Which ops DO NOT go to a lot of special/southern/northern/remote sites?

[robint]

Fact: The dive operator at SCC will take a group of very experienced divers to Barracuda/San Juan regardless of how much business you bring them.

Personally, if I were a Cozumel dive guide, I would be very choosy about the divers I took to Barracuda; it's a risky place with deep water, screaming currents, and unforgiving of mistakes.

Agree with Jim.... SCC will take divers to those sites. We had a boat last trip (April 2012) that was not a group, 2 couples who knew each other, and me and husband, plus a couple of once-a-year divers. We got along great, but one experienced couple wanted to do Devil's Throat. The DM said no, due to the newer couple. That couple finished the trip a day earlier than the rest of us, so on the last day we went to Devil's Throat/Punta Sur reef. And I agree with his decision... the newer divers were pretty good, but always first out of air, needed to go up 10-15 minutes before the rest of the boat. No way they should do that dive. As it turned out, one of the other members of our group, decided she didn't want to do the Throat itself and would rather just do the reef. So we took a vote on the boat, decided just to do Punta Sur around the Throat. DM was happy regardless of OUR choice as we were all very experienced divers. I am sure if we had requested Barracuda or Maricaibo, he would have taken us there. Another boat went to Maricaibo while we were there, a big boat with a large group who regularly go there to SCC, as we talked to them later that day.

And as far as who will take you and who won't.... be careful what you say. My husband went with a group about 10 yrs ago, with a dive op to Barracuda. They never asked for his C-card or logbook when he signed up... just his money. He said they gave a nice briefing for the dives, but it bugged him that they never met him before and would take him there.

 

[redacted]

Fact: The dive operator at SCC will take a group of very experienced divers to Barracuda/San Juan regardless of how much business you bring them.

Personally, if I were a Cozumel dive guide, I would be very choosy about the divers I took to Barracuda; it's a risky place with deep water, screaming currents, and unforgiving of mistakes.

Seeing would be believing. I almost got to go last trip with them. The DM set up a trip on Wed (after a dive at Devil's Throat) for the following Fri. When I went to the shop to pay (for the 6th day of diving), the shop staff started to hem and haw. Said to wait until Fri morning to pay. Then, on Thursday they said it would cost extra. I don't see why but was willing to pay - they acted disappointed. That afternoon they claimed one party was not willing to pay so trip was cancelled. Myself and another diver agreed to pay for him - again apparent disappointment. The next morning they claimed they had a problem there last week and the company policy was they were not going up there any more - could that have just been another story??? The wife and I went south with them but other divers just decided to go for shore dives rather then pay for the 6th day.

I believe the truth was that they were not completely comfortable with all the divers. One, I know, had demonstrated some problems at DT. So, who knows what the truth really is??? Had they just said that they were uncomfortable with some of the divers I would have understood. In stead, it may again be quite a few years before I go back to SCC. Don't get me wrong. Overall it is a pretty good AI operation - Great Cozumel shore diving. But there are times I think they would rather see what kind of story they can get away with telling. Maybe they feel they just have to do something to make up for the lack of time-share salesmen on the property.

 

[Jax]

Pro Dive at the Allegro also seems to want to stay real close to home.

Pro Dive was quite happy to take us up north, when we got a whole boat that wanted to do it. We dove the wreck C83? C53?

 

[tholland]

Hi All,
I just joined this Board.... and have been to Cozumel many times... dove Maracaibo 'deep' several times and my favorite 'challenge' in Coz is 'Barracuda'. No doubt that is an advanced dive on most days! I have been nearly pulled down over the deep wall on numerous dives there until I learned the underwater topography better and learned what I personally needed to do in order to do that dive safely (I always keep a bit to the right side of the underwater 'mountains' so I don't have to fight the down currents on the left side. ) I'll never forget how surprised I was on one Barracuda dive, 'surfing the current' on the far left side of the 'underwater mountains' there, flying by at the edge of the drop off, when all of a sudden I noticed that everybody's bubbles were all going DOWN into the drop off instead of up toward the surface! Surprise! Welcome to Barracuda Reef! About two years ago went out with a whole boatload of local dive masters, went outside the park (is that really possible?) and that was some of the wildest diving I have ever seen! These cozumel dive masters, the very experienced ones who have been there for years, are real master divers..... but you don't get to see what they are capable of on a typical 'tourist' dive.... in the 'open wild' with a team of their 'mates', they are really incredible divers, maybe the best I've ever seen! Just amazing!

