ktarlecky
Guest
Hello all. My brothers and I just returned from a two-week dive vacation. We were in the British Virgin Islands and logged 17 dives. The following is a report of each of the dives we completed. We dove off our private boat and stayed on the island of Jost Van Dyke. Each day we ventured out to Blue Water Divers on Tortola to pick up tanks and decided where we were going to dive that day. By the way, Blue Water did an excellent job. Keith, owner of Blue water, and the other employees are great. We just rented tanks from the shop and they were in good condition. They provided extra o-rings with each tank, which was nice. However we only needed to use them once because the tanks were well maintained. Anyway back to report.... My brother is posting pictures from the trip, which he took with his digital camera, in a response to this thread.
May 16 - The Indians off Norman Island
Just about a 25-minute ride from Sopers Hole ,Tortola, the indians is a top ten BVI dive site. Although this site tends to be a little overcrowded and mooring availability can sometimes be a problem, we were lucky and there was only one other boat. This site consists of 4 boulders extending about 40'about the surface and 40' below the surface. Dive depths are between 35'-55'. Me maxed at 52' for this dive. Current was light although we have dived this site when we felt like we were "flying" through the water. Typical fish on this site are tangs, doctors, angles, grunts and damsels. Also i have seen large palegics (reef and nurse shark) and barracuddas on previous trips to this location. You can circumnavigate this location but it gets really shallow (15') on the far side.
May 16 (dive #2) - Rainbow Canyon off Pelican Island
Literally a hop away from the Indians is Rainbow Canyon. This site is a typical spur and groove coral formation dive location. Also had large areas of huge boulders whcih opened up to a large canyon. Very pretty and a very healthy reef consisting of soft and hard corals. I saw a seahorse at this location hiding out underneath a ledge. This site is perfect for a second dive with depths ranging from 25'-45'. We maxed out at 35' for this dive. My brother Ben was not feeling well so be ended the dive a bit early. Saw a beautiful pair of french angles. Typical fish include spotlight parrots, blue tangs and damsels.
May 17 - White Bay Ledges West - Jost Van Dyke
Today was the first dive I ever did on my birthday. This site is a mini-wall (hence the name) with depths ranging from 20'-65'. The coral wall drops down to a sand bottom at 65'. Visabilty tends to be low on this site because there is little current and tons on zoo plankton floating about. Typical fish on this location include barracuddas, spotted drums, cow fish (my favorite) and groupers. Also we always see lobster on this dive. By the way...this is an unoffical BVI dive site. We made up the name ourselves and have been diving this location for years. Therefore, there are no other divers and this site. Access to this site can be a shore dive or a boat dive. We swam out on the surface and decsended over the wall.
May 18 - Playground - Little Jost Van Dyke & Green Cay
This site is only accessable in the summer months in the BVI. It faces open ocean and is susceptiable to swells and tough current. Large palegics are almost garunteed to be sighted here although we did not catch a glimpse of one this dive. Keith owner of Blue Water once spotted a 14' Macko. Mooring is in about 40' of water over a nice coral reef. Depths range from 40'-80'. We maxed out at 62'. Follow to northern coast of Green Cay to a huge boulder field. The other nice thing about this site is that there is only one mooring and the site is empty. I spotted french angles, barracudda, wrasse, jacks and tangs. Navagation can be a little tricky on this site.
May 19 - The Nursery - Great Thatch
You have to anchor in the sandy spots to access this reef dive. This is a dive you do for 50-minutes or more if it is the only dive you are logging that day. Depths range from 30'-60'. We maxed out at 40' and dove for 58-minutes. Corals, both hard and soft, were very healthy. Once again we were alone on the dive site. Lots a barracuddas, french angles, rays, tangs, sergents and pretty purple feather dusters. This site is great for the novice diver but is a nice relaxing dive for all abilities. Another bonus is that this site is only 5-miniutes from the dive shop.
May 21 - The Nursery - Great Thatch
We decided to dive this location again because Ben loved the photo opportunites and because it was a beautiful dive. Highlight this dive was that we came across a ton of very rare black sea fans and a family of huge frech angles. Male was atleast 2 1/2 feet and THICK!
