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My ears perked like those of a well trained cutting horse when I was asked if I might be interested in a group diving trip sponsored by Lubbocks Best Little Dive Shop In Texas to this delightful and secluded international resort Id enjoyed so much less than two years earlier, and I think my immediate reactions were simply: When? How much? You bet! I was soon booked, with all details being handled by The Shop and the Caprock Dive Clubs president Mindy, then regularly updated on all details by periodic emails, yet the months did drag on with my anticipation. Finally, the time approached
!!
Prepacking and the Phone Call
I had worked on packing and planning lists for weeks, then the last week I finally took my first malaria preventative and started staging all my warm water gear and making at least once direct call to the resort primarily to ensure I was leaving the correct number and international dialing instructions with family. The number in Rodales most recent directory was one digit short (its really difficult to tell with international numbers), but the one Mindy furnished worked fine, and I was then connected to the dive shop so I could advise of my Nitrox preferences. Passport, tickets and other documents all in order; over a hundred pounds of gear and a few pounds of shorts, T-shirts and swim suits packed; water treatment, a $10 Walmart coffee maker for my room, a pint of just in case Pepto Bismol and a host of other Over The Counter stuff for my hypochondriac bag; and I was ready with the days dragging on.
Getting There
It was easy enough. We were flying Sol the new Honduran airline operated by Falcon a Miami Florida charter company - originating out of DFW, and while they did not have ticketing and baggage agreements with any airline out of Lubbock American had pretty convenient flights to the same terminal. Many would object that this was not all that good of a connection, but when one is going from the Texas High Desert for great diving, this was no big deal: Sleep the 7:30 morning flight to DFW, gather bags on a cart to transport to the other end of the building, meet the 40 others in the group (The Shop had generously given us all special commenorative T-shirts and most had received the memo to wear them at DFW), grab lunch, and sleep the flight to the banana republic. No problem; Ive had worse just flying across Texas in thunderstorm season. I even recognized the other two who had been there before Danny & Brenda, whod been in my small group in September 01! Well, I didnt sleep all of the second flight, but there was a nice meal and free drinks including Salva Vida, the Honduran beer I grew to appreciate so last time. Started to feel like were almost there.
A FI rep met our flight, requested our passports and $2 each (forgot to ask exactly why; just glad to be there!), and took care of getting us and our stuff into the country. All I had to do was spray for insects, contribute to the bag handling tip pool and get on the bus; the bag truck followed close behind. No problems yet!!
The Hotel and Such
Checking in was easy enough for most as the hotel had our manifest: grab a free cocktail, present a credit card for incidentals, retrieve keys and passports, and wait for bags to appear in the correct rooms. I wasnt one of the lucky most, though, as mistakes do happen even with best laid plans. We had three of us single guys whod paid for private rooms, but the hotel had booked us three all in the same one barely big enough for two?! Bad deal, wouldnt work at all. With promises of separate rooms on the morrow and free extra excursions for each, the other two made do in the one room, and when I balked at being the third in the room, they suggested shipping me to a nearby hotel for the night. Not going to happen, was my response. I had traveled all day to be here, and I wanted to be here, with enough room to unpack and sort my gear for the morning dives. Mindy and The Shops owners Terry & Martha quickly backed me up, and management found me a bungalow on the property for the night. It worked out. We did dinner, then an orientation and paperwork meeting that night, and I had my own room before dive time the next morning.
Some didnt like the buffet meals, and while I agree they werent up to my memories, they were good - especially the dessets! Luxury in Central America isnt supposed to be the same as at Disneyland. I was not happy with the Honduran coffee, a complete lack of decaf, and powdered milk stirred into warm water on request, but we worked that out. I treated water and made coffee and decaf in my room, filled my thermos to carry everywhere (after diving 25% duty free Kaluha), and we compromised on the milk: Keep some made and cold for me! Done!
