Headed to GC for a week

[Skeptic14]

We are headed to GC in about a week and am pretty excited, it'll be our first trip to the Caribbean. I've got a few questions for those that are familiar with the island though.

I started checking extended forecast as it approached and at first it looked really bad, 60-80% chance of t-storms and strong winds for a lot of the week, but the predicted amount of rain is only 2-3 tenths. Is it just brief storms that blow over this time of year typically? I was under the impression Sept - Oct was the rainy season.

We are staying on 7MB, even with some storms here and there and E-NE winds around 15mph is diving the west side usually possible?

Aside from some boat dives, which shore dives would most people recommend? Devil's grotto, turtle reef, sunset point?

Thanks!

 

[KathyV]

We just got back from the Caymans a few weeks ago. We spent a week on Grand Cayman and 8 days on Little Cayman. We had great weather for most of the trip. It was pouring rain the night we arrived and that reduced visibility for a few days but it wasn't bad. There was one day during the two week period when it was rainy and cloudy most of the day but it didn't interfere with diving - except that the light on the reef wasn't great for photographers.

There were a few brief showers during our stay but they blew over quickly and the sun came out almost immediately. I just looked at the forecast for the upcoming week and it appears that they are expecting similar weather, sunny with occasional brief showers. No one can guarantee the weather but if that trend continues you should have very nice conditions.

As far as shore dives, we like turtle reef the best and don't care for Devil's Grotto. Where are you staying and who are you diving with? Will you have a rental car? Have you bought a dive package or do you plan to arrange dives during the week? It would be easier to advise you with a better understanding of your plans.

There's also great snorkeling on GC and that is free and easy, see Tsetudo's guide at the link below:
TESTUDO'S SNORKEL GUIDE Cayman Off the Beaten Path

I love the Caymans and hope that you will have a great trip!

 

[diversteve]

Turtle Reef is probably the best. Turtle Reef | West Bay | Cayman Islands | Dive365

Also more likely to be weather affected. I might call Sundivers before I drove up there. (345)949-6606 They don't have a website except for a section on Cracked Conch's

There's also Lighthouse Point - another good dive - slightly to the west. Divetech is on-site there. Grand Cayman Scuba Diving Divetech.com

A DM told me that when Turtle Reef is blown out - sometimes Lighthouse Point isn't. Not really related to storms but wind direction.

There's also a dive at Cobalt Coast which may be Reef Divers now - Divetech either did or is moving out soon since the property was sold. When it was Divetech they'd tow you out to the North wall on request so you could swim back in leisurely so ask about that.

The west side is often divable by boat when the north isn't also. Sunset "House" is pretty far south and sheltered by the island to an extent so should be diveable. We like it there - plan an afternoon. My Bar has good food and the shore dives there are decent. Get a picture with the Mermaid at 55', go see the LC Nicholson (small) wreck and see the Cathy Church gallery/store. If you buy a print and Cathy is around ask her to sign it. She's pretty famous - in the Women Divers Hall of Fame. Sunset House - George Town - Cayman Islands

Eden Rock/Devils Grotto suffers by being 500' from the cruise port. It was pretty ground down by all the traffic in 2003 - haven't dove it since. Someone recently posted it still is. Pick a low cruise visit day if you do: Ship Schedules

 

[Skeptic14]

Thanks for the feedback. I've read similar comments elsewhere regarding the cruise ships and devil's grotto which got me wondering what other options were available. I'll keep turtle reef, lighthouse point and sunset house in mind. We have two days of boat diving scheduled but we figured we'd try at least 1 or 2 shore dives to go with some snorkeling.

We will have a rental car so the shore dive doesn't have to be on the west side if there are good ones elsewhere. But it sounds like the wind this time of year makes the west side easiest to dive.

Thanks

I've read through Testudo's guide several times, it is very useful, can't wait to try some of the spots.

 

[Doctorfish]

I agree with all of the above and IMO in order, the best west side shore dives are Turtle Reef, Lighthouse and then Sunset.
Sunset tends to be sometimes dive able when Turtle Reef and Lighthouse are blown out; because of location further south and that they have a salt water pool that leads into the ocean, allowing entry when there is too much chop for a ladder.

If the weather allows, the shore dive at Cobalt is excellent as well.

Boat diving at east end is almost independent of wind because they can head around the tip of the island southwest or southeast to get out of the weather.

My experience with rain in GC mid December is that it is usually just spotty rather than all day and night.

 

[howswedeofme]

Has anyone done a shore dive from Cemetery Beach? We were told last time we were on the rock that it was doable, but we opted for mostly boat diving because we didn't have a rental vehicle. Someone mentioned a shore dive to the Doc Poulson to use our last trip, as well, but that seems like it would be a pretty significant swim.

You can also hop in at Don Foster's, but we plan to opt for Sunset House to get as far away from the cruise port as we can.

I second that Turtle Reef is a great shore dive. We did a night dive there and it was awesome. Very easy entry/exit and some neat critters plus dunk tanks on-site and then you can let your gear drip dry why you grab a beer and a conch sampler (SO GOOD). We plan to do a lot more shore diving when we go back in January now that we have more shore diving experience under our belts - Bonaire was our dive trip last year - so hopefully Lighthouse Point and Cobalt Coast aren't blown out.

 

[Doctorfish]

I wouldn't bother.

Coral sparse and a fair hump out with gear from the road.

Much better at Turtle Reef or Lighthouse.

 

[howswedeofme]

I wouldn't bother.

Coral sparse and a fair hump out with gear from the road.

Much better at Turtle Reef or Lighthouse.

Thanks for the heads up. That's what I figured.