Why is Little Cayman diving considered better?

[KathyV]

From the current issue of UwP = Underwater Photography Magazine View attachment 434121

Thank you for sharing that wonderful article and turtle portrait! We saw several turtles both on GC and LC and a small hawksbill actually swam along with us, during a dive on BBW, and seemed quite unafraid and let the divers approach very closely - maybe he was your turtle!

And I love how you turned lemons into lemonade and got such a wonderful close-up with your macro set-up, and it also appealed to me that the title of the article is "My Shot" because it reminded me of something special.

I am getting totally off-track here, but have you had a chance to see the "Hamilton the Musical" theatrical show yet? It's definitely worth seeing. Just imagine an old lady like me getting into Hip-Hop - but only for this unusual show!

Anyway, Alexander Hamilton's theme (that is repeated at various times during the program) runs "I'm not throwing away my shot!" see the lyrics below. When I read your article I immediately thought "He didn't throw away his shot, good for him!"

I am not throwing away my shot
I am not throwing away my shot
Hey yo, I’m just like my country
I’m young, scrappy and hungry
And I’m not throwing away my shot!

 

[Ricardo V.]

@KathyV,
Thank you for your post and comments. I'll be checking Hamilton out.
We enjoy shore diving a lot and the freedom it brings from having to adhere to strict schedules and ofcourse, account for dive guides, time limits, preferred area to explore and restricted depth profiles to name a few.

Weather conditions and maybe a limited number of divers available to justify having a boat go out opened an opportunity for us to go shore diving. We rented a car and took off to the Jackson Bight area. The most challenging thing was the mosquitoes and noseems that lived under the sea grapes, but with a quick hurry up and run for it, we had an excellent opportunity to take our sweet time and go shore diving. We parked the rental car about 50 yards from shore. Not bad. The area was very easy to access, and entry to the site was a walk in the park.

The first site was the Bus Stop. We spent just under a couple of hours of bottom time there, first taking macro photos in the shallows, amazed at the parades of eagle rays feeding in the flats, which ofcourse had no concerns particularly because we had no rush, it was just 2 divers and things were nice and calm... later on we spent some time at the wall and even had time to go pretty deep exploring the different coral formations.

Second site was just to the east... and called Cumber's Caves. Talk about excellent swim throughs. Amazing experience.
We spent 2 hours of bottom time diving here and it was just as awesome as the first site. Did not move the vehicle... just went diving towards the east and that was that. Had great macro opportunities in the shallows, which also maked for productive stress free safety stops.

Returned to the hotel, swapped tanks, got some snacks and then headed towards the Salt Rock Dock where we ran into a lady that runs one of the dive resorts on Little Cayman... I think she said Pirates Palace or Pirates Place, she was on her day off and was getting ready to do some shore diving there. She showed us the ropes, how to hop in from the main deck, and best way out... easy exit is available using a set of steps that are located on the north side of the main dock. It's a bit weird jumping from a concrete platform that sits somewhat high above the water level, but it's the best and easiest way in.

We spent 2 hours there too, and made it back just in time before sunset and a nice dinner at the hotel. Overall, I have to say that the diving is pretty good, the experience of visiting Little Cayman is worth while repeating.

My wife and I found the shore diving to be the highlight of our trip. Nothing wrong with the boats, nor the resort, all was very good... however, the freedom of just being able to do our thing without having to be back in an hour, or following a guide was simply priceless. I know it's not for everyone and it's also out of the norm for Little Cayman, but then again, I would not hesitate to return and would do it in a heart beat, only if it could be 90% shore diving and say 10% boat... just to get to those places where shore access is not feasible. I don't think anyone can honestly say that any of these 3 shoredive sites are difficult to access or that they can easily get tired of diving them.

I realize it's not like any other shore dive destination, it's not set up that way, but it has potential... but then, regulations, lower population densities, environmental protection strategies, local master plan, transportation and public access are just a few variables that make each place unique and special. One valuable resource we used was a web posting we found here: ZF2NT Home Page
It does identify numerous sites which will have to wait till the next opportunity.

