caseywilson
Registered
Trip Report Ambergris Caye, San Pedro Town, Belize, Central America
Belizean Shores Resort
White Sands Dive Shop
I had dives one and two for my OW cert in the book from Catalina Island, California. Had equipment problems that precluded dives three and four. The COLD water and three-foot surges at Casino Dive Park convinced me to finish up where its warm.
After vacillating back and forth for a couple weeks, I picked Ambergris Caye for no reason other than the name. I mean, how could anyone pass up an opportunity to go to an island named after whale vomit? I leave it to the reader to use Google Earth for a virtual flight over the Caye.
Choosing where to stay was a chuck of the die followed by a proverbial coin toss after I narrowed the field down to Las Terrazas and Belizean Shores resorts. Thats not completely true Belizean Shores was a few bucks cheaper and weighted that side of the coin.
Picking White Sands Dive operation was a bit easier. Many fine shops can be found in the area. I picked this one based on the simple fact that the owner/operator, Elbert Greer, said he had an integral-weight buoyancy compensator in my size. It would turn out that providence was on my side. The only gripe I could muster up for this report is that White Sands ran out of logo branded tee-shirts.
Day 1: Arrived at San Pedro Airport via Sky West, Continental, and Maya Island airlines with a short water taxi jaunt and checked in by 5PM. The resort is first class. Large suite with kitchen. Excellent staff never saw a frown from anyone, including other guests. On the down side, the resort restaurant is a three-story ordeal if you have one bad knee like mine. Food was okay and the service was slow.
Day 2: Kick-back day. Checked in at White Sands Dive Shop. Chatted with Elbert Greer, the owner/operator. Signed up for five days of diving. Wandered up and down the beach. Took some pictures.
Went exploring in San Pedro. Bought some groceries did some shopping. (I paid less to buy groceries for three meals a day for four days than I did at the resorts restaurant for dinner on day one.)
East to west, San Pedro is divided by three main streets running more or less north and south with some minor bends. Those have traditional names, but the locals refer to them as front, middle, and back. Front Street is on the east side and is mostly visited by tourists. Thats where you will find the most San Pedro lodging establishments. Every conceivable tienda (shop) is within walking distance but you might want to spring a few bucks for a taxi if youve got a load of stuff to carry.
Resorts such as Belizean shores and that ilk are a couple to a few miles north of the town. Several modes of transportation between the resorts and town exist; from walking to water taxi with bikes and golf carts in between.
Prices get cheaper as you venture to back street. House and building numbers do not exist although Im sure some directory some where lists them.
Dont worry about language. Spanish is almost the second language. I heard parents speaking English to their children and chatted up one native Belizean resident who didnt understand Spanish at all. Go figure.
One US dollar equals two BZ$ so the exchange rate could not be simpler. Prices, on the other hand, are surprisingly high. I paid BZ$110 for a good pair of sandals and BZ$70 for a nice shirt. Eggs were BZ$1 each and potatoes BZ$4.50. On the other hand a home-baked loaf of cinnamon raisin bread went for BZ$3. Since the price of gas seems to be a big interest item for discussion, the locals pay BZ$12 per US gallon.
Day 3: Scheduled for my OW #3 dive but the winds from hell were creating actual whitecaps INSIDE the reef so the dive shop dealt the safety card. Hiking, swimming, and another adventure into town.
For those not familiar with the jargon, OW is the SCUBA divers acronym for Open Water Certification by the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI). It is the world-wide recognition for the first step in certification. I apologize to my fellow divers for tossing that in, but this report is posted elsewhere besides the SCUBA forum.
Crave Restaurant is only a couple blocks walk from the water taxi dock in San Pedro. The owner, Kate Culligan, is an English ex-pat who came to visit a year ago with her mum and decided to buy a restaurant. The lunch of that day was Cottage Pie. Thats what you get if you replace the lamb in a traditional English Shepherds Pie with ground beef. Cottage Pie and a couple of Guinness Stouts and youd think you were in Jolly Old .. Keeping in mind that Belize was once British Honduras and it isnt so strange. If you happen to wander into Crave some day, tell Kate Casey sent you.
Day 4: Give me a break! Somebody find the damned switch and turn off the freakin winds!
