Hammerhead sharks//Flower Gardens

[texdiveguy]

I am hoping to join the crew of the Spree and other divers from my LDS on an early March 05' 2 days trip to the Flower Gardens. This will be during the annual hammerhead shark migration thru the reefs. * Has anyone done this trip and seen the sharks,,,,what might we expect in terms of number of sharks and activity level?? I have read of the 9 spec. of hammmerhead sharks that 3 spec. poss greater rick of attack on humans,,,,any thoughts or comments?? Any first hand sugg. on shark observing tech. would be helpful. Thanks

 

[TwoBitTxn]

I made the trip March 20-21 this year. The water warmed up about 2* and most everything was gone. I saw 2 Eagle rays and a hammer at a distance.

Expect a higher possibility this trip will not go due to weather.

The Hammer Heads do not pose a hazard to the divers. It's the occasional Tiger shark that worrys people. No one has ever been bitten.

I'm going to get on at least one spring trip this year too. I need to find out when my shop is going, and I may book with another shop to improve my chances.

TwoBit

 

[texdiveguy]

I made the trip March 20-21 this year. The water warmed up about 2* and most everything was gone. I saw 2 Eagle rays and a hammer at a distance.

Expect a higher possibility this trip will not go due to weather.

The Hammer Heads do not pose a hazard to the divers. It's the occasional Tiger shark that worrys people. No one has ever been bitten.

I'm going to get on at least one spring trip this year too. I need to find out when my shop is going, and I may book with another shop to improve my chances.

TwoBit

Thanks for the info.,,,,,looking forward to the trip....hope the weather is ok,,but you never know.

 

[texdiveguy]

I called and talked to the "crew" and they say you can see from just 5-6 to a school of 20-40 hammerhead sharks on these trips. They also said because of the tough weather in the gulf that time of the year that only around 35% of their schd. trip get to depart... :eyemouth:

 

[scubafanatic]

Hi texdiveguy,

....best of luck to you on the early March trip........but prepare for heartbreak........an FG trip at that time of year has almost no chance of succeeding...........I know this from bitter personal experience, as I recently returned from a sensational 3-day (11 dives) Labor Day trip on Sea Searcher II......that's the good news..........the bad news that trip was my -- 7th -- FG attempt.

Per the crew of the Sea Searcher II, the realistic window-of-opportunity for an FG trip is the 2nd half of June through the 1st half of Sept......about 3 months per year.

I'd scheduled 3 trips in '03........and 3 more trips in '04..........early spring (to catch Hammerheads), later in the fall...and even early summer trips.........all were cancelled due to the weather.......only my 7th trip this Sept 3--6th was a 'go'.

I'd reached a point where I'd decided if my 7th attempt failed, I'd throw in the towel on the Flower Gardens...that's how fed up I was getting!

I finally succeeded this past Labor Day ( Tucker's Dive Shop ) ......and thank goodness had an absolutely sensational time........the weather/ water temps/ clarity/lack of currents was golden.....could not have asked for a better trip! ( did 11 dives, including 2 night dives )

Did dives on East Bank...West Bank.....Stetson......and an Oil Rig.......even saw 2 Whale Sharks on the Rig dive......and caught the very rare Annual Coral Spawning that Saturday night...awesome!!!

I fully intend to try for the Flower Gardens in '05..........gonna sign up for the Labor Day trip again, and probably an earlier trip in the July/August timeframe.........but I will never again waste my time on spring or fall trips........I've learned my lession.......diving is supposed to be fun, and I can't take the stress of repeated cancellations anymore.

Karl

 

[Dee]

Karl.....My first FG trip was my 13th try at it! Don't give up!

 

[scubafanatic]

Hi Dee,

...thanks for the encouragement! ......it was touch-and-go there for a while...almost said to-heck with the FG....but when I finally got to go , it was well worth it........so I'll definitely sign-up again in '05, but I'll be realistic about the timing, to increase the odds of success.

It's not that big a deal......I've got other trips in mind in '05, so I definitely won't have all my eggs in the Flower Gardens 'basket'. I've already signed up for a weeklong scuba live-aboard the 1st week of 11/05 to dive the Sea-of-Cortez (the Don Jose).....yeah, that's a YEAR off, but Tucker's has already sold out that trip...WOW......and the UW video I watched of their last trip out there looked like way-too-much-fun, so I committed to that a year in advance.

I'm targeting a week-long trip somewhere in the Carribbean for the 1st quarter of '05.........and another week-long trip during the summer of '05..........and then conclude '05 with the fall Sea-of-Cortez trip........and squeeze in a couple of 'long-weekend' type trips (ie Cozumel/ Flower Gardens) over the course of '05 as well.

Karl

 

[Dee]

I schedule trips a year in advance all the time! In fact, if you aren't going somewhere in May, 2005....come join us in Roatan! Still got a couple of rooms available.

Roatan/CoCo View May 14-21, 2005

 

[scubafanatic]

Hi Dee,

......sounds interesting! I've never been to Roatan ( so far, been to Coz twice, and did a week of cave diving --Akumal--in '03..........then the Bahamas aboard JULIET for a week, Bonaire for a week, and the FG trip for '04 ) and I'm mulling over what sounds 'juicy' for '05......and comparing what my local dive shops are sketching out for '05 trips...and comparing those times/destinations for the best value...and it certainly sounds like your Roatan trip is custom made for hard-core diving, which is exactly my top criteria in trip selection.

...let me chew it over a bit........ as I have my eye on Turks & Caicos......and Saba as well......and may be signing up next week for a week in the British Virgin Islands aboard JULIET in Feb '05......boy, there's so many cool places.....it's hard to choose!

Karl

 

[Hemlon]

If your trip gets canceled due to weather, do you get a full refund of your money??