Trip Report - Huracan Diving

[Stoo]

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If you are reading this thread, you may be aware that I have been to Huracan before and loved it. This was the forth consecutive year that Mrs. Stoo and I have been to Huracan, and that is a first for us, so if you're short of time, you can probably stop reading now.

If you aren't aware, Huracan is located on Long Caye which is part of the furthest Atoll of Belize's outer cayes. It is remote and requires a long boat ride to get there. On our trip out, it was fairly rough and if someone was inclined towards sea-sickness, it would have been an unpleasant trip. (Our return trip, on the other hand, has smooth and fast!)

The "resort" itself is essentially one building with four guestrooms, but with a fifth available if required. During our stay, there were 8 guests initially, but this dropped to 4 after mid week. The rooms are nice and clean and have large private baths. Because Huracan relies on rain water and solar power primarily, long showers are discouraged. Hot water wasn't always "hot" but these are minor inconveniences given the remote location.

During our week there, food was prepared by a young chef named Mynor. We had met him three years ago when he was there on a temporary stay. He is a terrific chef and he's proud of his "Belizian Fusion" style of food... A mix of local fare with Asian and Mediterranean influences. Or something. I'm pretty happy with rice and beans and chicken every day, but Mrs. Stoo loves good food and this stuff got her thumbs up...

As for the diving, well, it was as amazing as ever. Because there are so few people dive here, the reefs show none of the stresses of heavy diver use. Sea life is plentiful and varied. We have been diving all over the Caribbean for decades and still feel that this is the best diving there is, when it comes to overall impressions.

We dove with DM Arthur and Captain Ed. They are great guys who know their stuff. We tend to dive on our own, but I know that Arthur is a very capable DM and guests that dove with him loved him and his ability to find cool stuff. Ed was always there when we surfaced after a drift and piloted his boat well when we were in rough water. Both guys are a ton of fun and made the week for us.

We did have one concern about this trip, which turned out to be nothing. Mrs. Stoo suffered a badly broken leg on a dive boat while we were diving in the Gulf of St.Lawrence last summer. Because Huracan is set away from the shore, there's a bit of a hike to the dock each morning and afternoon. Little did we know that Uber was alive and well on Long Caye! The lads had rigged up a seat for her on the front of the ATV used to haul tanks around. Whenever it was dive time, Henry the Tank Jockey was there waiting for her. At the end of each dive, Ed hauled her tank up making it easier to get back into the boat. Awesome service all 'round!

All in all, we are already planning another trip. This place has become a second home for us and I have a feeling that there are others that feel the same way. Huracan is not for everyone. If you need entertainment and golf courses and shopping, this is not the place for you. If you love great diving, great food, kayaking with crocs, and that kinda stuff, you'll have the time of your life.

In the interest of full disclosure, I should point out that I was there at a somewhat discounted rate. It seems I have become the unofficial photographer for the Lodge and that comes with some benefits.

Here is a link to some photos I shot last week...

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[drrich2]

You're a seasoned diver and amidst an array of options, they get your repeat business, which says a lot for them.

Tell us more about the kayaking with croc.s!

I pulled up a map online, and if I did it correctly, their location puts them way out diving about the same area we did a lot of the diving off the Sun Dancer 2 (now Belize Aggressor IV) live-aboard May 2015. So I imagine their main competition is the 2 live-aboards (Belize Aggressor III & IV) and Turneffe Atoll-based operations.

What moved you guys to go with this land-based option over the live-aboard route? Any of those would be a mainly dive-focused vacation, from what I understand, out in a region known for the better diving. For sheer # of dives & convenience of diving, live-aboards rock, but evidently Huracan won you guys over.

Richard.

 

[Stoo]

Hi Richard... You are correct... The Aggressor was pretty much a constant feature around us. You pose an interesting question though, because we love liveaboards, and I had to think for a moment about how we ended up here...

We went to Turneffe Island Resort seven or eight years ago with some friends who didn't share our enthusiasm for diving and had no interest in a liveaboard. We loved TIR but it's expensive and we always felt that the best diving we did while we were there was on Blue Hole day, out at Lighthouse Reef and Halfmoon Caye. We went to TIR tree times, on the last trip, I asked out DM about some rooftops I spotted on Long Caye. The building I spotted was the only other place on Long Caye... ITZA Resort. A few Google searches and I found Huracan.

