Sun Dancer II Captain's Logs

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report June 15 – 22, 2013

Water Temp: 82º F
3mm Wetsuit recommended

What a memorable week filled with laughter and fun onboard and underwater. On Saturday the divers were welcomed onto the Sun Dancer II and made themselves at home in their staterooms and on the dive deck.

After a delicious dinner, we set out to Lighthouse Reef and started diving Sunday morning in the warm delightful water of Belize. Everyone loved taking pictures, video or just enjoying the creatures as they went about their underwater behaviors. The spotted eagle rays, eels, lionfish, yellow-headed jawfish, southern stingrays, crabs, turtles, sharks and of course the divers were all out enjoying the dramatic wall, wonderful reef structure and all the exciting sights each location had to offer.

Each day was a new surprise as the weather kept us amazed and despite all the unique conditions everyone continued to have fun and enjoy themselves.

Thank you from the crew of the Sun Dancer II and we hope to see you again sometime soon!

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report June 22-29, 2013
Jim Church School of Underwater Digital Photography & Video Week

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Vis: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, 2nd Captain Megan, First Mate John, Chef Jerry, Assistant Chef Carlos, Stewardess Barbara, Dive Master Karim

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Julie’s Jungle and Long Caye Ridge
Monday - Aquarium and Long Caye Wall
Tuesday - Half Moon Caye Wall and Cathedral
Wednesday - THE GREAT BLUE HOLE and Silver Cave
Thursday - Painted Wall and Uno Coco
Friday - Black Beauty

What a wonderful week! We had the wild and wacky Mike Haber onboard teaching the world famous Jim Church School of Digital Underwater Photography Course. Each diver on board had a camera in their hand at some point during the week and for most they went on every dive wielding their weapons of photographic fun and entertainment. In between dives Mike would teach and assist with the students work and every diver was able to see major improvements in their photography as the week went on. The final culminating experience was at the end when the student slide show and graduation ceremony took place and everyone was awarded and celebrated.

The first day at Julie’s Jungle the wall and reef gave the divers perfect wide-angle opportunities to shoot and get comfortable with their gear and equipment, during lunch we moved north along the reef to Long Caye Ridge where interesting critters were photographed with fish and divers in the foreground and background creating intriguing and interesting shots. Eels were roaming around and a few times posed for someone to get the perfect mouth open breathing shot everyone loves to see with their jagged teeth exposed and foreboding. The only eminent danger was for the lionfish after they were speared and got fed to the eels or friendly groupers that always seemed to be pointing out the next shot. A lot of sharks were also seen this week partly because of Mike doing a special shark dance that was sure to conjure sharks in for the next dive.

At Aquarium the shallow top of the reef made for great natural lighting and puffer fish, shrimp, blennies and other small cute faces were captured digitally by the photographers and videographers. The Pederson shrimp are always a crowd favorite and were easy to find next to their friends always looking busy and a bit frantic. Also over at Long Caye Wall the beautiful reef structure continued to provide a wonderful backdrop for unique sponge shots and other corals that would light up with the flash of the strobes.

Half Moon Caye is always a favorite and the stingrays and garden eels are some of the locals that make an appearance and never disappoint. Also a barracuda with a face ‘only a mother could love’ kind of grin seemed to always be lurking around hoping to get a bite of the fish we were saving for the sharks. The sand hid flounders and other small pipefish and blennies, some with their sailfins out and ready for lights, cameras and action. The tarpon always looked serious and seemed to keep an eye on everything going on, waiting for the night when the lights would assist in their feeding. The midnight parrotfish didn’t have to wait for the evening hours to have fun, they seem to always be on the move and in a fun group of them that travel over the reef and stop now and then to catch a bite of coral showing off their funny big front teeth and even smiling for the cameras. The angelfish that are famous for being photogenic on this reef were also out and in full effect making it enjoyable to see their attitudes, as they looked fancy and fabulous flaunting their stylish anglefish beauty for the lenses. Later in the afternoon we got to experience the dive site Cathedral that had shark action and of course great photo opportunities.

Wednesday is always the first attempt we make to go to the Blue Hole and this week the weather was with us and we made the hour run up north to the world famous dive site. Once again the stalactites were epic and memorable. Everyone loved it and the Blue Hole proved why it’s a famous bucket list site worthy of the title ‘Great’. After the deep dive we took the next dive off and went to adventure Half Moon Caye Island, which is a beautiful tropical paradise that gives you views above the tree line of birds. Along the paths you can find geckos and iguanas along with a multitude of hermit crabs roaming around.

Painted Wall was the perfect morning dive site Thursday with its beautiful fish assortment and also the spotted eagle rays that would swim along the wall and made a couple turns for some great pictures. The eels also seemed to know it was a special opportunity for them to get their pictures taken as they posed for long amounts of time until they were captured just right. In the afternoon the shark festivities continued as Mike did his shark dance and everything worked out for the divers to get amazing fly by shots and even some close ups that left their hearts pounding. Everyone enjoyed the sharks eventually; especially one diver you can see pictured who was trying to hide behind her husband when the sharks were swimming a little close for her comfort.

On behalf of all the crew of the Sun Dancer II we would like to thank you for joining us this week. We loved having you aboard and enjoyed your photographic enthusiasm. Extra special thank you to Mike Haber for being so much fun and extra darn cute all the time.

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report June 29 – July 6, 2013

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Visibility: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, 2nd Captain Megan, First Mate John, Chef Jerry, Assistant Chef Carlos, Stewardess Barbara, Dive Master Karim

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Julie’s Jungle and Cathedral
Monday - Half Moon Caye Wall and Long Caye Wall
Tuesday - Chain Wall and Long Caye Ridge
Wednesday – The Blue Hole and Uno Coco
Thursday - Painted Wall and Silver Cave
Friday - Sandy Slope

We had an amazing week of diving and adventure. All of the divers arrived onboard Saturday filled with excitement and enthusiasm to start a memorable week. Once they were settled on the dive deck and in the their spacious staterooms, we all gathered upstairs in the salon for a briefing and introductions. After a delicious dinner was served and enjoyed, the yacht set out to Lighthouse Reef to begin a wonderful week.

The first dive had plenty of creole wrasse commuting over the reef and colorful rainbow fish, friendly grouper, curious barracuda, indigo hamlets and other cute fish curious and shy all over in and out, and between the hard and soft corals.

