Ea a tit - Travis Marshall

Cozumel
By Travis Marshall
Where
Eas
y
is
an
44_August 2008
SCUBADIVING.com
Ins
t
20.30°
N.
86.55°
W.
Cozumel, Mexico
Get More
For more information
on the Cozumel, Mexico, turn to In Depth,
page 90, section 1.
Photos by Brandon Cole
i t ut i on
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Hard-core divers with time and money to burn will charter planes, boats,
camels—whatever—in their pursuit of awesome reefs, abundant marine
life and adrenaline-fueled drifts along coral-laced underwater walls. And
for many divers, the perceived level of adventure at any given dive destination exists in direct relation to the distance traveled off the beaten track
to dive there. Cozumel is the exception to this way of thinking. With direct flights from many major U.S. hubs, this current-swept island off Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula is arguably one of the most accessible and affordable dive destinations in North America, but this backyard beauty boasts
an unprecedented variety of top-notch dive sites.
Enjoy looking for macro life in the cracks
and crevices of a shallow reef? You could
burn a year’s worth of tanks searching for
seahorses, pipefish and fingernail-sized
nudibranchs in Cozumel’s coral gardens.
Prefer twisting and turning through a maze
of underwater canyons, pinnacles and swimthroughs? Cozumel’s mid-reef formations
put the minotaur’s labyrinth to shame. And
what about walls? In Cozumel, they’re deep,
vertical and bathed by stiff currents, schooling fish and the occasional pelagic. And like
any destination that truly understands the
draw of its underwater treasures, Cozumel’s
impressive dive infrastructure makes your
time here as easy and relaxing as you’ll find
anywhere in the world.
Step off the plane and there’s no rush
of aggressive taxi men to haggle with for a
ride. A taxi counter sells fares at a fixed rate,
which makes getting to your hotel or guesthouse in and around nearby San Miguel a
breeze. Plus, most locals speak English in
addition to Spanish, the dollar is the de facto
form of currency and because diving is the
name of the game, any place you stay will
have a system for getting you and your gear
to the boat with no stress included.
Underwater, the game stays the same.
As the unofficial drift diving capital of the
Caribbean, Cozumel’s diving is about as
easy as it gets. Not one site has a mooring because live-boat drift diving comes standard.
Just back roll or giant stride over one of the
sprawling reefs or plunging walls, make a
quick descent with your group and effortlessly ride the flow behind your dive guide
till you’re out of time or air—then make your
ascent and let the boat come to you rather
than the other way around. And with a great
collection of capable dive operators catering to everyone from noobs to techies, you’re
certain to find one that fits your specific
needs, location and experience level.
Along the southwest side of the island—
which faces the mainland across the currentswept channel—is where you’ll find 99.9
percent of Cozumel’s dive sites. The island
itself is basically a limestone coral cap sitting atop an underwater plateau, the edges
of which slope down gently from the shore
until they meet the steeply angled edge that
transitions into a vertical underwater wall,
and Cozumel’s dive sites generally fall into
one of three categories based on their placement along this underwater terrain:
Cozumel Reefs
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San Miguel
San Juan
Barracuda
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Our thanks
Los Isolotes
Galleon
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C-53
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Hotel Cozumel hotelcozumel.com.mx/eng
Aldora Divers aldora.com
Blue XT Sea Divers bluextseadiving.com
Dive Paradise diveparadise.com
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12. Punta Dalila
13. Palancar Gardens
14. Palancar Horseshoe
15. Palancar Caves
16. Palancar Bricks
17. Colombia Deep
18. Colombia Shallow
19. Punta Sur: Devil’s Throat
20. Punta Sur: Cathedral
21. Chun Chacob
22. Maracaibo
CHANKANAAB
NATIONAL PARK
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1. Paradise
2. Las Palmas
3. Chankanaab Shallow
4. Chankanaab Bolones
5. Tormentos
6. Yucab
7. Punta Tunich
8. San Francisco
9. Santa Rosa
10. Paso de Cedral
11. La Francesa
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Mid-Water Reefs and Pinnacles
Truly a diver’s playground, this category comprises Cozumel’s sites with the most dramatic underwater topography. Along the transitional
part of the slope, dramatic limestone pinnacles, canyons, swim-throughs and rounded coral mounds, carved out by the area’s steady current,
make up the top part of the wall. A good dive guide will lead you on incredible winding paths, showing you killer passageways cut in the rock
and letting you dive not just on the reef but inside it as well.
