Oct weather?

[divin'dog]

For those of you who dove Grand Cayman in Oct, what can I expect for weather? Hurricane season? Rainy season? Temps? I did a search but didn't come up with anything too enlightening. Would appreciate your experience... Thanks! dd

 

[AggieDiver]

Generally October is on the cusp of when weather can start to get a bit sloppy. The flow patterns change as cold fronts start making it down into the gulf of mexico. Instead of having mostly winds out of the east, you can get wind shifts relative to those fronts that can cause northerly winds. That is less of a problem on Grand Cayman than on the Sister Islands where the best diving is on the north side of the islands. If there isn't a front pushing into the gulf or a hurricane coming through, the weather is generally calm and very nice. As for hurricanes, I did some research a while back to post on Tripadvisor in response to a question about hurricanes and the Cayman Islands. The peak of hurricane season is generally the 2nd week in September when counting number of storms historically. Here is what I came up with relative to storms near the Caymans:
In the last 25 years, there have been 2 hurricanes that went within 100 miles of the Caymans in August, 4 in September (none earlier than the 12th), two in October, and 3 in November. Based on the #s, they seem to get hit more after the statistical peak of the atlantic season (mid September and beyond), than before...at least recently. Travelling anywhere in the Caribbean during hurricane season is rolling the dice, but if you manage to miss the storms, the weather is generally very calm.

I have been there once in October and once in November. The October trip was the 1st week in October and conditions were perfect nearly all week. Light winds and calm seas. The November trip was mostly good, but we had a few days with sloppy sea conditions.

 

[divin'dog]

Great post AggieDiver... That exactly what I was looking for and more than I expected. My trip would be from Oct 10-14. I know it's a bit of rolling the dice because you can never be sure, but after reading your post, I feel like it is a good bet to take... with trip insurance. Thanks!

 

[caymaniac]

I've been to Pirates week in Grand Cayman a couple of times in October and once on the Brac. The weather had some hiccups but it was generally nice, maybe a day or two of rain off and on as well as some rougher water. I see Pirates week is now in November.

 

[zf2nt]

My own experience is that October is generally miserable. It is so bad, in fact, that Pirate's Point (on Little Cayman) shuts down for the whole month. From 1998 through 2005, I came down here every October and stayed through late spring. October was almost always windy and rainy. These days, I wait until January to come down. And now as I sit here on Little Cayman in February the weather is absolutely perfect. It almost always is!

 

[divin'dog]

My own experience is that October is generally miserable. It is so bad, in fact, that Pirate's Point (on Little Cayman) shuts down for the whole month. From 1998 through 2005, I came down here every October and stayed through late spring. October was almost always windy and rainy. These days, I wait until January to come down. And now as I sit here on Little Cayman in February the weather is absolutely perfect. It almost always is!

Hmmm... ok. So, October is not a good month. When is the rainy season? Pls don't say Oct... This is a group trip that is planned through a dive shop. I haven't plunked down any money as yet. I'm either going in Oct or not at all. What would you do? Thanks for posting.

 

[vincent54]

Hmmm... ok. So, October is not a good month. When is the rainy season? Pls don't say Oct... This is a group trip that is planned through a dive shop. I haven't plunked down any money as yet. I'm either going in Oct or not at all. What would you do? Thanks for posting.

The last few years in Brac, October has been fabulous. Some rain, hot, hot, windy some. Always able to dive. No people. The only problem was Sandy,last year, pushed some big swell and churned up the water a bit. I would take insurance in case of hurricane. Summer always gets rain, but no big deal. The limestone keeps the runoff clear so there is no effect on visibility, avoid the lightning. October and November are my favorite months to be in Brac. Plunk down the money and have fun. Cheers

 

[AggieDiver]

My own experience is that October is generally miserable. It is so bad, in fact, that Pirate's Point (on Little Cayman) shuts down for the whole month. From 1998 through 2005, I came down here every October and stayed through late spring. October was almost always windy and rainy. These days, I wait until January to come down. And now as I sit here on Little Cayman in February the weather is absolutely perfect. It almost always is!

So is PP shut down for two whole months? Because the last two years we have been to LC in September, and LCBR was the only resort open for that month. Seems strange that they would shut down for two months straight.

 

[zf2nt]

So is PP shut down for two whole months? Because the last two years we have been to LC in September, and LCBR was the only resort open for that month. Seems strange that they would shut down for two months straight.

I just talked with Gay Morse 15 minutes ago and she says they always close in mid-August and then reopen in time for Halloween.

 

[AggieDiver]

Ok, makes sense. I thought they were only shut down for the month of September. Thanks!