Shore Diving Cozumel.. and critters.

[azscubadude]

All photos taken on day and night shore dives (except for east side Rasta bar shots).
All shots taken with a Canon G-12 in an Ikelite housing with D-161 strobes and Sola 600 focus light.

Hover over the right hand photo for a slide out menu to view large and original size shots.

I added a 4 minute video to the end of the gallery if you care to view it. All but the last eel sequence was shot on a night dive.

Here is the link for the Video.. Video from my March-2011 trip to Cozumel

This link for photos.. Photos from my March-2011 trip to Cozumel

 

[tedgarner]

Do you have to stay at SCC to do the shore dive? We are staying elsewhere but may want to try something different for a shore dive. Thanks!

I really don't know about SCC but you could try just down the street at Dive Paradise in front of Hotel Cozumel they are open to the public.
Great for a night dive from the shore. I usually go toward the new car ferry dock and see loads of stuff.
My wife doesn't dive and she will snorkel above us and really enjoys it.
I have always enjoyed shore dives here on the island, I don't understand why so many people have a negative view of shore dives here.

 

[ggunn]

I really don't know about SCC but you could try just down the street at Dive Paradise in front of Hotel Cozumel they are open to the public.
Great for a night dive from the shore. I usually go toward the new car ferry dock and see loads of stuff.
My wife doesn't dive and she will snorkel above us and really enjoys it.
I have always enjoyed shore dives here on the island, I don't understand why so many people have a negative view of shore dives here.

Speaking for myself, I only have a negative view of Cozumel shore dives as compared to the boat dives. They are a nice addition to boat dives but not a replacement for them, IMO.

 

[under water]

...I have always enjoyed shore dives here on the island, I don't understand why so many people have a negative view of shore dives here.

I think it is more a comparison thing with places like Bonaire, Curacao, Grand Cayman, etc where the reef is a short swim from the shore. Shore diving in Coz is rubble diving, but full of creatures. Shore diving in some of the other places is like boat diving.
I wouldn't go to Coz and not do shore diving, but I wouldn't pick it as my shore diving destination.

 

[tedgarner]

That is a very balanced view. I do agree the best diving is a from a boat but why miss the easy things right in front of you.

All in all it looks like the OP had a great time:cool2:

 

[1KWIK_69]

We decided to do a shore dive from Casa Del Mar starting at the pedestrian bridge and heading North to Villa Blanca. I hadn't dived the area just South of Villa Blanca in three years because it use to be my favorite CZM shore dive but was destroyed by Wilma. I'm VERY happy to report that there has been significant recovery since I last dived it three years ago!!! While it's not yet what it was before Wilma, it's very much worth diving now! There is a whole lot more to see there now than there is north of Villa Blanca near the stingray prison where we usually shore dive. I plan to make a night dive out of it when we go back in October.

The business that's accross from Casa Del Mar, just to the right of the pedestrian bridge is very accomodating of divers, whether you're spending money there or not, and they have an easy entry point. Good people!

 

[Aggiebq86]

We decided to do a shore dive from Casa Del Mar starting at the pedestrian bridge and heading North to Villa Blanca. I hadn't dived the area just South of Villa Blanca in three years because it use to be my favorite CZM shore dive but was destroyed by Wilma. I'm VERY happy to report that there has been significant recovery since I last dived it three years ago!!! While it's not yet what it was before Wilma, it's very much worth diving now! There is a whole lot more to see there now than there is north of Villa Blanca near the stingray prison where we usually shore dive. I plan to make a night dive out of it when we go back in October.

The business that's accross from Casa Del Mar, just to the right of the pedestrian bridge is very accomodating of divers, whether you're spending money there or not, and they have an easy entry point. Good people!

Did you get the name of the business? When we go in June I'd like to try a shore dive there and support their business as well.

 

[1KWIK_69]

Did you get the name of the business? When we go in June I'd like to try a shore dive there and support their business as well.

I didn't get the name of the place but it's easy to find. It's right at the North side of the base of the pedestrian bridge.

Just put in there, head out to the end of the pier and turn North. You'll find lots of coral hads, purple sea fans, and even a whole lot of artificial cement reefs that serve as shelter to al kinds of fish.

 

[pelagic_by_nature]

I was introduced to shore diving on Cozumel during my trip there back in December (thanks Steve!!!!) and couldn't wait to get back and do more. I wasn't back from Coz 24 hours before booking a return trip in February. In February, I did 2 days of boat diving and then shore diving the rest of the week. I LOVE the shore diving. I dove in front of Casa Del Mar, both to the north, towards Villa Blanca, and to the south to El Cid La Cieba. Saw all the critters in the OP's pics. What I like is not having to keep up with a DM, I can spend as much time as I want watching whatever creature happens to be entertaining me at the moment. Also, the depth is about 30 fsw so bottom time is easily over an hour, probably closer to 90 minutes if you're not an air hog like me. I'm headed back in December and will again do mostly shore diving.

 

[pelagic_by_nature]

I didn't get the name of the place but it's easy to find. It's right at the North side of the base of the pedestrian bridge.

Just put in there, head out to the end of the pier and turn North. You'll find lots of coral hads, purple sea fans, and even a whole lot of artificial cement reefs that serve as shelter to al kinds of fish.

Del Mar Aquatics - rent your tanks for $6 and shore dive right there. Easy in, Easy out, rinse tanks.