All in all, you just couldnt beat the overall deal: Connecting flights to and from Roatan the same day each way, special handling and ground transfers, a nice resort with spacious and well appointed rooms (air conditioning is important to me, but many local resorts dont offer it our did!), generally good meals, three boat dives and additional shore dives every day, and much more for very economical rates. Some of us did come down with a stomach bug, but it was just like the one Id had a month earlier in Texas, so I have no reason to think I got it at the resort; Im guessing we got it on the plane ride down which can happen anywhere. I just started hitting my pink med and kept diving. I did hear a few group members gripe, but no complaints I heard seem to have any reality.
Diving To Die For
I was happy to see Willy my dive master from my previous visit now running the dive show as assistant manager in part because Id long felt I hadnt tipped him and Robert, my previous trips captain, well enough. I introduced myself, explained my problem, and laid an extra $20 on him. He was impressed, and we shared old times from then on. Robert was now the shop manager, but ill, so hed have to wait a few days. When I did the same for him, his reaction was more humble, but we all felt good that I was able to make amends. A couple of great dudes different as day and night.
Our group was assigned two boats, with another Texas group from Houston taking a third, a fourth and fifth for the Italian group and other non-Texans at the resort, and no one suffered any crowding. Nitrox was tested; tanks, gear and divers were loaded; and we all got away almost on time from the first. My second challenge for the week was getting my mix anywhere where I wanted it and full tanks, but we worked through it. The dives were everything I remembered and others had read about, and more. Each group had a dive master in the water on every dive and a captain always on the boat by the radio great outside of U.S. safety protocols. I did voice disappointment that they didnt do a verbal roll call after the first dive, and from then on the manifest was checked out loud every time, before we left the dock or any site. I am yet dismayed at how close other boats would pass while we had divers in the water one actually tying up to ours on one dive, but some things you have to watch out for yourself when outside of the U.S.
Wed generally start on a delightful wall following one direction until any diver hit 1500 lbs, then head back over the top of the reef for an extended multilevel and safety stop a super wall dive one way, a great reef dive on the return, with mind boggling invertebrates, a multitude of tiny to small fishes, many medium to large. A 9am - 10 minute trip and dive, back to the dock to resupply for the 11am - 10 minute trip, lunch and two hour plus surface interval, 2:30pm dive trip for those sturdy enough for three - and one day five of us opted for a fourth!
We boarded the little skiff for a special sundown trip to drop in on The Prince Albert wreck just off FIs private key, and as we made the two minute trip, I asked if anyone else had ever done a back entry from a small boat? Okay, well its really easy, reviewing the simple technique; would you like to see me do one first? Played right into my ego, and we had a nice dive. I know that some need the first day to find their sea legs, but I was amazed that a few got seasick on those gentle rides; some had ear problems that slowed them down; Im more of a whatever it takes sort. I refuse to accept motion sickness, as its generally optional with the right behavior tools, and I carry hydrocortisone drops in case my ears hurt.
Id brought a 2x3 nylon Texas ensign for my boat, but couldnt find a good place to hang it. No problem; Willy made a flag pole and nailed it to the boat with The Lone Star flying high all week. On the fourth day, my boat took its turn going down to West End for a couple of drift dives and lunch at Half Moon Bay. Most rode the boat back, but I joined a family of four on a shared ride dropping off locals in the more interesting parts of old Coxen Hole, not an excursion Id recommend or repeat! I finally skipped an afternoon dive, sleeping until nearly suppertime, readying my gear for the next days crossing to Utilla!
It could have been my imagination, but some of the other divers and the staff seemed to treat me like I was some sort of hotshot? In review, it might have been because Id been there before, and Willy treated me like an old bud starting with the orientation meeting? It could have been my somewhat cavalier style? I asked one gal who mentioned me being a hot shot late in the week why she thought that, and she said it was all the gadgets on my BC? It was funny anyway, and I did enjoy the leeway. Im a self employed business man, and I did pass out my personal promo ballpoints and even a few calculators with my name on them throughout the week, so the staff all called me by name quickly enough.
