"Must" Dives?

[divingjd]

Personally, I avoid the C-53 wreck like the plague. Waste of time and breathing gas when there are better things to do. There have been a few times we've done it to a atisfy someone else on the boat and I found some cool critters to look at, but It was the lowlight of the trip.

Like Gordon, I would happily dive Columbia Shallows every day. Columbia Deep is also a favorite, particularly when we can start on Columbia Deep and finish on Palancar Bricks. You need bigger tanks to do that. You also need bigger tanks to do Devil's Throat. I would not do it on an 80. It's also best to know the capabilities of everyone in the group. I would not put Devil's Throat on the must-do list. All of the Palancar sites (Horseshoe, Gardens, Caves, and Bricks) are worthwhile. Chances are you will do at least two of them in a week of diving. I think Paradise is a better dive than most people give it credit for, perhaps because it is often crowded. It's a great place to see octopus at night and a great place to find all kinds of little critters during the day. Look in the algae beds there, too, I've found pipefish there.

As others have said, it's a matter of taste and what the particular day is like.

 

[Basscat]

Palancar Bricks, or Gardens, or Horseshoe, followed by Columbia Shallows is my favorite day. I have rarely if ever been truly disappointed with any dive in Cozumel.

 

[Divegoose]

I have dove the C-53 once, and was not impressed. In the big picture, there really was no life on it compared to the artificial reefs we have in our local waters. Our local wrecks (artificial reefs) are covered in life. I have since passed up other chances to dive the C-53.

I have dove Devil's Throat three times now - all on an 80 cu ft tank. No issues as I am really good on air consumption (I normally dive a 63 cu ft tank at home). Unless it was a group consensus to dive it, I would much rather dive some of the other south end dives I have yet to do such as Maracaibo or Cathedral. That being said, I would much rather do some of the shallower dives so that I can maximize my bottom time.

Divegoose

 

[DjDiverDan]

You might want to bookmark this site

http://www.divetalking.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/island-map8-11.gif

So you can get an idea of which sites are where. Palancar Bricks is not marked separately on this map, it's really just a continuation of Palancar Caves. As noted, there are two northern reefs which are outside the Marine Park, San Juan and Barracuda. As noted in an earlier post, Barracuda often has very fast strong current and can be a wild ride - not what I look for in a dive, but some love the adreneline rush. San Juan is usually not quite as ripping as Barracuda, but still can have some fast currents. I prefer the southern sites.