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 Cozumel Trip Report
Submit a Dive Trip Report

Posted by Dee on 09/15/01

Cozumel Girls trip...+

This report will be long and full of boring details to many of you, although I’ve taken out a lot of the stuff that was originally there. But it’s been my therapy over the last few days. So you won’t hurt my feelings if you skip around!

My last visit to Cozumel was in October 2000. There have been lots of changes in the last year. One of the first things I noticed as we flew in was the new golf course next to the airport. From the air you can really see how close it is to the shoreline. Maybe I should have dived Barracuda Reef this time because the pristine Staghorn Coral won’t survive long with the fertilizer run off that is inevitable now.

I was expecting cloudy weather and a few thunderstorms but bright skies and low humidity greeted us. At least the humidity was lower than Houston. We never saw a single cloud our whole trip. The fleet of old suburbans used for transport to hotels has been replaced with all brand new 15 passenger cargo vans and you can bet they pack them to capacity! But other than being a bit crowded it was a smooth ride.

On the 2 ½ mile ride to the hotel, I see a lot of changes. Quite a few new store fronts as well as the new theatre. The big shopping mall being built by the cruise lines now has a bridged walkway across the main street. And there are more brand new cars than I’ve seen before.

The new El Cid LaCeiba Hotel sign on the street and its twin design behind the desk is the only outward signs of any changes the new owners have made. Esther and the girls still greet you behind the desk, Jorge still smiles as he picks up your bags and leads you to your room and yes, even grumpy old Carmen is still frowning over breakfast. Nancy was on vacation but I did get to see Martha and she asked that I say Hello to you all for her.

There were 38 divers and 5 shop leaders/Dm’s on this trip. Our dive package was through Blue Angel (Alex & Alex) for 2 morning dives a day. Airfare being close to $900 from Bush IAH to Cozumel, going with a dive shop was our only option to get to Coz.

Thursday afternoon we met Tom, Kim and her husband Chris for an afternoon dive on the plane wreck. The current was pretty strong which made taking pictures a real challenge. As I was holding on to part of a wing trying to set up a shot, the resident Sargent Major in that spot removed some skin from my knuckles. I swear he grinned at me with every bite! The current slowed to almost nothing the last part of the dive. After almost an hour, the rest of the group showed up so we decided to head in before it got more crowded. Blue Angel was nice to provide us with Nitrox tanks for our shore dives.

Max depth: 34 ft
Avg. depth: 21 ft
Bottom time: 58 min
Gas: EAN 32


We met Tom and gang at Ernesto’s for a bite to eat. Now ya’ll know that Ernesto’s has always been one of my favorite places, not only for their food but also for the friendly atmosphere. Well, all that has changed too. Ernesto’s has moved directly across the street in a tall, narrow building. The downstairs has the bar and kitchen area up front with a few tables in back overlooking the water. Upstairs there’s
nothing but tables with a beautiful view of the water. The old funky look is gone, just bare walls, but    the old 50’s music is still played loud. The biggest disappointment came at the end of the meal when the waiter politely informed me that the tip wasn’t big enough! The old Ernesto’s is gone and I doubt the new version will make it back on my list.

Friday morning Alex met everyone at the dock to hand out weights and make sure everyone had a waiver on file. Since there were so many of us, we were assigned to 3 boats in order of experience. Our boat, the Pena, was different than any I had seen before. All tanks were standing and bungeed at the bow of the boat in front of the wheelhouse. All our gear bags were placed on a raised section under the canopy where we were also expected to sit, but no gear storage area. There was a wide plank along part of the rail to sit on but not enough for all 14 of us. There was also a sunning deck on top of the wheelhouse. We were told to leave our gear and the DM would set it up for us. Shelley and I and two others were diving Nitrox and our gear was set up first. The DM then laid our gear on the deck and proceeded to do the same with everyone else. Maybe I’m more anal than some about my gear but I don’t want it laid down where everyone can walk on/over it. I picked it up and placed it between my knees, holding hoses and gauges in my lap. Six of us had cameras but there was nowhere to put them. Blue Angel had supplied one 5 gal bucket for masks and cameras! The ladder on the boat was nice and sturdy; it just wasn’t anchored to the boat! Two loops of rope attached it to the deck railing. When you put your hand on the rungs to help pull yourself up, your hands were smashed against the side of the boat. I had plenty of time to ponder all this because it took us 1hr and 45 minutes to get to Palancar Bricks and another 30 min. to get everyone geared up and into the water! This is usually a 20-30 min. ride on smaller boats. I now know the true meaning of cattle boats! On to the diving….

