Jillapalooza

IM IN UR OCEAN. EATIN UR CARDZ.

Chac Mool, Dive 59

Dive: 59
Cozumel Dive: 4
Date: 11/29/11
Site: Chac Mool, Playa del Carmen
Avg/Max Depth: 28/42
Temp: 75
TBT/CBT: 0:41/48:10
Buddies: Nick, Curtis, Kristen

I was very concerned about my ears going into the second dive. Delphine told us we were going to surface in one of the caves where there was an air pocket to have a look around. My first descent went well, but I started having serious problems after that. After hanging out at 25 feet for longer than I had patience for with no ear improvement, I gave the up signal for the first time in my diving career. I could see the entry point from where we were and I completely threw in the proverbial towel. Delphine brought me up to about 10 feet and had me descend again very slowly. All was good after that. Well, all except my mask, which decided it was going to leak like a geiser the entire dive.

Overall, it was a great diving experience. I’m really glad we made the trip to the mainland to do them. Words can’t do the cenotes justice, so have a look at one of Curtis’s videos:

Kukulkan, Dive 58

Dive: 58
Cozumel Dive: 3
Date: 11/29/11
Site: Kukulkan, Playa del Carmen
Avg/Max Depth: 29/47
Temp: 77
TBT/CBT: 0:41/47:29
Buddies: Nick, Curtis, Kristen

On Tuesday, we were really sick of this no diving business, so we decided to head over to Playa del Carmen to dive the cenotes. Cenotes are basically naturally made caverns and caves. There are stalactites and stalagmites; it’s basically like swimming under ground. The water is fresh and crystal clear. At times it didn’t even feel like we were underwater at all. It got dark, so we all had to carry lights. Our Divemaster, Delphine, instructed us on different signals to use with the lights before we took the plunge. As disappointing as it was, I decided not to bring my camera along. I didn’t want to juggle the camera and the light, and I figured the photos wouldn’t turn out well in the low (and sometimes lack of) lighting.

We weren’t completely in a cave. For the most part there was always light from somewhere, and we could usually see the surface, even if it was off in the distance and around a corner. I was a bit nervous going into it, but as usual, once underwater, I was fine.

Although we were never very deep, there were lots of ups and downs as we swam over the landscaping, and my ears started giving me problems right away. Typically with my ear issues, it’s only on the second dive, and that’s after diving for a couple of days and descending to 60 or so feet. Not on the first dive at 20 feet. It was very frustrating, especially knowing I was holding up the group. Granted, the group was just the four of us and Delphine, so I didn’t feel too badly. Still, it’s not fun to be that person. But it comes with the territory of diving, and I think everyone has been there at some point. Hopefully it’s something other people are patient about.

The water felt chilly, and I was glad that Delphine convinced me to wear a shorty wet suit or I would have been freezing. There were only a few little fishies here and there. The coolest thing for me to see was the halocline. When the salt and fresh water meet, it creates this oily layer that we could see. When we descended into it, everything became blurry. It was a head trip, that’s for sure.

Here’s a fancy little video Curtis put together:

Delilah, Dive 57

Dive: 57
Cozumel Dive: 2
Date: 11/27/11
Site: Delilah
Avg/Max Depth: 44/58
Temp: 81
TBT/CBT: 0:57/46:48
Buddies: Nick, Curtis, Kristen

For our surface interval we stopped on a deserted island. Think washed-ashore-after-a-shipwreck deserted island. There wasn’t any shade, which was unfortunate, but there was a nice sandy beach. It made me wish I had a towel so I could lie down and nap. There were large shells everywhere, even strung from a tree. I really wanted my camera then, but not as much as I did during our next dive at Delilah.

There were so many fun creatures on the dive. The biggest parrotfish I had ever seen, barracudas (I would have had the perfect shot of one’s teeth), a turtle, a giant moray eel that chased Josué, huge angelfish that did not seem camera shy, a meaty looking lobster that was out scurrying around (I’ve only ever seen them tucked away in the coral), and a toadfish, which was interesting. There were tons more, of course. Hopefully the upcoming dives will be just as exciting (and include pictures).

Palancar Caves, Dive 56

Dive: 56
Cozumel Dive: 1
Date: 11/27/11
Site: Palancar Caves
Avg/Max Depth: 51/84
Temp: 81
TBT/CBT: 0:49/45:51
Buddies: Nick, Curtis, Kristen

On Saturday morning, we did our first set of Cozumel dives. Divemaster Josué brought us to Palancar Caves for the first dive. There were lots of fish, a turtle, barracuda, etc. Due to technical difficulties (a.k.a. operator error), I didn’t have my camera. There wasn’t anything I really wanted a picture of until the end. Josué did the signal for shark, then he started giving the okay sign. I thought it was a little strange until I saw them. I didn’t know what they were, but I knew they weren’t the friendly nurse sharks that like their bellies rubbed. They were still small, providing me with a false sense of comfort. Curtis told me after the dive that they were blacktip reef sharks. It was the first time I’ve seen a different species while diving, so that was pretty cool.

Here’s one of Curtis’s videos to add a little visual interest.

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