Every dive site had something different and exciting to offer, a hawksbill turtle, spotted eagle rays, reef sharks, free swimming eels, nudibranchs, little crabs and big huge ones. We found small cleaner shrimp and other decorated ones disguised in the fans. Blennies, wire coral shrimp and pipe horses were some of the smaller favorites, neck crabs and Pederson shrimp as well.

Beautiful walls with fans and sponges, tube and big giant structural sponges you would always want to check to see if there was a lobster hiding at the bottom. The garden eels hiding in the sand, as well as a mantis shrimp was discovered, which was almost impossible to see if his hole hadn’t been exposed that moment. Also in the sand and grass you could find stingrays with a little fish friends always hanging around them. Super photogenic angelfish were all over; gray, french and of course the queen angel.

When we had a chance to dive the Blue Hole the divers enjoyed the epic sight of an ancient cave structure that had giant stalactites hanging down, giving the divers an opportunity to find themselves around the other side to see the blue backdrop behind this amazing geological wonder. After the dive, the land adventure at Half Moon Caye had the local array of birds and fun land dwelling creatures. Iguanas and the red-footed booby birds were some of the favorite creatures to see. Once climbing up to the bird observation deck, you can look out over all the trees and appreciate the whole island from that angle. After returning to the yacht, a fabulous lunch was served and we proceeded with an afternoon of incredible diving at Uno Coco.

All of the diving was enjoyable with the weather and wildlife cooperating magnificently this week.

From all of the crew of the Sun Dancer II - thank you for joining us and we hope to see you again in the near future.

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report July 6 - 13, 2013
Family Week

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Visibility: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, 2nd Captain Megan, First Mate John, Chef Jerry, Engineer Simon, Assistant Chef Jean, Stewardess Elia and Captain Wayne Hasson.

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Julies Jungle and Long Caye Wall
Monday - Cathedral and Long Caye Ridge
Tuesday - Half Moon Caye Wall and Uno Coco
Wednesday - THE GREAT BLUE HOLE and Silver Cave
Thursday - Chain Wall and Painted Wall
Friday - Sandy Slope

FAMILY Week!!! Kids week, big kids and young, we had an amazing time. This was one of the most action packed weeks we have had in a long time with a young lovable diver getting his Advanced Adventurer and also the very young at heart divers lead by Captain Wayne who were doing an in-depth photography, videography and Rescue course that had everyone on board participating at some point even if only as a spectator. Every day around the camera table the conversations were fast and excited about what was seen on the last dive and at all meals the stories of underwater adventure were told and shared.

Saturday was the ‘getting to know you’ Welcome brief and it was fun to hear what everyone’s favorite sea creature was as they also mentioned how long they have been diving and where they are from. A lot of families and instant friends were introduced and after an amazing dinner was served.

Every day the diving seemed to get more incredible. All of the animals and wildlife were about and putting on a show for the families and friends underwater. The majestic wall and amazing reef always had a surprise creature to enjoy and photograph. On many dives you could see a turtle cruising by or feeding, also the glorious spotted eagle ray would glide past and race away sometimes to return for a second pass. The schools of jacks and chubs always made for a memorable return back and while hanging on the safety bar you could feel like your were flying along with the pack.

The sharks made an appearance this week, adding to the adventure side of the dives. Great photos were taken and everyone was happy and excited to be a part of this great week of diving and on board entertainment and education. Almost every night we got to hear a joke from our youngest diver on board who always left us wanting more.

This was such a great week that most everybody got involved in some aspect of training and learning. All the way from helping with fins to driving the boat the opportunity to learn was abundant. It was really nice to have such an enthusiastic group and to see some old friends on board again.

Thousands of photographs were taken this week and a spectacular slide show was presented by Captain Wayne himself. During the week everyone enjoyed learning and improving their photography skills and by the end some top quality photos were shared and appreciated by everyone on board. This was an amazing week of diving and it seemed like everything came out to play. We had turtles, friendly barracudas, eels, garden eels, spotted eels and the biggest of all the green moray that came out and swam around the divers. Little fish and crabs were also found and enjoyed as you hovered above them and watched their cute behavior. Even on the very last dive Captain Wayne discovered a sharp-nosed pufferfish party that was happening right under the boat. While other divers were learning how to take out lionfish the macro master witnessed and got to photograph a lot of pufferfish ‘action.’

Night dives added extra adventures to the week because divers had the chance to try the Light and Motion Sola Nightsea which is a powerful fluorescent light that changes the underwater world into an out of this world experience. When you put on the mask filter over your dive mask it makes the Nightsea magic happen as you start looking at the plants and animal life in a whole new light, literally. The Fluoro-dive experience is unforgettable and we encourage everyone to try it! Other exciting things to see on the night dives included octopus, squid, slipper lobsters, shrimp, crabs, eels out looking for food and the beautifully colored sleeping fish.

Everyone on board this week had an incredible time and on behalf of the crew of the Sun Dancer II we would like to thank you and hope to have you join us again in the future. Thank you for making it so memorable and wonderful with a special thank you to Wayne and Davis for adding to the adventures.

---------- Post added July 22nd, 2013 at 11:10 AM ----------

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report July 13-20, 2013

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Visibility: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, 2nd Captain Megan, First Mate John, Chef Jerry, Assistant Chef Jean, Engineer Simon, Stewardess Elia

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Julies Jungle and Long Caye Ridge
Monday - Uno Coco and Long Caye Wall
Tuesday - Half Moon Caye Wall and Aquarium
Wednesday - THE GREAT BLUE HOLE and Silver Cave
Thursday - Painted Wall and Cathedral
Friday - Sandy Slope

We had a super fun-filled week of diving adventures in Belize on Lighthouse Reef. We welcomed a bunch of old friends and quickly made new ones as the divers boarded the Sun Dancer II and made themselves at home. All the guests on board introduced themselves and listened to the welcome briefing before a delicious dinner was served and enjoyed. As the yacht departed Belize City the guests rested during the 60-mile crossing out to Lighthouse Reef.

The next day the first dives were at Julie’s Jungle and the water was a wonderful fresh feeling for the travelers who were now at home submerged in the aquatic wonderland. Schools of creole wrasse greeted you at the reef, trumpetfish, beautiful soft corals, tube sponges and little yellow head blennies. The reef structure allowed you to go between the cut and easily go from the wall side over to the top. Under the yacht the usual Bermuda chubs and horse eyed jacks swarmed around almost every dive site during the whole week.