May 22 - Mary L & Pat - Cooper Island
Alex was pushing to do some wrecks so why not get three done at once. This secluded dive site lays in open ocean. Dive depths range from 40'-90'. Mooring is in about 40' of water. In about 60' lays the Breta. THis is a huge tug boat that is fairly intact that you can penetrate if you want. A short swim from the Breta will lead you to the Mary L and Pat. These side by side wrecks lay on teh sand bottom in 90'. Wrecks could easily be circumnavigated but to be honest with you i was much more impressed with the Breta. Highlight was a beautiful spotted eagle ray. Visability was about 50' and we maxed out at a depth of 75'.
May 22 (second dive) - Anglefish Reef - Norman Island
This was a very nice dive site that is located on the south-west corner of Norman Island. With only 2 moorings it is an empty site. This dive has tons of boulders and canyons to explore. There is also a reef that slowly dips away into open ocean. We saw a black tip reef shark. It saw us and took off. In my opinion this site should be called Parrotfish reef because they were everywhere! Depths range from 40'-65'. We maxed out in 48'.
May 23 - White Bay Ledges - Center - Jost Van Dyke
The wall is very large and it actually must be done in three dives. The mid-section of the wall is the deepest and most interesting. There are quite a few caves for exploration. Ben and i tried to repair some of the corals on this dive because the bay had been experiencing heavy ground seas for about 3 days which caused some of the coarls to brak loose. Hopefully some of them reattached.
May 24 - The Nursery - Great Tatch
Did i mention to you that we loved this location? It was very peaceful and pretty. This time we had thoudsands of frys on the site. It was pretty neat to look up and see them scatter around the bubbles. Usual sights other than that. We maxed out at 44'.
May 25 - White Bay Ledges - Center - Jost Van Dyke
We were forced to dive the wall again rather than skip a day because the seas have not been cooperating. Big swells and ground seas have kept us close to home. We did see a very cute family of 4 lobsters (how can anyone eat them?
) They even let us touch them. Other than that, usual sites. Maxed out at 58'.
May 26 - Anglefish Reef - Norman Island
This was the first dive vacation that we dove this site. I really think you have to dive a site several times to get a good feel for it. Besides its not really about how many differernt sites, it is about the quality of the dive. Maxed out at 58'. The boys were hoping for another shark but alas no shark came. This time angles were out. pretty bi-color and queens. Very good viabiltity and mild current.
May 26 - (second dive) Rainbow Canyon - Pelican Island
Due to its proximity to Anglefish reef we decided to dive Rainbow Canyon again. Ben was not feeling well the last time and we wanted a second opportunity to see this site. Maxed out at 38'. Great gorgonias and anenomes at this site.
May 27 - White Bay Ledges - East - Jost Van Dyke.
We anchored just inside the wall because you cannot do a beach entry on this side. Very rare black lace coral is all over this site. We maxed out at 60' and dove for 55-minutes. Zoo plankton really affected visability. All in all nice dive.
May 28 - RMS Rhone - Bow - Salt Island
We have dove this site several times over the years but this was our first experience diving the bow. The actual dive site is impeccable but it is a diver zoo. There must have been 30 other divers on the wreck at the same time we were. There was a huge group of "discovery scuba diver", atleast i hope thats what they were beause if not they were horrid divers. I almost got a fin to the face from a diver who had no boyancy control! Too bad because the site is awesome. The bow is intact and lies on its side. You can penetrate the bow. We maxed out at 71' for 32-miniutes. Great fish and corals. This is a national park and the fish are a little over friendly...hmmm you think any divers are feeding the fish? The yellow snappers practically stalk you! Because of the overcrowed site and the fact that we have dove the stern at least 6 times we decided to go to another site for the second dive.
May 28 - (second dive) Indians - Norman Island
Always a favorite we decided to dive the indians again. We had to wait for a mooring for about 10-minutes. We were also chased off our mooring almost immediatly upon surfacing by a captained charter who must have been stalking our bubbles. Spotted a spotted eel, jacks, permits, queen and bi-color angles and trumpets. We maxed out at 47' fro 51-minutes.
May 29 - The Nursery - Great Tatch.
This was our last dive for this trip and we wanted to do something that was close in proximity to home and the dive shop. We also wanted to do a long dive for the last time. We maxed out at 41' for 64-minutes. I found my brothers integrated weight that he lost at the site a week ago on the bottom!
