Watching the 10-day weather forecast

[brian01]

I'm planning another family trip to Grand Cayman and aiming for the clearest underwater conditions. Want to go in next two months (Feb or Mar) but dates very flexible. My last experience (Feb 22-29, 2020) had good topside weather but underwater visibility wasn't up to the usual amazing standards (diving-just ok, snorkeling-not good). Locals mentioned the wind might've been the culprit (15-22mph), despite no storms. Wind direction maybe?

Could anyone share insights on:

• Specific weather patterns that might impact underwater visibility?
• Particular wind directions or sea conditions to avoid?
• Tips for interpreting long-term forecasts with diving in mind?

Your local expertise will be invaluable for planning my flexible dates. Thanks in advance!

 

[Damselfish]

It's rather had to predict weather and conditions enough to pick a best time. Feb is still winter, such as it, and seems more likely to be windy than summer. (Assuming no hurricane...) I would expect odds of less wind are better later in your window.

 

[brian01]

Although it was windy when we were there last time, I dont know if that was the main issue. I think the wind was coming from the west. At the Turtle farm, waves were crashing up above the wall like geysers. I was hoping someone might know what the key underwater visibility factors were (eg wind from west > 20mph) because I can see stuff like that in the 10-day forecast.

 

[tahoe1840]

Hey Brian, we've been to Grand Cayman a few times one of which was in February in 2012. As another post said it very difficult to predict weather. GC has diving on both sides of the island, if the west is mucked up the east is usually pretty good. If your flexible you could find a dive operator to take you where the viz is the best.

 

[brian01]

Hey Brian, we've been to Grand Cayman a few times one of which was in February in 2012. As another post said it very difficult to predict weather. GC has diving on both sides of the island, if the west is mucked up the east is usually pretty good. If your flexible you could find a dive operator to take you where the viz is the best.

Thanks, yes I have heard that there is always somewhere on the island that has good visibility. However, on that problem trip that was not the case. Didnt matter if it was 7MB, Spotts Beach, Rum Point, up by Turtle Farm, the snorkeling was all very low visibility. I dont recall if we tried east end. We had an OK dive I guess (which is probably still better than 90% of other spots in the world) but not the crystal clear water we had come to expect from Cayman. I have seen other posts about Nor-Westers which could have been the issues since the Turtle Farm is west and the waves there were crazy.

 

[cgills]

Brian,
Based on my experience, and I spend the majority of the winter here on Grand, the further into March you can wait, the better. For certain? Heck No! The most popular areas for diving, the West and the North are highly subject to cold fronts coming down from the states, December through March. Generally speaking, we'll get blown out for a few days, then seas settle down. This year, the holiday season was a disaster, seas wise,they refused to cooperate. Then along comes 2nd week of January and all is calm for two weeks. Go figure.
Windguru is your friend.. Anytime you get winds coming from the N/NW/NE over 12-14 knots. the seas are going to be choppy, visibility is affected, and shore diving at most locales closed. If that is the case, there are a number of dive operators that will run boats out of Red Bay, where seas will be much calmer and vis much better.
Cindy