Day 5: Hooray! I finally got my fins wet. Sam Lin, White Sands Numero Uno dive instructor took me and two other students to Zone B of the Hol Chan Marine Reserve [http://www.holchanbelize.org/] at the southern tip of Ambergris Caye. Another group of four certified divers went along with Carlos as their dive master. After checking off our respective dive requirements, Sam guided us around the area. The reserve is one of the reef cuts and a mild tide carried us along. We didnt have the recommended option of swimming out and drifting back in this case.
Im too new at this to identify the several fish and other life we saw but one BIG turtle, a couple rays, and one moderate size nurse shark stand out. Oh, and Sam pointed out some tiny flounder no larger than the first joint of your thumb.
After 30 minutes at 28 feet it was time to return to the boat. The boat was moored in 12 ft. and the gradual uphill swim back to the boat made a safety stop unnecessary.
When we were all back in the boat, the skipper motored us over to Shark Ray Alley on the reserve for some snorkel time in 8 ft depth. The area lived up to its name. More than enough nurse sharks and rays to go around. I kept swimming away from the guy with the camera, even dove under and went to the other side of the boat. But for some reason he kept getting in front of me and trying to kick my mask off. Im sure it wasnt deliberate just stuff happens.
Day 6: ¡Una mas dia en el Paraiso! One more day in Paradise! At least now that the wind is down. This time just we three students and Sam ventured outside the reef with two tanks each. Sam signed me off for my #4 first and while he worked with the other students on their requisite dive #2 I just tooled around in a big circle playing with the art of buoyancy control. With all the huge waves over days 3 and 4, I expected the viz to be limited. Instead it was greater than fifty feet. Forty-four minutes at 28 feet, temp 82, 3000# start, and 1400# back on the boat.
While we did some SIT(ting)(Surface Interval Timing), chatting and munching on sandia (watermelon), Sam swapped out our tanks and briefed us for the next dive. My pals were going down for their #3 and I was going on my first official OW certified dive.
Most memorable was the cluster of more than a dozen yellow with blue vertical stripes fish inside some sort of ropy plant. The plant looked to be about three feet tall with one- to two-inch strands that waved in the gentle current surges. The fish, six to ten inches long, were backed into the plant and just hanging out.
I did start taking notice of the coral formations this time, particularly the brain coral. Whatever the purple fan stuff is was intriguing also. I promised myself to start taking along some identification guides.
Back at the dock, Carlos asked me if I was ready for a dive on the reef. When he briefed that it was going down to 80 feet I reminded him that Id already had two dives at shallower depth. He checked the plan mode on my computer and showed me the dive was well within acceptable parameters and wouldnt be a problem.
The dive was at a location named Sandy Point. It was chosen so Sam could take his students out to a large sandy area while the rest of us went deeper. We went down one narrow canyon between coral fingers to 82 feet, turned the corner and came up another. Visibility was amazing. Carlos was a great guide and watched me close. When we reached the safety stop, he pointed out features on my computer and made signs to explain stuff. I did peek real close into the coral but I was too goggle-eyed to see anything to remember.
Day 7: Another reef trip with Carlos. This time to the Caverns of Love, only a ten-minute ride from White Sands Dive Shop. During the brief, Carlos specifically asked me if I would be okay doing a swim-through. His explanation that it was a series of arches with lots of vertical clearances, short spans with nothing resembling a tunnel, and lots of open chimneys made it sound like fun. I hesitate to use the word exciting to keep from implying a significant increase in heart rate and squirts of adrenaline.
It was a great tour. We went down to 85 feet and entered the first hole in the wall. I could see sunlight reflecting brightly off the sand just ten or twelve feet away as I kicked my way in. I will admit my breath rate went up a tad. I discovered that when my tank bumped off the roof during the second arch. After I got my buoyancy under control I bumped gently into the walls a couple times, but nothing serious. It was a great and fun dive for a total newbie.
I opted out of a second dive that day. It was going to leave the dock at 2PM. The computer plan said Id be okay . Except I was anxious about the airplane I was going to catch the next day at 11AM. Carlos and I went over my computer data with me. The flight was only going up to 1,000 feet to fly back to the mainland. He said it would be safe to dive, but added that it would be safER not to. Remembering the old saying that discretion is the better part of valor, I waved at the boat when they left.
Days 8 & 9 are just boring stuff about going home.