After each underwater adventure the dive deck was abuzz with the excitement of what was seen. Spotted eagle rays were appreciated and photographed; their heads and spotted top sides are always a favorite. Little neck and decorator crabs were fun to find and peer at, watching them move and sway in the light surge. Hawksbill turtles, free swimming morays and other spotted eels were also fun to find and they seemed to not mind the attention as they went about their business.

One of the best dives happened at Half Moon Caye Wall and there happened to be three sharks that were swimming around and putting on a good show. Feeding them lionfish, and also getting a shy barracudas interest, made for a whole dive of action-packed entertainment. The beautiful setting of white sand, turtle grass, garden eels and conch shells also had stingrays swimming around. One diver had the excitement of having one of the sharks come so close he was able to use his macro lens to get an amazing picture of the shark you can see in this log. Another diver had the comedic move of spreading their legs apart like jumping jacks while the shark swam close underneath.

The Blue Hole was a memorable dive and all the divers, interested in experiencing the historic site, enjoyed the scenery. After the deep diving adventure, the divers took a break and went to the island to appreciate the views and wild life. The rest of the week was amazing and everyone had a super enjoyable time on board and underwater.

On behalf of the entire crew of the Sun Dancer II we would like to thank you for joining us this week and we look forward to seeing you again the future!

Special thanks to guest Robert Flojo for sharing his photos for this log this week.

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report July 20-27, 2013

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Vis: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, 2nd Captain Megan, Engineer Simon, Chef Carlos, Assistant Chef Barbara, Stewardess Elia

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday – Julie’s Jungle and Long Caye Ridge
Monday - Cathedral and Long Caye Wall
Tuesday - Sand Box and Aquarium
Wednesday - Silver Cave
Thursday - Half Moon Caye Wall, Chain Wall, Painted Wall
Friday - Sandy Slope

Wonderful week, amazing diving, super fun adventures above and below the beautiful blue water. On Saturday everyone arrived and made themselves at home. After the dive deck and rooms got situated, the divers went upstairs to the salon and had an official ‘Welcome’ from the crew before dinner. Later that evening we cast off the lines and set out to Lighthouse Reef to start the week of diving at Long Caye.

Waking up at Julie’s Jungle was a welcome sight with the nice deep blue water behind the yacht and the lighter blue as far as you could see up ahead over the reef. Once jumping in for the check out dive the adventures began and everyone was happy with their weighting and buoyancy. Underwater the fish were in abundance as the reef allowed the divers to explore along the wall before heading up to the top of the reef on their way back to the hang bar. The second dive site had a lot of action and one diver after coming back onboard said ‘we just got to see everything!’ He mentioned a spotted eagle ray that swam past, a turtle cruising along the way, eels, crabs, lobsters and other little fish and creatures. For the late afternoon dive a few grouper got to feed on a couple of lionfish while the triggers looked on and joined in occasionally. A free-swimming moray eel came out and was very photogenic, and another spotted eagle ray graced our presence and made a beautiful show of swimming past the divers over the deep.

More exciting days underwater with the appearance of more spotted eagle rays almost every dive, sometimes so big their wing span seemed to reach 10 feet across. Also a few very curious and friendly eels were very enthusiastic to be fed lionfish and got very close to a few divers’ fins as they made sure to stay a safe distance away. A very amazing and wonderful sighting happened at Aquarium the first dive after lunch. Just as a few divers were coming back to the boat, a whole pod of dolphins made their way past the Sun Dancer II and people got some great pictures and had awesome stories to tell about hearing and then seeing the magical creatures underwater.

Every night also offered incredible diving with at least one octopus sighting per dive, sometimes two or more. There were also squid the size of your thumbnails swimming around in groups looking very cute and adorable. A slipper lobster could be found roaming around on its brittle legs or a big crab bringing food to its mouth almost resembling a factory as it worked to eat. Spotted toadfish, free-swimming eels, stingrays trying to sleep, and giant grouper that looked surprised to see the divers’ lights. Of course, the tarpon were out every night hunting with our dive lights, swimming so close past you could touch them. One night, a diver had the ‘favorite creature of the week’ experience with Divemaster Simon as a squid fell in love with them and put on a show.

Wednesday morning was very exciting with a ‘Shark Dive’ at Silver Cave. We had a very curious Caribbean reef female passing by all of the divers and didn’t seem to mind the close passes at camera lenses. The shark stayed around the whole dive partly due to our tasty lionfish morsels we were letting it sample, and possibly for the pure entertainment of weaving thru divers like an obstacle course. At one point all the divers were paying so much attention to our gilled friend that they didn’t notice a huge spotted eagle ray that swam just over everyone’s head on top of the reef as it flew out to the wall and then into the blue.

More shark action awaited the divers Thursday morning at Half Moon Caye. The beautiful dive site made for a perfect stage for sharks to come and explore, swerving around the divers action packed. Also the garden eels, stingrays, spotted eagle rays, angle fish, midnight parrotfish and other adorable and colorful creatures bigger and smaller were out and about. The whole week was amazing and everyone had a great time.

We would like to thank you for joining us this week and from all of the crew of the Sun Dancer II we look forward to having you on board again sometime in the future!

Favorite sea creatures this week:
Chris - A pod of Dolphins! “Getting to see them while on the bottom and being able to film them was the best.”
Greg - Slipper Lobster!
Michelle - Nimble Spray Crab - A little crab that was all black and each leg had two yellow bands on it.
Marene - Squid on the night dive with Divemaster Simon!
Jimmy - Dolphins! and the Sharks!
Lori - The Octopus on the last night dive rose up off the reef, reached out and actually landed on me, touching my wetsuit. Also I loved the Spotted Eagle Rays, the topography and the CREW!!!
Laurie - Pufferfish
John - Sharks!!!!
Steve - The Reef Sharks!
Geoff - The Mantis Shrimp
Rudy - The Burrfish
Jackie and Keith - Sharks and Spotted Eagle Rays
Mac - The Turtle and the Sharks!
Larry - Eddy feeding lionfish to the Sharks, and the ‘six hand’ back massages
Dave - The Octopus of course!
Jules - Sea Turtles, because they are so chill ‘like Dude’
Judy - The pod of Dolphins!
Terry - Sailfin Blennie that came out and did a mating dance me for me
Steve - Spotted Eagle Ray

 

[Marene]

Additional dive site for Wednesday was Uno Coco which was my favorite! Also, Jimmy & I saw a Goliath Grouper at Chain Wall

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report July 27 to Aug 3, 2013

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Vis: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze
Crew: Captain Eddy, 2nd Captain Megan, Engineer Simon, Chef Carlos, Assistant Chef Barbara, Stewardess Elia

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Julie’s Jungle and Long Caye Ridge
Monday - Uno Coco and Long Caye Wall
Tuesday - Half Moon Caye Wall and Cathedral
Wednesday - Chain Wall and Sand Box
Thursday - Lighthouse Wall Half Moon Caye Wall and Silver Cave
Friday - Sandy Slope

Captain Log Pictures from this week from Mike O’Meara, Thank you!

