TXRoss
Registered
2011 Puerto Rico Trip Report
.
We just returned from a week (April 23 30) in Puerto Rico. Surprisingly, the island does not embrace scuba diving and no steps appear to be taken to protect the resource they have. The waters are over fished and the boats simply drop anchor on the reef.
We stayed the week in Humacao (UM-A-COW) and scheduled 5 dive days with Sea Ventures, which is based in Fajardo (FA-HAR-DOE) and does keep a boat in the marina in Palmas Del Mar in Humacao. However, they only dive out of there when they have enough interested people to make it worth it. Two tanks will cost you $109.99 on the first day. They give a 10% discount on day #2, 15% on day #3 and 20% on day #4.
The first day (Easter Sunday) we went out of Fajardo and rode 30 minutes in slightly rough water, with 15 other people with vastly different skill levels, to the first site, Sand Slides (75 foot max depth). This was after the stowaway cat fiasco that I wont bother to cover. The visibility was 30 50 feet and fish were virtually non-existent. The reef was also not very healthy, which was no surprise once I noticed the anchor chain being dragged back and forth across the reef top. The divemasters spent their dive attempting to kill a few Lionfish that are going to destroy the reef, a fact that I found very ironic considering their own personal practices. I finally did request that they allow me to shoot the creatures with my camera before they used their spearing stick. The dive lasted about 50 minutes before we were encouraged to surface. We then moved to the next site, Cayo Diablo (Devils Island)(55 foot max depth). This site was not great either, but better. Visibility was 50 70 feet. The only true items of interest was a 3 - 4 foot Nurse Shark and a Hawksbill Turtle. Due to several delays, our two tank morning trip ended at 3PM. After returning to our condo, we received a call from the dive operator informing us that the Mondays trip was cancelled due to weather, but that we would go out of Humacao on Tuesday.
We spent Monday seeing some of the island, which has beautiful inland and coastal scenery. Because PR is a US Territory, you will find most of your favorite stores and restaurants. The freeway system makes it fairly easy to travel most of the island. It should be noted that many of these roads require a $ .75 - $1.50 toll and be very careful not to end up in the wrong lane because you may find a $25 - $100 fine on your rental car bill when you turn it in. Trust me I have first hand knowledge. We spent most of the day in Old San Juan, which has an old Europe feel to it and numerous shops. The high point for me was self-touring the two old forts that are now historical landmarks and well worth the $3 per person entrance fee.
On Tuesday, we left from Humacao marina with fewer delays and 12 divers. As predicted, the seas were somewhat rougher than those around Fajardo. We dove on Islands on the Sand and Rooms. The overall diving here was much better, but still nowhere near the quality of Cozumel, Belize or the like. However, we did enjoy the dives much more than those out of Fajardo. On or way back to the dock we were able to secure enough interest to ensure another day out of Humacao. I contacted the shop coordinator and informed her that we had four divers lined up for Wednesday and she advised that she had two more, so Humacao was a go.
Just as we were prepared to head to the marina on Wednesday morning, we received a call informing us once again that the trip was cancelled due to weather. So, we decided to try to catch the ferry to Culebra (KA-LAY-BRA), one of PRs out islands. Unfortunately, the weather had gotten worse, so we were forced to abort. We then decided to drive to Ponce (PON-SAY), which is located on the south side of the island. Once there we found a nice boardwalk located on a marina next to a nice beach. The boardwalk did not have a lot of activity because it was a weekday, but we were told that it comes alive on the weekends. Overall, it was a nice place to waste a day. Once we got back we got another call from Sea Ventures informing us that Thursdays trip would be going out of Fajardo again. We were told that we could cancel our reservation, but being dedicated divers, we agreed to go.
On Thursday, we first went to Trench. The reef seemed a bit better than the first day, but the visibility was worse. Even the briefest stop resulted in your separation from the group. On the second dive, we once again went to Cayo Diablo. The day was not a total loss though because a local informed us that the best diving was located on the wall on the south side of the island between Guanica (GWAN-I-KA) and La Parguera (LA PA-GARE-A). He hooked us up with Santos at Island Scuba in Guanica and we reserved space on his boat for Friday at a cost of $95 for two tanks.
