Looking at 4 week Playa Ocotal / Costa Rica trip in Dec 2014 - any advice?

[cephalopod2]

I'm looking at a 4 week land-based Costa Rica dive trip in Dec 2014, centred in Playa Ocotal, and am hoping for some advice from divers who have been there.

Background: I have dove Cocos, Malpelo, multiple trips to Galapagos. I believe the best land-based CR diving is the Bat and Cat Islands. I have researched Isla del Cano but it looks like significant trouble to get there. While pelagics are always nice, my primary interest in this trip is to see any creatures I have not seen before. So far I have flagged the round stingray (Urobatis halleri), Hypselodoris agassizii, Tambja abdere, Tambja eliora. I have dove with bull sharks in Cuba and Fiji so while I'd love to dive the Bat Islands, that's not a must have. Running into a megaschool of bat rays would be incredible, but I know chances are slim.

Any suggestions, even on only one of these questions, would be gratefully received:

1. Will I actually be able to dive Bat + Cats in Dec 10-Jan 10 timeframe?
Rocket Frog writes: "For the most part, diving is only possible at the Bat Islands from May until November." The Cats look more promising "Our dive shop also dives the Catalina Islands year round, meaning there is never a down time." However I am travelling solo for the first half of the trip -- will there be enough divers around for dive ops to go over?

2. Any recommendations for great macro-centred dive guides - at any op?
Round rays seem common, the nudis I listed not so much. AFAI can tell, the region seems to be mostly about casual diving rather than serious critter hunting. I'm a little worried about short bottom times (I consider 60 min a minimum) with DMs pointing out common animals.

3. Any suggestions for a 2nd dive location I could add that would not be a PITA to get to?
Cocos et al are all beyond this trip's budget. I could even make a stop on the way down to CR from North America, but I haven't been able to find a place where it looks like the extra travel logistics would be worth it. I would consider Isla del Cano if there was a reasonable way to get there ie. that didn't involve a full day of travel each way. I am currently looking at flying direct into Liberia.

4. Is 4 weeks' land-based diving out of Playa Ocotal too much?
Even with mucho neoprene I get pretty cold in temps below 80, especially when SIs are on the boat (wet swimsuits). I suspect many of the local sites are pretty similar in terms of wildlife. My usual MO is multiple daily dives.

5. Any suggestions for special topside trips beyond the usual list touted by the hotels?
I did Monteverdi and Arenal areas after Cocos and really enjoyed them, but I don't know this area as well. We would consider relocating for a few days for topside touring but would want it to be different enough from the standard Ocotal-offered tours to be 'worth it'.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ukdave0]

I went to Playa Del Coco last January, dove with Rich Coast Diving. Only dove the local dive sites, trips to the Islands weren't offered. Water temp. was a balmy 66 F (no thermocline at all, 66 from top to bottom). Visibility was about 1 to 3 feet (best to stay close enough to guide dive to occasionally get kicked in the head).
Best part of the trip was the 90 F, sunny skies during the surface intervals and the night life.

 

[cephalopod2]

Well ukdave if your intent was to nearly give me a heart attack you succeeded. My friend had dove the area in Jan 2014 with Suunto temps of 79-81 - I was expecting maybe mid 70s, yes with low vis and choppier surface.

Rocket Frog tells me current temps are 73-77 with 67-69 beneath visible thermoclines (i.e. you can dive around the thermoclines). Who knows if temps will hold there for 4 weeks. I wear a 7mm + 5/7 hooded vest in 80 degree water, so certainly not my ideal, but at least most of the time it will hopefully be above 70.

WRT Cat Islands, Rocket Frog says they make it there year round, so with peak visitors over Christmas break hopefully they will run a couple trips. They are even hopeful about running 1 trip to Bats given diver demand. I checked out basing myself in Tamarindo since ironically it looked like they made Cat Island trips more frequently and with a lower minimum number of divers. But the combination of shorter dive time limits, zero chance of Bats and it appears a less knowledgeable op has me reconsidering.

In any case thanks for the splash of cold, low vis water - always better to have reasonable expectations IMO.

 

[Steve the Baker]

Do not be scared off by UKDave. I have many times in January and the water temp is in the mid to upper 70's. I usually dive a 5 mill suit to stay extra toasty. The dive guide you would be looking for is Maurin from Rich Coast Diving. I Love Macro Diving and she is a Critter Hunters Dream.It is one of her favorite things and is Amazing at it. I prefer winter diving at Cats than summer at Bats. You do lose some vis in the winter but the payoff is Manta Rays. The wall at Cat is Stunning and loaded with life. Have tem take you to a site called Widow near Cat. You will be chared by hundreds of Angel Fish and Thousands of Butterfly Fish during the dive.I do have some Trip Reports about this area. I prefer staying in town.You are gonna have a Great Month.

