grand cayman — Page 3

Twisted Sister, dive 27

December 2, 2008

Dive: 27
Cayman Dive: 3
Date: 12/2/08
Site: Twisted Sister, South Side, Grand Cayman
Avg/Max Depth: 66/117
Temp: 79
TBT/CBT: 0:28/21:21
Buddies: Nick, Kristen, Curtis, Ted

After waiting 30 minutes for the dive van to pick us up, we headed to the south side of town for our dives of the day. There were already four other divers in the van, and we got off to a bit of a late start because of rush hour traffic. When we got to the boat there were two more divers waiting. Our divemaster of the day was Jon again (swoon), and there was another videographer, who’s name none of us can remember, but I’m sure we’ll see her again.

This time we were in more of a traditional style boat. They called it Pegasus. It didn’t take too long to get to the first dive site, Twisted Sister. I was the last one in the water due to some dumbheadedness on my behalf. First my mask was tightened and the band was misaligned because of my snorkel. I frustratedly fixed that, only to get my snorkel caught under my BCD shoulder strap, so I had to pull it out and fix it again. It felt like it took me forever. I was thankful that the chick was helping me so I wasn’t making a fool of myself in front of Jon. When I took my giant stride into the water, my mask completely leaked on one side. We were told to surface swim with our snorkel to the front of the boat. It was going to be a deep dive and he didn’t want us using our air up top. I swam against the current to where the others were waiting. When I got there I removed my mask to get all my hair out of the way so it would stop letting on water. It’s much easier to do when my hair is wet and not blowing around haphazardly in the wind. By the time I got it in place everyone had descended but I couldn’t find my regulator. I fumbled around, trying to remember all the techniques for locating it from way back in my first open water class. I figured in the current it had got tossed behind me, or maybe it had wrapped around to my left side. They seem to strap the tanks really low on the back here, so I couldn’t reach the top of the tank to follow its hose. Again, it felt like it was taking forever. I was all alone on the surface and when I peeked underwater everyone was tens of feet below me. So much for getting help. Then Jon called over the side of the boat, asking if everything was alright. I told him I couldn’t find my reg, and he told me it was over my shoulder and patted his collar bone. Of course it was practically right in front of my face. So much for not making a fool of myself.

I descended quickly after that, trying to make up for lost time. I was surprised to see that Jon was already down there starting to lead the way. I must be slower than I previously thought. The dive went smoothly after the fiasco in the beginning. We went through some caves, which I got a good video of, and saw basically the same fishes as yesterday.

Toward the end of the dive I stopped to take a picture of Nick. He decided to take out his reg and smile at the same time I pushed the button. The resulting photo turned out quite humorous.

We got back to the boat and took some time being gassy on the surface. The wind was a bit chilly, but the fact that it wasn’t raining made it a little more tolerable than yesterday’s surface interval.

Leslie’s Curl, dive 26

December 1, 2008

Dive: 26
Cayman Dive: 2
Date: 12/1/08
Site: Leslie’s Curl, North Wall, Grand Cayman
Avg/Max Depth: 47/66
Temp: 79
TBT/CBT: 0:32/20:53
Buddies: Nick, Kristen, Curtis, Ted

For our next dive, Jon didn’t come with us. He gave us a run down of the area and a couple options for our game plans. Melissa dove with us though, tagging along with her camera. This was to be a short dive. Maximum depth of 60 feet and 30-35 minutes tops. There were much more schools of fish on the second dive, and when we were just about finished we saw two Spotted Eagle Rays swimming around 80 feet down. Almost better than seeing the rays was seeing Kristen trying to signal to everyone that there were rays among us. Melissa hovered right over them, recording their graceful journey. I think they were the deciding factor for buying the DVD.

After another safety stop and another [unsuccessful] attempt at air rings the dive was over. And shortly after I was on the boat it was raining and storming. That’s one of the best things about diving. Even when the weather is crappy we can still enjoy vacation to the fullest!!

Black Forest, dive 25

December 1, 2008

Dive: 25
Cayman Dive: 1
Date: 12/1/08
Site: Black Forest, North Wall, Grand Cayman
Avg/Max Depth: 59/115
Temp: 79
TBT/CBT: 0:37/20:21
Buddies: Nick, Kristen, Curtis, Ted

Our first Grand Cayman dive went off without a hitch. The shuttle arrived at noon, this time to actually pick us up. We made a quick stop at the dive shop to fill out paperwork before the quick drive to the marina. We waited on the boat for a little bit, first for our divemaster Jon (swoon) to arrive, then for Melissa, a videographer.

The boat ride to the dive site was about 25 minutes. It was overcast which made the splashes of water feel a bit chilly. Jon explained the terrain and our plan. Hearing that the wall dropped off to 6,000 feet was pretty cool. Our limit for the dive was 100. Getting in was easy enough. No wetsuits (for Nick and I anyway). We just sat down and put on our flippers and mask, let Jon throw our BC on our back and rolled forward into the sea.