Thats my story and Im sticking with it ..
Casey
Belizean Shores Resort
White Sands Dive Shop
I had dives one and two for my OW cert in the book from Catalina Island, California. Had equipment problems that precluded dives three and four. The COLD water and three-foot surges at Casino Dive Park convinced me to finish up where its warm.
After vacillating back and forth for a couple weeks, I picked Ambergris Caye for no reason other than the name. I mean, how could anyone pass up an opportunity to go to an island named after whale vomit? I leave it to the reader to use Google Earth for a virtual flight over the Caye.
Choosing where to stay was a chuck of the die followed by a proverbial coin toss after I narrowed the field down to Las Terrazas and Belizean Shores resorts. Thats not completely true Belizean Shores was a few bucks cheaper and weighted that side of the coin.
Picking White Sands Dive operation was a bit easier. Many fine shops can be found in the area. I picked this one based on the simple fact that the owner/operator, Elbert Greer, said he had an integral-weight buoyancy compensator in my size. It would turn out that providence was on my side. The only gripe I could muster up for this report is that White Sands ran out of logo branded tee-shirts.
Day 1: Arrived at San Pedro Airport via Sky West, Continental, and Maya Island airlines with a short water taxi jaunt and checked in by 5PM. The resort is first class. Large suite with kitchen. Excellent staff never saw a frown from anyone, including other guests. On the down side, the resort restaurant is a three-story ordeal if you have one bad knee like mine. Food was okay and the service was slow.
Day 2: Kick-back day. Checked in at White Sands Dive Shop. Chatted with Elbert Greer, the owner/operator. Signed up for five days of diving. Wandered up and down the beach. Took some pictures.
Went exploring in San Pedro. Bought some groceries did some shopping. (I paid less to buy groceries for three meals a day for four days than I did at the resorts restaurant for dinner on day one.)
East to west, San Pedro is divided by three main streets running more or less north and south with some minor bends. Those have traditional names, but the locals refer to them as front, middle, and back. Front Street is on the east side and is mostly visited by tourists. Thats where you will find the most San Pedro lodging establishments. Every conceivable tienda (shop) is within walking distance but you might want to spring a few bucks for a taxi if youve got a load of stuff to carry.
Resorts such as Belizean shores and that ilk are a couple to a few miles north of the town. Several modes of transportation between the resorts and town exist; from walking to water taxi with bikes and golf carts in between.
Prices get cheaper as you venture to back street. House and building numbers do not exist although Im sure some directory some where lists them.
Dont worry about language. Spanish is almost the second language. I heard parents speaking English to their children and chatted up one native Belizean resident who didnt understand Spanish at all. Go figure.
One US dollar equals two BZ$ so the exchange rate could not be simpler. Prices, on the other hand, are surprisingly high. I paid BZ$110 for a good pair of sandals and BZ$70 for a nice shirt. Eggs were BZ$1 each and potatoes BZ$4.50. On the other hand a home-baked loaf of cinnamon raisin bread went for BZ$3. Since the price of gas seems to be a big interest item for discussion, the locals pay BZ$12 per US gallon.
Day 3: Scheduled for my OW #3 dive but the winds from hell were creating actual whitecaps INSIDE the reef so the dive shop dealt the safety card. Hiking, swimming, and another adventure into town.
For those not familiar with the jargon, OW is the SCUBA divers acronym for Open Water Certification by the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI). It is the world-wide recognition for the first step in certification. I apologize to my fellow divers for tossing that in, but this report is posted elsewhere besides the SCUBA forum.
Crave Restaurant is only a couple blocks walk from the water taxi dock in San Pedro. The owner, Kate Culligan, is an English ex-pat who came to visit a year ago with her mum and decided to buy a restaurant. The lunch of that day was Cottage Pie. Thats what you get if you replace the lamb in a traditional English Shepherds Pie with ground beef. Cottage Pie and a couple of Guinness Stouts and youd think you were in Jolly Old .. Keeping in mind that Belize was once British Honduras and it isnt so strange. If you happen to wander into Crave some day, tell Kate Casey sent you.
Day 4: Give me a break! Somebody find the damned switch and turn off the freakin winds!
