Dive Day!

Hooray, the planets aligned and we were able to dive today!  We were up early and had a leisurely breakfast at home before gathering up our dive gear and heading out on foot to the dive shop.  Bert, the Dive Master, greeted us there and said it was a go!  Also joining us were Javier, the captain for the day, Rod from New Zealand, and Elaine from Oklahoma. 

 

By 10 am we were on the boat and heading over to San Pedro (Ambergris Caye), which is about 20 minutes from Caye Caulker.  Our destination was Esmeralda, a marine park just outside of the reef.  The boat trip over was rough, as it was a bit windy today, but the sun was shining and the water was the color of a perfect emerald.  

 

With a nice small group we were briefed and in the water by 10:45 am.  Bert was a great Dive Master - attentive and kept a close eye on us, but also gave us some freedom to meander about on our own.   Andrew always has trouble equalizing his ears, so it took him about 10 minutes to get down to our starting depth of 50 feet.  I, on the other hand, can equalize like a fish, and had plummeted comfortably down to the ocean floor in a minute or two.  The first thing to see were a dozen nurse sharks circling around.  They were clearly very used to the divers, and come right up to you.  Most of them were around 6 feet long, but a couple of them were more than 8 feet which is a little intimidating when it's coming directly at you. 

One of the bigger ones.  A couple were a good 8 feet long.  No zoom used here - I could have easily touched him as he went by.  They swam right along with us like they were part of our "school". 

When everyone was down and equalized properly, Bert showed us how used to people the sharks actually are.  They obviously recognize him, as they would swim head first right in to his chest and he would rub them on the head.  Kinda cute, actually.  Next we got to take turns holding one of the smaller ones.  You have to gently flip them over and then they just lay there, very calmly.  Their skin feels like very fine grit sandpaper, or my skin towards the end of a Minnesota winter.  They didn't seem to have any fat on them and you could very easily feel the ribs on their underside, and the spine on the back side.  This was definitely a highlight for me! 

Nurse shark at Esmeralda.  They are so docile they let you flip them over and hold them.  Our Dive Master (Bert) was pretending to waltz with one at one point. 

Andrew

 After mauling the sharks for way too little time, we moved on.  The next thing we came across was a big Moray eel.  These guys freak me out a little bit because their teeth look like they could shred you to ribbons in a matter of seconds.  Also, they're just plain ugly.  However, this one also seemed used to the divers, so I crawled down on the floor to take his picture. 

Big Moray eel.  Again, no zoom used here - he was close, but I didn't try to pet this one.   

Another cool thing about this dive were the various channels we were able to swim through.  They are quite narrow in spots, and you sometimes have to time your breathing correctly to not bang your tank on the coral (you rise up in the water when you breathe in, sink when you breathe out).   Along the way we saw a lion fish, a green turtle, a huge eagle ray (seriously, his wing span was easily 10 feet across), a blue & yellow angel fish, parrot fish, and lots of sea anemones.  All the while, our shark friends kept us company.  

 

Several cool coral channels to swim through.  This is Andrew going through one. 

Green turtle hanging out on the floor.

Lion fish

Look closely - a huge eagle ray

Our first tank was finished in about 45 minutes, so we loaded back on to the boat, had a snack and sat in the sun for a little while.  Our second dive was in a similar area, so much of the same scenery. 

Bert with one of his buddies.  They loved him.

Back on Caye Caulker, we stopped on our way home to get hamburger buns for dinner.  Big excitement was ensuing as there was a fire at a building on Back Street.  We didn't go look but the smoke was thick and we did see the fire truck head out.  Based on it's speed, it's a good thing that nothing on this island is more than a minute or two away!  We cooked burgers at home and are now ready to turn in for the night.  Tomorrow will not be nearly so exciting, folks.  However, the French Angel guys are trying to put together a group to go to the manatee sanctuary on Saturday.  Keep your fingers crossed for us that they can find a couple of other people so we can go!