What an amazingly beautiful, adventures week! So much fun was experienced on board and underwater; this was definitely an experience to remember. Saturday the journey began as everyone was welcomed on board and made themselves at home. Upstairs in the salon the briefing and introductions were made before a wonderful dinner was served. A bit later in the evening we set out to Lighthouse Reef to begin our week of diving in the clear warm waters of Belize.

The first day started off at Julie’s Jungle and as the divers got back they reported having already seen squid, midnight parrotfish, a friendly turtle, green moray eel and even a shark! So much fun getting to hover effortlessly thru the water, little kicks now and then to propel yourself along the wall and up over the reef. Everyone felt comfortable and ready for more diving as we moved over to Long Caye Ridge for the afternoon dives.

Monday started with an incredible eagle ray swooping by at Uno Coco and the divers were able to see puffer fish, lobster, a shark and a big free-swimming moray eel. The second dive was incredible and started with 8 dolphins that swam right past everyone at the start of the dive. The next exciting encounter happened a bit later on the top of the reef when a small nurse shark was discovered with its head under a rock and its body visible. After being tempted with a small lionfish morsel, the little shark came out from his spot and made a small circle around the divers until resting back down on its reef bed. The lionfish was offered again close and the baby nurse was eventually fed ‘breakfast in bed.’ Also there were a few beautiful and cooperative angelfish along the reef that really put on a show and didn’t skirt the opportunity to have their pictures taken.

Half Moon Caye Wall is usually a favorite dive site during the week and this was no exception. Everyone started the day with one of their best dives ever getting to see so much fun stuff it was almost comical. The garden eels, stingrays and conch shells in the sand and turtle grass were fun to watch and get close to. Three sharks were spotted over the wall and at least two spotted eagle rays flew past making close enough passes to really let the divers appreciate their wonderful body size and markings. Also the divers were treated to a turtle that was cute and adorable as turtles always are. The entire dive was considered a favorite until the next dive when the divers got a shark show just over the wall. One friendly Caribbean reef was interested in any food opportunities a lionfish would offer. The other curious critter was a barracuda that was also invested in getting a taste of the local cuisine. The rest of the dive was as enjoyable as the first and during lunch the excitement was palpable with everyone having had such an amazing morning. The afternoon did not disappoint at the dive site Cathedral known for having amazing crevasses you can swim between and other topographically interesting reef structure that makes the dive three dimensional and enjoyable in additional ways.

Near Half Moon Caye Island, next to East Cut, is a wonderful dive site called Chain Wall that led the divers over sand similar to Half Moon and then over the reef wall. Some of the incredible encounters included a giant grouper friendly enough to keep constant eye contact with, another barracuda, a shark show, and spotted eagle rays soaring by. The entire morning was exciting and enjoyable, pleasurable to be in the refreshing water and adventures enough for the shark lovers to come back with stories worthy of sharing. In the afternoon we made it to the southern end of Long Caye almost to Hat Caye and jumped in at Sand Box. The afternoon dives had another rapid dolphin sighting, a super friendly turtle minding its own business and one of the most charismatic green moray eels you can ever hope to photograph. This giant loves to come out and look around, free swimming up to divers, getting close to the lens then backing away.

The next morning at Lighthouse Wall proved to have one of the most rare and spectacular sightings of the week. It was kind of a mystery at first what these two nurse sharks were doing, some people thought they were feeding on a spotted eagle but as the divers approached and got close enough to find out it was obvious the sharks were sharing a ‘moment’ and the divers were able to catch something straight out of a scene from a national geographic show. It was difficult to see from the pictures and video but every diver that witnessed it was sure what was going on. In addition to the ‘lovebird sharks’ there was a giant shark that patrolled off the wall and one diver said it was the biggest one he has ever seen. A turtle graced the dive and a smaller southern stingray was seen flying over the sand. Also a cool lobster marched around and hid in strategic places. The second dive was back at Half Moon Caye and more splendid fish and colorful creatures were encountered, photographed and appreciated. The afternoon dives were spent at Silver Cave and one diver became such good friends with a turtle that it was named Wallie! She said that the turtle was beautiful and magnificent and she wanted to follow it as far as they could go together. Also a few stingrays, wire coral shrimp, neck crabs, flamingo tongs and many other fascinating life forms were enjoyed underwater.

Friday the divers spent the morning at Sandy Slope and got to see the famous white spotted toadfish! Also the very rare, almost extinct Sargassum Trigger Fish that is a sea blue color with black dotted lines was seen relaxing before noticing the divers heading its way so it tucked into the coral. Stingrays, banded shrimp and other awesome creatures were all out and about to see and be seen by the divers. It was an incredible week and everyone on board had a wonderful time. Underwater had many adventures and memorable moments.

On behalf of the entire crew of the Sun Dancer II we would like to Thank You for joining us this week!

Favorites of the week!

Mike - Sharks mating, probably never see that again.

Kem - Dolphins! and the Spotted Eagle Rays! And the Food! The whole thing was good.

Nikki - Spotting the honeycomb cowfish! And I loved Carlos’s soups!

Anita - The mating sharks, so original! The Food, Service and Company.

Brian - Getting to see sharks so close!

Peter - Neck Crabs! And Being able to find them myself!

Chantal - Turtle, so many nice things, great fish, the drum fish, all the parrot family, angelfish.

Sylvie - The Sharks being so close!

Christine - The Turtles and Sharks!

Anne-Marie- Sharks mating, swimming with the dolphins, the pipefish and the toadfish!

Antoine - Toadfish, Sharks, Spotted Eagle Ray, and Everything!

