Just a few things to say here...and most will say that my opinion is biased, but I will try to be as objective as possible.
Yes, there was damage to the reefs. As I have said, like a broken record...they are remodeled. They are changed, not destroyed by a long shot. Change is not a bad thing...it just takes some getting used to. And, I firmly believe that what Mother Nature destroys, mother nature will replenish stronger and more beautiful than before.
Are the reefs already showing signs of regeneration? Absolutley!
Is the diving still enjoyable here? Absolutely!
Is the diving and the value of diving of Cozumel still better than other destinations? Absolutley!
Domino, I do not mean to be disrespectful, and you are absolutely entitled to your opinions, but I disagree with your assessments and I have to questions some of your statements. You claim that you have been diving here since 1978...then you must have seen the damage after Gilbert and Roxanne? You know how fast the reefs recovered after those storms. Although Wilma lasted alot longer, the same thing is happening now. Each day there are less sand deposits, and new sprouts of life all over the reefs. There are juvenile fish as well as larger fish and marine life EVERYWHERE...which is a wonderful sign.
I find it disheartening that someone who claims to be such a seasoned diver and such a seasoned Cozumel diver at that...would focus on the damage rather than the rebirth of the reefs and the life that is still very much there. Even the marine park determined that there was less than 30% damage to the reefs. The reefs of Cozumel are massive and to focus on that small percentage of damaged reef vs. what is STILL there is very shallow and short sighted in my opinion, particularly from a seasoned diver. People who have a true passion for diving are happy diving just about anywhere.
I am typically very put off my those who boast about their vast experience and belittle others who don't have the experience they do...and your post came across to me that way. Remember we all started somewhere and being a novice diver or someone without Cozumel diving experience does not make anyone less of a person or make them any less entitled to express their perceptions of diving in Cozumel...or anywhere. Rather than trying to share your objective opinion and sadness over what you saw, it came across as being all about you and how YOUR life has been affected by Wilma. Before you say stuff like that...think about how incompassionate and cold it sounds. Think about how it affected OUR (locals) lives, not for one week of diving while on vacation, but for MONTHS...and yes, we still feel effects of Wilma daily and we are still trying to put all of the pieces back together, financially, physically, and mentally. I think it is natural for me to be a little defensive when people make statements of how their vacations were ruined or not the same because of Wilma.
I know you acknowledged some other things, but the negative things you said repeatedly overshadowed anything positive you had to say...and I think that's where some of the defensiveness came across.
I've dove several other places, although of course 90% of my dives have been in Cozumel, and I still truly believe that Cozumel has better diving than any of the other places I have dove...even post Wilma.
Anyway, I'm sorry you feel the way you do, but I personally do not agree with your assessments.
I hope that you will find a dive destination that brings you as much peace as Cozumel once did...I still find peace here even through all of the turmoil.
By the way, here are some pictures I've taken of the reefs since Wilma:
Palancar Gardens - February 2006
Palancar Caves - November 2005
Paso del Cedral - November 2005
Maracaibo Shallows - February 2006
Yes, there was damage to the reefs. As I have said, like a broken record...they are remodeled. They are changed, not destroyed by a long shot. Change is not a bad thing...it just takes some getting used to. And, I firmly believe that what Mother Nature destroys, mother nature will replenish stronger and more beautiful than before.
Are the reefs already showing signs of regeneration? Absolutley!
Is the diving still enjoyable here? Absolutely!
Is the diving and the value of diving of Cozumel still better than other destinations? Absolutley!
Domino, I do not mean to be disrespectful, and you are absolutely entitled to your opinions, but I disagree with your assessments and I have to questions some of your statements. You claim that you have been diving here since 1978...then you must have seen the damage after Gilbert and Roxanne? You know how fast the reefs recovered after those storms. Although Wilma lasted alot longer, the same thing is happening now. Each day there are less sand deposits, and new sprouts of life all over the reefs. There are juvenile fish as well as larger fish and marine life EVERYWHERE...which is a wonderful sign.
I find it disheartening that someone who claims to be such a seasoned diver and such a seasoned Cozumel diver at that...would focus on the damage rather than the rebirth of the reefs and the life that is still very much there. Even the marine park determined that there was less than 30% damage to the reefs. The reefs of Cozumel are massive and to focus on that small percentage of damaged reef vs. what is STILL there is very shallow and short sighted in my opinion, particularly from a seasoned diver. People who have a true passion for diving are happy diving just about anywhere.
I am typically very put off my those who boast about their vast experience and belittle others who don't have the experience they do...and your post came across to me that way. Remember we all started somewhere and being a novice diver or someone without Cozumel diving experience does not make anyone less of a person or make them any less entitled to express their perceptions of diving in Cozumel...or anywhere. Rather than trying to share your objective opinion and sadness over what you saw, it came across as being all about you and how YOUR life has been affected by Wilma. Before you say stuff like that...think about how incompassionate and cold it sounds. Think about how it affected OUR (locals) lives, not for one week of diving while on vacation, but for MONTHS...and yes, we still feel effects of Wilma daily and we are still trying to put all of the pieces back together, financially, physically, and mentally. I think it is natural for me to be a little defensive when people make statements of how their vacations were ruined or not the same because of Wilma.
I know you acknowledged some other things, but the negative things you said repeatedly overshadowed anything positive you had to say...and I think that's where some of the defensiveness came across.
I've dove several other places, although of course 90% of my dives have been in Cozumel, and I still truly believe that Cozumel has better diving than any of the other places I have dove...even post Wilma.
Anyway, I'm sorry you feel the way you do, but I personally do not agree with your assessments.
I hope that you will find a dive destination that brings you as much peace as Cozumel once did...I still find peace here even through all of the turmoil.
By the way, here are some pictures I've taken of the reefs since Wilma:
Palancar Gardens - February 2006
Palancar Caves - November 2005
Paso del Cedral - November 2005
Maracaibo Shallows - February 2006