Palancar Caves
This is just one of a handful of
sites along the 3-mile-long Palancar
reef, the area’s biggest. The top starts
in the shallows and slopes to the
edge of the wall at about 100 feet. In
between, the reef is punctuated with
an endless maze of swim-throughs
and cathedral-like rooms with multiple entries and exits through which
shafts of light illuminate the darkness. This is a wonderland for divers
who love dramatic terrain, and the
abundant marine life includes larger
ocean going critters like spotted
eagle rays and black-tip reef sharks.
Paso De Cedral
A relatively flat reef with hills
that roll to the edge of the drop,
Cedral Pass ranges from about
40 feet to more than 100. This is
another place where the current gets
cooking. Leave the camera on the
boat when there’s a good flow, and
just enjoy the rippin’ ride. There are
plenty of ledges and hills along the
reef to duck out of the current, and
when you do, look for eels and nurse
sharks taking refuge along with you.
Shallow Coral Gardens
Palancar Horseshoe
These near-shore sites are personified by shallow—usually 25 to 60 feet—long strips of reef interspersed
with sandy channels and flats areas. These are great second and third dives because the shallow depths
provide ample bottom time to bathe among the sun-drenched, fish filled corals or cruise nonchalantly
with the current over rolling hills and valleys.
Colombia Shallow
A long backbone of reef
between 10 and 30 feet deep
crisscrossed by sand channels,
overhanging ledges and short
swim-throughs. This makes a great
second dive when your first is on
one of the outer walls where you’ll
likely redline your nitrogen levels.
Unless there’s a southern wind,
this site is well protected, with
calm surface conditions and little
current. But don’t let the ease of
this dive fool you. Elkhorn corals,
turtles and an impressive collection
of reef fish litter the landscape, and
the shallow depths give you tons
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of bottom time for scouring the
pockmarked reef for small stuff like
pipefish and splendid toadfish.
Tormentos Reef
True to its name, this site can
have hair-whipping currents that
sweep you like pelagic plankton
over the crests and valleys of rolling hills and reefs. Hurricane Wilma
did knock down some of this site’s
once famous stands of large brain
corals and barrel sponges, but fresh
growth is abundant, and the marine
life is here in force. Loads of oceanic triggerfish and angelfish graze
along the hillsides, and a good
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Named for the horseshoeshaped rock amphitheater carved
into the reef, this site ranges from
about 30 feet out to the wall. The
maze of caves and coral-covered
rock formations makes for a lovely
meandering dive along the deeper
section. Turtles, black-tips and
grouper are all likely sightings.
divemaster can spot seahorses and
other cool macro life.
Cardona Reef
This low-profile reef has a
maximum depth of about 45
feet. The highlight here is a long
series of overhanging ledges that
harbor loads of squirrelfish, glassy
sweepers, cardinal fish and spotted
drums.
Paradise Reef
Because this garden of shallow
patch reefs is less than a 10-minute
boat ride from the docks of San
Miguel, it’s a popular night dive.
The reef sprawls across a flat sandy
area that ranges from about 20 to
50 feet deep. You can zigzag back
and forth across the scattered gorgonian-fringed coral stands looking
for the little stuff, and at night this
area pops with color and nocturnal
life: octopus roam the reef looking
for midnight snacks, spiny and slipper lobsters scuttle around on the
bottom and Caribbean reef squid
shimmer in the water column.
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On the Fringe
Vertical
Walls
The northern stretch of the west-side wall, the far south and choice spots on the east side of the island are where
you’ll find the hard-to-get-to dive sites, and diving on the fringe in Cozumel often requires experience, patience
and a little luck. We talked to Memo Mendoza of Aldora Divers and Christi Courtney of Blue XT Sea Divers about
what you need to know to get there. Most importantly, you need to be honest about your experience level, plan
ahead and dive with the same group for your whole trip. “If you’re only diving a day or two with us, your chances
are very slim,” Courtney says. “I don’t care if your c-card says instructor on it. Until we know you as a diver, you’re
just like everyone else. I always say ‘don’t tell me—show me.’”
This is where the reef meets the
blue water. Deep-water corals
and rock formations jutting out
perpendicular to the wall into the
abyss exemplify this category.