Nathalie - Coral with the small fish all around making great atmosphere and the Food! Everything was good! And not having to remove my own fins, the fin-service was amazing and the hot towel messages were the best.

Michel - The Sharks! And the fin-assistance, the hot towel massages.

Nicola - The Turtle “Wallie” and the Dolphins, and the Sharks, Basically Everything!

Lisa - Liked the nice relaxed diving, and interaction with all the other divers on board, and the incredible service across the board, dive and galley staff.

Jerry - Sharks, spotted eagle rays, dolphins and turtles.

Jesse - When the Giant Green Moray moved so close to my camera I had to back away. Also I enjoyed the lionfish being fed to the barracuda and the sharks.

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report Aug 3 - 13, 2013

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Visibility: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, 2nd Captain Megan, Engineer Simon, Chef Jerry, Assistant Chef Carlos, Stewardess Barbara

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Julie’s Jungle and Long Caye Ridge
Monday - Aquarium and Sand Box
Tuesday - Inspiration and Silver Cave
Wednesday - Lighthouse Wall and Site Y
Thursday - Half Moon Caye Wall and Uno Coco
Friday - Chain Wall and Cathedral
Saturday - Painted Wall and Long Caye Wall
Sunday - Black Beauty and Front Porch
Monday - Sandy Slope

An Exciting Charter - Ten Days of awesome fun and diving, an amazing charter we will always remember. This unique trip started on Saturday as usual with everyone getting set up on the dive deck and unpacked in their staterooms, making themselves at home. Upstairs in the salon everyone gathered and listened to the welcome briefing and introductions. After a delicious dinner was served we set out to Lighthouse Reef to begin our day of diving at Long Caye.

The next morning, our first morning of diving began at Julie’s Jungle, the perfect site for a check out dive. There are giant barrel sponges and inside one of them a lobster was trying to hide, but everyone that went over was able to see the enjoyable critter surrounded by the huge sponge. Also the sand was filled with yellow-headed jawfish for people spending time on the top of the reef. There was something for everyone and it was a great first dive site to start the exciting charter. The afternoon dives at Long Caye Ridge gave some divers their first Shark sighting! Also the topography was very impressive to others as they enjoyed diving over the wall and then up and over, thru the crevasses, and to the top of the reef. Some of the fun small things that were discovered and enjoyed included neck crabs, a stonefish, and hovering over all of the action were the tarpons. Known for their stoic behavior during the day, once the night dive started you could see the tarpons dashing around hunting and getting close enough to touch the divers. Also at night the basket stars, sea urchins, and of course all of the fun colored fish trying to sit still so as not to get noticed. A wonderful first day leaving everyone looking forward to the next morning of diving.

At Aquarium it started off a great morning and got even better. The first dive had a really cute turtle sighting and also someone got to enjoy a big crab that was eating. One of the other fun things was the entertaining amount of hermit crabs. On the top of the reef and over the wall both offered spectacular corals, fans, sponges, and wire coral including the little shrimp aptly named wire coral shrimp. Later at Sand Box the dives were very enjoyable with the choice of finding small critters in the sand and the top of the reef including neck crabs, arrow blennies, Pederson shrimp, and more wire coral shrimp. On the night dive it was amazing to see a giant octopus, then later one squid, followed by a couple of squid, and then to top it off - a school of squid!

The dive site Inspiration was literally inspiring the next morning as we dove along the other side of Long Caye Island. Sandy shoot paths took the divers along the reef until you reached the wall, and for some at that very moment they spotted a reef shark passing along. Later a nurse shark was also seen and a super friendly grouper was photographed and befriended one of the divers. The wonderful blue water and warm sunshine made beautiful lighting and everyone thought the diving was marvelous! Moving around the island over to Silver Cave made for more amazing diving in the afternoon. Boxfish everywhere in groups of two and three, sometimes up to four and five, all hanging out and making that cute face as they fluttered their little wings and hovered around the divers. A cool lobster, one of the biggest ever seen, was memorable, along with a spotted eel and green moray. Some divers were able to see the giant stingray that was soaring on top of the reef. It was seen a couple times and one diver went on a wild ride imagining himself swimming along close enough to draft and stayed along close for a few seconds before the stingray went into hyper speed disappearing into the distance. A shark and turtle were the other highlights, making it an amazing dive site that is still one of our favorites.

Lighthouse Wall is also very literal in its name because while sitting off of Half Moon Caye Island you can distinctly see the lighthouse that rises above the tall palm tree line. The conditions were so perfect we were able to see down to the reef from the yacht before giant striding into the welcoming water. While our divers were making their way from the surface down to the reef, an octopus was discovered in a small sand patch right along the edge of the wall. The conch shell trash littered around was an indicator that it was a nice established home for this octopus, so we hope to go back and visit next time we are in the neighborhood. Other exciting sightings included midnight parrotfish, a huge turtle, and a herd of conch all over the sand scattering in different directions in their slow motion ballet. The afternoon added additional interest as we made our way to a very rare dive site reserved for only perfect glassy conditions mysteriously named ‘Site Y.’ Upon arriving you could see right thru the water and already start to make out exciting coral heads on top of the reef. Once submerged the new terrain opened up to white sand with a smattering of coral and rock structures. Over the wall the blue water transitioned to a darker hue and the fans and soft corals emerged and created beautiful wide-angle opportunities. A friendly turtle was waiting near a large rock and other small creatures were discovered in the sandy patch, but what was most noticeable was the amount of lionfish sprinkled around, some out and showing off, while others were in their dens keeping a watchful eye. This site became one of our new favorites as the night dive also opened up opportunities to see a little bit of everything and created a very enjoyable experience for everyone underwater in the dark.

Half Moon Caye Wall is always one of the top rated dive sites in the whole Lighthouse Reef area and this week it did not disappoint. Upon entering the water and swimming over the sand and turtle grass it’s almost impossible to miss a stingray feeding. On this dive we saw spotted eagle rays as always and a few sharks. Someone even found a baby pipefish! And you cannot forget our friendly barracuda that put on a show for us all.

