The Six Highlights of the 2014 Trip to Curacao

As many of you know, Team Manta recently returned from Curacao, an island just north of Venezuela. Here are 6 highlights, in no particular order, of this trip.

Number One: The Diving

Duh, that was the point of the trip, but what I liked about the diving this time is that most of the dives were relatively shallow.  This positively affected the dives in different ways. With the sky’s overcast many of the days, the sun obviously did not penetrate the water as deeply as it does on clear days. Staying shallow allowed us to better see the corals and their true colors. Every diver knows that shallower dives mean longer dives. Even for divers with less than optimal air consumption rates were able to squeeze an hour out of most of the dives. Finally, our newer divers were neither a limiting factor to the group, nor were they left out of the dives everyone else was doing. 

Number Two: New Divers

Speaking of new divers, we brought back four new Team Manta members this trip.  Any of you who have taken a class from me knows that I highly recommend that new divers immediately sign up for one of our week long dive trips as a way to really cement their skills. (Not to mention how much fun they will have!) This trip, we had four people completing their open water dives. In some cases, if I fail to convince students that they need to dive locally with the group, I certify students and they go on their way and I never know if they continued to dive or if they remained at the skill level of a newly certified diver. On this trip I had the opportunity to guide my students through their four open water dives, and then to see them assert more independence, diving with me as a dive buddy, feeling relaxed and comfortable. Eventually, they became comfortable diving with another certified diver as their dive buddy. I am proud of them and know they will continue to dive and enjoy it.

Number Three: The Lionfish Hunt

Our dive operation, Ocean Encounters, has their own answer to the lionfish problem on their reefs.  They spear lionfish on different reefs in rotation.  They count, measure and sex the catch for statistics and submit that information to research on the issue.  The divers on this dive acted as spotters, banging on their tanks when they found a lionfish, and pointing it out for the dive masters, who then speared the invader and put it into a collection tube.  After the dive, we were shown how to filet the fish safely and were given a certificate for a free lionfish meal at the Iguana Café and they were delicious!  I am proud to say that we dispatched ninety lionfish on that dive.  Sadly, there seems to be an endless supply of them throughout the Caribbean.

Number Four: The Night Dive

Night diving is a must on any dive trip.  This one was a real delight.  All the divers were able to stay spread apart so all of us could see things without being finned in the head. There was plenty for all of us to see, too.  Lobsters strutted boldly along the corals.  Hunting octopuses, seemingly undisturbed by our lights, performed their color and shape changing tricks for us.  Tiny red shrimps peeked out from formations.  We hired a videographer from Turtle and Ray Productions to document the dive.  You can see this here.

Number Five: The Ostrich Farm

If you go to Curacao, be sure to make time to venture out to the Ostrich Farm.  This is a unique operation is which nothing is wasted.  The ostrich meat is sold to restaurants, eggs used in baking and breakfasts. Crocodiles ate the waste from the butchering.  Goats ate the weeds out of the aloe fields. The pigs ate the scraps from the restaurant. It was really impressive. We took a guided tour and learned a lot about the animals, and even got to feed them. 

Number Six: The Restaurants

Mike and I ate in a lot, but when we ventured out, it was memorable.  Augusto’s, located adjacent to Lions Dive, where we were staying and Ocean Encounters, the dive operation, was a convenient spot to get a quick and relatively inexpensive lunch. They served good burgers, veggie or chicken sandwiches and pasta.  Our traveling companions talked us out of our culinary comfort zones, convincing us to try Indian food at Bollywood restaurant.  Unsure what all the dishes were, we had our friends, Sean and Karen Bellinger order several dishes to share.  This was a good way to experience a new cuisine and each dish was wonderful! If you are into Argentinian style beef, try El Gaucho, a nice restaurant the overlooks Willemstad. Don’t count on Argentinian beef, though.  The beef served is US Black Angus.  Finally, do not miss Zambezi at the Ostrich farm.  They will even transport you to and from the restaurant, so you can feel free to try their special cocktails or imbibe a wonderful South African wine with dinner.  Everything they make is great, and of course the ostrich steaks are fresh! Oh, and dessert! Yum.

