orchestrate landbased.

I have not done a live aboard in Belize and look forward to Rich's thoughtful review in the spring.

 

[zf2nt]

On Brac and LC, I assume they dive exactly the same sites as the land based ops.

Not exactly. At least on Little Cayman, the Aggressor can only tie up at the dual-pinned mooring balls. They are not allowed to tie to the single pin balls, which can be identified by having a smaller ball at the surface. That means, for example, that they never tie up at Barracuda, Blacktip, Ringer's, Bus Stop, etc. In fact, I think the ball at Nancy's is a single pin ball, and that's the best site on Little Cayman. I usually see the Aggressor running back and forth between Great Wall, Randy's Gazebo, and Cumber's Caves. Those are fine places, to be sure, but there is also a lot that the Aggressor never visits.