Hello,
We just got back from our annual trip to Roatan, Honduras and CoCo View resort and I thought I would post a report:
CoCo View has new managers (Deb and Mitch). Liz and Lobo have moved on to new adventures. For the most part, the resort hasn't changed much that I could tell from last year. Most of the same staff was still there and the daily schedules including, diving, meals Patty's bouyancy clinic, Doc's Honduras lesson and nightly entertainment is the same. Doc had a clinic on coral spawning since the coral was due to spawn so that was an added bonus this week.
Deb told us that the menu has changed a bit, but you would have to stay for 2 weeks to notice. Instead of having the same menu each week, it now has expanded so that you don't see the same items on consecutive weeks. The beans and rice were still on the lunch menu everyday, so for the beans and rice fans, don't panic. The food was still delicious and Rebecca is still there to ensure everything stays up to par.
Arrival at the airport is a bit different because they won't let the CoCo View staff meet you in baggage claim anymore due to security. So, the airport baggage handlers will collect your bags and you have to go outside the terminal to meet Nora. So, don't panic if you don't see Nora at baggage claim. After that, the transport to the resort and registration is the same.
There is a new dog on premesis (Gizmo) and he's just as nice as Chiquita. Poncho still likes the dive shop air conditioning when he can sneak in.
Now for the diving....
Freaking lionfish everywhere.! Last year this same time of year we saw 1 lionfish for the whole trip. This time it was not unusual to see several on any given dive. I have no doubt that I saw at least 60 different lionfish over the week. We saw about 10 on a drop off dive of CoCo View wall and another group said they saw a cluster of about 8 in a 10 meter square area on another dive. Some of the divemasters are spearing them, but they don't all have spears. This may be a good gift to anyone who is going down there soon. A "travel" Hawaiian sling with paralyzer tip can be picked up for under $60 US and would make an excellent gift to the dive staff. These keep the fish at a safe distance and prevent them from sliding down the spear, while allowing the divemaser to disassmble it and stow it in a small sheath,out of the way if it's not needed. I'm not endorsing a particular diveshop..here's just an example of what I'm talking about (ok, maybe I do like Scubatoys a little, maybe your LDS will match the price):
5_5 Ft Travel Sling reviews and discounts, Trident
Anway, other than that is was great diving. The weather was perfect except the wind was pretty strong a few afternoons which made the seas a little bit rough for those who suffer from seasickness.
There were still loads of seahorses, sponges, drums, eels, etc. Lots of macro life could still be found and on par with previous trips we saw only 2 turtles and no sharks. The only thing I noticed missing was the usual plethera of flamingo tongues. I saw maybe 3 total the entire time. However, another friend of ours says he saw several on almost every dive, so maybe I just missed them.
Before I forget...the noseeums are still alive and well, so don't forget the bug repellant of your choice and use it often.
As usual in past years, the trip ended way before I wanted it to, and I'm already looking at the calendar wondering when I can go back.
We just got back from our annual trip to Roatan, Honduras and CoCo View resort and I thought I would post a report:
CoCo View has new managers (Deb and Mitch). Liz and Lobo have moved on to new adventures. For the most part, the resort hasn't changed much that I could tell from last year. Most of the same staff was still there and the daily schedules including, diving, meals Patty's bouyancy clinic, Doc's Honduras lesson and nightly entertainment is the same. Doc had a clinic on coral spawning since the coral was due to spawn so that was an added bonus this week.
Deb told us that the menu has changed a bit, but you would have to stay for 2 weeks to notice. Instead of having the same menu each week, it now has expanded so that you don't see the same items on consecutive weeks. The beans and rice were still on the lunch menu everyday, so for the beans and rice fans, don't panic. The food was still delicious and Rebecca is still there to ensure everything stays up to par.
Arrival at the airport is a bit different because they won't let the CoCo View staff meet you in baggage claim anymore due to security. So, the airport baggage handlers will collect your bags and you have to go outside the terminal to meet Nora. So, don't panic if you don't see Nora at baggage claim. After that, the transport to the resort and registration is the same.
There is a new dog on premesis (Gizmo) and he's just as nice as Chiquita. Poncho still likes the dive shop air conditioning when he can sneak in.
Now for the diving....
Freaking lionfish everywhere.! Last year this same time of year we saw 1 lionfish for the whole trip. This time it was not unusual to see several on any given dive. I have no doubt that I saw at least 60 different lionfish over the week. We saw about 10 on a drop off dive of CoCo View wall and another group said they saw a cluster of about 8 in a 10 meter square area on another dive. Some of the divemasters are spearing them, but they don't all have spears. This may be a good gift to anyone who is going down there soon. A "travel" Hawaiian sling with paralyzer tip can be picked up for under $60 US and would make an excellent gift to the dive staff. These keep the fish at a safe distance and prevent them from sliding down the spear, while allowing the divemaser to disassmble it and stow it in a small sheath,out of the way if it's not needed. I'm not endorsing a particular diveshop..here's just an example of what I'm talking about (ok, maybe I do like Scubatoys a little, maybe your LDS will match the price):
5_5 Ft Travel Sling reviews and discounts, Trident
Anway, other than that is was great diving. The weather was perfect except the wind was pretty strong a few afternoons which made the seas a little bit rough for those who suffer from seasickness.
There were still loads of seahorses, sponges, drums, eels, etc. Lots of macro life could still be found and on par with previous trips we saw only 2 turtles and no sharks. The only thing I noticed missing was the usual plethera of flamingo tongues. I saw maybe 3 total the entire time. However, another friend of ours says he saw several on almost every dive, so maybe I just missed them.
Before I forget...the noseeums are still alive and well, so don't forget the bug repellant of your choice and use it often.
As usual in past years, the trip ended way before I wanted it to, and I'm already looking at the calendar wondering when I can go back.
