Soccorro

[InTheDrink]

Hi,

Not sure if this is the right forum...

Am looking at going to the Soccorro Islands in '11. Solmarv seems the best option.

Can anyone with experience of the Islands advise on the following:

Best time of year to go
Water temps (wet/dry?)
What kind of life we'll see at what time of year...
Any other general tips or insights...

Thanks guys,

John

 

[rob1967]

I just got back from there a few weeks ago. Diving is phenomenal! Crossing is a bit rough, bring antinauseant medicine if you are at all prone to seasickness. We did Nautilus, they were fine. I've heard Solmar V is good also.

Water temp was 26-27 C, 81 F. 3 mm with hooded vest, or 5 mm should be fine. Water temps are cooler in winter and spring though. Season doesn't start til November, they usually have humpbacks by February, or maybe earlier. I think trips run until April or so, you can check their websites. Nautilus has a website and Facebook page with lots of blogs from customers and dive masters on what they've been seeing. Basically best manta ray encounters in the known universe, the mantas there are curious towards divers, and once they find you, they hang around and check you out, cirrcle around you, etc.

Diving is also very good for other large animals like Galapagos sharks, whale sharks, white tips, silky sharks, etc. Lots of big jacks, huge lobsters, etc. If you like macro and invertebrates, maybe go elsewhere. But for big stuff, it's awesome!

 

[rob1967]

I should also mention it is best suited to advanced divers. Most of the sites can have strong surge and current. You will want to be proficient in deploying your SMB, because you will need it, and you will use it. They will provide you with SMB if you don't have one, and a very loud whistle that you attach to your low pressure inflator to use in case of emergency.

 

[Augustus]

solmar is a great boat though the rooms are small. VERY experienced crew. As to time of year.

first trips (Nov.) temp is around 80-78. good time to maybe see whale sharks plus mantas dolphin sharks (no whales)
after that temp drops. Trip we did in Feb had temp around 74 or so. At that time you saw lots of humpback whales on the surface though not likely to see them while diving (though you heard them). But still had mantas dolphin sharks. If you are interested in pelagic "action" this is where you might want to go.

 

[InTheDrink]

Wow, thanks for the comprehensive responses. Big pelagic action is what we're looking for. We did Cocos last year and loved it - although were a tiny bit disappointed that diving the bait balls was no longer allowed, but fingers crossed might be able to fix that in Soccorro. Do any of the boats cater for twins and/or ccrs?

From what's been said I think I'll aim for Feb as can't do March or April and sounds like it winds down after that. Anyone been there in May and any opinions on whether it is better to go earlier - e.g. Feb/March?

All sounds awesome, time to get booking I guess. Thanks again for the input.

Cheers,
John

 

[Manuel Sam]

Yeah, not being able to dive baitballs in Cocos anymore is a huge bummer. Supposedly, the National Park's rationale is that some scientists believe that the presence of divers during the feeding frenzy can be stressful to the sharks.........I'll tell you what's stressful to sharks: a big hook going thru the mouth, having to thrash in a gillnet until they suffocate, or sinking to the bottom without the means to move. But that's a whole separate discussion.

I've never been lucky enough to see a baitball in Cocos - they tend to happen more during the spring and my trips there are usually during the summer.

I've done three trips on the Solmar V to Socorros so far - once in Jan, once in Feb, and the last time in November. I'm not too crazy about cold water.

As mentioned in the previous postings, mantas, dolphins and sharks and pretty much a constant throughout the Socorros season. The earlier trips (late October and November) tend to be good for whalesharks. Rey, the veteran dive guide on the Solmar V emailed me a few weeks ago to tell me that they had several whaleshark sightings and also False Killer Whales. Then the whalesharks apparently move elsewhere (sightings are rare in the winter months) and maybe return around May when the water warms up a bit.

I'll be going again in November 2011. I've never seen baitballs in Socorros and I wouldn't count on it, but anything is possible in the oceans.

I don't think that Solmar V is set up to do ccr's. I don't know what their policy is, and I suppose that if you bring your own, for a price, they can provide you with whatever %O2 enriched air that you ask for. But for sure you'd have to bring your own scrubber.

I've never seen anyone do twins, but it doesn't mean that it can't be done, aside from the fact that they need to hold to a daily schedule. I'd ask. I've never done the Nautilus so I don't know.

As far as the diving in May, as was mentioned before, Nautilus keeps a blog in their website with trip reports going back a few years.

 

[Augustus]

I doubt that they would allow doubles. No reason to since you have a depth limit no deco dives and a schedule to keep. As to CCR need to contact the Solmar but apart from no bubbles not much need for using a rebreather.

 

[InTheDrink]

I doubt that they would allow doubles. No reason to since you have a depth limit no deco dives and a schedule to keep. As to CCR need to contact the Solmar but apart from no bubbles not much need for using a rebreather.

Hi Augustus, thanks for the info, appreciated.

A couple of points I'd make though re: twins/ccr...