If you want more information about our trip, check these videos and the trip report on our website.

A Tidbit About the Tibbetts

Greetings Blog readers!

You have probably been wondering when I am ever going to get around to telling all about our Cayman Brac adventure, but alas, there is so much to tell, that I will have to share in segments.  Today I want to talk about the MV Captain Keith Tibbetts.

Just as Stingray City is the “must dive” on Grand Cayman, the Tibbetts is the “must dive” on the Brac.  In fact even, if divers are staying on Little Cayman, they will likely take a day to come over to the Brac to dive this famous wreck.  

The Tibbetts, or Russian Frigate 356, began its life as part of Cuba’s Cold War fleet.  In 1996, the Cayman Islands purchased it with the intention of scuttling it to create an artificial reef. The ship was renamed for local politician and diver, Keith Tibbetts.  Originally the ship was sunk upright in 90ft. of water, but a storm in 2004 broke the ship in two, leaving the bow listing at approximately a 45 degree angle, and the midsection a debris field.  It lies about 200 yards off shore in front of the Buccaneer’s landmark, bbut most divers reach it by boat, attaching to one of the two moorings.

As you swim toward the wreck, garden eels seem to be coaxing you to come near, their heads bending like hundreds of fingers gesturing, “This way, this way!”   The Tibbetts, an impressive 330 ft long, seems to materialize out of the water as you approach; a ghost of its former self.  As a relatively new wreck, it is not yet fully encrusted with corals and sponges, but the process is surely under way.  Home to over 100 species of marine life, you may catch a glimpse of a goliath grouper, moray eel or other large critters on this wreck.  I found an approximately 5ft long barracuda chilling in the debris field, blending in perfectly with all the gray metal wreckage. Overwhelmed by the massiveness of this wreck, it would be easy to miss the little stuff, such as juvenile drums or secretary bennies, living here, but divers are well advised to stay on the lookout for both big and little creatures. If you are into dive caching, bring a trinket to leave and take something from the box hidden in the wreck.  (I can’t tell you where it is, the hunt is half the fun!)

I have dived this wreck now six times, and it remains both exciting and surprising.  I am looking forward to my next visit to see it again and to commune with its unique inhabitants.

A Lion of a Problem

As everyone in the dive world is aware, there is a problem with lionfish in the Caribbean.  This voracious eater was accidentally released into the waters of the Atlantic and has been wreaking havoc ever since.  The lionfish was able to gain a fin hold in this new environment quite easily.   With poisonous spines protruding from its sides to discourage predators from making a snack of them, and a hypnotic dance that mesmerizes its prey while the hunter closes in for the kill, they are pretty much able to decimate reefs without a worry.  Dive operators and concerned conservationists have been brainstorming to develop some plan to restore balance to the reef ecosystem but it always seems that human interference, while possibly solving one problem, usually creates a new one.

On our recent trip to Cayman Brac, I found it fascinating how friendly the grouper were, swimming right up to divers, allowing them to be petted.  Waiting for us each time we descended, the piscine pets followed us along the wall like dogs on a walk.  In areas where the coral heads were separated by sandy areas, the grouper set up “neighborhoods,” and if a grouper from one coral head continued with the dive group to the next coral head, he would be confronted by neighboring fish and chased away, back to his own territory.  It didn’t take long to figure out why they behaved this way.  Our divemasters, trained and encouraged to hunt lionfish, brought a spear on every dive.  Divers would point out a lionfish and the invader would be good as toast. (Or should I say sushi?)   As the divemaster lined up his shot, the fish would gather like spectators in the coliseum.  Once the fish was dispatched, it was taken off the spear and left for the grouper, triggerfish, or whatever fish were around to take advantage of a free meal.    