Excursions
Some opted for extra cost trips offered by outside vendors, details handled by the lovely lobby concierge - a Shark Feeding Dive, Snorkeling or Diving with Dolphins, Island and Shopping Tours, and I chose the channel crossing to Utilla to hopefully dive with Whale Sharks fish the size of buses which swim slowly and eat nothing larger than shrimp. I would have paid the $100+ for the chance, but since the manager was paying for it, I dont remember what it cost.
I got my gear and Nitrox tanks ready early on the fifth morning, ate a quick breakfast (didnt want to cross a channel hungry!), then started to board the Coco View fast boat, but I looked around asking, Excuse me, but do you have life preservers? Oh no, we dont got none of those. I was floored, but I quickly ran back to my dive boat and borrowed a couple for the day. After that, I noticed the hombres seemed to be having some boat problems as we moved across the water, frowning when they tried to get more speed, and after a while we turned back, but we didnt make it. A little boat brought us fluid for the leaking transmission, and I thought about pouring five gallons into a hot transmission on a fiberglass boat. Ive seen a trans fluid fire, and I saw a boat burn once; really bad. I asked, but they didnt carry a fire extinguisher, either?! Thats when I donned my flotation device and offered one to the one minor on board without a parent. Fortunately, the feared explosion didnt happen, and we finally got back to our dock how does that Gilligan song go? after a three hour tour. They offered to get another boat and come back, but I doubt that any of us would ever get on another Coco View boat. We made the next two regularly scheduled boat dives for the day, and looked to book other ideas for the final full day.
So many booked the Snorkel with Dolphins that the group filled up, and I thought: Diving 32% EAN above 60 feet, more than 20 hours before my flight I should be okay, so I booked the morning Dolphin Dive. As it developed, the return plane was late, and I had plenty of time before flying. I was met at the Anthonys Key boat by one of their dive masters who explained that since it was my first time there, I had to pass a simple checkout dive. We both geared up and jumped in so I could demonstrate a few skills, but she forgot to turn her air on. Okay, I passed, you failed, but when I tell this story, I wont mention your name. The experience was neat, but one of the two dolphins, the one pictured on two of my Padi C-cards, had girlfriend problems and wasnt in the mood for tourists, so we played with the other one alone. We three single guys had rented a van for the day, so they could do the Dolphin Snorkel, and so we could all shop West End - getting back in the early afternoon to rinse and dry my gear one last time before packing for Texas.
Managers Party
They were obliged to feed us the last night, but the General Manager reserved the banquet room to give us a special dinner, complete with lots of free wine; yep, some of us got silly before it was over. I tried to take an out of the way spot, but soon I had the GM and his assistant (both from Spain) at one elbow, the club Pres on the other side of them, and The Shop owners at my other side. Felt like I was being overseen, but it was a nice time for all a very nice extra gesture on behalf of the resort.
Most of us turned out for the beach party after dinner. Personally, for a single Texas cowboy and former Marine over a thousand miles from home, I think I behaved okay for the week not mooning anyone until that seventh night! Some broke up into party & talk groups, but I think everyone turned in early to pack for the sunrise departure on the morrow.
Getting Back
Everyone was on time with packed bags at 6:30 the next morning, for while some of us didnt really want to leave, we all knew we had to catch the flight. Two vans and one bag truck convoyed back to the airport, and we each waited patiently in the hot terminal as bags were inspected and checked in. The nonfunctioning AC was finally started, but then - word was passed back along the line that the plane would be a few hours late. The AC never did really catch up, and we really worried when the power went out, but the generator and AC both started, and waiting continued. (Three of us in the group had had worse in that building before, waiting for a possible plane at the end of 9-11 bombing week.) But we finally got out, and I slept the flight back to DFW, cleared Immigration and Customs easily enough, rechecked with American, still made that flight (it was late, too), and made it back to Lubbock in time for dinner.
