hdtran
Geography Police
So, I'm back, and my skin is unwrinkling. Not all the way back to teenage-smooth, but at least, to not water-logged wrinkly. This is my second trip to Cocoview, and I enjoyed it greatly. 5 dives a day without huge effort; thanks to Doc (the entity formerly known as RoatanMan), I'll know the next time that I am assaulted by wriggly red worms in the water column at night, I can use my light to feed corals and lobsters.
If you haven't been to Cocoview--it's a dive resort. The accommodations are not fancy. They're comfortable enough, and clean enough. The food is plain but plentiful; the boat captains and DM's are nice, helpful, and quite skilled. The staff is friendly. Don't expect a turned down bed at night with a chocolate on your pillow. (Heck, don't expect your doors to seal completely, or your screen doors to fit squarely!). Think more like kids' summer camp cabins, but with air conditioning (which does work); private bathrooms, and really, really easy and mellow diving.
If you come as a single diver (as I did), you can easily find buddies. If you're comfortable with "going it alone", go for it. (But be sure to dive within the limits of your training and experience). If you feel more comfortable with a buddy within a few fin strokes, those are easy to find too. Dining companions are also easy. Find the motley crew from your boat--or the folks from the cabin next door. Or find a different set of dining companions every day. The couples, groups, and families who want privacy will generally sit at a small table. The gregarious types will sit at large tables with extra (inviting) empty spaces. The party types will hang out at the bar and consume post-diving alcohol (I'm not asking if they consumed before going on a dive; I'm sure some do--but I ask no questions). The quiet types will retire to their rooms and sort photos or read books.
As many have said, be sure to take your diving nice and slow. Packing a small magnifying glass with you is fun. The fresnel credit-card sized flat magnifiers do work underwater, but not as well as the glass-lensed magnifiers. I did not have sufficient hands (or dexterity or experience) to take a picture of an object thru the magnifying glass underwater. (Heck, I tried doing that above ground with the housing--no go).
Here's a "highlights" photo slide show:
CCV 2013 Photo Digest Slideshow by hydtran | Photobucket
I would greatly appreciate it if someone could identify the juvenile filefish near the end of the slideshow. (I don't think it's Waldo).
I shot a few videos. I'm nowhere near as skilled as, say, robint--but this video is my favorite. (The critters shown are also my favorite--especially breaded with marinara sauce on the side
)
Reef squid at Pirate's Point, Roatan - YouTube
This video is going thru an optional swim-thru at one of the newly moored sites:
Pond View wall swim-thru - YouTube
And although I kept looking for zombie parrotfish, I did not find any. Lots of stoplight parrotfish, queen parrotfish, and princess parrotfish. (No peas for the princess parrotfish, though). Lots of brain corals, though, so this is an ideal habitat for the parrotfish zombie apocalypse.
If you haven't been to Cocoview--it's a dive resort. The accommodations are not fancy. They're comfortable enough, and clean enough. The food is plain but plentiful; the boat captains and DM's are nice, helpful, and quite skilled. The staff is friendly. Don't expect a turned down bed at night with a chocolate on your pillow. (Heck, don't expect your doors to seal completely, or your screen doors to fit squarely!). Think more like kids' summer camp cabins, but with air conditioning (which does work); private bathrooms, and really, really easy and mellow diving.
If you come as a single diver (as I did), you can easily find buddies. If you're comfortable with "going it alone", go for it. (But be sure to dive within the limits of your training and experience). If you feel more comfortable with a buddy within a few fin strokes, those are easy to find too. Dining companions are also easy. Find the motley crew from your boat--or the folks from the cabin next door. Or find a different set of dining companions every day. The couples, groups, and families who want privacy will generally sit at a small table. The gregarious types will sit at large tables with extra (inviting) empty spaces. The party types will hang out at the bar and consume post-diving alcohol (I'm not asking if they consumed before going on a dive; I'm sure some do--but I ask no questions). The quiet types will retire to their rooms and sort photos or read books.
As many have said, be sure to take your diving nice and slow. Packing a small magnifying glass with you is fun. The fresnel credit-card sized flat magnifiers do work underwater, but not as well as the glass-lensed magnifiers. I did not have sufficient hands (or dexterity or experience) to take a picture of an object thru the magnifying glass underwater. (Heck, I tried doing that above ground with the housing--no go).
Here's a "highlights" photo slide show:
CCV 2013 Photo Digest Slideshow by hydtran | Photobucket
I would greatly appreciate it if someone could identify the juvenile filefish near the end of the slideshow. (I don't think it's Waldo).
I shot a few videos. I'm nowhere near as skilled as, say, robint--but this video is my favorite. (The critters shown are also my favorite--especially breaded with marinara sauce on the side
)Reef squid at Pirate's Point, Roatan - YouTube
This video is going thru an optional swim-thru at one of the newly moored sites:
Pond View wall swim-thru - YouTube
And although I kept looking for zombie parrotfish, I did not find any. Lots of stoplight parrotfish, queen parrotfish, and princess parrotfish. (No peas for the princess parrotfish, though). Lots of brain corals, though, so this is an ideal habitat for the parrotfish zombie apocalypse.