It was fun at first to interact with the fish in such a way, their usual timid behavior transformed into a new openness.  However, it is one thing if the grouper are begging for a free meal, but what about other animals?  On one of the sites we visited, there was an enormous green moray.  I mean a monster!  In fact I spotted him on the reef 60ft below while on my safety stop and thought at first he was a shark!  The divemaster told us that he is really careful to look out for him when he spears lionfish because this guy will take the fish right off the spear without a shred of trepidation.  He also volunteered that on Little Cayman, they no longer spear in the marine park during  diving tours because the sharks were catching on that they could perhaps get a tasty lionfish snack if they joined the dive group!  Divers tend to get a little nervous when sharks are acting too friendly, and imagine what would happen if a tourist, camera trained on the lionfish-divemaster interaction came between a shark and his snack?  

Another thing to ponder would be what happens when a grouper starts following a diver that is spearing something other than lionfish?  Instead of getting a meal, he may become the meal.

On other Caribbean islands, they hold spearing competitions and lionfish barbeques, teach lionfish hunting courses, and encourage the serving of lionfish at local restaurants, but none of these plans  is entirely successful, and there is likely no perfect solution.  In any case, man introduced the lionfish where it did not belong, and man is attempting to correct this problem.  Let’s just hope that a new problem is not created in the process.

That is it for this week.  As always, share the blog, like you on Facebook and leave a comment to let us know what you think of the blog and suggestions for the future.  Until next week, Cheers!

Fond Memories of Cayman Brac

I remember the first time I dove in Cayman Brac.  Mike and I wanted to take our boys, 21 and 14yrs., on a diving trip over their Easter break, and found a good deal on a condo rental and dive packages on the Brac.  Our previous dive trips with the boys were to Guanaja, Honduras, where we stayed literally in shacks perched on the hill. While that was a wonderful adventure, and the boys sure didn’t mind the rustic conditions, Mike and I were looking for something a little more civilized and easier to get to.

Cayman Brac, the dive pier.  This is where the magic starts!

Upon our arrival at the airport, the resort staff met us and delivered us to the front desk for check in.  Our condo was clean and spacious, a restaurant, the Captain’s Table was next door, and there was a bar right next to the pool.  We tossed our bags in our rooms and trotted over to the dive shop to sign papers and find out what the schedule was going to be like. After the usual formalities, we were each given a mesh bag and instructed to put our dive gear in it for pick up in the morning.  What?  I am not going to be lugging my gear over the hot sand like a tropical Quasimoto?  The next morning, when we boarded the boat, there were our bags.  We all set up our gear and settled in for a ride out the reef.

The boat captain pulled up to the mooring and crew deftly attached the vessel to it. Next the divemaster, Vicki, briefed the dive.  I had never heard such a thorough briefing, with details on sight name, profile, time, critters to look for, a whiteboard map of the sight, pointers on entries and exits, and boat procedures.  I know now that this is exactly the way a dive briefing should be done, but clearly, not all shops follow that formula.  The completeness of the briefing made the dive that more enjoyable and relaxed.

The dives were incredible with 100ft+ visibility and spectacular underwater panoramas.  As with all the Cayman Islands, the Brac is known for its wall diving and the ability to take advantage of the clear water that allow dives to 100ft with enough light for photos and plenty of things to see.  I was glad, though, that they eased us into the deeper dives as the week progressed to allow us to reacquaint ourselves with our gear and work out any anxieties we had.  Vicki did a great job guiding us and pointing out many interesting fish and marine creatures.

Dylan demonstrating good buoyancy skills
Also, Dylan was growing his first beard which in picture look like a mustache 

Back on the boat after our inaugural dive, we were told to have a snack and some water while the crew changed out our tanks.  That’s right, we never touched our gear again the whole week, except when actually diving.  In fact, I never had to carry my gear at all, except to board the boat post dive.  When it was time to dive, we walked to the bow, sat on the bench, donned our fins and a crew member brought us our BC’s.  We slipped them on, did one more pre-dive check, and made a giant stride into the blue.  