Much warmer than back home.

The coral seemed the same as what we saw in Belize. Most notably the purple fan coral and the bright green coral that looks like cacti. There were some parrot fish that caught my eye, as well as giant lobster, but other than that not much exciting for marine life. I bought a new wide angle lens for my underwater camera, but it blocked part of my flash so I pulled it off half way through the dive.

(note the funky flash)

The deepest I got to was 115. I don’t think I was narced up, but I did feel a little dizzy at one point before I realized how deep I had went. I think it was because I descended quickly from about 60 feet and not from the nitrogen.

After the “official” portion of the dive was over we were able to swim around the reef until our computers told us to ascend. It was nice to be able to go deep enough for a long enough amount of time to see how my computer reacted with things like warning beeps and safety stops. I used my safety stop as an opportunity to practice air rings, but they weren’t very good.

The boat, or should I say double wide pontoon?, was much easier to climb into than the small boats in Belize. And since the the bottom was flat and spacious the surface interval didn’t feel so confining.

Grand Cayman, Mon 12/1

December 1, 2008

I was the first one up this morning. 7:30am never felt so late in my entire life. I made coffee, fixed a bowl of cereal and patiently computed until Cindy and Kristen woke up and kept me company.

It was overcast and rainy again this morning. We spent the morning chillin’ in the condo. Around 10:30am we hit up the grocery store for some supplies, sans Nick, who slept in (surprise, surprise).

At noon we went outside to catch the shuttle, hoping for good news. The diving for the day was on!!

~~~

When we got back to land it was raining pretty steadily, along with the occasional lightening and thunder. Going out for the evening looked dismal. We made some drinks and decided on Chopstix Chinese delivery for dinner. The idea of walking to Haagan-Daz for dessert was entertained, but the off and on (more often the latter) rain seems to be putting a damper on that plan. Right now we are all chillin’ inside again. Hopefully we’ll be diving again in the morning, 7:15am.

Grand Cayman – Sun 11/30

November 30, 2008

When it rains it pours. Or at least it sounds that way when you have a tin roof.

It sprinkled on and off throughout the night. When I got up at 6:30 it was overcast again and the sea was very choppy. We all ate breakfast and (minus Cindy) readied our dive gear for our 7:20 pickup. When the guy came to pick us up he delivered some disappointing news. Because of the choppiness and the direction of the wind, there was no where for us to pleasantly dive at. With his sexy Australian accent he could have delivered any sort of bad news and I would have stood there with a stupid smile on my face.

We headed back to the room to lounge for the morning. I got out to the beach around 10ish. It was hot and very windy. The waves were rough, but the layer of shells at the entry way had disappeared so entry and exit was easy enough. The heavy waves washed away part of the beach, so there was about a foot tall drop off at the water’s edge. It was very windy so sitting in the sun was quite comfortable. After lunch I opted for a shady spot for the remainder of the afternoon. The wind picked up a bit, so I tried to shelter myself behind a tree so the sand wouldn’t blow in my face.

I had enough of the wind and heat at 3:00 and decided to head inside to cool down and shower. A case of the munchees consumed me so I had a bowl of cereal, some pineapple and popped some popcorn. I was feeling a bit antsy, and I’m pretty sure it was because I hadn’t had any pop in 48 hours. I don’t like to think of myself as dependent on substances as such, but there was nothing else I could chalk it up to. At least we have coffee!!

There are lots of iguanas here as well. All different sizes and colors. There are really tiny ones that like to sun themselves on the stone walkways, then they run back to the bushes as you walk down the path. It’s funny. Unfortunately the snails don’t move as fast and I accidentally squished one between my toes (gross). Woops. I will try to get a video of it later in the trip. The iguanas running, not the snail smooshing.

We headed out for dinner around 5:30, Nick referred to us as 70-year-olds. There was a diving shop Ted wanted to stop at, so we headed in the general direction (there are only two directions) without a specific plan for food. We decided to eat at Cimboco because it was right next to Antica Gelateria, a block past the diving shop. During dinner we had a nice discussion on body shapes, pear vs. apple-with-a-grape-on-top-and-pea-for-a-head.

Curtis and I were the only ones who indulged at AG since everyone else ordered dessert at Cimboco, but there was no way I was going to miss out on AG when it was (a) right next door, (b) a half hour walk away and (c) closed tomorrow. I couldn’t decide on a flavor, so I ordered half dark chocolate and half coconut/pineapple (last night I went with pistachio) and if I didn’t mention it in yesterday’s post, it’s a Gelato (a.k.a. Italian Ice Cream) shop. It was delicious. The dive shop was uneventful, only because I didn’t get any treasures for myself.

Our diving for tomorrow is scheduled for noon since there were no morning openings. Hopefully it won’t get canceled for poor weather again.