manta ray

Manta Rays in the Maldives!

Dive Sites in the Maldives

Moofushi Kandu

This morning, we went back to the same dive site as yesterday afternoon, Moofushi Kandu, to try our luck with the mantas again. This time they were slightly more cooperative. One came in from the left and a little while later another came in from the right. They glided around elegantly for a few minutes before they decided that was enough. We were not in the best place for viewing. A huge school of blue striped snapper were right in front of us. Continue reading “Manta Rays in the Maldives!” →

octopus

Octopus, Giant Clams, and Turtles at Fish Head Reef…The Maldives

Well, we were up by 4:30 am. The time adjustment has been poor at best for us. We certainly haven’t needed the 6am wake up call! Today our dive briefing was at 6:15 instead of 6:30 so that we could beat a few boats into the water.

Dive Sites in the Maldives

Hafza Thila in North Ari Atoll

We dove Hafza Thila in the North Ari Atoll, that is once we found the site. Our group of 6 dropped into deep blue with our dive master and didn’t find the pinnacle so we had to surface, board the boat, and drop again. At first the visibility wasn’t that great, but that seems to be the case where there a slight current. The trade off is usually for a few shark sightings as they like to rest in the current. We spotted a giant moray as we circled around the reef and other divers but the best part to me was on the top of the pinnacle. Here we found countless seastars and anemones with their clownfish counterparts. The table coral was lovely and large enough for two baby white tip reef sharks to rest beneath its ledge. Overall it was a pretty nice dive though still a bit chaotic with multiple dive groups in the area. Hopefully we won’t be competing with boats on every site. Continue reading “Octopus, Giant Clams, and Turtles at Fish Head Reef…The Maldives” →

surgeonfish

White Eyed Eel, Sharks, and more at Kurumba House Reef and Maaya Thila

I believe I have only been on one dive boat live aboard previously, but have been on similar excursions for whale watching and sailing where we stay on a big boat and drag a dinghy behind us. I’ve never been on a live aboard when another flat decked dive boat the size of ours with tanks and a cover follows along. Though nothing fancy, it is nice to leave all our wet gear on the Dhoni.

The group of twenty four divers were broken into four smaller sections. Ramona, Michael, Julie, Dustin, Rootie and I comprised the “American” group who was led by Akko. There were also Asian, International, and German/Asian groups led by Chris, Ian, and Russ, respectively. Continue reading “White Eyed Eel, Sharks, and more at Kurumba House Reef and Maaya Thila” →

Elegant Eagle Ray Glided By Us as We Exited Spooky Channel

El Aguila Dive Site

Today we dove a wreck site called El Aguila. I agreed to go on the deep, wreck dive in an attempt to be open minded, to try once again and to not spoil Danielle’s and Cat’s fun, but honestly I’m not terribly fond of deep dives or wreck dives, and this was a combination of both! Wrecks aren’t my favorite probably because I’m afraid of running into sharp, rusted objects, and I’m slightly claustrophobic. Deep dives are more dangerous should equipment malfunction and from a photographer’s point of view, they are dull as there isn’t much marine life or color to shoot. Having said that, another dive shop chums the waters so we did see some big grouper and a free swimming eel. But I don’t really agree with feeding the fish either, so I was challenged from that aspect as well. Adding on to that, my mask kept filling with water and my camera on the wrong setting and jammed for part of the time, so needless to say I was rather unsettled! Continue reading “Elegant Eagle Ray Glided By Us as We Exited Spooky Channel” →

Baby Conch and Free Swimming Eel Spotted During Our Dives in Roatan

The diving changed yet again today. Mickey, the presenter from the other night, suggested diving Texas. The dive site is near West Bay, and perhaps a twenty minute boat ride or more, so we planned a two tank dive and completed our surface interval in West Bay. It was rough again this morning, though it’s all relative. Compared to many places, it really wasn’t, but in a small boat, we bounced through some rolling swells and caught some spray. Continue reading “Baby Conch and Free Swimming Eel Spotted During Our Dives in Roatan” →

Canyon Dive, Reef Dive, and Night Dive in Roatan

Another day in Roatan, another day of diving! I’m not sure I’d come here for any other type of vacation. Admittedly, I’ve hardly explored the island, so I could be jumping to conclusions, but with the second largest barrier reef five minutes away by boat versus days away like the Great Barrier, there are quite a few dive sites to explore. Today we dove Canyon Reef and Gibson Bight. What a variety! Continue reading “Canyon Dive, Reef Dive, and Night Dive in Roatan” →

hairy plumed crab

SCUBA Diving in Sandy Bay, Roatan…A New Species?!?

Things to Know Before Traveling to Roatan

100% Deet, 100% of the Time to Reduce Sand Fly Bites

I think I jinxed myself. I awoke itching like mad from the sand fly bites. The bright red dots with bands around them on Sunday that had shrunk to a small dots on Monday are now itchy welts! Thank you Cat for the Afterbite. While I’m speaking of the annoying things, I may as well mention a few more inconveniences for anyone who is considering visiting Roatan and Blue Bahia specifically. None of them would keep me from returning as the staff is lovely and the diving fantastic, but they are informational things to know. Continue reading “SCUBA Diving in Sandy Bay, Roatan…A New Species?!?” →

seahorse

Roatan’s Reefs – Seahorse, Octopus, Scorpionfish and More!

We began our day with a baleada for breakfast at the hotel restaurant. A baleada is a local cuisine consisting of egg, refried red beans, cheese, cream, and avocado tucked into a thick flour tortilla. It was mouth-watering good!

After scarfing down our meal, we organized our gear with the on site dive shop, Octopus Diving School and loaded on a small, bimini covered boat to go to our first dive site Melissa. We got there in about three minutes! We zipped up our wetsuits. I added a vest and hoodie because I get so cold despite the 83 degree water temperature. We continued with our fins, masks, BCD, regulator and tanks and rolled backwards into the water. Continue reading “Roatan’s Reefs – Seahorse, Octopus, Scorpionfish and More!” →