alexmaclennan
13-01-07, 01:20
This will be edited and added to.
We flew Continental from Glasgow - Newark - Cancun. Baggage allowance was, I thought, 23kg but Alan took two bags with almost 23kg in each. We stayed just north of Playa del Carmen and dived with Barrakuda Scuba as they had offered us the diving we wanted. Met our Cave dive guide Alex on the first day, and off we went......... for 6 days diving:
Cenote Chac Mool. Two dives from same cenote. First dive to little brother cenote then through narrow passage to kukulkan cenote. Felt like flying through these hidden caverns the water is so clear. Lots of small deposits of brown crystals and filo pastry like wafers in the limestone rock. At halocline you see oily swirls from fins ahead of you. 14.4m for 45 mins. viz 50m. temp 24 degrees.
Second dive to a big dome with forests of stalactites. There is a fractured block with a canted stalactite forest felt like ribs of a wreck or ribs of dinosaur/ prehistoric animal. We finally came to tree root cavern with tree roots dipping from the cavern roof into the water. 13m for 45mins. viz 50m
Cenote Dos Ojos (two eyes) - Two dives. we were joined by two Americans Ken and Cathy. First dive from one 'eye' to the other 'eye'. Saw 'madonna' stalagmite that looked just like a woman kneeling with a baby in her arms. Lovely stalagmites and stalactites. At times they looked like they were hanging unsupported in water - a trick of the light and water. 10m for 45 mins. Viz 50m. temp 24 degrees
The second dive was to the Bat cenote where bats live - we saw them flying out. There is a 'Cathedral' of majestic flowing formations like the Familia Sagrada in Barcelona. No halocline on this dive. Exit from both dives involved swimming down a long sand bottomed tunnel - mesmerising. 10.3m for 38mins. viz 50m.
Santa Rosa Wall, Cozumel - Escorted by Marcia, originally from Mexico city, Cave diving Instructor from Barrakuda. We got ferry from Playa del Carmen and then went on a local boat with a local guide. Only 4 of us in water. lovely wall dive tho' it looked like someone had tipped a lot of sand onto the reef. Lots of fry and reef fish including stingrays and morays. Just saw the tail of a nurse shark. Several big groupers and a Barracuda. Towards the end of the dive, arch in coral overhead then intricate coral heads and grooves. Guide signalled his whereabouts to diveboat as we were doing our safetystop by purging his octopus. 31.1m for 35 mins. viz 30m. temp 27 degrees
Paradise Reef, Cozumel. no SI. We changed tanks and went straight off the dive boat again. Lovely reef on flat sand with lots of small intricate coralheads, sponges and anemones and all types of reef fishes - a burrfish under a rock, surgeonfish, several types of pufferfish, goatfish, parrotfish, squirrelfish, buterflyfish, baracuda, groupers, morays and a stingray. Superb dive. 16.1m for 45 mins. viz 20+m. temp 27 degrees
Moche Deep, Playacar - boat dive from Playa del Carmen with Luis another Mexico city instructor. Dropping down saw a big turtle on the wall, then a bull shark came to 3m of us and zipped away. Lots of vase corals, other corals, reef fish including lovely triggerfish that were black with fine white lines at the bases of their fins. Saw a green and spotted moray, and a stingray. Felt like diving over high moorland as undulating wall/terrain with small coral formations poking out of sand. 28.3m for 30 mins. viz 10 to 20m as sand kicked up by waves.
