That's a very nice video. That is the sort of thing I was hoping to see. Most of the videos I had run across looked like yours does from 2:10-3:00 where there really aren't many corals. I was worried that was typical, but your video shows there is a lot more variety than what I was seeing elsewhere. Thanks for posting.
Reef Quality in Cozumel
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That's a very nice video. That is the sort of thing I was hoping to see. Most of the videos I had run across looked like yours does from 2:10-3:00 where there really aren't many corals. I was worried that was typical, but your video shows there is a lot more variety than what I was seeing elsewhere. Thanks for posting.
PatW
Contributor
The corals at the reefs at the far south are in pretty good shape. The current comes from the south so you get low nutrient water going over the reef. That is the first dive, if you go deep, you will miss the corals by and large. The second dive is usually closer to town and farther north. I think the resorts dump the nutrients from their sewage systems in the ocean. The reefs on the second dive have some corals but they are struggling. Generally the sponges do ok.
First, love Iowa. Great people. I have always been amazed at how the reefs in Coz stay healthy. I've gone soon after a hurricane and seen sand all over but the reefs still seems to shine through. As we say at our LDS, "Coz never disappoints". We lead 2 trips per year and people keep going year after year. As suggested, don't always follow the crowd down deep. It's good to do a few times but staying up around 30-40 ft shows off the reefs quite well. For the time to get there, money and people on the island, it is always a great choice...in my opinion. Is it as good as the Amish breakfast in the Amana Colonies, no, but nothing is.
Rob
Rob
Many of the Cozumel reefs are in bad shape. I dived the Palancar reefs in 4/17 and it was quite disappointing to see them devoid of corals and marine life as compared to when I dived the same reefs in 2006. But there are still some reefs that show healthy corals and lots of marine life. I've dived several places in the Caribbean including Belize, Bonaire, Roatan, as well as the Florida Keys and except for the offshore Belize reefs, Cozumel still is the best place to dive even though it's seen it's share of damage just like all the other reefs on the planet.
Think about it, what other options do you have if you don't want to take a 24 hour plane ride to the other side of the globe?
Think about it, what other options do you have if you don't want to take a 24 hour plane ride to the other side of the globe?
ScubaD1veDiv@
Registered
Those shots you are referring to (2:10-3:00) are typically what you see at the end of the dive. More soft corals and sand but much to see in these spots as well. Large Parrotfish, Southern Rays, Eagle Rays (when in season), Scorpion Fish, Flamingo Tongues, etc.
There is a reason we keep coming back and diving with Aldora but there are several good dive operators. I don't think you will be disappointed.
ScubaD1veDiv@
Registered
Probably the healthiest reefs in the Caribbean are at The Flower Gardens Marine Sanctuary in the Gulf of Mexico since its 110 nautical miles offshore and less impacted by human activity. It never disappoints.
The problem is getting to the site. After twice traveling all night to get there and then having to call the dives due to weather conditions, my LDS has stopped scheduling FG trips.
cicopo
Contributor
The problem with looking at videos is that many of them will have been shot without decent lighting & aren't properly processed to bring out the colours that are there. I have many albums on line which are just snapshots from a good P & S camera with strobes but they were shot in RAW & processed to bring up the colours seen. There is lots of colour at depth but water filters out the different shades of colour as you go deeper & by about 80 feet down all colour is pretty much gone when relying on natural light. This is the link to them.
ci_copo’s albums | Flickr
Understanding where the colours go Color Underwater
ci_copo’s albums | Flickr
Understanding where the colours go Color Underwater
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That's extremely rare. Twice is phenomenal bad luck. I work on the boat part-time, about 12 or so trips per year, and in the last 5 years that has not happened once to me. I guess Austin divers will have to go see Tom's Swim and Dive to get their Flower Garden fix.
It is rather common for trips to cancel in advance (final call is at noon of departure evening), about 50% go rate overall with a low go rate in spring and high go rate in summer. It would be risky to fly in from somewhere but that's enough lead time for most in Texas and Louisiana to get the call before they leave home and the only thing lost is finding alternate plans for the weekend.