The following day someone got to see 7 spotted eagle rays on a single dive. Another diver got to see a single, and then double, followed by a triple pack of spotted eagle rays along the wall, which made for a magical sight. From the boat someone even got to see one jump out of the water and then crash back down. The rest of the week the diving was simply fantastic, the weather conditions were the best ever. We moved on for even more adventure to dive the island of Turneffe where we got to see more green morays then the whole week of diving, spotted eels and turtles and of course the elusive spotted toadfish who even came out of his home and swam around showing off as divers and photographers went crazy snapping photos. Everyone got a good show and was very pleased with the diving on the south side of Turneffe. Other notable sightings were baby eels, little stingrays, juvenile filefish, a tiny baby French angelfish, flounders and other macro amazingness.

The diving portion of this ten-day adventure came to a close at Sandy Slope on Turneffe Island. Back at the dock in Belize City everyone was still talking about all the exciting creatures and adventures that were seen and discovered. The time that was spent together will always be remembered and it was great to see old friends and make new ones as well.

From all of the crew of the Sun Dancer II we would like to thank you for such a great time onboard and underwater. We look forward to seeing you again and getting to go on more adventures together!

Favorite things seen and experienced this week:

Jesse - An orchestra, where the performing artist was a green moray and the conductor was a divemaster with a lionfish at the end of the spear.

Skip - Sharptail eel

Hope - Loved being in the water, thanks to the doctors!

Kelly - Floating Hope

Joe - Eels!

Ken - Joe’s Whale Shark

Hans - All of it! Also the White-spotted Toadfish, since I had never seen one before.

Andy - Spotted Toadfish that came out of its hole

Gabby - Yellow-headed Jawfish and the squirrelfish!

Eric - School of 50 squid on a night dive

Marc - Angry Eel that wanted to eat me

Ken - More free swimming green moray eels then ever!

Leslie - Spotted Toadfish and Eagle Rays

Warren - Spotted Toadfish, I got to see one actually roll over upside down.

Russell - Spotted Toadfish, Spotted Eagle Rays, and the spotted eels; anything spotted.

Doug – Friendly, cooperative turtles

Carol - Bait ball of squid, and you could see all of their eyeballs on the night dive. In my photos they almost look like backscatter - they were everywhere! The night dives were really fun; you could see all different things you couldn’t see during the day.

Diane - Seeing the spotted eagle ray take flight out of the water then splashing down with a huge crash. I got to see the whole thing from the boat. Also, the amount of free-swimming daytime green moray eels, more than I have ever seen before.

Sharon - Spotted Toadfish, also the triple moray eels under a ledge.

Christine - My husband Hans who made every single dive!

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report August 14 – 24, 2013
Special 10-Night Charter

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Vis: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, First Mate John, Engineer Simon, Chef Jerry, Assistant Chef Carlos, Stewardess Barbara, Divemaster Karim

Dive Sites Visited:
Thursday - Front Porch and Grand Bouge
Friday – Bull’s Bay and Dock’s Place
Saturday - Long Caye Ridge and Long Caye Wall
Sunday - Half Moon Caye Wall and Julie’s Jungle
Monday - Chain Wall and Aquarium
Tuesday - Painted Wall and Site X
Wednesday - Blue Hole and Cathedral
Thursday - Silver Cave and Uno Coco
Friday - Sandy Slope

What a wonderful ten-day adventure filled with enjoyable diving and fun. On Wednesday we had the opportunity to welcome onboard a very enthusiastic group of divers looking forward to an amazing ten days. After everyone got set up in their staterooms and organized on the dive deck the divers got together in the salon area to hear the welcome briefing and introductions. After a delicious dinner was served the divers got some rest so they could wake up the next morning ready to go diving at Turneffe Island.

Front Porch was a marvelous welcome as the divers took giant strides into the warm blue water. On the first dive there were plenty of fish and sea creatures to admire and appreciate. Eels and crabs, lobsters and rainbow fish were among some of the welcoming committee underwater greeting the friendly divers. All of the schools of little fish and commuter fish were out on their way going about their day and looking photogenic for those with cameras in hand. The afternoon dives proved also a delight as the beautiful first day of diving continued and everyone enjoyed themselves on Turneffe Island at dive site Grand Bouge.

The next morning everyone awoke to spectacular weather as the sun was shinning and the water looked a brilliant blue. At Bull’s Bay on Turneffe the fish and fans were swaying in the light surge as the divers effortlessly drifted past. In the sand the super cute yellow-headed jaw fish were out hovering and darting back and forth. All the diving on Turneffe was wonderful, from the big to the small creatures everything was joyous and intriguing to watch and admire. That evening the Sun Dancer II made the journey over to Lighthouse Reef so in the morning the divers could enjoy the beautiful diving at Long Caye. The first day did not disappoint with sightings of spotted eagle rays off the wall and of course the big friendly groupers looking for a little attention. Over the wall the big elephant ear sponges were always there to light up a wide angle shot and the wire coral added texture to the decadent topography. Thru the ridges you could swim back from the wall over to the top of the reef where the light was dancing on the corals and the fish were dancing as well in different colorful groups.

Sharks made an appearance at Half Moon Caye Wall and again this dive sight proved to have a little of everything. In the sand you can always find sting rays and garden eels while over the wall the plate coral set the perfect stage for eels, crabs, grouper, barracuda and other happy fish all interested in catching a glimpse of the divers as they hovered and pass by. Spotted eagle rays soared past over the wall and super giant French angelfish delighted in pairs. The midnight parrot fish with their huge front teeth seemed to enjoy their fishy adventures and made their way over the sand and across the reef as well.

The rest of the week had incredible weather to match the marvelous diving; everyone had a great time exploring all of the wildlife and topography. Along Chain Wall spotted eagle rays, stingrays, turtles and even a flounder greeted the divers. The dive site Aquarium had as many fish varieties as you would expect to find at a location with that name. Everyone loved the shallow top of the reef after going along the wall especially on the night dive there were plenty of fun and exciting things to find including squid, crabs of all shapes and sizes and an octopus!

Another favorite site named Painted Wall was super-joyous and majestic; everything on the reef comes across happy and welcoming. The Bermuda chubs schooling around the divers and the wonderful variety of eels always makes this site memorable and perfect to start a day of wonderful dives. In the afternoon the divers made their way to Site X, which is not as mysterious as the name suggests. At the sand and over the wall you can dive around the little piles of coral that come out and make for the perfect homes for creatures of all sizes. A friendly turtle and enough lionfish to stay busy made the dive entertaining and fun in many ways. The next day the Blue Hole was the first dive of the day and made everyone appreciative of the history and vastness the wide-angle atmosphere evoked. After the memorable dive some went to the Island and others made a second dive at Chain Wall before having a delicious lunch before starting the afternoon dives at Cathedral.