Tortugas Reef, Playacar - poor boat dive. lots of surge, like diving in snowstorm, small reef fish and small corals only. 10m for 45 mins. viz < 5m
Cenote Taj Mahal - two different dives in the same cenote. First dive to sugar bowl cenote with glimpse of Esmerelda cenote and visiting the upstream cave entrance with skull and crossbones sign. Lots of shells, brain and fan corals and sea urchins on walls. sometimes felt like flying over snowdrifts of flowing lava. Lovely 'magic glass' point where you look thru water into the sugar bowl cenote. 14m for 48 mins. Viz 50m
Second dive to a dome by sugar bowl cenote with forests of stalactites and a number of columns and broken pillars. One beautiful stalagmite called the 'tower of pisa'. Then a bizarre 3m diameter eggshell held on by stalagmites where the rock underneath had fallen off. Alan found a bit of femur (thigh-bone) ?human. Left it where it was. Then back with a quick trip to downstream cave entrance. 13m for 45 mins. viz 50m
Cenote Angelita - a remarkable dive. 16km south of Tulum. Cenote is 7km from the sea and about 30m diameter. Unlike most cenotes this one is deep going to about 60m. No one else there. Jump from tree roots into murky tannin filled water. Dirty viz for 5m. Then becoming ever more clear till at 20m see clearly below you, a halocline and then hydrogen sulphide cloud. There is an 'island' with trees poking out of the cloud. Feels like skydiving onto this cloud. Then descend thru the cloud and into salt water. Down an overhead rocky slope to point of deco kicking in, then back thru cloud. Play in the cloud and fly over the island, swinging on the branches. At 15m there is a swim thru tunnel/cave. Come out with BCD deflated and swallow dive towards cloud and island below. Gradually surface. A fantastic and bizzarre sci-fi landscape and a great final dive. 39.1m for 48mins. Temp 25 degrees. Viz 1m or less in cloud but the usual 50m plus above and below.
Contacts:
Barrakuda Scuba - www.barrakuda.net
We were very happy with the organisation and think we got a good price for our diving and transport. We were picked up and dropped back at our hotel each day. I would happily dive with them again.
Marcia is a Cave diving Instructor with Barrakuda. Mexican married to a french girl. Very laid back, has cave dived in Mexico, France, and Thailand. He goes on expeditions with two friends to explore new caves. If you want to hear more then drop him a line and he'll add you to the newsletter. When they go on a cave diving trip they need people at base camp, to ferry gear etc.
marciabuzo@yahoo.com
Alessandro Reato (Alex) is an Italian PADI instructor and freelance Cave Diving guide. Married to another Italian PADI Instructor Lara with a lovely 2 year old daughter. Again very cool and laid back -unless in traffic. Very safety conscious in overhead environment and briefs you well. He can organise dive trips, teaching courses, gear rentals, and accommodation as he owns another house by his own between Chac Mool, Dos Ojos and Taj Mahal cenotes.
realto@prodigy.net.mx (sometimes does not work)
paguro69@hotmail.com
alex
We flew Continental from Glasgow - Newark - Cancun. Baggage allowance was, I thought, 23kg but Alan took two bags with almost 23kg in each. We stayed just north of Playa del Carmen and dived with Barrakuda Scuba as they had offered us the diving we wanted. Met our Cave dive guide Alex on the first day, and off we went......... for 6 days diving:
Cenote Chac Mool. Two dives from same cenote. First dive to little brother cenote then through narrow passage to kukulkan cenote. Felt like flying through these hidden caverns the water is so clear. Lots of small deposits of brown crystals and filo pastry like wafers in the limestone rock. At halocline you see oily swirls from fins ahead of you. 14.4m for 45 mins. viz 50m. temp 24 degrees.
Second dive to a big dome with forests of stalactites. There is a fractured block with a canted stalactite forest felt like ribs of a wreck or ribs of dinosaur/ prehistoric animal. We finally came to tree root cavern with tree roots dipping from the cavern roof into the water. 13m for 45mins. viz 50m
Cenote Dos Ojos (two eyes) - Two dives. we were joined by two Americans Ken and Cathy. First dive from one 'eye' to the other 'eye'. Saw 'madonna' stalagmite that looked just like a woman kneeling with a baby in her arms. Lovely stalagmites and stalactites. At times they looked like they were hanging unsupported in water - a trick of the light and water. 10m for 45 mins. Viz 50m. temp 24 degrees
The second dive was to the Bat cenote where bats live - we saw them flying out. There is a 'Cathedral' of majestic flowing formations like the Familia Sagrada in Barcelona. No halocline on this dive. Exit from both dives involved swimming down a long sand bottomed tunnel - mesmerising. 10.3m for 38mins. viz 50m.
