We knew that diving in Cozumel would involve boat diving and drift diving techniques. We were prepared…well, kind of. Katie, Brigette and I were pretty new to scuba diving and had read our books, watched the videos and taken our Knowledge Review tests on the subjects. It’s different than actually doing it though. I was worried that I’d let someone down by not knowing what the heck I was doing. I didn’t want to let the group down or hold anyone back. I also didn’t want to do anything stupid that Kris might think was reflective of his teaching. He’s been pretty patient with me and my bumbling through this process and I didn’t want to let him down. I didn’t want to let myself down either.
There were 10 divers in our group. With the exception of me and my pals Brigette and Katie, everyone else had WAY more experience as divers. My roommate, Karen, was boasting how she was going to complete her 500th…yes 5…0…0…dive while in Cozumel. I was just barely into double digits and she was talking 500. No pressure there.
We completed 15 dives while in Cozumel. 80 degree water…100 degree days. A person could really get used to this! No wonder some people experience something like this and decide to limit their future diving to only warm water. The clarity of the water there is unbelievable. The first time you descend, you almost go on sensory overload. There is so much to see. The deepest I dove was 113 feet. Even being that far down, you can still see the surface. Amazing! We went out on our boat, the Renegado, for 5 days in a row. Most days we did two morning dives then we’d come back to the hotel for lunch and go back out on the boat for an afternoon dive. Drift diving is great! The boat drops you off, you swim around for awhile, and when you surface, the boat is there to pick you up! Sweet!
The dive company we worked with, Dive Paradise, was a smoothly run business. Our Divemasters, Jaime and Santos, were very attentive to us “newbies” and were patient as we fumbled around underwater. They were also really great about pointing out sea life to us. Santos had a “squeaky” signal thing on his BC that he’d use when he spotted something. He had showed us hand signals for specific animals so we’d know what to look for.
I should tell you that when we were getting ready for our trip, I kind of became obsessed with wanting to see a sea turtle. I REALLY wanted to see one up close and personal…and I did! I even got a silver turtle charm while shopping in Cozumel. The turtle charm worked because we ended up seeing quite a few of them after I bought it! Throughout our diving we also saw nurse sharks, king crab, large groupers, beautifully colored tropical fish, eels, huge lobsters, and even a seahorse. It was a far cry from the small fish and anemone we were used to at home.
With the way Hotel Cozumel and Dive Paradise are set up, it made our diving experience worry-free. There was a dock right at the hotel that we would be picked up from each morning. There were also dive lockers right at the dock so we didn’t have to haul gear back and forth from our room every day. There was also a restaurant right next to the dock that we ate lunch at every day.
One day we only dove once in the morning because we took a long boat ride all the way out to the southern point of the island (Punta Sur) to dive “Devil’s Throat”. This dive is supposed to be a kind of “rite of passage” for divers in Cozumel. We were told it was a long “swim through” that you had to have a certain amount of air in your tank before they would even let you enter it. All I could picture in my mind was some narrow, dark tunnel that didn’t have an easy exit. Panic began to creep into my mind. I was more than a little nervous. Everyone else on the boat was so excited. I told Terry that I wasn’t sure that I could do it. Terry has claustrophobia issues and I knew that I’d get the straight facts from him. He told me that he’d done it and it wasn’t bad, but said that I didn’t have to do it if I wasn’t comfortable. He also told me that it was a pretty open area and not as confined as what I’d pictured. I ended up staying with the group and going through what is called “The Cathedral” and portions of “Devil’s Throat”. We learned later that the Divemasters didn’t take us through all of the “Throat” part of the dive because some of us didn’t have dive lights and it was pretty dark. We completed most of it though. Enough to say we’ve done it anyway!
Towards the middle of the week, some people asked about doing a night dive. What? At night? Pitch dark? Not being able to see other divers? I don’t know about that! I had done a dive at twilight at home, but never in complete darkness! Peer pressure being what it is and not wanting to be left behind, I followed along. I didn’t want it to be something that I wished I had done but chickened out. I can do this…I think! We all had dive lights and the Divemasters went over details of night diving skills while we were getting geared up. By this time, I had complete confidence in our Divemasters so I tried not to dwell on my fear of the unknown. I felt a little better when Karen told me she was nervous too. She didn’t have much experience with night diving despite her 500 dives. Phew! A little relief anyway. We agreed to stay close to each other. Again my fears were unfounded. It wasn’t as dark as I thought it would be. The water is so clear there and with everyone’s lights on it was easy to see each other and keep together. Karen and I forgot all about staying super close (of course we didn’t get too far away…beings as we were buddied up you know). We got so into looking for creatures that we forgot that it was night time. Night diving brings out a different kind of sea life. We saw quite a few spotted moray eels, king crab, a couple of octopus and lobster. I’m really glad I did it.
I overcame many fears while we were there. My fear of doing something stupid on the boat was always at the back of my mind…plus having a problem getting out of the water, swimming in caves (remember my claustrophobia?), accidentally touching the coral reef (big no-no!) and diving in the dark. I even kept my buoyancy pretty well under control! I only started to accidentally ascend once! Santos and John rescued me and I was back with the group. I have to remember not to panic and think through what I’ve learned. I still need to master maneuvering around without using my arms so much, but I’m sure that will come in time. Kris keeps asking me what I’m using my arms for and I tell him “rudders”. Oh well! I won’t make zero-to-perfect overnight!
For now, it’s back to “green water” and cold weather diving in my dry suit!
Lisa Grimm - Northwest Diver
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