All in all we had a great dive trip. The BVI is a great place for novice and intermediate divers. If you are ever planning a trip to the BVI please do not hesitate to contact either myself or reeferben (my brother). We have been visiting the BVI since 1980 and will continue to visit in the future. Hope this has been informative to our fellow divers. By the way....we only did a handful of the available site in the BVI. Check out the lonely planet guide for other dive sites. Peace and Diving!
Kadi & Ben
May 16 - The Indians off Norman Island
Just about a 25-minute ride from Sopers Hole ,Tortola, the indians is a top ten BVI dive site. Although this site tends to be a little overcrowded and mooring availability can sometimes be a problem, we were lucky and there was only one other boat. This site consists of 4 boulders extending about 40'about the surface and 40' below the surface. Dive depths are between 35'-55'. Me maxed at 52' for this dive. Current was light although we have dived this site when we felt like we were "flying" through the water. Typical fish on this site are tangs, doctors, angles, grunts and damsels. Also i have seen large palegics (reef and nurse shark) and barracuddas on previous trips to this location. You can circumnavigate this location but it gets really shallow (15') on the far side.
May 16 (dive #2) - Rainbow Canyon off Pelican Island
Literally a hop away from the Indians is Rainbow Canyon. This site is a typical spur and groove coral formation dive location. Also had large areas of huge boulders whcih opened up to a large canyon. Very pretty and a very healthy reef consisting of soft and hard corals. I saw a seahorse at this location hiding out underneath a ledge. This site is perfect for a second dive with depths ranging from 25'-45'. We maxed out at 35' for this dive. My brother Ben was not feeling well so be ended the dive a bit early. Saw a beautiful pair of french angles. Typical fish include spotlight parrots, blue tangs and damsels.
May 17 - White Bay Ledges West - Jost Van Dyke
Today was the first dive I ever did on my birthday. This site is a mini-wall (hence the name) with depths ranging from 20'-65'. The coral wall drops down to a sand bottom at 65'. Visabilty tends to be low on this site because there is little current and tons on zoo plankton floating about. Typical fish on this location include barracuddas, spotted drums, cow fish (my favorite) and groupers. Also we always see lobster on this dive. By the way...this is an unoffical BVI dive site. We made up the name ourselves and have been diving this location for years. Therefore, there are no other divers and this site. Access to this site can be a shore dive or a boat dive. We swam out on the surface and decsended over the wall.
May 18 - Playground - Little Jost Van Dyke & Green Cay
This site is only accessable in the summer months in the BVI. It faces open ocean and is susceptiable to swells and tough current. Large palegics are almost garunteed to be sighted here although we did not catch a glimpse of one this dive. Keith owner of Blue Water once spotted a 14' Macko. Mooring is in about 40' of water over a nice coral reef. Depths range from 40'-80'. We maxed out at 62'. Follow to northern coast of Green Cay to a huge boulder field. The other nice thing about this site is that there is only one mooring and the site is empty. I spotted french angles, barracudda, wrasse, jacks and tangs. Navagation can be a little tricky on this site.
May 19 - The Nursery - Great Thatch
You have to anchor in the sandy spots to access this reef dive. This is a dive you do for 50-minutes or more if it is the only dive you are logging that day. Depths range from 30'-60'. We maxed out at 40' and dove for 58-minutes. Corals, both hard and soft, were very healthy. Once again we were alone on the dive site. Lots a barracuddas, french angles, rays, tangs, sergents and pretty purple feather dusters. This site is great for the novice diver but is a nice relaxing dive for all abilities. Another bonus is that this site is only 5-miniutes from the dive shop.
May 21 - The Nursery - Great Thatch
We decided to dive this location again because Ben loved the photo opportunites and because it was a beautiful dive. Highlight this dive was that we came across a ton of very rare black sea fans and a family of huge frech angles. Male was atleast 2 1/2 feet and THICK!
May 22 - Mary L & Pat - Cooper Island
Alex was pushing to do some wrecks so why not get three done at once. This secluded dive site lays in open ocean. Dive depths range from 40'-90'. Mooring is in about 40' of water. In about 60' lays the Breta. THis is a huge tug boat that is fairly intact that you can penetrate if you want. A short swim from the Breta will lead you to the Mary L and Pat. These side by side wrecks lay on teh sand bottom in 90'. Wrecks could easily be circumnavigated but to be honest with you i was much more impressed with the Breta. Highlight was a beautiful spotted eagle ray. Visability was about 50' and we maxed out at a depth of 75'.