Santa Rosa Wall, Cozumel - Escorted by Marcia, originally from Mexico city, Cave diving Instructor from Barrakuda. We got ferry from Playa del Carmen and then went on a local boat with a local guide. Only 4 of us in water. lovely wall dive tho' it looked like someone had tipped a lot of sand onto the reef. Lots of fry and reef fish including stingrays and morays. Just saw the tail of a nurse shark. Several big groupers and a Barracuda. Towards the end of the dive, arch in coral overhead then intricate coral heads and grooves. Guide signalled his whereabouts to diveboat as we were doing our safetystop by purging his octopus. 31.1m for 35 mins. viz 30m. temp 27 degrees
Paradise Reef, Cozumel. no SI. We changed tanks and went straight off the dive boat again. Lovely reef on flat sand with lots of small intricate coralheads, sponges and anemones and all types of reef fishes - a burrfish under a rock, surgeonfish, several types of pufferfish, goatfish, parrotfish, squirrelfish, buterflyfish, baracuda, groupers, morays and a stingray. Superb dive. 16.1m for 45 mins. viz 20+m. temp 27 degrees
Moche Deep, Playacar - boat dive from Playa del Carmen with Luis another Mexico city instructor. Dropping down saw a big turtle on the wall, then a bull shark came to 3m of us and zipped away. Lots of vase corals, other corals, reef fish including lovely triggerfish that were black with fine white lines at the bases of their fins. Saw a green and spotted moray, and a stingray. Felt like diving over high moorland as undulating wall/terrain with small coral formations poking out of sand. 28.3m for 30 mins. viz 10 to 20m as sand kicked up by waves.
Tortugas Reef, Playacar - poor boat dive. lots of surge, like diving in snowstorm, small reef fish and small corals only. 10m for 45 mins. viz < 5m
Cenote Taj Mahal - two different dives in the same cenote. First dive to sugar bowl cenote with glimpse of Esmerelda cenote and visiting the upstream cave entrance with skull and crossbones sign. Lots of shells, brain and fan corals and sea urchins on walls. sometimes felt like flying over snowdrifts of flowing lava. Lovely 'magic glass' point where you look thru water into the sugar bowl cenote. 14m for 48 mins. Viz 50m
Second dive to a dome by sugar bowl cenote with forests of stalactites and a number of columns and broken pillars. One beautiful stalagmite called the 'tower of pisa'. Then a bizarre 3m diameter eggshell held on by stalagmites where the rock underneath had fallen off. Alan found a bit of femur (thigh-bone) ?human. Left it where it was. Then back with a quick trip to downstream cave entrance. 13m for 45 mins. viz 50m
Cenote Angelita - a remarkable dive. 16km south of Tulum. Cenote is 7km from the sea and about 30m diameter. Unlike most cenotes this one is deep going to about 60m. No one else there. Jump from tree roots into murky tannin filled water. Dirty viz for 5m. Then becoming ever more clear till at 20m see clearly below you, a halocline and then hydrogen sulphide cloud. There is an 'island' with trees poking out of the cloud. Feels like skydiving onto this cloud. Then descend thru the cloud and into salt water. Down an overhead rocky slope to point of deco kicking in, then back thru cloud. Play in the cloud and fly over the island, swinging on the branches. At 15m there is a swim thru tunnel/cave. Come out with BCD deflated and swallow dive towards cloud and island below. Gradually surface. A fantastic and bizzarre sci-fi landscape and a great final dive. 39.1m for 48mins. Temp 25 degrees. Viz 1m or less in cloud but the usual 50m plus above and below.
Contacts:
Barrakuda Scuba - www.barrakuda.net
We were very happy with the organisation and think we got a good price for our diving and transport. We were picked up and dropped back at our hotel each day. I would happily dive with them again.
Marcia is a Cave diving Instructor with Barrakuda. Mexican married to a french girl. Very laid back, has cave dived in Mexico, France, and Thailand. He goes on expeditions with two friends to explore new caves. If you want to hear more then drop him a line and he'll add you to the newsletter. When they go on a cave diving trip they need people at base camp, to ferry gear etc.
marciabuzo@yahoo.com
Alessandro Reato (Alex) is an Italian PADI instructor and freelance Cave Diving guide. Married to another Italian PADI Instructor Lara with a lovely 2 year old daughter. Again very cool and laid back -unless in traffic. Very safety conscious in overhead environment and briefs you well. He can organise dive trips, teaching courses, gear rentals, and accommodation as he owns another house by his own between Chac Mool, Dos Ojos and Taj Mahal cenotes.
realto@prodigy.net.mx (sometimes does not work)
paguro69@hotmail.com
alex