As to why we opted for it over a liveaboard... We had a single girlfriend who wanted to come with us one year. The single supplement at TIR and on the liveaboards was really high. At Huracan, it was nothing... $200 or something, so we booked there. We were a bit concerned about a whole bunch of things, but none of them turned out to be an issue. So I suppose we kinda of stumbled into the place initially. We still look at the liveaboards, but because we have to go at school break time, (Mrs. Stoo is an Educator) so the liveaboards are always booked up. And they are more expensive. And I suppose we enjoy the more local flavour of Huracan. Liveaboards are great, but it's kinda like floating around on a little piece of Idaho... Not that I have anything against Idaho, but we enjoy a somewhat more "immersive" experience, culturally speaking. Huracan is owned by a French national who is a really interesting guy. Most staff are local Belizians, and guests come from around the world.

And in truth, I suppose that many of the repeat staff at Huracan have become friends... We kinda feeling like we're going to a friend's cottage when we're going there.

Over the years, and under the new owner, the place has become more "refined" and it's very well run. The owner's son was on site this year and he takes his guests' needs very seriously. We are pretty "low maintenance" but anything we wanted or even hinted at, just "happened". It didn't matter if if it was a specific dive site or something special for dinner...

 

[Stoo]

Regarding the crocs... Much of the centre of Long Caye is a large lagoon. We have seen crocs out there during evening "croc walks" along the sketchy boardwalk. Arthur had mentioned a fish nursery near where the lagoon spills into the ocean, and supposedly, there were baby hammerheads to be found. Mrs' Stoo and I loaded up a little kayak late one afternoon and paddled a couple of miles down the caye. As we got closer to the area, we paddled right over three crocs that were lurking in the shallows (we were only in a couple of feet of water). They took off of course, and we never did find the nursery, but lots of birds (Osprey nests!), snakes swimming etc. Pretty cool area.

When were coming into the back dock one evening after a night dive, we heard a large splash as a croc on the dock dove back into the water.We could see three sets of eyes looking back at us as we unloaded the boat!

 

[Downing]

Great report as always, Stoo. One of these days, I'm going to have to check it out. The problem, if one can call it a problem, is that I always like to spend 4 or 5 days running around the mainland in the middle of my dive vacation, making Placencia ideal for me. I've already made my plans for Placencia this summer, but maybe next year I'll either kick off or end my vacation at Huracan.

Quick question: why is it that no one ever posts photos of the resort itself? Is it just not photogenic? Can't get a good shot?

 

[chillyinCanada]

Stoo, I love everything you've said about the place, the experience and I'm familiar with the fantastic Caribbean diving out there but I can't do Belize without AC. This is not to say that I always use it but if I need it, I've got to have it.

 

[Stoo]

Quick question: why is it that no one ever posts photos of the resort itself? Is it just not photogenic? Can't get a good shot?

I can only speak for myself, but I rarely take pics on land. To call this place a "resort" is probably a bit misleading. It is after all, essentially one building. There are some pics on the website that I linked to above, but if you can picture someone's very large cottage, all built from local woods, you wouldn't be far off. Most of the living is done on a screened in porch area which serves as dining room, rec room, bar, library etc. There is a large common room/hallway that runs the length of the place which has some couches and even a couple of hammocks for mid-day snoozing. It's dark and cool in there and quite pleasant. The guest rooms are large, nicely decorated with Bernard's original art (and possibly some prints of mine soon...)

I probably have some pics someplace, so I'll see if I can hunt them down.

 

[Stoo]

Stoo, I love everything you've said about the place, the experience and I'm familiar with the fantastic Caribbean diving out there but I can't do Belize without AC. This is not to say that I always use it but if I need it, I've got to have it.

Understood. I used to have certain parameters I insisted on ("Must have a direct flight...") but eventually figured out that I was missing out on some great places. According to Christian, they are purchasing some kind of fans that introduce a cool mist for cooling effect, but beyond that, it's ceiling and floor fans. We tend to go there in March and the lack of A/C is a non issue, but I can imagine that the place would get pretty muggy in the summer months.

The reality is that when a place is "off the grid" and tries to be eco-friendly, A/C just isn't feasible. COmpared to TIR, which runs generators all the time (They are across the island, so rarely heard) this place would have a much smaller impact on the environment. Rain water vs RO desalination. Solar with a little generated power vs generators with some solar. Huracan encourages you to bring your own soaps and shampoos and leave with the bottles. TIR provides nice little bottles of everything in the rooms, but they also have a more or less constant garbage fire going out back... Just different approaches.

 

[Stoo]

I found a few land shots I took years ago... although the food stuff is from this year (and taken by Mrs. Stoo... I don't really take food pics, unless it's still swimming!) The interior has been spruced up some with art and furniture, but this will give you an idea.

 

[Downing]

Thanks, Stoo. Looks nicer and better equipped than I had imagined.