Fact: The dive operator at SCC will take a group of very experienced divers to Barracuda/San Juan regardless of how much business you bring them.

Personally, if I were a Cozumel dive guide, I would be very choosy about the divers I took to Barracuda; it's a risky place with deep water, screaming currents, and unforgiving of mistakes.

 

[Mike]

Okay, so I'll bite, what exactly were the dive master doing that was so impressive?

---------- Post added February 5th, 2013 at 12:37 PM ----------

Fact: The dive operator at SCC will take a group of very experienced divers to Barracuda/San Juan regardless of how much business you bring them.

Personally, if I were a Cozumel dive guide, I would be very choosy about the divers I took to Barracuda; it's a risky place with deep water, screaming currents, and unforgiving of mistakes.

Not to be a jerk, but other than some current moving at a good pace, what exactly is so difficult about Barracuda? I think that any competent diver can dive it on it's worst day without a problem.

I personally think it's location relative to shore and not diving on a smooth as glass 'lake' like condition makes dive operators nervous but this is only a 'Cozumel' thing, because of the way most of the diving is done there it's so close to shore and so protected by shore Barracuda is just different, but it's location and surface condition in regard to shore would be considered business as usual at many other diving destinations.

The only factor I think that comes into play diving barracuda is that it's a much simpler dive if dived with divers without ear problems, who can descend fast and therefore avoid getting spread out, but that's not so much something (ears) that divers skill has a lot to do with. Other than that, it's just a dive with a consistently faster current than other sites people are used to in Cozumel.

 

[vlkr]

barracuda is a pretty normal dive most of the time. however, there is very little margin for error. a mistake there could be much more serious than on most dives.

 

[mstevens]

OP is gathering a list for "and/or"...

Good point. I managed to totally miss the extra charge part.

Apart from Blue Magic, the only other shop with which I've dived is Deep Blue, which also charges for far southern sites. I've never been far north with them.

---------- Post added February 5th, 2013 at 02:54 PM ----------

Pro Dive was quite happy to take us up north, when we got a whole boat that wanted to do it. We dove the wreck C83? C53?

The C53 "Felipe Xicotencatl" (formerly USS Scuffle) is within the marine park south of Chankanaab, Las Palmas, and Paradise and isn't a "northern" site. Those are the ones north of the downtown area past the cruise and ferry piers such as Cantarel, San Juan, Barracuda, and so on.

 

[Mike]

Like what? A mistake of what nature?

Not trying to play devil's advocate or anything, but I just don't see anything unique to barracuda that a competent diver wouldn't experience in many, many, many other dive locations.

Barracuda's 'difficulty rating' to me seems to work the same what ski runs are rated, they are rated based on the mountain you are on, a black diamond run on one mountain if picked up and moved to another ski mountain might rate as only a blue run. Barracuda in relation to the rest of the diving in Cozumel might make it a black diamond, but take that dive site to another location say Saba for instance and it's nothing to talk about, it's conditions wouldn't be anything to even discuss.

 

[ronscuba]

Maybe in addition to the extra current, part of the issue with the northern sites is their location ? Just as many dive operators will not pick up downtown, they probably don't want to dive north of downtown either due to their boat location and/or typical customer pickup locations.

 

[BTravlin]

A couple of points that make Barracuda a little more risky are the current generally runs to the north so it will take you out to sea if separated from the group for some reason. At most other dive sites in Coz the current will have you running basically parallel to shore for a long, long ways before you head out to sea. Second, because it is not dived as often as the other sites there are far fewer boats around to assist you if you have some type of emergency.