New Shore Diving Signs - Cayman Brac!

[tkaelin]

Vincent54 maybe but still less expensive than flying to Bon.

 

[vincent54]

Vincent54 maybe but still less expensive than flying to Bon.

Both are expensive. On the list of priorities for the Sister Islands, signs aren't that important..

There are many abandoned buildings, a dump that is a toxic mess, and restricted air service. Not a good way to attract divers and tourists who are paying top dollar.

 

[vincent54]

...but Brac is still the most awesome place in the world.

 

[MIchael J McMIllan]

The signs are a nice touch but for certain dives (Green House, Plymouth Rock, Charlie's Reef, etc) they need to make the entry a little easier with cuts like they have at Buccaneer, Sylvia's Reef, and Handcuff Reef. Still navigable but can be tricky and no lack of urchins.

We're heading back for the third year in a row. Did nothing but shore dives last trip and they were fantastic. Having sad that, we would like to do some south shore dives and those would have to be off a boat.

 

[drrich2]

I'm curious to see how Cayman Brac unfolds as a shore diving destination. Bonaire has resorts with 'house reefs,' lots of sites, well-marked, many don't require you to exit at a specific point, swim-outs may or may not be long, and perhaps most importantly, Bonaire is a very popular destination for group trips, so fairly new divers can 'cut their teeth' on shore diving while in the company of a group with a leader to 'mother hen' them a bit. So it was my 1st 4 trips to Bonaire.

I've never seen an ad for a Cayman Brac group trip emphasizing (or mentioning at all?) shore diving.

How does the difficulty of most Cayman Brac shore dive sites compare to, oh, say, Bonaire's mainstream west coast sites...let's say Buddy's Reef or Hilma Hooker (longer swim-out) if we need a specific reference?

Also, a number of posts on the forum indicate some Cayman Islands dive op.s being unsupportive of solo diving, to the point I've seen a post before about some Grand Cayman op. not renting tanks to single customers (basically, they wanted to see you had a buddy). Wonder what happens when someone shows up at a Brac dive op. alone & says I want to rent 4 tanks?

Absent the factors that bring people into Bonaire's shore diving scene, will Brac mainly be a sparsely used shore destination for more advanced divers?

Which way do people want to see Brac go?

Richard.

 

[MIchael J McMIllan]

I have planned a few trips to Bonaire but keep going back to the Brac for ease of travel (90 min from Miami). Based on what I have seen, many of the water entries in Bonaire seem more user friendly but again, this is conjecture. The Brac has some easy in and outs but others are a bit tricky or are longer swims.

The dive shops are great, especially the Brac Scuba Shack and are fine with renting out tanks for shore dives, although they do mention the boat dive, as one would expect from any business. Something new this past year is that both dive shops will only rent out one tank per diver per visit. So a three tank dive requires three trips to the shop. Last year there was no limit. With the Brac being as small as it is, it's not a big deal and guarantees surface time.

I am not convinced the locals want to see the Brac to become bigger than it is. While they do appreciate tourist dollars, there doesn't seem to be a push to make the tourist industry grow. The Brac is also missing a variety of amenities that other islands possess such as an everyday port. While I wouldn't mind seeing the Brac advance some, from a selfish standpoint, I like having more to ourselves so to speak.

 

[vincent54]

The signs are a nice touch but for certain dives (Green House, Plymouth Rock, Charlie's Reef, etc) they need to make the entry a little easier with cuts like they have at Buccaneer, Sylvia's Reef, and Handcuff Reef. Still navigable but can be tricky and no lack of urchins.

We're heading back for the third year in a row. Did nothing but shore dives last trip and they were fantastic. Having sad that, we would like to do some south shore dives and those would have to be off a boat.

South has plenty of shore options. (when it calms down) Public beach has an easy swim through the barrier reef and the swim out is spectacular. Plus a shower when you are done. The edge to the abyss has some cool swim throughs, and plenty of sharks. Kings Point has a ladder and spectacular wall to dive. Any one of the thousand pieces of property for sale on South Shore can be used for a nice dive. Stumble out to the deeper water and go for it. I agree, most entries are dicey, but you will be rewarded with some epic dives. I hate to say I'm a cheapskate, but my 12 dollar dives are more fun than the 110 dollar boat dives.

To minimize the pain of rock and urchin encounter, at certain spots like Heritage House Reef where there are no cuts, i'll inflate my BC and float the gear to deeper water. I have done a face plant with full gear on and spent the rest of the day picking urchin bits out of my hands.

Bonaire is much easier and safer for the shore diving, especially if on Brac you venture east. Cheers

 

[MIchael J McMIllan]

We usually go in May and the winds have been from the south making that shore more challenging. We did zero boats dives last year because, like you said, a two tank dive for $24 with no one else around is a much better deal than $100+. We floated our BCs out as well until it was easier to don it in deeper water. The easy entry places are still fantastic. Our last dive was at Handcuff, which is usually our first "get back into the swing of things" dive, and it was a great way to end our trip.

I would like to get to Bonaire but not until I get tired of the Brac.....

 

[USC8791]

Can someone please provide more detailed info on how the length of the shore dive swim outs compare to Bonaire and St. Croix? Are they relatively short like the Northern Bonaire sites (i.e. Witches Hut or Tolo), or longer like the Bonaire Southern sites (i.e. White Slave or Light House); or, are they really long like St. Croix's Cane Bay and Butler Bay wrecks?

 

[divezonescuba]

Distance depends on what you want to do. Some reefs are within feet.

The walls are much further out than Bonaire. But still quite doable. Sometimes times you cross several reefs, then there is a sand flat, and lastly the wall.

From scott's dock, you can do the wall with swim thrus, a wreck, and then multiple reefs on the way back in one shore dive.