 

[LiquidDivingAdventure]

My wife and I took a trip to Costa Rica about 3 years ago. I learned how big the country is and how much there is to see. We did 10 days and could have spent a month. We stayed at Si Como No on the south west coast near Manuel Antonio. The trip was no dive-centric but I did hope to get in the water. Unfortunately it was rainy season and no dive op was running. Seems it was the time when boats were overhauled, annual maintenance. Most fun we had was on a zip line, did both day and night trips. Flying between trees in the black of night was amazing. The drivers in CR are a bit crazy and pass every chance they get. We would see and accident along side the road and drivers were still driving like the Indy 500. I would love to go back and try different areas, Playa Octal being one.

 

[Costa Reefing]

If it helps ives seen both those nudis in herradura, central pacific CR. Here are some shots i got of them and a 3rd nudi that may interest you, im not sure on the id though

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[cephalopod2]

CR this is great - you have given me hope. No one at any of the dive ops I contacted seems to have any confidence about finding these nudis. Muchas gracias.

Your third nudi is Glossodoris sedna . I didn't list it originally bc I thought I had seen them in Indonesia, but the guide books don't suggest they are seen there. So either the guide books are wrong on distribution (something several marine biologists working in Indo have told me in the past), or what I saw was a species which looks similar.

If it helps ives seen both those nudis in herradura, central pacific CR. Here are some shots i got of them and a 3rd nudi that may interest you, im not sure on the id though

---------- Post added December 2nd, 2014 at 11:49 AM ----------

Steve thanks so much for the tips re. guides and dive sites. Can you point me to your trip reports? I would love to read them but can't seem to find them. I had run several searches here and in another 2 forums before I posted. I will try to find out if Maurin is still working with RCD.

Do not be scared off by UKDave. I have many times in January and the water temp is in the mid to upper 70's. I usually dive a 5 mill suit to stay extra toasty. The dive guide you would be looking for is Maurin from Rich Coast Diving. I Love Macro Diving and she is a Critter Hunters Dream.It is one of her favorite things and is Amazing at it. I prefer winter diving at Cats than summer at Bats. You do lose some vis in the winter but the payoff is Manta Rays. The wall at Cat is Stunning and loaded with life. Have tem take you to a site called Widow near Cat. You will be chared by hundreds of Angel Fish and Thousands of Butterfly Fish during the dive.I do have some Trip Reports about this area. I prefer staying in town.You are gonna have a Great Month.

 

[Steve the Baker]

Glad I can help out. My trip reports were posted on March 14th 2012 & Jan. 17th 2013. Maurin is still working at Rich Coast Diving. One site I like for macro is Corrida. A small mount just outside the harbor. The top of the mount around 30-40ft. has always been my afternoon go to spot for macro. I spend the whole dive in the growth. Have had 3 different color Sea Horses in 6ft. of each other. Enjoy Enjoy!!! Call Brenda at RCD. She is Amazing and can answer any questions.

 

[Costa Reefing]

CR this is great - you have given me hope. No one at any of the dive ops I contacted seems to have any confidence about finding these nudis. Muchas gracias.

No dive shop here will guarentee you see things like seahorses, frogfish, nudis or any other macro critter for that fact. Seasonal divemaster guides and tourists come out here to see big animals so instead of having theirs heads in the rocks looking for critters they look up and into the open for the chance to see something like a manta ray.

It will be up to you to look for these little guys but since you seem to be familiar with what you are looking for, it should be easier to spot them. We have several gobies, crabs, shrimp that are pretty interesting too.

If you happen to be around, il most likely be diveing herradura this weekend and playas del coco the following weekend

 

[cephalopod2]

Hey CR,
Good to know. I was never seeking a "guarantee" - simply asking for information from the people who dive there every week. Even in nearby regions in e.g. Indonesia, there are places one should expect to see multiple nudi species every dive, and other places you'd be lucky to see even a single nudi in a dive due to the habitat. I've also dove places where nudi density is seasonal. That's all I was trying to find out - do good ops see these nudis once a week, or once a month, once every 6 months or what. My seek list this trip is going to be short - just species I haven't seen in Asia.

Not in CR yet but will send you a PM.