Would I go back next year? Certainly, but I think Ill take the scheduled ferry to Utilla after a few days at FI and book with a local lodge and dive center there!
And - special thanks to GBRANDON, for teaching me how to post this from computer memory. I am NOT a computer person, at all!
Prepacking and the Phone Call
I had worked on packing and planning lists for weeks, then the last week I finally took my first malaria preventative and started staging all my warm water gear and making at least once direct call to the resort primarily to ensure I was leaving the correct number and international dialing instructions with family. The number in Rodales most recent directory was one digit short (its really difficult to tell with international numbers), but the one Mindy furnished worked fine, and I was then connected to the dive shop so I could advise of my Nitrox preferences. Passport, tickets and other documents all in order; over a hundred pounds of gear and a few pounds of shorts, T-shirts and swim suits packed; water treatment, a $10 Walmart coffee maker for my room, a pint of just in case Pepto Bismol and a host of other Over The Counter stuff for my hypochondriac bag; and I was ready with the days dragging on.
Getting There
It was easy enough. We were flying Sol the new Honduran airline operated by Falcon a Miami Florida charter company - originating out of DFW, and while they did not have ticketing and baggage agreements with any airline out of Lubbock American had pretty convenient flights to the same terminal. Many would object that this was not all that good of a connection, but when one is going from the Texas High Desert for great diving, this was no big deal: Sleep the 7:30 morning flight to DFW, gather bags on a cart to transport to the other end of the building, meet the 40 others in the group (The Shop had generously given us all special commenorative T-shirts and most had received the memo to wear them at DFW), grab lunch, and sleep the flight to the banana republic. No problem; Ive had worse just flying across Texas in thunderstorm season. I even recognized the other two who had been there before Danny & Brenda, whod been in my small group in September 01! Well, I didnt sleep all of the second flight, but there was a nice meal and free drinks including Salva Vida, the Honduran beer I grew to appreciate so last time. Started to feel like were almost there.
A FI rep met our flight, requested our passports and $2 each (forgot to ask exactly why; just glad to be there!), and took care of getting us and our stuff into the country. All I had to do was spray for insects, contribute to the bag handling tip pool and get on the bus; the bag truck followed close behind. No problems yet!!
The Hotel and Such
Checking in was easy enough for most as the hotel had our manifest: grab a free cocktail, present a credit card for incidentals, retrieve keys and passports, and wait for bags to appear in the correct rooms. I wasnt one of the lucky most, though, as mistakes do happen even with best laid plans. We had three of us single guys whod paid for private rooms, but the hotel had booked us three all in the same one barely big enough for two?! Bad deal, wouldnt work at all. With promises of separate rooms on the morrow and free extra excursions for each, the other two made do in the one room, and when I balked at being the third in the room, they suggested shipping me to a nearby hotel for the night. Not going to happen, was my response. I had traveled all day to be here, and I wanted to be here, with enough room to unpack and sort my gear for the morning dives. Mindy and The Shops owners Terry & Martha quickly backed me up, and management found me a bungalow on the property for the night. It worked out. We did dinner, then an orientation and paperwork meeting that night, and I had my own room before dive time the next morning.
Some didnt like the buffet meals, and while I agree they werent up to my memories, they were good - especially the dessets! Luxury in Central America isnt supposed to be the same as at Disneyland. I was not happy with the Honduran coffee, a complete lack of decaf, and powdered milk stirred into warm water on request, but we worked that out. I treated water and made coffee and decaf in my room, filled my thermos to carry everywhere (after diving 25% duty free Kaluha), and we compromised on the milk: Keep some made and cold for me! Done!
All in all, you just couldnt beat the overall deal: Connecting flights to and from Roatan the same day each way, special handling and ground transfers, a nice resort with spacious and well appointed rooms (air conditioning is important to me, but many local resorts dont offer it our did!), generally good meals, three boat dives and additional shore dives every day, and much more for very economical rates. Some of us did come down with a stomach bug, but it was just like the one Id had a month earlier in Texas, so I have no reason to think I got it at the resort; Im guessing we got it on the plane ride down which can happen anywhere. I just started hitting my pink med and kept diving. I did hear a few group members gripe, but no complaints I heard seem to have any reality.