Day 5: Hooray! I finally got my fins wet. Sam Lin, White Sands Numero Uno dive instructor took me and two other students to Zone B of the Hol Chan Marine Reserve [http://www.holchanbelize.org/] at the southern tip of Ambergris Caye. Another group of four certified divers went along with Carlos as their dive master. After checking off our respective dive requirements, Sam guided us around the area. The reserve is one of the reef cuts and a mild tide carried us along. We didnt have the recommended option of swimming out and drifting back in this case.
Im too new at this to identify the several fish and other life we saw but one BIG turtle, a couple rays, and one moderate size nurse shark stand out. Oh, and Sam pointed out some tiny flounder no larger than the first joint of your thumb.
After 30 minutes at 28 feet it was time to return to the boat. The boat was moored in 12 ft. and the gradual uphill swim back to the boat made a safety stop unnecessary.
When we were all back in the boat, the skipper motored us over to Shark Ray Alley on the reserve for some snorkel time in 8 ft depth. The area lived up to its name. More than enough nurse sharks and rays to go around. I kept swimming away from the guy with the camera, even dove under and went to the other side of the boat. But for some reason he kept getting in front of me and trying to kick my mask off. Im sure it wasnt deliberate just stuff happens.
Day 6: ¡Una mas dia en el Paraiso! One more day in Paradise! At least now that the wind is down. This time just we three students and Sam ventured outside the reef with two tanks each. Sam signed me off for my #4 first and while he worked with the other students on their requisite dive #2 I just tooled around in a big circle playing with the art of buoyancy control. With all the huge waves over days 3 and 4, I expected the viz to be limited. Instead it was greater than fifty feet. Forty-four minutes at 28 feet, temp 82, 3000# start, and 1400# back on the boat.
While we did some SIT(ting)(Surface Interval Timing), chatting and munching on sandia (watermelon), Sam swapped out our tanks and briefed us for the next dive. My pals were going down for their #3 and I was going on my first official OW certified dive.
Most memorable was the cluster of more than a dozen yellow with blue vertical stripes fish inside some sort of ropy plant. The plant looked to be about three feet tall with one- to two-inch strands that waved in the gentle current surges. The fish, six to ten inches long, were backed into the plant and just hanging out.
I did start taking notice of the coral formations this time, particularly the brain coral. Whatever the purple fan stuff is was intriguing also. I promised myself to start taking along some identification guides.
Back at the dock, Carlos asked me if I was ready for a dive on the reef. When he briefed that it was going down to 80 feet I reminded him that Id already had two dives at shallower depth. He checked the plan mode on my computer and showed me the dive was well within acceptable parameters and wouldnt be a problem.
The dive was at a location named Sandy Point. It was chosen so Sam could take his students out to a large sandy area while the rest of us went deeper. We went down one narrow canyon between coral fingers to 82 feet, turned the corner and came up another. Visibility was amazing. Carlos was a great guide and watched me close. When we reached the safety stop, he pointed out features on my computer and made signs to explain stuff. I did peek real close into the coral but I was too goggle-eyed to see anything to remember.
Day 7: Another reef trip with Carlos. This time to the Caverns of Love, only a ten-minute ride from White Sands Dive Shop. During the brief, Carlos specifically asked me if I would be okay doing a swim-through. His explanation that it was a series of arches with lots of vertical clearances, short spans with nothing resembling a tunnel, and lots of open chimneys made it sound like fun. I hesitate to use the word exciting to keep from implying a significant increase in heart rate and squirts of adrenaline.
It was a great tour. We went down to 85 feet and entered the first hole in the wall. I could see sunlight reflecting brightly off the sand just ten or twelve feet away as I kicked my way in. I will admit my breath rate went up a tad. I discovered that when my tank bumped off the roof during the second arch. After I got my buoyancy under control I bumped gently into the walls a couple times, but nothing serious. It was a great and fun dive for a total newbie.
I opted out of a second dive that day. It was going to leave the dock at 2PM. The computer plan said Id be okay . Except I was anxious about the airplane I was going to catch the next day at 11AM. Carlos and I went over my computer data with me. The flight was only going up to 1,000 feet to fly back to the mainland. He said it would be safe to dive, but added that it would be safER not to. Remembering the old saying that discretion is the better part of valor, I waved at the boat when they left.
Days 8 & 9 are just boring stuff about going home.
Thats my story and Im sticking with it ..
Casey