The rest of the week was incredible and enjoyable; enough can’t be said for the fun underwater and onboard that the divers had while being in Belize.

From all of the crew of the Sun Dancer II we would like to thank you for joining us on this wonderful 10 day adventure we are sure to always remember.

---------- Post added September 3rd, 2013 at 10:30 AM ----------

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report August 24 – 31, 2013

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Vis: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, Second Captain Megan, First Mate John, Chef Jerry, Assistant Chef Jean, Stewardess Elia, Divemaster Karim

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Long Caye Ridge and Julie’s Jungle
Monday - Uno Coco and Aquarium
Tuesday - Half Moon Caye and Long Caye Wall
Wednesday - Silver Cave and Sand Box
Thursday - Chain Wall & Painted Wall
Friday - Grand Bogue and Black Beauty

Amazing wonderful, super fun week of joy and diving. The adventure started on Saturday as our new and returning friends made their way onboard. The yacht was a buzz with excitement and everyone seemed to make instant friends with each other and the introductions were fun to hear everyone’s favorite ‘Sea Creature’ as we got a chance to officially break the ice. After a delicious dinner was served, the Sun Dancer II set out across the channel and out to Lighthouse Reef to begin the week of diving at Long Caye Island.

The first dive had many marvelous creatures to see and the fish seemed very happy and entertained by the divers hovering and maneuvering past. The Creole wrasse were out in droves making their way past as if on a mission or commute. Groupers of all shapes and distinctions were also out and about, following along and greeting the divers as they enjoyed their first taste, not literally, of the warm blue water of Belize. On the next dive at Julie’s Jungle an appreciation for the reef structure was noted as the divers had a good variety of ‘off the wall’ entertainment and on the reef intrigue.

Uno Coco was the next day’s first dive site and at one time three different green moray eels were seen free swimming, every exciting for eel fans! Also it was a beautiful sight to see two spotted eagle rays swimming along together near the wall over the blue. All the little crabs were fun to see some moving around and others trying to blend into their surroundings. At Aquarium in the afternoon one of the funniest little shrimp had a couple divers cracking up after they returned because they said while they were watching it ‘discharged’ almost like a fish, or squid if you can use your imagination. Other wonderful small creatures were spotted and admired on the top of the beautiful reef that always has divers excited about a night dive at this location. In the darkness the octopus, squids, crabs and fish all seem more photogenic and ready for their close ups!

Half Moon Caye Wall the next day became of the best dives of the week, as expected, when the divers were delighted by the eagle rays that happened to be up in the sand, feeding and flying around. Also stingrays with their little fish friends and the infamous barracuda that always gets a little on the curious side were spotted. The amazing reef that jumps out of the sand and then drops right off into the deep always makes for the most dramatic swim throughs either going out to the darker blue waters off the wall or after making your turn back into the shallows the white sand to greet you on the return. At Long Caye Wall the afternoon of diving continued to be enjoyable and eels and lionfish entertained the divers while groupers looked on. The wonderful dive site had a little for everyone with small jaw fish up in the sand and even a few slugs that a few divers were very excited about.

Silver Cave the next morning had one of the best top side shows of the whole week when a pod of about 15 dolphins swam past and the divers that were lucky enough to be underwater got a chance to see their splendor. A couple divers that were already back put on their masks, fins and snorkels and headed out to intercept the amazing pod and got a chance to have one of the best dolphin encounters of their life. The most amazing diver experience was for one that was still finishing up her open water dives and got to see dolphins on literally one of her first times in the ocean. For the other divers this was the second or third time they had been able to witness free dolphins swimming and playing as they past by in the wild. At Sand Box in the afternoon, aside from the super curious green moray eels that are now the main attraction of this dive site, the spotted eagle rays made an appearance and took a close enough pass for some divers to get wonderful pictures and video of the majestic creatures.

Chain Wall is moving up in popularity as one of the best most entertaining dive sites over at Half Moon Caye with the wide variety of wildlife, so much so that someone looking for macro got so distracted by the big stuff they almost forgot to look down. There was a ‘shark show’ put on by Captain Eddy who was able to help get all the cameras on the dive a bunch of great footage of the sharks as they came close enough to photograph and fill the frame. The turtle, eagle rays circling and barracudas were all very fun to watch and admire. Another fun fish that always makes people happy is the midnight parrots that have the best teeth and face, so cute and cartoonish. At Painted Wall that evening there was a turtle that hung out and spent time with the divers, also schools of chubs getting in the way of checking out other fun fish. The whole reef at Painted Wall is so enjoyable and happy, the light that dances over the rocks and even on the night dive you could see all the festive colors come out as you pointed your torch in the different directions.

The next morning a dawn dive was conducted at Grand Bogue on Turneffe Island. The morning dive always offers a little bit of a different atmosphere and everyone that went on it was happy they had splashed in and loved what they got to see. On Black Beauty the world famous spotted toadfish was discovered and one of the biggest turtles some divers had ever seen actually distracted them enough to lead them up and down the whole reef in pursuit. Everyone had an amazing last dive especially Mike who got ‘friendly’ with a remora and found out that they aren’t actually attacking but just want to be friends.

“Favorites this Week”
Linda - Spotted Eagle Rays
Kalee - a toss up between the sharks and a turtle
Andrew - Happy Divers!
Josh - Sharks, and of course sexy shrimp
Rex - Pygmy filefish and a seahorse
Pat - Pygmy filefish
Michael - The remora, or the codfish
deNise - Swimming with the dolphins
Christina – ‘Coddy’the Cod Fish
Nathan - Crustaceans and the big white sand flats on Half Moon Caye Wall and Chain Wall, the big sea grass areas as well. When you come off the wall and go thru a swim thru making your way up it looked amazing, also the friendly remora was great.
Mike - The green turtle, that was pretty cool
Rick - Eagle Rays!
Kethan - That really big turtle
Brandon - Eddy feeding a reef shark directly in front of my camera, I got a great shot!
Mike - The Sharks!
Kat - My new engagement ring!
Rama - The Busy Crab
Bill - Neck Crab
Max - Yellow headed Jawfish

Thank you everyone for such an incredible week, on board you all had a ‘time of your life’ with memorable laughs and extra special adventures and surprises underwater.