During the week, we saw tangs, grunts, angelfish, flying gurnards, assorted rays, reef sharks and many others.  Every dive was just as magical, and Jason, our other divemaster for the week, was equally caring and professional.  As with all the dive trips we have taken with our kids over the years, it was a wonderful week of shared experiences and quality time as a family, away from the hubbub of daily life.

Boomer just cruising along!

Yes, I often look back nostalgically on that first trip to Cayman Brac, remembering it as one of my favorite spots from early in my diving career.  This week we return to the Brac, as shop owners, trip leaders, and dive instructors, to see if the magic is still here.  Stay tuned.

As always, like this blog on Facebook, share it with a friend and leave a comment! Until next time, Cheers! NOTE: Hello everyone, this is Dylan. I do the posting for the blogs but don't really chime in much. For this one, I wanted to say that while I have dove all over the Caribbean and in some parts of Asia, Cayman Brac remains my favorite place to visit and dive. Vicki and the rest of the staff have always been awesome to dive with and I often mention them when talking about great dive operations. Also, I should state that I have been blessed with a lot of great diving experiences due to the love and support of my parents. I am very grateful to them for that. Happy Easter everyone! Mom and Dad, I hope you have a grand time in Cayman Brac!

An Adventure in Cabo

I get to talk to a lot of people in a day; seasoned divers, new divers, aspiring divers.  I can talk about the courses we offer, the equipment that we sell, what our next trip will be and where we will dive this summer, but the question that always have difficulty answering is, where is my favorite place to dive.   I guess the trouble is that each place has its special charm: a memorable critter sighting, a great dive crew, a fun group of fellow divers.  Some dives are just great simply for the adventure we had while diving it.  That said, I’d like to share one of my real adventures dive with you.

My husband, Mike and I were on a trip, sponsored by a company that he worked for, to Cabo San Lucas Mexico.   Cabo San Lucas, found on the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur, is known to many as home to former Van Halen member, Sammy Haggar and his nightclub, Cabo Wabo Cantina.  Since it is on the Pacific Ocean, I naturally wanted to see about diving while we were there.

I did a little research and found a dive shop close to the resort we were at and booked a couple of dives with them, but what really piqued my interest was what many websites declared Cabo’s “must dive” place, Cabo Pulmo.  I made arrangements for Mike and I and four other divers on this adventure, and adventure it was!

As it was a bit of a drive from our resort, we needed to have ample time to get there, do our dives and return in time for the formal dinner at night.  I arranged for someone from the dive shop to pick us up and deliver us to the site.  Now, one thing to keep in mind, I never met anyone from this shop in person.  I only corresponded via e-mail.  The second thing to know is that while Cabo San Lucas in quite developed, Cabo Pulmo is billed as being like “Old Mexico” and they are not kidding.  Our driver picked us up bright and early and piled our gear into the back of the vehicle.  We sped off into the traffic, often on the wrong side of the road, mind you, and drove and drove until we literally ran out of road.  This lack of pavement did not deter our driver, however and we continued on, trailing a cloud of dust.  As our surroundings became more desert like and remote, I was beginning to worry that we were being hauled out to the wilderness to be robbed.  I could see us now, stripped to our undies, wandering lost and thirsty in the Mexican desert.  Fortunately, everything was on the up and up and we made it to the dive shop safe and sound.

It was…rustic.  In fact, it was not a “shop” so much as a covered gathering place with a kitchen in the corner of a parking lot.  We were greeted enthusiastically and informed that we were in for a treat since I had booked the dive and lunch and they would be making fresh fish tacos for us when we returned.  (Goody)  After the formalities: forms, releases, C-card viewing, were done we were directed to the beach.  The first thing I noticed was that there was no pier and no dive boat, just a skiff beached forlornly on the gravel.  Suddenly, a truck appears from the parking lot and it motors over to the boat and pushes it into the water.  We turn our gear over to the staff, who wade out to the boat and drop it on the deck and assemble it all.  Next, we are instructed to wade in and get into the boat.  Are they taking us out to a bigger boat that is moored somewhere out of site?  No!  This little skiff IS the dive boat.  By now, I’m sure that our fellow divers were vowing that they would not be leaving the dive arranging to me.  