Diving To Die For
I was happy to see Willy my dive master from my previous visit now running the dive show as assistant manager in part because Id long felt I hadnt tipped him and Robert, my previous trips captain, well enough. I introduced myself, explained my problem, and laid an extra $20 on him. He was impressed, and we shared old times from then on. Robert was now the shop manager, but ill, so hed have to wait a few days. When I did the same for him, his reaction was more humble, but we all felt good that I was able to make amends. A couple of great dudes different as day and night.
Our group was assigned two boats, with another Texas group from Houston taking a third, a fourth and fifth for the Italian group and other non-Texans at the resort, and no one suffered any crowding. Nitrox was tested; tanks, gear and divers were loaded; and we all got away almost on time from the first. My second challenge for the week was getting my mix anywhere where I wanted it and full tanks, but we worked through it. The dives were everything I remembered and others had read about, and more. Each group had a dive master in the water on every dive and a captain always on the boat by the radio great outside of U.S. safety protocols. I did voice disappointment that they didnt do a verbal roll call after the first dive, and from then on the manifest was checked out loud every time, before we left the dock or any site. I am yet dismayed at how close other boats would pass while we had divers in the water one actually tying up to ours on one dive, but some things you have to watch out for yourself when outside of the U.S.
Wed generally start on a delightful wall following one direction until any diver hit 1500 lbs, then head back over the top of the reef for an extended multilevel and safety stop a super wall dive one way, a great reef dive on the return, with mind boggling invertebrates, a multitude of tiny to small fishes, many medium to large. A 9am - 10 minute trip and dive, back to the dock to resupply for the 11am - 10 minute trip, lunch and two hour plus surface interval, 2:30pm dive trip for those sturdy enough for three - and one day five of us opted for a fourth!
We boarded the little skiff for a special sundown trip to drop in on The Prince Albert wreck just off FIs private key, and as we made the two minute trip, I asked if anyone else had ever done a back entry from a small boat? Okay, well its really easy, reviewing the simple technique; would you like to see me do one first? Played right into my ego, and we had a nice dive. I know that some need the first day to find their sea legs, but I was amazed that a few got seasick on those gentle rides; some had ear problems that slowed them down; Im more of a whatever it takes sort. I refuse to accept motion sickness, as its generally optional with the right behavior tools, and I carry hydrocortisone drops in case my ears hurt.
Id brought a 2x3 nylon Texas ensign for my boat, but couldnt find a good place to hang it. No problem; Willy made a flag pole and nailed it to the boat with The Lone Star flying high all week. On the fourth day, my boat took its turn going down to West End for a couple of drift dives and lunch at Half Moon Bay. Most rode the boat back, but I joined a family of four on a shared ride dropping off locals in the more interesting parts of old Coxen Hole, not an excursion Id recommend or repeat! I finally skipped an afternoon dive, sleeping until nearly suppertime, readying my gear for the next days crossing to Utilla!
It could have been my imagination, but some of the other divers and the staff seemed to treat me like I was some sort of hotshot? In review, it might have been because Id been there before, and Willy treated me like an old bud starting with the orientation meeting? It could have been my somewhat cavalier style? I asked one gal who mentioned me being a hot shot late in the week why she thought that, and she said it was all the gadgets on my BC? It was funny anyway, and I did enjoy the leeway. Im a self employed business man, and I did pass out my personal promo ballpoints and even a few calculators with my name on them throughout the week, so the staff all called me by name quickly enough.
