Few pics from Monday and Wednesday

[cozcharlie]

Very nice. Never been that close to reef sharks in Cozumel, had any lionfish been speared near by?

I wasn't as close as pictures appeared (zoom + crop). We didn't have any lionfish. The pair seem to have been hanging out around 1 coral head at Palancar Gardens for a little while (not certain how long). We were in the area for 10 minutes, they were just making a loop I would guess was 75 yards long or so (we would lose sight for a little while, but not long, so the circle couldn't have been too big).

 

[GameChanger]

We saw the black tips at the Gardens on Monday. An awesome sight no doubt!

 

[scubaNYC16]

First dive with new camera at Cedral on Monday, had some good photo opportunities (shark, eagle ray, turtles), just wish they had happened after I was more familiar with the setup. Would have gotten better pictures. Also saw some baby black tips at Palancar Gardens yesterday. Pelagic Ventures boat had seen them there in the morning so we got captain to go there again when friend and I went out in afternoon.

Would have gotten way better pic of porcupine fish at Dalila yesterday, but camera had just gone to sleep when I tried to take first shot. If you want photography tips, ask anyone but me

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Nice to see some big boys in town. I’ve only seen a hammerhead about 5 years ago but that was super rare and the rest all black tips.

 

[cozcharlie]

Just to be clear, not really “big boys “ These were babies (maybe 2 foot ). Scale obviously lost in the photos. Didn’t want to mislead people

 

[scubaNYC16]

Just to be clear, not really “big boys “ These were babies (maybe 2 foot ). Scale obviously lost in the photos. Didn’t want to mislead people

Ha. Still awesome.

 

[Streydog]

Just to be clear, not really “big boys “ These were babies (maybe 2 foot ). Scale obviously lost in the photos. Didn’t want to mislead people

I would have sworn they were at least in the 6' range. What camera were you using?

On a side note, I was told by a DM that when the reef sharks are that young they look like black tips and it is hard to tell what they are until they get bigger. Anyone know if there is any truth to this?

 

[cozcharlie]

I would have sworn they were at least in the 6' range. What camera were you using?

On a side note, I was told by a DM that when the reef sharks are that young they look like black tips and it is hard to tell what they are until they get bigger. Anyone know if there is any truth to this?

Using Sony RX100VII compact. It has a big 200mm equivalent zoom. Normally it isn't that useful from a distance underwater since the shooting through that much water usually doesn't result in a great image--and obviously strobes are useless. It definitely has some drawbacks, but proved useful on that dive.

EDIT--I have no idea about your reef shark question

 

[cozcharlie]

Smaller stuff for those that care

 

[Rose Robinson]

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EDIT, btw, I am uncertain of the board preferred way of posting photos. If I am supposed to do it another way (save a gallery somewhere, provide a link?), please just let me know. Clearly new at this

Hi Charlie,

Lovely photos.

Curious to know what current pandemic precautionary measures are in place, Cozumel hotels/ public areas/local beaches/dive shops/conditions on charters/restaurants/local Cozumel airport(s)/on board planes/home based airport(s) (assuming Texas).

Are local hotels properly disinfecting rooms/common areas, is mask wearing/social distancing mandatory in hotels/shops/attractions etc.

Thank you in advance for any time you can spend to convey this information.

A lot of us are anxious to get out, just as many are concerned what we may end up bringing back with us if pandemic safety measures are not what/where they should be.

Our local conditions in BC are still not that good, currently numbers are spiking and it always seems to be following ''people density'' following long weekends/statutory holidays.

More and more younger people are being affected, with social gathering/lax pandemic safety measures being the primary cause.

Since the onset of the pandemic, my housekeeping staff have been the busiest people at both of my operations, cleaning/disinfecting/carpet shampooing is ongoing 24-7, as is social distancing/mask wearing/limiting numbers, it's a horrendous job, but it all needs to be done, so far with 100% effectiveness, and mind you, I'm only talking about two businesses, working in relative isolation.

I can't even begin to imagine what's going at world scale tourist destinations, that have re-opened, with the end of the pandemic, being nowhere in sight.

Thank you,

Rose.

 

[cozcharlie]

Most of what you asked has been covered pretty extensively in other threads but here are the highlights

1). The island and state governments do take Covid very seriously. They had a 2 month hard lockdown (including a 5 pm curfew at one point ) that ended in June and then gradually did a partial re-opening. Curfew is 10 pm now , restaurants are still operating at reduced capacity. They have extensive mask wearing, social distancing and sanitation rules. They check your temperature, give you a squirt of hand sanitizer and require a mask to go into the grocery store for instance. Compliance at most tourist oriented businesses is pretty high, but there is still Covid on the island and in the state in general.

3) Mexico in general has only been testing the very sick. This has kept the top line case counts somewhat low , but the positivity on tests is sky high meaning it is obvious they are missing most cases. The total death count is actually 3rd in the world behind the US and Brazil and the death count here has been shown to be understated when press organizations have looked at actual death certificates

3). Dive boats are allowed to operate at 50 percent of listed tourist capacity (6 pax boat equals 3 pax now )

4). Planes are rather full. There has been extensive discussion on this. High air turnover rate and HEPA filters keeps virus from building too much in the cabin air , but if you are literally sitting right next to a person with Covid risk has to still be there. Bottom line on planes is risk is way lower than you would think , but not zero.

The general takeaway is that you can visit Cozumel relatively safely if you follow the protocols as required by law If you ignore the local rules and act like virus doesn’t exist there are plenty of chances to catch the virus