Sister Islands Shore Diving

[Tim Ingersoll]

Hope my previous post wasn't too harsh. Didn't mean to offend. I just think travellers can take frugality a little too far sometimes.

Its hard to tell what diving actually costs from the LCBR site cause they list prices for room, board and three one-tanks for various duration packages. If you take the difference between diver and non-divers and divide by the numbers of days for the package it comes out to about $71.33 per day for three boat dives. Quite a bargain.

My main point is that the shore on LC and CB is mainly ironshore. Not really suitable for shore diving. It can be done but one slip and you are in for stitches or a medivac. You also have to rent a car (which you would not need if you were not shore diving) and find the sites (no yellow rocks like Bonaire) get in (and potentially hurt yourself) and get out to the sites (at least a hundred yards on the surface in swells). Doesn't sound like a vacation to me. Doesn't sound like a bargain.

 

[fisheater]

Posted via Mobile DeviceLCBR is SO nice and the boat diving so wonderful, you shouldn't short change yourself. Besides, some days the shore sites on the north side are blown out. If you're stuck with shore diving, you're stuck.

 

[billinwilliamston]

Hope my previous post wasn't too harsh. Didn't mean to offend. I just think travellers can take frugality a little too far sometimes.

Its hard to tell what diving actually costs from the LCBR site cause they list prices for room, board and three one-tanks for various duration packages. If you take the difference between diver and non-divers and divide by the numbers of days for the package it comes out to about $71.33 per day for three boat dives. Quite a bargain.

My main point is that the shore on LC and CB is mainly ironshore. Not really suitable for shore diving. It can be done but one slip and you are in for stitches or a medivac. You also have to rent a car (which you would not need if you were not shore diving) and find the sites (no yellow rocks like Bonaire) get in (and potentially hurt yourself) and get out to the sites (at least a hundred yards on the surface in swells). Doesn't sound like a vacation to me. Doesn't sound like a bargain.

So, the short answer is...no, there are not many good optoins for shore diving.:cool2:

Thanks.

 

[carriemak]

Don't mark Little Cayman off your list just because shore diving isn't readily available. Little Cayman really isn't set up for shore diving but has fabulous boat dives all along the wall.

We will be there in June for a week and already have the week for 2010 reserved!

 

[billinwilliamston]

We're not counting LC out by any means, but it is expensive (even compared with GC). I was somewhat confused by the wording on the LCBR site when it came to how many dives you got with a package. Here's the response I got from them regarding the three night package:

In a 3 night dive package you would have 3 dives on the first day and 2 dives on the second day for a total of 5 dives.

The diver price for a three day is $214 more than non-diver, so that works out to $43 a tank.

At $742 each for three nights low season, it works out to $500/day for the two of us. Kind of expensive for a side trip.

 

[nipi]

My main point is that the shore on LC and CB is mainly ironshore. Not really suitable for shore diving. It can be done but one slip and you are in for stitches or a medivac. You also have to rent a car (which you would not need if you were not shore diving) and find the sites (no yellow rocks like Bonaire) get in (and potentially hurt yourself) and get out to the sites (at least a hundred yards on the surface in swells). Doesn't sound like a vacation to me. Doesn't sound like a bargain.

The shore on LCM & the Brac is not mainly ironshore - it is part ironshore part beach. The shore entries at Jacksons & Bloody Bay on LCM are all beach & hard pan for which you need booties but they are not ironshore. There is some fringing reef to negotiate by walking around for the sites south of Mixing Bowl. One slip & you are extremely unlikely to be in for stitches or a medivac.

The sites are all buoyed & easy to find. Drive east on the south coast road past Southern Cross, turn left on the cross island road & when you reach the north coast, continue straight down the sand track to the beach. You will be right opposite Cumber's Caves which you will see is nowhere near 100 yards away. There are usually no swells. You can see all the markers up the beach to the east ending at Cascades. To access the sites to the west down to Sam's lodge drive west along the north coast road & you will find a number of tracks down through the bush to the beach. (If the north is blown out, you can also shore dive Preston Bay - buoyed sites accessed by a track at the edge of the runway - these are ironshore entries so you need to be confident of your ability entering here. Also the wall sites & the wreck (Soto Trader) directly off Paradise Villas - beach entry, longer swim & can be current).

LCBR & Conch Club Divers will rent tanks. Perry (948 1000; littlcay@candw.ky) rents SUVs. Last w/end CC Divers were charging US$10 a tank & Perry US$83 per day. So for 2 of you doing 3 dives in 1 day that works out at less than US$25 per dive.

 

[jdcpa]

Maybe I am wrong, but let me see if I get it straight.

I assume you will be staying at Sunset House on GCM.

LCBR is $198 more for a three day stay than Sunset house.

For that difference you get:

Extra boat dive, assume $80 for two, leaving LCBR $118 more.

Three dinners times two, say $20 each, or $120 total, leaving LCBR $2 less.

Two lunches times two, say $10 each, or $40 total, leaving LCBR $42 less.

The difference is more if you have higher food costs.

(Not that you can get that same quality and quantity of food for that amount on GCM.)

So, that means that LCBR is cheaper than Sunset House.

I will agree that you can't get free unlimited shore diving at LCBR. But you can't get the same walls on GCM either.

Paradise Villas is likely cheaper, particularly if you bring food/grocery from GCM.

 

[billinwilliamston]

Maybe I am wrong, but let me see if I get it straight.

I assume you will be staying at Sunset House on GCM.

LCBR is $198 more for a three day stay than Sunset house.

For that difference you get:

Extra boat dive, assume $80 for two, leaving LCBR $118 more.

Three dinners times two, say $20 each, or $120 total, leaving LCBR $2 less.

Two lunches times two, say $10 each, or $40 total, leaving LCBR $42 less.

The difference is more if you have higher food costs.

(Not that you can get that same quality and quantity of food for that amount on GCM.)

So, that means that LCBR is cheaper than Sunset House.

I will agree that you can't get free unlimited shore diving at LCBR. But you can't get the same walls on GCM either.

Paradise Villas is likely cheaper, particularly if you bring food/grocery from GCM.

That's why we don't stay at Sunset House. We make it down to Cayman for about two weeks a year, so $500 a day would work out to $7,000 (not counting airfare). :shocked2: For us, that's a prohibitive amount to spend no matter what it's compared to. If this was the "trip of a lifetime" it would be different, but we're just looking for a way to kill a couple of days and thought a visit to one of the sister islands would be a cool way to do it.

Thanks though.

 

[jdcpa]

It is a way cool way to kill a couple of days, but I agree with you, by no means a cheap way to kill a couple of days.

 

[chibracdiver]

If you wanted to dive the 356 Russian frigate off the Brac's north coast it can be done from shore. It is, however, a good 200 yard swim out. There are other shallow north shore dives easily accessed from the boat docks. I have seen many sharks, turtles and rays on these dive and snorkel trips along with an abundance of sea life. Hope this helps.