Once we reach the dive site, the divemaster gives the briefing and explains that we will enter the water all together.  We were to sit, two divers on each side of the boat, and on the count of three roll back simultaneously.  The penalty for bad timing could well be the loss of some teeth, so it was important to do this right.  We rolled off and enjoyed a wonderful dive, viewing the only living coral reef in the eastern Pacific Ocean.  The fish life was abundant and colorful.  The water, a bit cooler than I had anticipated at 75F, made me feel thankful that I tend to “over dress” for my dives because I hate being cold.  Once the group was low on air, it was time to ascend.  At the surface, we were instructed to remove our BC’s so the crew could pull them into the boat and swap out the tanks.  I figured this is where we would be robbed, left to bob, lost, in the Sea of Cortez, but fortunately, that didn’t happen either.  The question, though, was how we would get back into the boat, as there was no ladder.  Well, let me tell you, we JUMPED back into the boat, like a silverhead carp!  Actually we would get ourselves half way in and then the crew would pull us in the rest of the way.  Mike especially, was not amused.

We were on our way to the next site when we heard some barking.  The boat captain excitedly spoke in Spanish to the divemaster and pointed at a sea lion that had just surfaced.  In a few moments, another sea lion surfaced, chomping a flopping fish. The DM excitedly told us to gear up, we were diving here.  As rehearsed earlier, we rolled back in unison and descended beside a large bait ball.    I can only describe the sight as hypnotic; thousands of fishes acting as one giant organism, swirling like a piscine tornado.  As we wondered at the orderly gathering of fish, we were equally impressed with their precision dissipation as they parted ranks to allow a sea lion through, hopefully without one of them ending up as dinner.

We watched this spectacle for some time, and then finally continued exploring the area.  When we once again flopped ourselves into the boat, we could not contain our excitement at what we had witnessed.  It was clear why this was a “must dive” for this area. 

Back at the “shop”, we sipped beers as we talked about the dives while our lunch was prepared.  There was no doubt that the fish would be fresh, as we had to move from our first chosen table to avoid being downwind from the aroma of gutted fish.    The lunch that was served was out of this world, and all in alI, I felt vindicated for my choice of dive site.  After lunch, we drove back to civilization to get ready for our for our company function, bubbling with stories of our day’s adventure. It sure beats the heck out of lazing by the pool!

That is all for this week! Tune in next time for more stories and dive related flim flam! Below is another video of a Sea Lion chasing fish in Cabo. As always, share us, like us and leave a comment for some feedback. Until next time, Cheers!

They call it Angel City, but the devil in in the entry and exit!

So I’m heading back to the shop for post trip wash out, and I am asking myself, of all the dives I did this week, which was my favorite?  Was it Alice in Wonderland where we saw great schools of blue tangs, Oil slick with the awesome giant stride and abundant little critters, remote Karpata on the north end of the island with its coral encrusted anchors or maybe Buddy’s reef with its beautiful cup corals and octopuses? The truth is, each one was my favorite.  

I often praise shore diving for the fact the it gives on-your-own-schedule freedom and affords more night diving, but the main thing is I guess I just like the challenge the comes with shore diving; the requirement to plan your own profile, figure out the logistics of your entry and exit.   You are essentially taking the roles of divemaster and boat captain.  