From all of the crew on the Sun Dancer II, Thank you again for joining us and we look forward to diving with you again in the future.

 

[Dancer Fleet]

Sun Dancer II Captain’s Report August 24 – 31, 2013

Water Temp: 82-84 F
Vis: 80-100 feet
Weather: Sunny with light breeze

Crew: Captain Eddy, Second Captain Megan, First Mate John, Chef Jerry, Assistant Chef Jean, Stewardess Elia, Divemaster Karim

Dive Sites Visited:
Sunday - Long Caye Ridge and Julie’s Jungle
Monday - Uno Coco and Aquarium
Tuesday - Half Moon Caye and Long Caye Wall
Wednesday - Silver Cave and Sand Box
Thursday - Chain Wall & Painted Wall
Friday - Grand Bogue and Black Beauty

Amazing wonderful, super fun week of joy and diving. The adventure started on Saturday as our new and returning friends made their way onboard. The yacht was a buzz with excitement and everyone seemed to make instant friends with each other and the introductions were fun to hear everyone’s favorite ‘Sea Creature’ as we got a chance to officially break the ice. After a delicious dinner was served, the Sun Dancer II set out across the channel and out to Lighthouse Reef to begin the week of diving at Long Caye Island.

The first dive had many marvelous creatures to see and the fish seemed very happy and entertained by the divers hovering and maneuvering past. The Creole wrasse were out in droves making their way past as if on a mission or commute. Groupers of all shapes and distinctions were also out and about, following along and greeting the divers as they enjoyed their first taste, not literally, of the warm blue water of Belize. On the next dive at Julie’s Jungle an appreciation for the reef structure was noted as the divers had a good variety of ‘off the wall’ entertainment and on the reef intrigue.

Uno Coco was the next day’s first dive site and at one time three different green moray eels were seen free swimming, every exciting for eel fans! Also it was a beautiful sight to see two spotted eagle rays swimming along together near the wall over the blue. All the little crabs were fun to see some moving around and others trying to blend into their surroundings. At Aquarium in the afternoon one of the funniest little shrimp had a couple divers cracking up after they returned because they said while they were watching it ‘discharged’ almost like a fish, or squid if you can use your imagination. Other wonderful small creatures were spotted and admired on the top of the beautiful reef that always has divers excited about a night dive at this location. In the darkness the octopus, squids, crabs and fish all seem more photogenic and ready for their close ups!

Half Moon Caye Wall the next day became of the best dives of the week, as expected, when the divers were delighted by the eagle rays that happened to be up in the sand, feeding and flying around. Also stingrays with their little fish friends and the infamous barracuda that always gets a little on the curious side were spotted. The amazing reef that jumps out of the sand and then drops right off into the deep always makes for the most dramatic swim throughs either going out to the darker blue waters off the wall or after making your turn back into the shallows the white sand to greet you on the return. At Long Caye Wall the afternoon of diving continued to be enjoyable and eels and lionfish entertained the divers while groupers looked on. The wonderful dive site had a little for everyone with small jaw fish up in the sand and even a few slugs that a few divers were very excited about.

Silver Cave the next morning had one of the best top side shows of the whole week when a pod of about 15 dolphins swam past and the divers that were lucky enough to be underwater got a chance to see their splendor. A couple divers that were already back put on their masks, fins and snorkels and headed out to intercept the amazing pod and got a chance to have one of the best dolphin encounters of their life. The most amazing diver experience was for one that was still finishing up her open water dives and got to see dolphins on literally one of her first times in the ocean. For the other divers this was the second or third time they had been able to witness free dolphins swimming and playing as they past by in the wild. At Sand Box in the afternoon, aside from the super curious green moray eels that are now the main attraction of this dive site, the spotted eagle rays made an appearance and took a close enough pass for some divers to get wonderful pictures and video of the majestic creatures.

Chain Wall is moving up in popularity as one of the best most entertaining dive sites over at Half Moon Caye with the wide variety of wildlife, so much so that someone looking for macro got so distracted by the big stuff they almost forgot to look down. There was a ‘shark show’ put on by Captain Eddy who was able to help get all the cameras on the dive a bunch of great footage of the sharks as they came close enough to photograph and fill the frame. The turtle, eagle rays circling and barracudas were all very fun to watch and admire. Another fun fish that always makes people happy is the midnight parrots that have the best teeth and face, so cute and cartoonish. At Painted Wall that evening there was a turtle that hung out and spent time with the divers, also schools of chubs getting in the way of checking out other fun fish. The whole reef at Painted Wall is so enjoyable and happy, the light that dances over the rocks and even on the night dive you could see all the festive colors come out as you pointed your torch in the different directions.

The next morning a dawn dive was conducted at Grand Bogue on Turneffe Island. The morning dive always offers a little bit of a different atmosphere and everyone that went on it was happy they had splashed in and loved what they got to see. On Black Beauty the world famous spotted toadfish was discovered and one of the biggest turtles some divers had ever seen actually distracted them enough to lead them up and down the whole reef in pursuit. Everyone had an amazing last dive especially Mike who got ‘friendly’ with a remora and found out that they aren’t actually attacking but just want to be friends.

“Favorites this Week”
Linda - Spotted Eagle Rays
Kalee - a toss up between the sharks and a turtle
Andrew - Happy Divers!
Josh - Sharks, and of course sexy shrimp
Rex - Pygmy filefish and a seahorse
Pat - Pygmy filefish
Michael - The remora, or the codfish
Denise - Swimming with the dolphins
Christina – ‘Coddy’the Cod Fish
Nathan - Crustaceans and the big white sand flats on Half Moon Caye Wall and Chain Wall, the big sea grass areas as well. When you come off the wall and go thru a swim thru making your way up it looked amazing, also the friendly remora was great.
Mike - The green turtle, that was pretty cool
Rick - Eagle Rays!
Kethan - That really big turtle
Brandon - Eddy feeding a reef shark directly in front of my camera, I got a great shot!
Mike - The Sharks!
Kat - My new engagement ring!
Rama - The Busy Crab
Bill - Neck Crab
Max - Yellow headed Jawfish

Thank you everyone for such an incredible week, on board you all had a ‘time of your life’ with memorable laughs and extra special adventures and surprises underwater.

From all of the crew on the Sun Dancer II, Thank you again for joining us and we look forward to diving with you again in the future.