Friday morning we got up at 5AM and drove the 2 ¼ hours to Guanica. Did I mention that we were dedicated divers? Once there we met up with Divemasters Pedro and Franklin and crewmember Chris. All three guys were friendly and helpful. We took a short 15 minute ride with only four other divers out to our first site, Dominican Stump. A giant stride led to a 100 foot descent to the described spot on the wall. Once there, Pedro led the group on a very nice dive. Life was more abundant and healthier. They let you dive your profile. Safety was emphasized, but draconian restrictions were not applied. Three 6 foot green Morays were observed in the open along with several Lionfish, as well as they usual reef suspects. Next we went to a site called Andreas, a very nice reef at 50 feet. Once again Pedro led the group on an enjoyable dive, which consisted of him diligently creature hunting. Nothing out of the ordinary was observed, but overall it was healthy and occupied. Once back at the dock, we thanked (and tipped) out attentive guides and drove the 20 minutes to La Parguera, where we visited the two shops there, Paradise Divers and West Divers. Both operations seemed competent and charged the same $85 for two tanks. When asked were to stay they both recommended Villa Parguera, which from the outside is obviously not a 5 star resort, but options in the area are limited. In my opinion, it would do. After making the drive back and cleaning up a bit, we drove to Rio Grande to stop in at the home of the Puerto Rico Open, the Trump International Golf Course to pick up some souvenirs for my avid golfer son. They were extremely nice and accommodating there. If you like golf, you can play a round on the International course for $120 and the Championship Course (the same one the pros play on) for $165.
I hope this helps any of you wanting a no passport required US tropical vacation. I will close with my following recommendations.
Happy Diving,
Roger & Sherrie
We just returned from a week (April 23 30) in Puerto Rico. Surprisingly, the island does not embrace scuba diving and no steps appear to be taken to protect the resource they have. The waters are over fished and the boats simply drop anchor on the reef.
We stayed the week in Humacao (UM-A-COW) and scheduled 5 dive days with Sea Ventures, which is based in Fajardo (FA-HAR-DOE) and does keep a boat in the marina in Palmas Del Mar in Humacao. However, they only dive out of there when they have enough interested people to make it worth it. Two tanks will cost you $109.99 on the first day. They give a 10% discount on day #2, 15% on day #3 and 20% on day #4.
The first day (Easter Sunday) we went out of Fajardo and rode 30 minutes in slightly rough water, with 15 other people with vastly different skill levels, to the first site, Sand Slides (75 foot max depth). This was after the stowaway cat fiasco that I wont bother to cover. The visibility was 30 50 feet and fish were virtually non-existent. The reef was also not very healthy, which was no surprise once I noticed the anchor chain being dragged back and forth across the reef top. The divemasters spent their dive attempting to kill a few Lionfish that are going to destroy the reef, a fact that I found very ironic considering their own personal practices. I finally did request that they allow me to shoot the creatures with my camera before they used their spearing stick. The dive lasted about 50 minutes before we were encouraged to surface. We then moved to the next site, Cayo Diablo (Devils Island)(55 foot max depth). This site was not great either, but better. Visibility was 50 70 feet. The only true items of interest was a 3 - 4 foot Nurse Shark and a Hawksbill Turtle. Due to several delays, our two tank morning trip ended at 3PM. After returning to our condo, we received a call from the dive operator informing us that the Mondays trip was cancelled due to weather, but that we would go out of Humacao on Tuesday.
We spent Monday seeing some of the island, which has beautiful inland and coastal scenery. Because PR is a US Territory, you will find most of your favorite stores and restaurants. The freeway system makes it fairly easy to travel most of the island. It should be noted that many of these roads require a $ .75 - $1.50 toll and be very careful not to end up in the wrong lane because you may find a $25 - $100 fine on your rental car bill when you turn it in. Trust me I have first hand knowledge. We spent most of the day in Old San Juan, which has an old Europe feel to it and numerous shops. The high point for me was self-touring the two old forts that are now historical landmarks and well worth the $3 per person entrance fee.