Twins is for redundancy as well as extended run time/deco.
CCR - no bubbles can be a good reason to use this as a tool, especially when there are skittish sharks like hammerheads around. They tend to get freaked out by the bubbles.

(N.B. My buddy dives a CCR, I don't, so I'm not speaking from personal experience).

Cheers and thanks for the info once again,

John

 

[InTheDrink]

Yeah, not being able to dive baitballs in Cocos anymore is a huge bummer. Supposedly, the National Park's rationale is that some scientists believe that the presence of divers during the feeding frenzy can be stressful to the sharks.........I'll tell you what's stressful to sharks: a big hook going thru the mouth, having to thrash in a gillnet until they suffocate, or sinking to the bottom without the means to move. But that's a whole separate discussion.

Yeah, bummer isn't it. And indeed, the rationale is somewhat surprising and I'm guessing potentially damaging. The more interest there is in Cocos the more chance of keeping the long liners away. I don't think that bait ball divers are the biggest threat to the sharks there. How many Chinese and Taiwanese fishing boats in Puntarenas? :depressed:

I've never been lucky enough to see a baitball in Cocos - they tend to happen more during the spring and my trips there are usually during the summer.

We saw some huge baitballs, some more than a mile in diameter. It was so galling seeing them and not being able to dive them

I've done three trips on the Solmar V to Socorros so far - once in Jan, once in Feb, and the last time in November. I'm not too crazy about cold water.

As mentioned in the previous postings, mantas, dolphins and sharks and pretty much a constant throughout the Socorros season. The earlier trips (late October and November) tend to be good for whalesharks. Rey, the veteran dive guide on the Solmar V emailed me a few weeks ago to tell me that they had several whaleshark sightings and also False Killer Whales. Then the whalesharks apparently move elsewhere (sightings are rare in the winter months) and maybe return around May when the water warms up a bit.

I'll be going again in November 2011. I've never seen baitballs in Socorros and I wouldn't count on it, but anything is possible in the oceans.

Have spoken to my buddy and it looks like we're going to struggle any time early this year so looking at Oct/Nov now (am gutted - I'm not the most patient person in the world). What are your dates and what boat you thinking of?

I don't think that Solmar V is set up to do ccr's. I don't know what their policy is, and I suppose that if you bring your own, for a price, they can provide you with whatever %O2 enriched air that you ask for. But for sure you'd have to bring your own scrubber.

I've never seen anyone do twins, but it doesn't mean that it can't be done, aside from the fact that they need to hold to a daily schedule. I'd ask. I've never done the Nautilus so I don't know.

As far as the diving in May, as was mentioned before, Nautilus keeps a blog in their website with trip reports going back a few years.

Ok, cool thanks for the info. I'll chat with the various boats and see who's set up for what. What are the currents/depth like there? In Cocos a lot of dives were 35m-ish sometimes in strong current and I did end up separated a few times so redundancy seems prudent to me given those parameters but don't know what the conditions are like in Soccorro.


Cheers mate,

John

 

[Manuel Sam]

I'm on Solmar's first trip of the season (late Oct. - early Nov). Don't remember the exact dates.

Currents - there is some but never had any up or down. Generally speaking, current is always strongest at the surface so it is of course conceivable to be swept away a bit (seen it happen in Cabo Pearce and Roca Partida) - but nothing like Cocos or Galapagos.

There have been a couple of instances - at the Boiler and at Cabo Pearce - where swimming down to the site was a bit of a struggle - but the crew ties a line to the rocks so that you can pull yourself down hand over hand and not suck half your tank away just going down.

Never had any really strong currents at depth - the kind that can rip your mask or reg off or that would force you to quickly find shelter in the rocks. Just keep in mind that what I am telling you is based on just three trips.

Depths are what you choose them to be within the recreational limits. Solmar dive guides are pretty strict about not going below 40m and might make you sit out a dive if you do. Normally, the deeper dives are done in the 25-35m range. Some have bottoms, some have deep bottoms, and some do not. For example, the Canyon is good for just about everything: I've seen hammerheads, silvertips, and even a tiger there. If diving for sharks, you'd dive it at 25-30m. But if there are mantas and they are playful, you might spend the whole dive at <20m, so really no need to go deep on some dives.

The afternoon dives might be in 15-20m max even tho they can be dived much deeper. In this case, the main limiting factor isn't so much where the bottom is or how much air you have but your no-deco time.

As for the need for air redundancy, if you are talking about a pony, that may be easier to accommodate. Again, best thing is to ask.

If you get swept away, chances are that you would come up and stay on the surface anyway. Granted, if it's rough, it might be a bit of a struggle but I've never seen really rough conditions.

If you are low on air and away from the boat, the panga will pick you up. If you are low on air near the boat and still need to do your safety stop, Solmar hangs two tanks with regs off the stern at 5 meters.

As I said, I've never been on the Nautilus so I can't speak for what they do, but enough people in this forum have dove that boat and liked it enough for me to safely say that they're probably very capable and professional as well.