Excursions
Some opted for extra cost trips offered by outside vendors, details handled by the lovely lobby concierge - a Shark Feeding Dive, Snorkeling or Diving with Dolphins, Island and Shopping Tours, and I chose the channel crossing to Utilla to hopefully dive with Whale Sharks fish the size of buses which swim slowly and eat nothing larger than shrimp. I would have paid the $100+ for the chance, but since the manager was paying for it, I dont remember what it cost.
I got my gear and Nitrox tanks ready early on the fifth morning, ate a quick breakfast (didnt want to cross a channel hungry!), then started to board the Coco View fast boat, but I looked around asking, Excuse me, but do you have life preservers? Oh no, we dont got none of those. I was floored, but I quickly ran back to my dive boat and borrowed a couple for the day. After that, I noticed the hombres seemed to be having some boat problems as we moved across the water, frowning when they tried to get more speed, and after a while we turned back, but we didnt make it. A little boat brought us fluid for the leaking transmission, and I thought about pouring five gallons into a hot transmission on a fiberglass boat. Ive seen a trans fluid fire, and I saw a boat burn once; really bad. I asked, but they didnt carry a fire extinguisher, either?! Thats when I donned my flotation device and offered one to the one minor on board without a parent. Fortunately, the feared explosion didnt happen, and we finally got back to our dock how does that Gilligan song go? after a three hour tour. They offered to get another boat and come back, but I doubt that any of us would ever get on another Coco View boat. We made the next two regularly scheduled boat dives for the day, and looked to book other ideas for the final full day.
So many booked the Snorkel with Dolphins that the group filled up, and I thought: Diving 32% EAN above 60 feet, more than 20 hours before my flight I should be okay, so I booked the morning Dolphin Dive. As it developed, the return plane was late, and I had plenty of time before flying. I was met at the Anthonys Key boat by one of their dive masters who explained that since it was my first time there, I had to pass a simple checkout dive. We both geared up and jumped in so I could demonstrate a few skills, but she forgot to turn her air on. Okay, I passed, you failed, but when I tell this story, I wont mention your name. The experience was neat, but one of the two dolphins, the one pictured on two of my Padi C-cards, had girlfriend problems and wasnt in the mood for tourists, so we played with the other one alone. We three single guys had rented a van for the day, so they could do the Dolphin Snorkel, and so we could all shop West End - getting back in the early afternoon to rinse and dry my gear one last time before packing for Texas.
Managers Party
They were obliged to feed us the last night, but the General Manager reserved the banquet room to give us a special dinner, complete with lots of free wine; yep, some of us got silly before it was over. I tried to take an out of the way spot, but soon I had the GM and his assistant (both from Spain) at one elbow, the club Pres on the other side of them, and The Shop owners at my other side. Felt like I was being overseen, but it was a nice time for all a very nice extra gesture on behalf of the resort.
Most of us turned out for the beach party after dinner. Personally, for a single Texas cowboy and former Marine over a thousand miles from home, I think I behaved okay for the week not mooning anyone until that seventh night! Some broke up into party & talk groups, but I think everyone turned in early to pack for the sunrise departure on the morrow.
Getting Back
Everyone was on time with packed bags at 6:30 the next morning, for while some of us didnt really want to leave, we all knew we had to catch the flight. Two vans and one bag truck convoyed back to the airport, and we each waited patiently in the hot terminal as bags were inspected and checked in. The nonfunctioning AC was finally started, but then - word was passed back along the line that the plane would be a few hours late. The AC never did really catch up, and we really worried when the power went out, but the generator and AC both started, and waiting continued. (Three of us in the group had had worse in that building before, waiting for a possible plane at the end of 9-11 bombing week.) But we finally got out, and I slept the flight back to DFW, cleared Immigration and Customs easily enough, rechecked with American, still made that flight (it was late, too), and made it back to Lubbock in time for dinner.
Would I go back next year? Certainly, but I think Ill take the scheduled ferry to Utilla after a few days at FI and book with a local lodge and dive center there!
And - special thanks to GBRANDON, for teaching me how to post this from computer memory. I am NOT a computer person, at all!
