beth_castroll
Contributor
Trip Report April 5-13 West End
We had a great trip to Roatan April 5th-13th. It was our 3rd trip back to the island and we were looking forward to getting some good diving in.
Robert, a cab driver we have worked with before, picked us up at the airport and waited for us while we shopped at Plaza Mar. If you are renting a house in West End or have a place with a kitchenette I highly encourage the stop. We found everything we could want in one store and were glad we did as the markets in West End leave little to desire. The cab ride including stop and watching of our luggage cost 25usd. We tipped generously on top of this.
We stayed at the Woodhouse just a few houses off the main road where the paving ends. West End Vacation Rental - VRBO 13160 - 2 BR Roatan House in Honduras, Vacation in Paradise in Roatan
Tanjah, the woman who runs many of the house rentals in town, met us at the house and showed us the property shortly after arrival. We have worked with her before and she recommended this place to us before we contacted the owner. We negotiated the rate with the owner over email as it was the end of high season and got a good discounted price for 8 days. The place didn't have air conditioning and one or two nights I wish we did, but I got over it. The house had everything else we needed and suited us well. Tanjah even provided us with a cell phone with a few minutes on it so we could contact her if needed. We used it for dive shop contact and to ask simple questions like "where do we toss the garbage". I do have to say even though they had a sand fly spraying system at the house we could activate any time we wanted we still needed bug spray to sit outside at night. Also the neighboring restaurant was loud. I'd stay here again if my first choice was booked as it was this time.
We got in 13 glorious dives between April 6-12 with Coconut Tree Divers. Scuba Diving | PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Center | Roatan, Bay Islands
This is the only shop we have dove with on Roatan and will most likely be the only shop we ever use. When we went to sign up for our dives many of the dive instructors remembered us by face as we arrived and we loved that feeling of returning to summer camp and seeing all the same old councilors. We were given lockers for our gear and we felt safe leaving it in the shop all week.
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...5/5869801285278308914?authkey=CKWg-sGbuLSppAE
We dove the following sites:
April 6th
Light House Reef
Max Depth 70feet/44 Minutes
Lots of surge so we stuck to the wall. Had a few leg cramps I worked out
Dixies
Max Depth 70feet/49 minutes
Turtles and barracudas
April 7
Seaquest
Max Depth 80feet/58 Minutes
Wonderful coral head dive. Squid
Vern's Drop Off/Formally Dive Master's Choice
Max Depth 65feet/59 Minutes
Named in honor of Captain Vern who ferried people between Utila and West End
Sweet Dive! Lazy Drift. Great Colors. Saw a turtle with a remora first time in 75 dives. Lion Fish and Small Electric Blue Feeder Shrimp were highlights.
April 8
West End Wall
Max Depth 119feet/56 Minutes
Lazy Drift. Might have felt narc'd for first time.
Diving keeps getting better!
El Aquario Deep
Max Depth 69feet/60 minutes
Lots of smalls. Christmas Tree Worms and Bearded Fire Worms
Tiny eels in coral heads. Turtle chasing Marco DM
April 9
The Wreck
Max Depth 107feet/38 minutes
This was a weird dive from start to end. One diver had trouble clearing ears and was lost for a bit but went down & surfaced with another group. DMT tossed own gear in water without adding air to BC and it sunk. DI retrieved it at bottom of wreck and sent it up. Dive was comp'd by CCT.
Second Dive ???
Max Depth 67feel/59 minutes
Night Dive
Blue Channel
Max Depth 64feet/ 52 minutes
Great night dive. No Moon! Slight drift. Free Swimming Spotted Eel. Brown, white spotted hunting octopus we watched for a while. Turned off lights to see bio luminaries and string of pearls.
We took the 10th off from diving and for 5USD each way took a water taxi to West Bay to lay on chairs at Beaches. They did not charge us for lounge chairs or umbrellas. They did not hound us for drinks, to the point my husband had to get up and ask for drinks. We had some very good coconut shrimp there. We also had a doughnut from the "Banana Doughnut Guy" made famous on TA. i didn't get the big deal about the doughnuts. The beach was pretty and empty as it was not a cruise ship day. No sand fleas was a bonus. It was the first time we had been there and would go back after morning dives if we ever go back to Roatan.
April 11
Texas
Max Depth 53feet/52 minutes
2-3 knot drift. Huge Barrel Sponges. Lots of Creole Wrasses
Turtle Crossing
Max Depth 69feet/60 Minutes
Lots of worms. Christmas Tree worms and Bearded Fire worms. Flamingo Tongue.
April 12
Hole in the Wall
Max Depth 123 feel/52 Minutes
Very fun to dive the whole to the bottom. Lots of little "swiss cheese" holes and canyons to swim through.
Felt like swimming through a maze.
Gibbon's
Max Depth 65feet/55 minutes
Mini Spooky Channel. Shrimp cleaning station. Big lion fish. very fun holes to swim through.
Each night after diving we went to Sundowners for happy hour. We spent almost as much money there as we did diving drinking mostly Port Royals and Flora de Cana Dark Rum and Pineapples. Our best meals were at the Rottiserie Chicken place and Tong's. Nothing else was that memorable and most expensive with the exception of the taco stand outside the Mares shop. I made most breakfast and lunches at our rental. We bought shrimp for dinner one night from the little yellow store across from lionfish louies and bought produce from the lady in the white shack across from the taxi circle.
