That was some crazy current today

[Charred]

I was there for my second April trip. Last week we had North, South and East currents.

I am still laughing about the hawksbill we found at Cedral crawling on the bottom to stay out of the current.

Are these currents typical of April or was this just a crazy couple of weeks? Last year we had a freak norte but only currents flowing north.

 

[RayfromTX]

Yes I can pass on any more north south currents on Cedral.

 

[Pelagicsal]

... If I'm ever on a drift dive and the current shifts from south to north to north to south or is drifting south from the beginning of the dive I'm heading up and calling it personally as something out of the ordinary is going on and I don't care to find out where those currents are converging at depth creating such things.

Then you’re going to miss the dolphins at Maracaibo. They’re a regular occurrence of it running south.
I find reverse current refreshing on the reef. A dead still Tunich blew my mind more than a still Barracuda. So so so many unusual tiny creatures!

 

[deepsea21]

Then you’re going to miss the dolphins at Maracaibo. They’re a regular occurrence of it running south.
I find reverse current refreshing on the reef. A dead still Tunich blew my mind more than a still Barracuda. So so so many unusual tiny creatures!

I'll miss them then. I live on the water VA and have a boat... I can see dolphins swimming to my hearts content and enjoy finding a pod that I can motor up through from behind and watch them play with the boat just under my bow. I don't need to see them underwater in a crazy N to S current while diving. Check this fun out... even the little baby was having a great time until the parents stepped in and steered him away as maybe he was getting a little big for his britches? The one out of the water is the baby at about 4' long. Don't know why but they just LOVE playing with boats underway.

 

[RayfromTX]

I suspect the topography causes the down currents in the area I was in when the current is strong out of the north. That has nothing to do with diving other areas with a reverse current. On a related note however, we just called our night shore dive on Villa Blanca. The water was calm but the divers coming out were beaten up by a strong current that I have no interest in doing a night dive in. Oh well. Another time.

 

[Pelagicsal]

Beautiful, @deepsea21, but there’s nothing like diving with them!

 

[deepsea21]

Beautiful, @deepsea21, but there’s nothing like diving with them!

Well.. In the midst of this pod that I circled through 2 times, on the third time through we were in front of the pod, we killed the engine and were perfectly positioned in their path. I jumped overboard with a mask and snorkel awaiting the pod to come up on us and swim with them. No such luck. They must love moving boats far more than stationary boats and peopel in the water. The dream of swimming free with these creatures is an elusive one. I tried the same thing in the Chesapeake Bay when I've had them in front of the boat in literally 10'-20' of water. Pulled ahead, jumped off the boat, and they swim a wide spread around the stationary boat and me so I never saw one of them.

 

[Pelagicsal]

Sliding in as gently as possible helps the odds of their sticking around, @deepsea21

We did backroll off in front of a sizable pod, a few years ago, who didn’t seem to care and checked us out before continuing their way south, likely for an approaching Norte, though I cannot remember specifics. One did watch a camera-carrying diver, who was inflated with hands full, thrashing around trying to get off the surface. Once he calmed down, he saw the dolphin and swore it was laughing at him.

We weren’t lucky enough to have them find us during the north breezes of Sunday, though we were in a spot they visit during nortes.
Always a unparalleled thrill when they come along!

 

[gopbroek]

Still running predominatly north to south yesterday.
Dropped into Palancar Caves and drift down thru Bricks

Next into Francessa and drifted back to Deliala

Then San Fransisco wall, it was running south and visability was very poor in the afternoon. On the wall below 90' it improved but was dark due to all the crap floating above. Large upwellings of cold water (77F) below 100'. About 40 minutes in the current (more like a large Eddy) reversed and the poor visability turned to crap, maybe 20', pulled the pin and went up.

Headed north looking for better visability and ended at Paradise, still medium current South, dropped at the bouy line and had a nice drft to the Money bar. Decent visability but still a lot of crap in the water

10AM. What a difference a day makes. Santa Rosa this morning, light normal south to North current. Visability 150'+ beautiful.

 

[Mark IV]

This thread reminded me of what may have been the #1 freakiest (ocean) dive I ever did. I was working for Dive Cozumel, on the boat The Yellow Rose (best dive boat on the island).
On the 2nd dive of the trip, we went to Chanknaab Bolones (always a waste of time and air, IMO). The current, as it often did there, was running to the south, but this time it was SCREAMING !! It was hands down, the most hellacious current I'd ever seen in years of diving Cozumel, and our Cozumel veterans concurred.
Almost instantly, it started blowing divers across the bottom like tumbleweeds, and wrecking any group cohesiveness. Visibility was maybe 10-15 feet. I saw one diver lose a fin, and as i recall I somehow waved them on, signalling that I'd go after it, and grabbed something to stop me in the current. We never saw that fin again. I also completely lost the group.
I was flying along the bottom, trying to zig-zag a little, while looking for the fin, or the divers, almost running right into big coral formations in the ripping current and low visibility.
At one point, and big southern stingray pops up out of the sand right next to me, scaring the hell out of me, and right after that, a 5ft shark darts into view, then disappears. I had the impression he had his attention focused on the stingray, both of which instantly disappeared.
I finally decided I wasn't finding anyone, which was quite stressful, so I headed up, trying hard to do a slow accent and safety stop in the current and near zero vis, and when i got to the surface, the whole group was already on the boat.
Everyone was almost breathlessly chattering at mach-speed about their experiences, at which point someone points out the entire episode was only 15 minutes !!! (this was an operation that practically guaranteed an hour of bottom time, providing you had the air).
No one complained about the short duration, and everyone was kinda freaked out about the time distortion, because it felt to us all like at was much longer than that.
That bizarre dive was the big tale of the day back at the shop, and at dinner that night.