Take for example the site, Angel City. In our guide book it was rated for all levels of divers and divable by boat or shore. Part of Bonaire’s double reef system, it was named for friendly angelfish known to be at the site.  As was our practice throughout the week, when we reached the site, we all piled out to plan our entry and exit strategies.  The first thing was noticed was the terrain leading to the shore.  It was rubble composed of bleached out pieces of coral, overlying volcanic rock.  Rough on the bottoms of your booties and not always solid underneath you when walking with full gear, this terrain demands close attention to where you are stepping.  Next we considered the surf rolling in, with waves crashing onto the shore.  We would have to keep an eye on the waves to avoid being knocked down and then dragged across the coral bottom.  In addition to the waves, divers also need to be aware of the random sand covered rock that is very hard to see in the surf and can trip you up as you make your way deeper.  It is ideal if you can scout out a sandy chute that will be a smoother and more predictable pathway into the water.

Realizing that this was going to be a challenge, we decided to enter one by one, with one of us, sans gear, helping the others navigate the shore.  For the photographers, we got them safely through the surf and then brought their cameras out to them.  It took some time, but we got in and were ready to start our dive.

We returned to the point of entry as a group to exit the reverse of how we entered, the problem was that even though we intended to wait our turn to exit so we could have help, the waves were pushing us in.  In addition, unlike when we were entering, the waves were coming to us from behind and it was hard to anticipate that larger wave and not be swept off our feet!  The one saving grace was that there were no sea urchins that we could impale ourselves on if we fell.

In the end, with team work, we were able to enter and exit without incident, but what about the dive?  It was worth the effort.  We did not see many angelfish, but there were plenty of eels, anemones and cleaner shrimp, trunkfish, trumpetfish and all my favorites, just waiting in the clear, aqua sea.

Thanks for tuning in. As always, follow us, share the blog and likes us on Facebook. Until next time, cheers.

Where's Waldo: The Eel Edition

When you don't want to trumpet your location,
it is a good idea to pretend to be soft coral!

Team Manta Travels to Bonaire

Well, Team Manta is off on another adventure, this time to Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles. We started out Saturday, January 12 at 2:30am with a limo ride to the airport. After running the gauntlet of check in, baggage weigh ins, security checks and body scans at Chicago O’Hare airport, we squeezed sardine like into our seats and were winging our way to a week at the Caribbean’s most famous dive island.

We arrived at Flamingo International airport at 3:05pm local time. We were hoping that the reward for braving the scary wee hours of the morning would be that we would have enough time to check in, attend orientation, and then DIVE. Alas, it was not to be. We got to the dive shop after 5 pm and they were closed, however, we still could snorkel, so a bunch of Manta Divers who just couldn’t wait grabbed their snorkel gear and hit the clear, turquoise water. We will have to go to the orientation on Sunday morning and start our dive week then.

We were told that the stores all closed at 6 on Saturday and all day Sunday, so we had already sent Mike to the store to get at least a few essentials to get us through the next couple of days. He came back with a supply of cold cuts, bread, fruit, snacks, soda and beer, but everything was quite pricey. I suppose it beats eating in the restaurant. One thing I should have brought, but did not is bug spray. For how windy it is on Bonaire it is surprising how many little biting insects there are. Not everyone complained about the bugs, though, so perhaps they just like me better.

Our next order of business is to find out where to watch the Packers game. It appeared, based on the TV listings, that we have a choice of watching it in our condo or at the pool bar, but after the Ravens’ overtime win over the Broncos, the island networks decided that they had had enough of American football and switched to soccer! The silver lining, though was that we were spared witnessing the Packers’ loss and we when to bed earlier and caught up on much needed sleep. We will be ready to dive tomorrow.

I did take a little time to explore the property, so take a look at the attached photos. Stay tuned for the next Manta Divers blog, “They named it Angel City but the devil was in the entry and exit.”

Packed and ready to fly!

Sleeping, diving, eating and parking all in the same place?
How could I lose?

Dive boats!

Gear check

Airport, car port, same thing right?

There are two flavors of air: Nitrox and Regular

Go Pack Go!

Airport

The rowdy kids always sit in the back of the bus!

Da Plane! Da Plane!

Bonaire is great except of the tourists