Diving in Mexico

I am not sure why it took so long to go someplace warm and after over 250 dives Feb 05 was my first true warm water diving. Perhaps in some ways it was good because I wouldn't want to dive in cold water anymore. Not true as I have already been diving since.

Here are some pics from our trip in Feb 06. The resort is great and offers both reef and cenote dives. We dive with Lucky Fish diving which is just down the street. Chris the owner and tour guide is great although he is from Florida and has never dove under the ice. What he lacks in cold water diving he more than makes up in his cave diving exploration and instruction.

Beware of plastic gators in the Hidden Worlds Cenote	Not sure what bird this is but I took this picture without the zoom while in Casa Cenote.	Cathy and Chris on the reef at 90ft
Cathy wanted this picture with her bagpipes on the beach	Cathy in Casa Cenote near the hotel	You don't want to win this game. During our tour of Coba the winner of this handball/Soccer game would have the honour of being sacrificed. I guess the scoring leader board remained low.
Stalactites in the Hidden Worlds cenote	In my happy place	One of many Iguanas
Pyramid at Coba 114 steps tallest in the Yucatan.	A brightly coloured fish on the reef at the hotel.	Looking West towards the hotel. A great all inclusive hotel, as one guest put it "Its a bad chip from your room to the beach".

The resort we stayed at was excellent. It was perfect for the type of vacation we wanted. An all inclusive but with only 100 or so rooms it was not crowded. There were always lounge chairs available on the beach or at one of the four pools and always a bar nearby.

Cathy orders a drink at one of the all inclusive four bars.	Sunrise view of the Caribbean Sea from our room.	Standing at the Mayan ruins in Tulum
Again at the ruins, looking at an Iguana, the iguanas were everywhere	The Mayan show, the hotel had nightly entertainment, the Mayan show was the most spectacular of them all.	Freedom Paradise hotel entrance
Looking East over our rooms from the lookout tower. Note the breakers in the background breaking on the worlds second largest barrier reef.	Continuous nightly entertainment, these two played each evening at the inner bar.	Cathy and I enjoying each others company in the dining room.

The diving was crystal clear in both the caverns and the reef. Our first dive was in Gran Cenote with Abyss Dive charters in Tulum. Our guide was the "Swede" who took us out in the ramshackle van. The Cenote was not far but the van had a number of quirks and it did breakdown once. The Swede stated "just keep your eyes to the front" as he quickly engineered repairs and we were off again. The water was amazingly clear and each cave had a different look to it.

Our second dive was Calavera and equally unique. This one the entry was a 12' drop into the water which was a bit too much for some. Cathy chose to use the latter. The halocline where the salt water on the bottom meets the fresh water on top at about 50' is an interesting sight. It ripples like a flat pond at the surface and the salt water is one degree warmer than the fresh water. It also plays havoc with your buoyancy.

We had a Mayan guide for our reef dives and both dives were in the 40' range. Lots to see on the reef including a moray eel which I did get a picture of and a shark which I did not get a picture of. The shark was on our second reef dive and the camera was broken at this point.

Our fifth dive was with Lucky Fish Dive Center in Tankah bay. The dive centre was very close to the hotel and near Casa Cenote where we went snorkeling each day. We drove to Hidden Worlds and dove Dos Ojos. We entered through the "Bat Cave" which is a small opening and where your gear is lowered down through a hole. The water again was pristine with a number of unique rock formations.

Calaveras jumping in hole	It is very dangerous to swim past the sign, because once past you no longer can see daylight or have a clear path to an exit.	I had to get a picture of the back of the sign.
On the pristine beach waiting for the boat with the 83/84 truck. The truck was originally an 84 diesel but it has as many parts including the gas engine from an 83 truck. It has emission problems among other things much to the dismay of the local sunbathers.	A group of fish on the coral	Stalactites are everywhere within the underwater caverns.
Cathy looking back while moving through the caves.	Grand Cenote entry from below. the ripples from the surface can be seen on top.	Cathy swimming through one of the openings.