May 22 (second dive) - Anglefish Reef - Norman Island
This was a very nice dive site that is located on the south-west corner of Norman Island. With only 2 moorings it is an empty site. This dive has tons of boulders and canyons to explore. There is also a reef that slowly dips away into open ocean. We saw a black tip reef shark. It saw us and took off. In my opinion this site should be called Parrotfish reef because they were everywhere! Depths range from 40'-65'. We maxed out in 48'.
May 23 - White Bay Ledges - Center - Jost Van Dyke
The wall is very large and it actually must be done in three dives. The mid-section of the wall is the deepest and most interesting. There are quite a few caves for exploration. Ben and i tried to repair some of the corals on this dive because the bay had been experiencing heavy ground seas for about 3 days which caused some of the coarls to brak loose. Hopefully some of them reattached.
May 24 - The Nursery - Great Tatch
Did i mention to you that we loved this location? It was very peaceful and pretty. This time we had thoudsands of frys on the site. It was pretty neat to look up and see them scatter around the bubbles. Usual sights other than that. We maxed out at 44'.
May 25 - White Bay Ledges - Center - Jost Van Dyke
We were forced to dive the wall again rather than skip a day because the seas have not been cooperating. Big swells and ground seas have kept us close to home. We did see a very cute family of 4 lobsters (how can anyone eat them?
) They even let us touch them. Other than that, usual sites. Maxed out at 58'.May 26 - Anglefish Reef - Norman Island
This was the first dive vacation that we dove this site. I really think you have to dive a site several times to get a good feel for it. Besides its not really about how many differernt sites, it is about the quality of the dive. Maxed out at 58'. The boys were hoping for another shark but alas no shark came. This time angles were out. pretty bi-color and queens. Very good viabiltity and mild current.
May 26 - (second dive) Rainbow Canyon - Pelican Island
Due to its proximity to Anglefish reef we decided to dive Rainbow Canyon again. Ben was not feeling well the last time and we wanted a second opportunity to see this site. Maxed out at 38'. Great gorgonias and anenomes at this site.
May 27 - White Bay Ledges - East - Jost Van Dyke.
We anchored just inside the wall because you cannot do a beach entry on this side. Very rare black lace coral is all over this site. We maxed out at 60' and dove for 55-minutes. Zoo plankton really affected visability. All in all nice dive.
May 28 - RMS Rhone - Bow - Salt Island
We have dove this site several times over the years but this was our first experience diving the bow. The actual dive site is impeccable but it is a diver zoo. There must have been 30 other divers on the wreck at the same time we were. There was a huge group of "discovery scuba diver", atleast i hope thats what they were beause if not they were horrid divers. I almost got a fin to the face from a diver who had no boyancy control! Too bad because the site is awesome. The bow is intact and lies on its side. You can penetrate the bow. We maxed out at 71' for 32-miniutes. Great fish and corals. This is a national park and the fish are a little over friendly...hmmm you think any divers are feeding the fish? The yellow snappers practically stalk you! Because of the overcrowed site and the fact that we have dove the stern at least 6 times we decided to go to another site for the second dive.
May 28 - (second dive) Indians - Norman Island
Always a favorite we decided to dive the indians again. We had to wait for a mooring for about 10-minutes. We were also chased off our mooring almost immediatly upon surfacing by a captained charter who must have been stalking our bubbles. Spotted a spotted eel, jacks, permits, queen and bi-color angles and trumpets. We maxed out at 47' fro 51-minutes.
May 29 - The Nursery - Great Tatch.
This was our last dive for this trip and we wanted to do something that was close in proximity to home and the dive shop. We also wanted to do a long dive for the last time. We maxed out at 41' for 64-minutes. I found my brothers integrated weight that he lost at the site a week ago on the bottom!
All in all we had a great dive trip. The BVI is a great place for novice and intermediate divers. If you are ever planning a trip to the BVI please do not hesitate to contact either myself or reeferben (my brother). We have been visiting the BVI since 1980 and will continue to visit in the future. Hope this has been informative to our fellow divers. By the way....we only did a handful of the available site in the BVI. Check out the lonely planet guide for other dive sites. Peace and Diving!
Kadi & Ben