All in all a great trip and we will be back in another few years.
We had a great trip to Roatan April 5th-13th. It was our 3rd trip back to the island and we were looking forward to getting some good diving in.
Robert, a cab driver we have worked with before, picked us up at the airport and waited for us while we shopped at Plaza Mar. If you are renting a house in West End or have a place with a kitchenette I highly encourage the stop. We found everything we could want in one store and were glad we did as the markets in West End leave little to desire. The cab ride including stop and watching of our luggage cost 25usd. We tipped generously on top of this.
We stayed at the Woodhouse just a few houses off the main road where the paving ends. West End Vacation Rental - VRBO 13160 - 2 BR Roatan House in Honduras, Vacation in Paradise in Roatan
Tanjah, the woman who runs many of the house rentals in town, met us at the house and showed us the property shortly after arrival. We have worked with her before and she recommended this place to us before we contacted the owner. We negotiated the rate with the owner over email as it was the end of high season and got a good discounted price for 8 days. The place didn't have air conditioning and one or two nights I wish we did, but I got over it. The house had everything else we needed and suited us well. Tanjah even provided us with a cell phone with a few minutes on it so we could contact her if needed. We used it for dive shop contact and to ask simple questions like "where do we toss the garbage". I do have to say even though they had a sand fly spraying system at the house we could activate any time we wanted we still needed bug spray to sit outside at night. Also the neighboring restaurant was loud. I'd stay here again if my first choice was booked as it was this time.
We got in 13 glorious dives between April 6-12 with Coconut Tree Divers. Scuba Diving | PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Center | Roatan, Bay Islands
This is the only shop we have dove with on Roatan and will most likely be the only shop we ever use. When we went to sign up for our dives many of the dive instructors remembered us by face as we arrived and we loved that feeling of returning to summer camp and seeing all the same old councilors. We were given lockers for our gear and we felt safe leaving it in the shop all week.
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...5/5869801285278308914?authkey=CKWg-sGbuLSppAE
We dove the following sites:
April 6th
Light House Reef
Max Depth 70feet/44 Minutes
Lots of surge so we stuck to the wall. Had a few leg cramps I worked out
Dixies
Max Depth 70feet/49 minutes
Turtles and barracudas
April 7
Seaquest
Max Depth 80feet/58 Minutes
Wonderful coral head dive. Squid
Vern's Drop Off/Formally Dive Master's Choice
Max Depth 65feet/59 Minutes
Named in honor of Captain Vern who ferried people between Utila and West End
Sweet Dive! Lazy Drift. Great Colors. Saw a turtle with a remora first time in 75 dives. Lion Fish and Small Electric Blue Feeder Shrimp were highlights.
April 8
West End Wall
Max Depth 119feet/56 Minutes
Lazy Drift. Might have felt narc'd for first time.
Diving keeps getting better!
El Aquario Deep
Max Depth 69feet/60 minutes
Lots of smalls. Christmas Tree Worms and Bearded Fire Worms
Tiny eels in coral heads. Turtle chasing Marco DM
April 9
The Wreck
Max Depth 107feet/38 minutes
This was a weird dive from start to end. One diver had trouble clearing ears and was lost for a bit but went down & surfaced with another group. DMT tossed own gear in water without adding air to BC and it sunk. DI retrieved it at bottom of wreck and sent it up. Dive was comp'd by CCT.
Second Dive ???
Max Depth 67feel/59 minutes
Night Dive
Blue Channel
Max Depth 64feet/ 52 minutes
Great night dive. No Moon! Slight drift. Free Swimming Spotted Eel. Brown, white spotted hunting octopus we watched for a while. Turned off lights to see bio luminaries and string of pearls.
We took the 10th off from diving and for 5USD each way took a water taxi to West Bay to lay on chairs at Beaches. They did not charge us for lounge chairs or umbrellas. They did not hound us for drinks, to the point my husband had to get up and ask for drinks. We had some very good coconut shrimp there. We also had a doughnut from the "Banana Doughnut Guy" made famous on TA. i didn't get the big deal about the doughnuts. The beach was pretty and empty as it was not a cruise ship day. No sand fleas was a bonus. It was the first time we had been there and would go back after morning dives if we ever go back to Roatan.
April 11
Texas
Max Depth 53feet/52 minutes
2-3 knot drift. Huge Barrel Sponges. Lots of Creole Wrasses
Turtle Crossing
Max Depth 69feet/60 Minutes
Lots of worms. Christmas Tree worms and Bearded Fire worms. Flamingo Tongue.
April 12
Hole in the Wall
Max Depth 123 feel/52 Minutes
Very fun to dive the whole to the bottom. Lots of little "swiss cheese" holes and canyons to swim through.
Felt like swimming through a maze.
Gibbon's
Max Depth 65feet/55 minutes
Mini Spooky Channel. Shrimp cleaning station. Big lion fish. very fun holes to swim through.
Each night after diving we went to Sundowners for happy hour. We spent almost as much money there as we did diving drinking mostly Port Royals and Flora de Cana Dark Rum and Pineapples. Our best meals were at the Rottiserie Chicken place and Tong's. Nothing else was that memorable and most expensive with the exception of the taco stand outside the Mares shop. I made most breakfast and lunches at our rental. We bought shrimp for dinner one night from the little yellow store across from lionfish louies and bought produce from the lady in the white shack across from the taxi circle.
All in all a great trip and we will be back in another few years.