On Tuesday, we left from Humacao marina with fewer delays and 12 divers. As predicted, the seas were somewhat rougher than those around Fajardo. We dove on Islands on the Sand and Rooms. The overall diving here was much better, but still nowhere near the quality of Cozumel, Belize or the like. However, we did enjoy the dives much more than those out of Fajardo. On or way back to the dock we were able to secure enough interest to ensure another day out of Humacao. I contacted the shop coordinator and informed her that we had four divers lined up for Wednesday and she advised that she had two more, so Humacao was a go.
Just as we were prepared to head to the marina on Wednesday morning, we received a call informing us once again that the trip was cancelled due to weather. So, we decided to try to catch the ferry to Culebra (KA-LAY-BRA), one of PRs out islands. Unfortunately, the weather had gotten worse, so we were forced to abort. We then decided to drive to Ponce (PON-SAY), which is located on the south side of the island. Once there we found a nice boardwalk located on a marina next to a nice beach. The boardwalk did not have a lot of activity because it was a weekday, but we were told that it comes alive on the weekends. Overall, it was a nice place to waste a day. Once we got back we got another call from Sea Ventures informing us that Thursdays trip would be going out of Fajardo again. We were told that we could cancel our reservation, but being dedicated divers, we agreed to go.
On Thursday, we first went to Trench. The reef seemed a bit better than the first day, but the visibility was worse. Even the briefest stop resulted in your separation from the group. On the second dive, we once again went to Cayo Diablo. The day was not a total loss though because a local informed us that the best diving was located on the wall on the south side of the island between Guanica (GWAN-I-KA) and La Parguera (LA PA-GARE-A). He hooked us up with Santos at Island Scuba in Guanica and we reserved space on his boat for Friday at a cost of $95 for two tanks.
Friday morning we got up at 5AM and drove the 2 ¼ hours to Guanica. Did I mention that we were dedicated divers? Once there we met up with Divemasters Pedro and Franklin and crewmember Chris. All three guys were friendly and helpful. We took a short 15 minute ride with only four other divers out to our first site, Dominican Stump. A giant stride led to a 100 foot descent to the described spot on the wall. Once there, Pedro led the group on a very nice dive. Life was more abundant and healthier. They let you dive your profile. Safety was emphasized, but draconian restrictions were not applied. Three 6 foot green Morays were observed in the open along with several Lionfish, as well as they usual reef suspects. Next we went to a site called Andreas, a very nice reef at 50 feet. Once again Pedro led the group on an enjoyable dive, which consisted of him diligently creature hunting. Nothing out of the ordinary was observed, but overall it was healthy and occupied. Once back at the dock, we thanked (and tipped) out attentive guides and drove the 20 minutes to La Parguera, where we visited the two shops there, Paradise Divers and West Divers. Both operations seemed competent and charged the same $85 for two tanks. When asked were to stay they both recommended Villa Parguera, which from the outside is obviously not a 5 star resort, but options in the area are limited. In my opinion, it would do. After making the drive back and cleaning up a bit, we drove to Rio Grande to stop in at the home of the Puerto Rico Open, the Trump International Golf Course to pick up some souvenirs for my avid golfer son. They were extremely nice and accommodating there. If you like golf, you can play a round on the International course for $120 and the Championship Course (the same one the pros play on) for $165.
I hope this helps any of you wanting a no passport required US tropical vacation. I will close with my following recommendations.
- Stay on the Southwest side of the island and plan your dives with Island Scuba and Paradise Divers.
- Take a look at Villa Parguera as a place to lay your head.
- Rent a car.
- Visit the Ponce boardwalk on a Saturday.
- Spend time in Old San Juan (especially at Castillo San Cristobal and Castillo San Felipe del Morro).
- Avoid diving on the east end and Sea Ventures. They are nice people, but seem to cater to inexperienced divers and the diving is not very good.
- If you are prone to seasickness, come prepared. PRs waters can get a bit rough.
Happy Diving,
Roger & Sherrie