Palancar Bricks  - Turtles everywhere! Towering coral heads with sand chutes and swim thrus are always a good way to start. Shelley is still uneasy in crowds so we hung at the back of the group. The turtles were very curious and would swing around and check us out before moving along. As were we starting our safety stops I looked down and could see couple of black tip sharks, first of several we’ll see on this trip. Good steady current.

Max depth: 95ft
Avg. depth: 48ft
Bottom time: 61 min.
Gas: EAN 32%

San Francisco – Most of this dive was shallow. Lots of fish life, which took to the hills when they saw this group coming! Shelley had had enough of the crowd so she buddied with a guy low on air and ascended. As I was finishing my dive, I found a pile of old conch shells in a depression in the sand. Inside one, I found a small baby octopus. His head was bout the size of a quarter…too cute!

Max depth: 58ft
Avg. depth: 41ft
Bottom time: 71 min.
Gas: EAN 33%

Our excursion had started at 9am and we didn’t get back to the dock until almost 4pm. Two dives over 7 hrs is just a tad too slow for me. We had made arrangements to go with Tom to the east side of the island and to help the new turtle hatchlings to the sea. Luckily he didn’t wait for us. I had a chat with Dennis and Rebecca, our group leaders, to inform them we were leaving the group for another dive op. Nothing against anyone in the group, or even Blue Angel as a whole but I knew we’d have a better time with Caballitos.

Silvino had called us Thursday night to confirm our afternoon dive on Saturday so we went to town to see if we could get on the morning boat. No problem. Julio and Poncho would pick us up at 10am the next morning. They had a group of 5 coming over from Cancun so we’d get a later start, which is ok by us.

Saturday….Santa Rosa Wall

As promised, Julio and crew showed up right at 10. Three men and two ladies from Canada were our boat mate for the morning dives. Friendliest folks in the world, but so is every Canuck I’ve ever met! As Shelley and I were setting up our gear, Julio asked if Santa Rosa Wall was OK with us. You bet! As we sat on the edge of the boat waiting for our turn to back roll in, I was running ‘What-If’s’ through my mind. There was very little current this day. We ascended right where the steep wall really starts. This section reminds me of Neumann’s Wall in Roatan. Not a lot of life but beautiful all the same. We saw lots of black coral and gorgonians.

Max depth: 84ft
Avg. depth: 55ft
Bottom time: 36 min.
Gas: EAN 32%

Paradise – We’re on the hunt for seahorses. Julio has taken pictures of several on Paradise and he’s sure we’ll see them….but we don’t. Good thing I guess because my strobe batteries ran down and the current was running pretty strong. Paradise is as beautiful as ever but you can sure see the damage being done from over diving. Pairs of Banded Butterflies flit through the coral. Rock Beauty’s playing hide and seek and French Angels begging to have their pictures taken. Ahhhh….

Max depth: 41ft.
Avg. depth: 33ft.
Bottom time: 58 min.
Gas: EAN 36%

Delilah/Francesca – This afternoon we are picked up by Israel and Poncho. We have our choice of sites and the boat to ourselves. Still hunting seahorses so we decide on Delilah. Well actually, we’ll be diving the in-betweens that don’t really have a name other than between Delilah and Francesca. There’s a mild current and the slow drop to the top of the reef through the rays of the afternoon sun is a treat in itself. Every fish species we see seems to be in groups. With just the three of us, everything is more curious than wary. Smooth Trunkfish continue to poof the sand in search of food and totally ignore us. I see more of them on this one dive than every before. I quit counting at 14! The treat of the dive for Shelley was her first Nurse Shark. For me it was the huge Barracuda under a ledge.

Max depth: 62ft.
Avg. depth: 44ft.
Bottom time: 57 min.
Gas: EAN 32%

Las Palmas – Shelley sat this one out with a headache. While Israel and I were down, Julio continued her Spanish lesson. He taught her a phrase that made Israel smile but we were afraid to ask what it was! It’s been a while since Israel and I had the water to ourselves, it’s nice to dive as friends. We both set off in search of the elusive Cozumel seahorse. We found Splendid Toadfish, Green and Spotted Morays, and lots of Scrawled Filefish before Israel finally spotted the Caballito. Brown with white smudges with his tail wrapped around the base of a sea fan. I don’t know if the pictures will turn out because he was determined to show me nothing but the back of his head. But at least I finally saw one. This part of Las Palmas reminds me of Stetson Bank in the Flower Gardens because of all the babies. Juvenile everything, especially Trumpetfish.  The current picked up quite a bit while we were on our safety stop so I sent up the Blob for the 15ft hang. We surfaced close to Santa Rosa Wall! During our stop, Israel and I compared gauges. I finally beat him on air consumption!