Kathy,
Thank you for your comments and for sharing your experiences. I've noticed your detailed reports and want to thank you for sharing them. I recall reading several recommendations you posted before out trip and they helped us while visiting Little Cayman just a few weeks ago.

Cheers,
Ricardo

 

[KathyV]

@Ricardo V. thanks for the great information and the kind words. I have dived Cumbers Caves and Bus Stop from boats and they are great sites. Although I really doubt that there was ever a bus on LC so I don't know how they came up with that name! There are only 4 resorts on LC and the woman you met must have been from Pirates Pointe.

I think that shore diving has always been a "second thought" in the Caymans, but the reefs are close to shore so it is a great option, and they can really help curb the expense! On GC you can spend $130 for a 2-tank boat dive, or $30 for 2 tanks to shore dive - and that's a big difference!

It is also a way for dive resorts with house reefs to cheaply extend the dive opportunities offered to guests. Places like Sunset House, Cobalt Coast, and Lighthouse Point give you free shore dives (but only on the house reef) if you do your boat dives with them. And Coconut Bay Condos have a nice shore dive op on site for $12 per tank!

But GC is not like Bonaire, most of the popular shore dive sites have an onsite dive shop and you rent tanks from them on the day. You don't load up the truck with tanks and go driving down the road looking for sites - like you do on Bonaire (and on Brac and Little Cayman as you know).

On the other hand, the shore dive entries on GC are usually pretty easy with ladders or steps - and there are often showers and changing rooms on site. At Turtle Reef you can rent a tank and weights for $15 from Sundowners, have a nice dive, enjoy lunch at Macabuca, and then get another tank and go back for your second dive. There are rinse tanks, places to hang your gear to dry, and there's an outdoor shower to rinse off. There are no changing rooms but there are large (air-conditioned) washrooms where you can change. After you are done diving you can have a drink at the bar - it's nice way to spend a dive day - and they are open for night diving, too - if you skip that drink!

Brac and Little have been slower to get into shore diving (slower in many ways - but I like that) although Brac seems to be more forward in this area. They have installed stairs and railings at several popular sites and have now installed signage to help divers find the shore dive sites. Little Cayman has always had the attraction of boat diving the BBW so you never hear much about shore diving there - thank you for sharing your experiences! I have only done boat diving on the sister islands but it sounds like shore diving would be a great option!

Another nice thing about shore diving in Cayman, you don't have to worry about leaving anything valuable in your car, or leaving the doors unlocked and the windows rolled down for fear that someone will break in! You have to use common sense wherever you are in the world, but the crime rates are pretty low in the Caymans.

 

[KathyV]

@Ricardo V. when you plan your return trip to LC, keep in mind that the island pretty much shuts down during the summer, see the link below. The LCBR stays open but the other resorts and many businesses do not, and there may be fewer flights available as well. The Village Store and the Liquor Store stay open, because I think that they are the only stores (and gas station) on the island.

https://www.caymancompass.com/2015/08/07/little-cayman-s-big-summer-shutdown/

P.S. Thank you for the LC shore diving link!

 

[AggieDiver]

@Ricardo V. thanks for the great information and the kind words. I have dived Cumbers Caves and Bus Stop from boats and they are great sites. Although I really doubt that there was ever a bus on LC so I don't know how they came up with that name! There are only 4 resorts on LC and the woman you met must have been from Pirates Pointe.

My guess would be that it was Susan Howard from Pirate's Point.

Regarding Bus Stop, the story I heard told was that when they were building/paving the North side road around Little Cayman back in the day, they had a crew of Jamaican laborers that rode to the work area each day in a beat up old bus. Either the bus broke down one day or they finished the project, and bus ended up pushed off into the trees near the beach. That location was where "the bus stop". If you say it with a Jamaican accent it sounds like a more likely story. I don't think the bus is still there, but apparently when they were naming dive sites, it was visible from the boat, so the site got the name "Bus Stop". Who knows if it is a true story, but that is the one I was told regarding the name.