Goin’ North
Barracuda
and San Juan Reefs
Screaming currents, untouched
reefs, looming rock ledges and
an above average shot at big pelagics are the highlights of this
rarely visited site.
Conditions Downcurrents
or currents pulling away from
the wall make it easy for divers to
get separated, and rough surface
conditions can make it hard for
the captain to follow the divers or
see them on the surface. For these
reasons, boats can’t take divers
here without prior permission
from the harbormaster.
Experience—Expert. “Barracuda requires a tremendous
sense of team,” Mendoza says.
“With currents that strong, everything gets magnified. It’s not like
diving Palancar where, if you get
separated from the group, you
can just come up on your own
and the boat can pick you up.”
Santa Rosa Wall
Winding tunnels start at the
top of the wall and run to the
steep edge of the sponge and
coral encrusted wall. Boulders and
formations fringe this wonderfully
colorful site, and the wall is long
so you can easily do multiple dives
without covering the same areas.
Currents can be strong here on the
lesser-protected southern reefs, but
Santa Rosa’s large formations offer
ample opportunities to duck in and
out of the flow. Look under the rock
lips that jut off the wall to see huge
black grouper and the occasional
barracuda.
The Far South
Chun Chacab
and Maracaibo Reefs
Palancar Deep
Just south of Palancar caves.
This deepest manifestation of Cozumel’s largest reef starts at about
40 feet and drops well into the
channel. Cracks and chasms slash
the reef wall, and the spaces in
between overflow with soft corals,
anemones, and as small fish dart
in and out of the reefscape, larger
groupers hang out under ledges and
jacks cruise the edge.
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Colombia Deep
This exposed reef lies just south
of the island, and it’s subject to
strong currents and surface conditions. But the often-stellar visibility
paired with a terrain comprising forests of steep coral and rock pinnacles
shaped by the strong currents make
this a can’t-miss dive. Giant grouper
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and lazy sea turtles tuck into the
ledges, and the site’s proximity to
the drop off makes encounters with
sharks and rays a distinct possibility.
Punta Sur
Starting at 100 feet and plunging into the depths, this site is for
experienced divers only. Devil’s
Throat—a long vertical cave that
pops out of the wall at about 130
feet—is the most famous section
of this reef. Dodgy conditions can
make this spot hit-or-miss, and the
whole boat needs to be experienced and comfortable to dive
here.
Maracaibo Wall is a deep dive,
often around 130 feet, where
amazing rock formations include a massive archway. Maracaibo Shallows and rarely dived
Chun Chacab offer pristine
corals unlike anything on the
island. “The reefs don’t get the
same stress that the closer ones
get. It’s never crowded,” Courtney says. “And all the big pelagic
life I’ve seen in Cozumel, I’ve
seen at Maracaibo.”
Conditions—Rough, wind
churned surface conditions, fast
currents and deep dives—need
we say more?
Experience—Expert. “Divers need excellent buoyancy
skills and kicking techniques.”
Mendoza says. “They also need to
know how to use their computers,
how to follow a contingency plan
and have good air consumption.”
Braving the
Windward Side
Los Atolones
The draw of the east side is the
draw of virgin territory, sites unseen by other divers. There are
unique mushroom-like formations called Los Atolones—mini
atolls formed by freshwater
bubbling through the limestone
substrate—more elkhorn coral
than anywhere in Cozumel, and
the dives are relatively shallow, about 50 feet. “We explore
in areas without cars, developments or human establishments,” Mendoza says. “It awakens the conquistador spirit.”
Conditions—Wind must be
practically non-existent to dive
here. Mendoza recommends telling him on your first day if want
to dive the east side. He’ll watch
the wind, and if a day looks
good, he’ll drive over and double
check the conditions early so
you can still make it on the regu-
lar boats if it doesn’t work out.
Experience—Intermediate. “These dives are not hard,”
Mendoza says. “But you have to
be a self-dependant diver: comfortable in small boat on choppy
water, able to set up your own
gear and able to care for yourself
within the group.”
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Cozumel Resources
+ Dive With Martin, 1-888-512TRIP, vacationconnectionnrh.com
+ Blue XT Sea Diving, 888-5122991, bluextseadiving.com
+ Bay Adventures, 888-599-3483,
bayadventures.com
+ Caradonna Dive Adventures,
800-328-2288, caradonna.com
+ Scuba Club Cozumel, 800-8475708, scubaclubcozumel.com
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