Max depth: 67ft.
Avg. depth: 42ft.
Bottom time: 58 min.
Gas: EAN 36%


Sunday – The last two dives of this trip are with Giovani and Ricardo. Giovani has had to give up diving because of his eardrums but he says he’s happy being a boat Capt. Ricardo asked about all the D’linkers, especially Den!  It would be just the three of us again today. What a way to dive! Well actually, four if you count the non-diving Link. I’ll let him tell you about his trip. He’s busy writing his trip report.

We decided on Paso del Cedral. Ricardo will buddy with Shelley so I can do my thing with the camera. There weren’t the usual big Groupers this time, which I miss. But in their place was the biggest, friendliest Queen Angels I’ve ever seen. They would come right toward you, head on with their bright blue lips and glowing yellow eyes. Then at the last minute turn to one side or another for that perfect profile photograph. I think they thought they were French Angels! The Queens weren’t the only ones, either. The Rock Beauty’s were the size of normal Queen Angels and just as friendly. As soon as I would get low they would come out to say hello! Not just peek around the corner, I mean all the way out swimming to me. Fantastic! Ricardo pointed out three baby Black Tip sharks that have been seen in the same area lately. Toward the end of the dive Shelley’s mask started leaking faster than she could clear it so we ended the dive.

Max depth: 55ft
Avg. depth: 40ft
Bottom time: 53 min.
Gas: EAN 32%

Yucab/Columbia – During our surface interval Giovani looked at Shelley’s mask and as he did the skirt came completely apart in his hands. She had a spare but decided to sit this one out so it’s Ricardo and I. I could get used to this! We knew the current was ripping so I left the camera onboard so we could fly. And fly we did! We descended at Yucab and drifted all the way down to Columbia! Staying just a few feet off the reef, we followed the natural contours. At one point, I think around Francesca, the reef turned to nothing but hard corals. Namely Lettuce and Branched Finger coral. There were no sponges, no fans; no plant looking growth of any kind, there wasn't any room for it. The only fish life we could see were clouds of blue damsels hovering above the coral heads. As we approached, they swiftly disappeared into the recesses of the coral. The Lettuce coral gave way to the Branched Finger coral and the white tips of the fingers looked like a field of white clover blooms in the distance. Drifting the edge of the sand flats the Ocean Triggers passed us in synchronized flight, their dorsal and anal fins moving in perfect time. There wasn’t any one thing that stood out on this dive but it was one of the best I’ve ever had.

Max depth: 68ft
Avg. depth: 49ft
Bottom time: 78 min
Gas: EAN 36%

All weekend the water temperature was a constant 84 degrees and the visibility varied between 80ft to 100+ft on the southern sites. The days were sunny with only scattered clouds and I don’t think it got much above 90 degree, although the humidity was very high.

Shelley and I left our gear bags in the storage baskets all weekend, making sure we were locked in and the baskets couldn’t be swung out. This was very handy since our room was on the far side of the property. Yes, my old room #22 is no more. In the old section on all three floors, they are combining adjacent rooms to make suites. These suites will be sold as time-shares and when they aren’t being used for that, hotel guests may reserve them. Another improvement being made is to the gear area. As Shelley and I picked up our gear Sunday morning, the workers were already starting on the renovations. I think they are keeping the baskets but each one will have a separate lockable door.

We had a really good time this trip. Shelley had just gotten married on Labor Day before we left so she was glad to get home to her new honey.

The new owners of El Cid LaCeiba Hotel are making some much needed repairs and I suppose we’ll stay there again. But the increased prices, the cruise shippers filling the restaurants resulting in even slower serving times (time for lunch is limited due to catching afternoon dive boats), and the out and out asking for tips, I’ll be paying more attention to the deals from other hotels when planning my next trip. With a new gear storage area, the convenience of rooms right at the dock isn’t that big a deal except that I had forgotten how far it is across the property!

I've had some sort of upper respiritory crud since I got home and haven't had my pictures developed yet. I'll post them as soon as I do.

Dee

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