Dive Operators on North side

[dpaustex]

Looking for a dive operator that won't take me to all of the standard "cruise ship" sites. Want to dive nitrox.

Any ideas? We're staying on 7 mile beach, but can drive to dock.

 

[DropkickMurphy]

Looking for a dive operator that won't take me to all of the standard "cruise ship" sites. Want to dive nitrox.

Any ideas? We're staying on 7 mile beach, but can drive to dock.

Just out of curiosity: when are you going?

 

[Drew Sailbum]

Looking for a dive operator that won't take me to all of the standard "cruise ship" sites. Want to dive nitrox.

Any ideas? We're staying on 7 mile beach, but can drive to dock.

[sarcasm] Too bad you aren't interested in the sites that dive operators take the cruise ship divers. You'll miss out on famous wall sites like Orange Canyon, Trinity Caves or Great House. You definitely won't be diving Stingray City - described as teh world's best 15 foot dive. You won't be seeing shallow wrecks such as the Oro Verde or Doc Paulson either. [/sarcasm]

Cayman does not have different sites for cruise ship divers as opposed to other divers. Different skill levels are accomodated by adjusting the depth of the initial deep wall dive.

Most dive operations can supply nitrox but you need to pre-order. Many buy their nitrox fills from a commercial gas supply company. A few operations such as Ocean Frontiers and DiveTech do blend their own nitrox.

 

[dpaustex]

Well I really wasn't expecting a "been there, done that" response..... What I am looking for is less impacted dive sites that are less crowded. I've just seen too many people from cruise ships with poor buoyancy control, crashing into corals. My post was simply meant to ask that, not get feedback or sarcasm on the site type I am not looking for.

Regardless, going next week and would much appreciate input. I am DM, so skills are fine, just asking for location info previously requested....and unless I'm missing something there is a lot of feedback elsewhere on this site that speaks to "impacts" an "overuse" of the reef resources, which was the reason for the original question. My intent was to ask the question in such a way as to not make any judgements as to reef usage/impact pared by others. I am not making judgements as to the locale, just doing my usual homework on a site.

I do think the sarcasm is out of place. Hope you're not a dive leader.

 

[divesergeant]

Hi dpaustex,

The East End is the more remote, and thus will have been much less impacted. Out there, I think Ocean Frontiers www.oceanfrontiers.com) is the way to go. But, it is a drive to get to them. But to your advantage, you'd be going out of town in the AM, so the inbound traffic would not be too much of a pain. We've dived with OF many times and they stress marine conservation, as well as safety. As a DM, I think you'd appreciate them and their more remote dive sites.

Around SMB, try some place like DiveTech (www.divetech.com) or Neptune's (www.neptunesdivers.com). DT is far enough away from the cruise docks that maybe they won't have too many cruise people. Neptune's is a small operator and, as far as I know, doesn't have cruise ship affiliations. DT and Neptune's all dive the same end of the island where the cruisers would probably dive, but hopefully your boat will have fewer folks on board with bouyancy / safety issues.

Have a great trip,
DS

 

[Drew Sailbum]

If what you re looking for is "less impacted dive sites that are less crowded" then a short primer on diving in GC seems to be in order.

With a very few exceptions there is only one mooring ball on most sites. It is somewhat unusual to encounter divers from other boats underwater. Therefore to be on less crowded sites you should focus not on the site but rather on the dive operator. Some operations take out a maximum of 8 divers. A few of the larger boats are equipped for 24.

Typically cruise ship dives are coordinated to the arrival of the ship and most often do not take out cruise ship divers on the same boat as stay over guests. If you want to be fairly certain of not being on a dive boat with cruise ship passengers then select an operator that does not have a cruise ship contract. It is always possible that a cruise ship diver will book their own dive rather than go through the ship's operator so even that is no guarantee.

Cruise ship divers (paying customers just like stay over guests) are taken to the exact same dive sites as everyone else. Site selection is based upon sea conditions and availability of open moorings.

There are four general areas of diving around Grand Cayman - 1) West Side, 2) North Wall, 3) South Sound, 4) East End.

There are only two dive operators which dive East End. There are many fewer divers and less tourism infrastructure in general in East End. Dive conditions tend to be affected by rougher seas and on rare occasions by currents.

All other dive operators are based on the west side of the island. 95% of the time they can dive the West Side. Based upon wind direction and sea state they may also be able to dive the North Wall. South Sound diving is most common the 5% of the time when the wind switches direction and a Nor'Wester blows through. On those occasions the south shore provides calmer seas.

The sites which get the most diver traffic are, however, shore diving sites with on site dive operators. The reef at some of these sites has been more affected than others. Generally the shallows are more affected than the deep wall.

Finally, a good dive leader should not assume much of anything about a diver's skill until he/she is seen in the water. This is true whether the diver arrives on a cruise ship or airplane.

 

[dpaustex]

Thanks for the great info.

I have friends that own a place down there, and was looking for more of the "out of the way" stuff. Others I know that have been there said North Shore is the place to go, but the weather can be iffy.

I've read a lot of the specific books on the Caymans, and appreciate everyone's specific input on sites. Sounds similar to wall diving in Cozumel, and I am very much looking forward to the trip. Pictures sound like they'll be a challenge in some areas.

Thanks, again!!!!

 

[dpaustex]

Back from Grand Cayman, and going to let people know it does depend on prevailing winds.

Wind was from SE, meaning North Shore was protected. Went out with Deep Blue Divers (www.deepbluediverscayman.com), and was very pleased with their operation. They run 2 Dusky dive boats, 8 people max/each, and I got to dive 4 sites on the North side, then 2 on the South Side. They were very professional, yet fun. Nick and Patrick do a great job at the sites. Saw lots of wildlife (hammerhead, turtles, tons of other fish, stingray, etc).

Thanks for everyone's input. There is also cool shore diving, got to do two sites, one with SunDown Divers (?), below Cracked Conch restaurant, on NW side (very well run store), and Eden Rock Dive Center (consistently rude on two visits).

Island is a bit pricier than other sites in Carribean, but pretty good. Sites more impacted than I thought they'd be, with lots of overfishing evident (many, many large lobsters on reefs, which you would not expect with normal "large" groupers in residence). The drop-offs to nothing are spectacular (4000+ feet verticals).

 

[Daz]

Eden Rock Dive Center (consistently rude on two visits).

I've found this to be the case for years now (we generally rent a tank from them each time we bring somebody new with us to GC as Eden Rock is a good "first time/ bouyancy eval" dive - the site is good for that, dealing with the ER staff isn't). It's expected now.

 

[divesergeant]

Thanks for the report. Glad you had a good time.

Sundivers at the Cracked Conch is one of our favorite dives. We try to do it severtal times on our GCM visits.

DS